We’re thinking of moving away from the soft, subtle, and beachy whole-house color scheme that we have going on here and towards something more moody, risky, and sophisticated at the new house. Here’s hoping it works for us (you never know… and we’re the first to admit that sometimes we end up repainting). We’re definitely no strangers to covering our mistakes with another coat or two of something new if we don’t like how things look when we step back and check things out (after sharing the “outtake” pics with you guys of course). So it might take us a few tries to settle on a scheme we love, but right now we’re considering something along these lines:
We haven’t pulled any swatches yet (but we’ll be sure to share actual paint colors when we get there), but right now we’re loving eggplant, soft lavender-pink, slate blue, light gray, avocado green, saturated teal, muddy blue-gray, navy, emerald, artichoke green, chocolate brown, and light khaki. Not all on the walls of course, but also in the curtains, rugs, painted and upholstered furnishings, art, and accessories. Although we’re definitely planning to add pops of different accent colors in a much wider range of tones- these are just the bigger hues that we plan to use more liberally throughout the house for something that’s hopefully cohesive but not too repetitive.
We’re thinking that the overall effect of the colors/decor in our new house will still be semi airy & natural (it’s what we love, what can we say?), but we hope that adding more contrast, more saturated hues, and even more layers of texture (by working in some new furnishings, a few new rugs, more colorful art, and new fabrics galore) will give it a bit more zing than our current soft and subtle vibe. We’re also envisioning a switch from our beloved breezy white curtain panels to printed and saturated floor length drapes in every room of the new house along with a plush upholstered headboard in the master and even some wallpaper going on in a few places. And we’re thinking that a darker sectional would be a fun departure from the light slipcovered sofas you’re used to seeing in our spaces (we’ll craigslist them to get some moolah to put towards the new sectional, since it has pretty much been my life goal to have a big enough living room for a sectional where all of our family can gather).
We’re even thinking about repainting some of our white pedestal tables and our double desk with something smokier and more dramatic. To see a few mood boards we’ve envisioned for the new house, click here and here. Although we’re already thinking about a different bed possibility (we’d like to build one along with a DIY headboard). Who knows where we’ll end up.
What color schemes are floating around your heads these days? Anyone else feeling a shift from light tans and mochas to soft grays and even artichoke, slate blue, and deeper gray-green tones? Anyone going the opposite way and segueing into more breezy and light hues as opposed to the smokier and more high contrast ones that we’ve mentioned? Let’s talk about color. Is there really anything else in the world that’s more fun to discuss? Not to me. Except for my baby girl. I can bore you to tears with stories about her but I’ll save that for my weekly phone call with my mom…
Katie K says
Those colors look great, I can’t wait to see things come together at your new house. Personally I’m loving blues, greens, and browns in my own home. I’m also loving teal but having hard time finding the color in my mind out in the stores. Oh well, it’s fun to look for it.
Mike @HA says
OOh, I like! We’re definitely feeling more gray lately, in a good way. The top right of your color pallet is pretty close to our paint colors. We have photos of our finished rooms in blues, grays, and slate grays along with the actual paint color names on our before and afters:
http://www.athomealterations.com/p/before-and-after.html
thehagmalife says
I’m in agreement about the wintriness of the palate – and what I’m envisioning is switching out the heavier/more saturated drapes for the white ones in spring/summer. Accessories could be switched out as well for a more open, airy vibe in the warmer months, and a cozier vibe in the cooler months. Looking forward to seeing more!
Amanda says
Yes yes yes!!!! I am a huge fan of the new palette & looking forward to being more intrigued by what sorts of decor/paint you come up with! Not that I’m not a loyal follower regardless, but I’m very happy with this :)
Good luck, I know change can be scary!
Allison says
I can’t tell you how happy this makes me! I’ve been a fan of your blog foe ages but have never commented before, but this post is just what I’ve been hoping for! In the past my husband and I have predominantly leaned towards neutrals, but recently I’be been thinking a lot about introducing more colour. We’ve just finished painting our bedroom a lovely slate blue colour, and our oak furniture and white sheets look great against it. I’ve been toying with the idea of introducing some teal / blue-grey / celery green into our very neutral living room but haven’t quite been able to imagine how it will turn out, so I am very excited to see what you come up with. After that I’d like to look at our other rooms (not many, we have a pretty small flat) to try and make the overall scheme more cohesive. Incidentally, this feeling of wanting more colour has coincided with the arrival of our baby boy three months ago – I know you posted about that a little while ago and we’re definitely going through a decorating transition too. All of our neutral things that once felt so fresh and calming now seem pretty dull when seen through a baby’s eyes. And also because I’m home a lot more in the day now, I’m sick of only seeing various shades of cream! I can’t wait to see what you do with your new place, very good luck with your move x
Kyle says
I’ve always been a fan of light, breezy, airy, natural color, fabric, and texture schemes. Every now and then I contemplate moving away from it slightly or even completely scrapping everything and going for something wild and new but I always chicken out (and go back to my natural tendencies). Someday…someday. Bravo to you two. It takes guts.
