Your home should be your safe haven, a place where you can unwind and recover from dealing with the stresses of the outside world. Interior designer and founder of Home and Harmony Lifestyle Christa O’Leary put it best when she said:
“Your home either nurtures and supports you or depletes your energy and leaves you exhausted,
“…it is more important than ever to create a calm and peaceful space that allows you to recharge.”
And to that, we couldn’t agree more. Transforming your space into a calming environment can be easier than you might think, and doesn’t always require a complete overhaul of the features you already have installed. Perhaps you just want to refresh your feature cushions with a new, spring shade or opt for a Designers Guild luxurious bedding set in a statement print – there’s always a way to participate in the latest trends, no matter your budget or time restraints.
Whether you’re gearing up for a complete overhaul of your home, or just want to reinvent your accent pieces, read on to find out how to use these natural tones to introduce a new sense of calm into your space.
Natural tones are fairly easy to incorporate into your home, and come in such a wide range of options. Whilst you may just imagine a palette filled with nothing but beige, the truth is that there’s actually black, white, ivory, grey, beige and so many other shades of brown to play with, which lend themselves to being paired with brighter, bolder colours.
Choose a natural tone as the base colour of the room you wish to transform, and work the rest out from there. Thanks to Pantone, and their double Colour of the Year decision, it really couldn’t be easier to match up natural with bold. First you have Ultimate Grey – perfect for the predominantly natural features. Using the living room as an example, opt for white walls, perhaps with an Ultimate Grey feature wall, and grey sofas. Then, take inspiration from the second Pantone recommendation Illuminating, which is a vibrant yellow, when it comes to the rugs and cushions placed on the furniture.
Moving onto the bedroom, and here comes the opportunity to go a little darker. Whilst white is always a good choice, known to be an energy reviver and introducing light into the room, adding a dark wallpaper onto one wall or even some stylish blackout curtains can help to provide you with the perfect sleeping environment.
If you’re someone who is bolder with your colour choices, so you find yourself struggling to get to grips with a more natural colour palette, there’s always the option of utilising these colours within more intricate patterns or textiles. Really embrace nature with woodland themed wallpaper in the study, or as a feature wall in the spare room. Go natural with your furniture and opt for bare wood pieces for a more rustic feel. An oak coffee table, without a glossy finish, can be the ideal way to bring your living room into the natural tones trend.
With black also being classed as a natural tone, despite being a slightly harsher colour, choosing dark leather chairs or sofas to fill your space can be the perfect addition, alongside a soft grey rug and ivory walls. Avoid ending up with a room that’s filled with doom and gloom by placing yellow statement pillows across seating areas and choosing a light colour for the rest of the textiles in the room, such as curtains and carpets. By keeping all tones muted, you’ll ensure that your environment will remain calming and not cluttered with too many shades.
