Wendy Moore’s top calming, liveable colour trends for Australian homes
Colour has the power to change your mood, update your look and even define a design. The latest colour trends completely transcend fads, meaning they are liveable, lovable and best of all, deliver long-lasting style. Here’s four colourways effortlessly delivering calming colour and Zen vibes
Colour isn’t just a way to express ourselves, it’s long known to have a significant effect on our emotions–for example, red adds energy, green brings calm and yellow encourages optimism. In the past, colour trends have been treated like fads, green is in, red is out – but the truth is that colour is a highly personal preference, and using your favourite colours is the shortcut to making a house feel like your home. It’s the most simple way to stamp yourself on a space, making it uniquely yours. The good news is, the latest colours trending in interiors reflect this shift in how we think about colour.Here’s a few of the looks that are set to stay the course.
Image: Porters Paints in French Green.
LOOK 1: EVERGREEN
Love the look: There’s something so inspiring about the colour green, a perennial favourite of mine.It’s best embraced in a swathe of varying hues and layers to bring depth and interest. According to Dulux, it perfectly enhances a space without overpowering it. I will always love, love, love it because it brings a sense of balance and calm, and pairs well with other hues like deep blues and warm whites, making it incredibly versatile.
How to bring it home: Soothing yet raw, the latest earthy greens have depth and character and feelalmost neutral. I love these examples starring wainscoting and VJ panelling, which really ground aspace and bring welcome character. Pair it with raw umber and ochre tones to bring softness and contrast.
Image photography: Melissa Heath/Selling Houses Australia. Wall painted in Excalibur by Wattyl; Atrium Barker Navy rug, by Flooring Xtra.
LOOK 2: COUNTRY SOPHISTICATE
Love the look: Urban luxuries meet country glamour in a look that reflects our desire to hold on to the important things we reconnected with during our pandemic lockdowns. This look moves country style away from the fussy layers of pattern we’ve seen in the past, and towards a chic palette of warm whites balanced by earthy timbers, natural stone and exposed brick. Inspired by Ralph Lauren, the country sophisticate look includes crisp navy and blue, white and brown as well as some leather accents.
How to bring it home: It’s all about that deep blue feature wall, as seen in this example in Ipswich from the season 15 of Selling Houses Australia. Heralding both stormy skies and ocean depths, this palette delivers ultimate cosiness and a real sense of home when paired with textured leathers and warming ochres – yet is effortlessly chic and timeless.
Image credit: Marnie Hawson; Wall painted in Mineral, Porters Paints; Artwork: Waiting for Pizza in Coffin Bay; Carpet: Try Troika, Bremworth.
LOOK 3: MOODY NEUTRALITY
Love the look: Neutrals are now made to be seen, offering depth, maturity and warmth. We’re seeing neutrals getting a chic modern update, and not in the way you’d expect, moving away from white-on-white towards a mature palette of deeper tones such as warming mushrooms, smokey grey and deep green (see Evergreen, above). Here, the vibe is decidedly denlike, rich and moody, carried from the walls to the ceiling for a cocooning vibe.
How to bring it home: Lots of texture is essential to bring essential interest and layers. Paint can be truly transformative, it’s true, but success here is also about a full colour wash. Sandy sheers, an earthy rattan shade, tactile wool carpet underfoot, and even artwork referencing the same tonal gallery, all bringing warming hues and layered texture to this interesting, engaging look - it’s hard to imagine this space having the same effect with white-painted walls and ceiling.
Image: Paint is ‘Adobe’ by Haymes Paint.
LOOK 4: COLOUR ME MELLOW
Love the look: This warming palette is influenced by the hues of Morocco but delivered in a modern Australian setting. Drawing upon hues of sand, clay, spices, and sunsets, these earthy and organic associations evoke a connection to nature. In fact, warm colours, like yellows and oranges, are considered stimulating yet comforting, evoking feelings of happiness and relaxation simultaneously, encouraging positive energy and create a calming environment.
How to bring it home: ideal for soft spaces like bedrooms and living rooms, dress walls in these soothing hues and draw upon the same palette for muted but comforting surrounds - a pile of earth-toned cushions, clay pots and accessories or even a terracotta toned rug underfoot will bring this trend home.