susan says
Srtolled thrugh my favorite store(IKEA) on Saturday with my industrial design engineer son. Learned lots about the design of the products and loved looking at all the different paint colors used in their show rooms. Loving gray paired with so many different colors. Great job picking your new colors. We all can’t wait until you start on the new house!
Danielle says
Our bedroom is that deep purple in the first row, and our bathroom is that light gray at the end of the row, our son’s nursery is that lighter green in the second row, and our living room has that darker brown…so um, obviously I love these colors! LOL Can’t wait to see how you use them!
Kaitlyn says
Love the color scheme! It actually is quite similar to our new house’s color scheme. We are going for an earth tone vibe, with some lavender-gray walls and a slate blue room as well. The living room and hallways are all tan, which helps with transition but makes each room feel like it’s own defined space (which really works for our house’s layout!)
Allison M says
Are you going to leave the built in closets in your master bedroom for the new owners?
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Allison,
Yes, the built-in closets along with the bed frame itself conveys with the sale of our house. We just figured they were a great part of what made that room functional and inviting so we wanted them to stay with the house since they’re such a custom fit.
xo,
s
Bonnie says
Hey Guys,
I love this new color palette! We just moved and I really want to use the dramatic purple/plum in our bedroom! I am sure you will make the color scheme work beautifully :)
Can I ask you something? In order to pick a color, we plan to follow your advice and get swatches first. How exactly does one obtain the swatches? (Can you tell I am a novice?)
Thanks,
-Bonnie.
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Bonnie,
Swatches are available for free at most paint retail locations (like Home Depot, Benjamin Moore, Lowe’s, etc). So just bring them home and hold them up and see what you like. After that you can also purchase a small pot of tester paint for a few bucks to paint a 2 foot by 2 foot square on the wall to further ensure that you love the color before fully committing. Good luck!
xo,
s
LizzieBeth says
Love the new scheme! I was never one for the neutrals– I love all things bold and colorful!
Right now I am obsessed with orange. I want it on every pillow and wall art I can find!
Kristen @ House Of Edison says
Looooving it!
I’m a natural earthtone enthusiast and since we have moved to Arizona (aka the DESERT!) I am finding myself shifting to the softer and more brighter tones. What do you think of the color palate yellows, blues, and greens for an eating area? And tans and blues for a living area?
YoungHouseLove says
Sounds lovely! I say go for it!
xo,
s
Melissa E says
New colours are so fun and exciting. This past summer my family and I moved to a new house and in my bedroom went from a bright yellow (with red and black accents) at the old place to a dark taupe muddy colour now with grey/teal for the master bath. I love them individually and together they are such a beautiful combination.
Also, I find myself calmer here. It could definitely be that there is more space for everyone but I feel that being surrounded by these soothing colours is doing the trick as well.
Rena says
I absolutely love our eggplant sofa and love seat that we have had for several years now. We also have a chair and a half with large ottoman in a plaid of eggplant/tawny gold/light and dark sage green. Before we recently moved I had beautiful green curtains. These colors help keep the room warm and cozy although it really is a large great room/kitchen area with lots of large uncovered windows. Moving is a great time to change your colors around. Enjoy.
MDASAY says
Just finished cutting in the first coat of Behr Melted Chocolate on “big” wall going up our stairs. Love it so far. We also went with a bit darker than usual (for us anyway) color for the hallway with Behr Gobi Desert. With the snow falling softly outside, these darker colors do tend to make our home homier…Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Lisa says
Oh yes! I have saved this mood board in my inspiration folder for our next house. I love it so:
http://brynalexandra.blogspot.com/2010/10/our-dining-room-design-board.html
Megan says
Love it! While I really liked your old house, this is more in the style of mine. After 7+ years in our home, I am looking for some new inspiration. I’d love to see a post on knowing when to redecorate. I love my house, but I don’t want to end up being the family with a totally outdated house and they don’t realize it. How do you know when the stuff you (still) like isn’t in style anymore?? And how do you convince your husband to get on board with getting rid of perfectly fine stuff that just needs to be refreshed??
