Author Elizabeth Metcalfe travels around Britain researching New English interiors, collaborating with dozens of artists, from artists Annie Morris and Idris Khan to designers Luke Edward Hall and Duncan Campbell. We visited the creator’s house. As the book hits shelves, she summarizes five important lessons she’s learned about working with color in homes large and small, rural and urban.
It’s one thing to realize that brightly colored lampshades and patterned fabrics are your preference, but quite another to combine them to create a cheerful and cozy interior. One of the joys of researching and writing a book about the homes of 22 of today’s most exciting creators was discovering an endless variety of colors, from earthy palettes to wonderfully bold and theatrical colors. After all, these homes are very personal visual mood boards for their owners, but there are also many lessons to be learned from each home. Here are five important tips to keep in mind when working with color in your living space.
Don’t worry about “tastiness”
What I learned from all the characters in this book is that there is no really right or wrong. It should be about what you are attracted to. Creative consultant Max Hurd’s interiors may not be everyone’s cup of tea, full of clashing colors, patterns, and favorite trinkets, but the result is a space that perfectly represents him. “I think my mom thought I was a little crazy when I explained the idea of a colorful rainbow house, but we really stuck with the spirit,” Hurd says. Illustrator Fee Greening took a similarly personal approach for her Dorset holiday home, opting for rich, earthy tones that she and partner Dan White love. “Our house is basically the same color as the socks we wear,” Fee says. I love that the blue cupboard in the living room was inspired by the jeans Fee was wearing when she painted the room orange.
A riot of color in one of Max Hurd’s bedrooms.
Photo: Dean Hahn
Leaning towards a “just do it” attitude
Often the biggest barrier to painting walls a glossy yellow is the fear that it will look terrible, but the worst-case scenario is having to repaint it. So don’t give up trying something. For example, lampshade maker Rosi de Luig decided to change the color of her Dorset living room from a cool sky blue to a calming, soft pink. “I think that’s what’s so freeing about painting; it’s relatively easy to change,” she explains. At Luke Edward Hall and Duncan Campbell’s holiday home in the Cotswolds, a small fire inspired them to rethink their entire color palette for the better. The mustard yellow dining room has been reimagined in shades of ocher, and the previously blue guest rooms have been given a whole new look in the light bronze green of Little Green. “Actually, I think we chose the colors too early in the first round. It was a great opportunity,” Duncan says.
