How to Introduce Colour Into Your Space

There’s no need to fear bold colour€”here are 5 ways to get experimental with your favourite hue.

Designing with bold colours can seem like a big commitment, but it doesn’t have to be. The key here is flexibility—investment pieces like your sofa or countertop are best kept neutral, but accessories are a great way to add a little personality or nod to trends. Here are five ways to experiment with your favourite colour.

Video: Incorporating Colour into Your Space

5 Ways to Introduce Colour into Your Home

Think about balance. Colour draws the eye, so be careful not to overdo it. Sprinkle in little hits of it, instead of colour-coordinating every single thing. For example, in this Miguel Brovhn and Julie Miller-designed home (left), which is very neutral, orange Bocci lights are used to add a small dose of colour, which draws the eye to the focal point of the room. In this Mount Pleasant condo (right), a pair of bright red dining chairs are added to a set of black and silver ones to add a little bit of interest around the dining table—a totally different look than a matching set of six.Go bold with a feature wall. Even if you hate painting, doing one wall (like the Cross Design pink bedroom, top right) is an easy weekend project. And colour doesn’t have to be relegated to a paint job—a colourful backsplash (like the Falken Reynolds-design kitchen, bottom right) or interesting wallpaper (like the animal-print paper used by designer Kyla Bidgood, left) do the trick, too. Add a pop of colour with throw cushions. Throw pillows are a designer’s best friend—they’re cheap and easy to swap out (unlike a whole yellow sofa!) as trends and tastes change, so switch it up as often as you’d like. Here, the a blue pillow brightens up the grey-and-brown room designed by Oliver Simon, and that same hue is echoed by a vase on the side table.Find colour inspiration from rugs or artwork. If you’re looking for inspiration about which colours to incorporate into your space, start with your favourite piece of artwork or a rug and pull your palette from there, like in this room by Gaille Guevara. A selection of paintings from Zoe Pawlak introduce a variety of blues into the space, which influenced the choice of textiles and accessories.Functional pieces can double as sources of colour. With open shelving, anything you’re storing is part of the vibe of a space, so consider showcasing those pretty blue dinner plates, as the homeowner does in this modern white kitchen (left), instead of hiding them out of sight. Or punch things up in your home office with a pretty desk chair, like designer Sophie Burke did here—it doesn’t have to be purely utilitarian! 

How have you added colour into your own space? Let us know in the comments!