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Megan,
I got very lucky with John (he’s just as into home stuff as I am- probably because he loves getting his hands dirty and transforming something for himself… instead of paying someone else to do it or buying something new). As for how we know if something that we like is in style or will be in the future- we don’t! We decided a long time ago that we should decorate our house so it makes us happy and not worry about what’s in or out or anything like that. We figure it’s the place we come home to every day, so we’re the “audience” that matters. Hope that makes sense! In other words: do what makes you happy and you’re guaranteed to love your home! And things like paint and curtains and accessories can easily be changed out in the future, so have fun with them. It definitely beats being paralyzed with indecision and living in a place that you feel blah about. Good luck!
xo,
s
Michele says
I definitely prefer shades of gray as a neutral over shades of beigy-brown. It just strikes me as much more contemporary.
My husband and I have been on the hunt for a sectional for a quite a while now – trying to find the perfect balance of style, function and price. By which I mean (of course), that it has to look good, be comfortable and not be terribly expensive. Tough order to fill!
We saw tons of pieces that were comfortable and affordable, but ugly (think that big, puffy style that is synonymous with the 80s), others looked great, but weren’t terribly comfortable and were also kind of expensive, and we even a few that were comfortable, affordable AND attractive in terms of style, but not color. Call me stubborn, but I wanted a GRAY sectional, not a beige one.
Well, we FINALLY found it at Macy’s furniture showroom yesterday and I am so, so, so psyched. Unfortunately, we have to wait until JANUARY for it to be delivered. Booo!
But, it’s worth it, because it’s gorgeous, comfortable, AND it didn’t break the bank!
Ginna says
Have you ever found a good place to get slipcovers for sectionals? I would love to recover one we already have rather than buy a new one, but am not sure how to find something that would fit the shape…
YoungHouseLove says
That’s the question of the decade. We haven’t had much luck with the off-the-shelf slipcovers sold by Target or Bed Bath & Beyond (they always feel frumpy and ill-fitted since they’re not custom). So the best solution is to get one made for you… but it can cost anywhere from $200-600 and beyond. Yikes, right?! The best suggestion we’ve come up with is to find a find a friend who can sew and try to recruit them to help you make some custom fitted covers for your sofa with you. Maybe pay him or her with pizza and cookies? Hope it helps! If anyone else has a better slipcover source definitely share it!
xo,
s
Brianna says
Love the colors. The aubergine is very bold! Surely your going to keep enough white to work in your ceramic animal collection aren’t you?
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yeah. They’ll definitely be in the next house. And they might pop more off of saturated walls.
xo,
s
Tracy Lee says
Greys have been considered the new neutral for a while now, and I personally love Benjamin Moore Horizon if you’re looking for something light and airy! I love how grey just looks so much more sophisticated than beige. I would rather leave a wall stark white than paint it beige, so maybe I’m just prejudiced!
Stephanie says
We painted our main rooms SW Austere Gray (after FOUR false starts with other colors). Sometimes it looks blue, sometimes green (but never “gray”). It looks funky sophisticated with avacado/apple/lime green — not colors I thought I was drawn to but I adore them as accents against this paint color. It also goes great with wine red/cherry/white/off-white/brown/purple/yellow. In fact it goes well with every color I can think of…
They call that a neutral, right? :)
aaroohii says
I hope u guys don’t go dark..cos I love the bright and airy feeling ur x-house gave
Lauren says
I believe we have the same life goal! I’ve been scouring Craigslist for a well-priced sectional, but haven’t found one that I love and can afford … yet!
Selina says
Hey guys. I’m really excited to see what you have in store with the projects and ideas for your new house! I have a random question regarding holiday giving.
How do you handle it when a loved one thoughtfully gives you a gift for your home that’s not your style or you can’t imagine fitting into your decor? Has that ever happened to you guys?
YoungHouseLove says
We actually don’t get many home related gifts (I think our fam and friends figure we have it covered) but when we do we sincerely thank the person for the thought, put it out a time or two when they next visit, and then donate or garage sale it. We figure life is too short to hold onto items that you don’t love out of obligation.
xo,
s
Erin says
I hope that this isn’t taken the wrong way, but how do you handle the pressure to decorate when there are so many people hanging on your choices? I love your blog and reading some of these comments would terrify me if I had so many people waiting to see how I decorated my new house!
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Erin,
We just decorate for ourselves. We figure it’s our house, and while we love sharing our adventures (and misadventures) with all of our amazing readers, we don’t expect everyone to love everything we do at all (not even close!). At the end of the day if we’re happy with our choices, that’s all that matters to us. We’re big believers in to each their own. We figure if we tried to satisfy everyone we’d end up satisfying nobody.
xo,
s
Jean says
I think we’re going in opposite directions! Most of my house is currently painted in darker, more earthy colors (sage in the bedroom, gold in the dining room, and burnt red in the living room), but lately I’ve been feeling like I want to lighten the whole place up and go with much more subtle colors on the walls and bring in pops of color in other ways.
Lydia says
I am so excited that you are considering purple in your new color scheme! Purple is my favorite color and I use it as an accent in our peanut butter-colored living room (don’t worry, it’s subtle.. I don’t go overboard with it!). You don’t have many mood boards with purple in it, so I can’t wait to see what you come up with!
Angeline says
Gorgeous colors! I’ve been in love with deep red, saturated navy, and slate gray for a while–can’t wait to actually have a place to put my mark on (hopefully next year!).
I really love the greens and browns you picked, though!
Jill M says
We have different shades of the slate blue throughout the first floor of our house. The nice thing is, it goes with so many other colors so we can throw in some pops of orange for fall or lime green in the spring. We put the darkest shade in our brightest room…the sunroom. Love it!
Kristen says
I like that you guys are going for something more dramatic! Although I love light and airy, I find myself super attracted to bright saturated or jewel colors. I ESPECIALLY love grey with purple; I think that always looks classic.
One thing that I also really appreciate is that you guys are willing to paint constantly. When I was growing up, I lived in this wonderful room above the garage that had a cathedral ceiling. But for some reason, my mom let me pick the color of my room when I was 7, and it was very similar to the second color in the first row. So the entire room was painted that color, along with a similar pink rug. I grew to absolutely hate it. I was finally allowed to repaint it when I was 18 to a beautiful teal with a sky (but not pastel) blue accent wall with white ceilings and bright white trim. At first, my mom hated the colors I had picked, but the moment they went up, my room was suddenly everyone’s favorite! It was like being on a vacation constantly. I didn’t get a new carpet, but with the new colors, most people didn’t even notice the pink carpet anyway!
Just watch out for letting Clara pick her room color when she gets older! Seven-year-olds don’t always have the best long term design planning skills! ;)
Erin S says
Love the new color scheme! The first time I painted a living room wall slate blue I was worried it would look dark and cold, but it’s the warmest-looking room in the house! Bravo for bold color choices!
Btw, I’ve used every paint on the market (we move A LOT) but I swear up, down, left, and right by Sherwin-Williams Harmony paint – it’s the low-VOC formula and even with rich colors I almost always can get away with just one coat plus a few touch-ups. It’s a few bucks more per gallon but I end up using much less than I would with Behr or Valspar, plus you can get excellent coupons if you sign up for their e-newsletter. And, you know, thumbs up for low-VOC!
Jennifer says
I love the deep saturated colors! We’re currently trying to find a good color scheme to go with our living room. We have Behr cafe creme walls with stark white trim, light hardwood floors, and hunter green couches. We’re decided on a black-brown entertainment center/tv stand, but we will need some lighter/brighter colors and patterns to lighten up the room. I LOVE looking at your mood boards for inspiration. Do you have any suggestions for our color palette?
Jennifer
YoungHouseLove says
Amber or celery accents could be pretty. Good luck!
xo,
s
JenniG says
I literally squaled when I saw your color palatte – it is like you took it straight from my house! My main living/dining is painted sage green with an eggplant wall in the dininig room, and all the accents are deep purple, bright acid green, and peacock blue. Dark wood floors and trim (in my 90+ year old home) with lots of gray and white furniture. My bedroom is that dark, smoky, gray-blue in your scheme, with a huge white duvet and white padded headboard (target online – love it!) all the rest of the walls are an oyster gray. I think you will be very happy in this new, modern, cool, dramatic place!
April says
I love the eggplant color, but let me warn you, it’s a bitch to photograph correctly. I have an eggplant accent wall in my living room, and the other three walls painted an amazing greige color. The wall opposite the eggplant wall is basically a gigantic window, and I have tried every which way to photograph it true to color, to no avail. I have some photos I just took mid day to upload later on. Maybe your fancy camera could do it properly though!
carey says
LOVE it!!! This is almost exactly the palette in our home right now (minus the plum/purples, which we want to implement soon). We spent monts on picking out colors and found the perfect shades for us. Holler if you want paint colors! (we have warm grays, cool grays, & blue green, and artichoke/gray green)…
Lizzy says
I personally am quite tired of the “beachy” thing… mostly because everything just looks so washed out. I want my color to be a COLOR!!!
Plus, I just bought ahouse with a WHOLE lot of crown moulding and trim and it’s darker and I could NEVER bring myself to paint it.
melissaG. says
LOOooooVE the eggplant. My hubby and I painted one wall in our dining room a rich plum and love it! I was a little nervous that we would get sick of it and it’s been about 8 months and every time I look at it, I smile. :o) Go for it!
Stephanie B says
My husband and I painted our office gray – (Sherwin Williams – Mega Greige) and I am obsessed with it! Wish we had painted more rooms in the house (specifically bedrooms) this color!
Sara @ House Bella says
I am loving this new colors you are pulling out – I mean, love, love. I could go on a rant about beachy neutrals right now, but I’ll just leave it at saying that I think a little bolder and a little riskier will pay back in kind. I can’t wait to see what you do – these colors are beautiful.
Tuyet says
I love these colours – especially the eggplant! I’ve been wanting to paint our dining room wall an eggplant, but since the main floor is open (kitchen/dining & living room), it’s been difficult to find colours that would flow nicely. Can’t wait to see how you guys incorporate it!
elizabeth says
Exciting! I love picking out paint colors! When it comes to paint color, I think it just depends on the room, the size, the wood/flooring in the room, and the feel you want to get from that room. Then you will find the perfect color. Everything changes in life and your color choices will too. I tend to love the by-gone era and LOVE the taupes, greys, honey-yellow,dusty purples,and earth-toned colors. I also love the look of leather, black iron, and twig swags, and oak floor, white kitchen cabinets, and tall ceilings. Your house is a reflection of you…make it a great one!
Halley (Blunder Construction) says
I really love the eggplant and turquoise shades you picked out (maybe because those represent 80% of my closet currently :P) I’m about to move, and sticking with the same color theme in the new place. Warm tones of orange, yellow, red, and solids black and tan, accents of gold.
Sarah@StylenandCentsability says
Your colors are great. We have a similar palette minus the eggplant (which is stunning by the way.
We have a similar blue in our den and everyone loves it
http://styleandcentsability.wordpress.com/2010/09/07/before-after-den-part-deux/
diana says
I have to admit I like the new colours, yet, for me, of course, I’d love them more into the warm, sunny tones: vanilla, hay yellow, orange, brown, bright red, all toned down with colours from your scheme. I’ve seen an article about a house recently on “a cup of jo”; I loved a lot that house and the colours and patterns used.
But Sam I am and not Sherry and John, and you always end up with your perfect way!
Cristina says
Would love to see you go with some sort of a combination that includes grey. I have been looking for a moody sort of grey for my bedroom for the longest time, but haven’t yet hit the right shade. Lots are too dark, too light, or too one-color-or-another. Lots of grey right now, but examples online rarely look the way they do online in my room! Anyway, will look forward to your choices.
Jenn the Pen says
Since the walls of my (log) house are orange – yes, orange -my other 2 colors are purple and green. My wedding was purple green & orange too. Love them! Oh, and I try to only wear purple, green and/or orange! Told ya I love them. The 3 really do work well together.
Mary says
Lovely colors. I’m excited for you! It’s fun to start anew. We have a fairly small abode so I painted over everything (well, almost, still have a red powder room) really pared down and have light blue walls in the downstairs and the rest of the house is in more of a latte color. All of my wood pieces are in black, white or distressed browns. I sprayed our white stuff beige and did a distressed metallic over it. Very soothing. I agree on the printed window treatments. Check out Barber Taupe Robin by Premier Prints and Better Homes and Gardens Avril Spring. Just did treatments in those. I like your idea of bigger pops of color. BTW, did you know there is a company that laminates any fabric? Send them your bolt and they do it for you. I did interiors for a restaurant and used that on the chair covers. Good Clara-proofing for kitchen chairs. Eventually…that is.
Tiffany says
I’ve always loved your blog, but we have different styles. I like dark woods, black picture frames, and deeper colors because they feel cozier and homier (is that even a word?) to me. So, I’m super excited to see what you do with this new palette. Congrats on the new home!