Spencer Thorpe: Vibrant Colour Scheme: Get In the Pink

Pink, once the province of girls’ bedrooms and chocolate box country cottages, has long been overlooked by many designers fearful of creating things that might seem a little unserious or twee.

But this season has seen a surge of pink on the catwalk and at Milan’s Design Week, with everything from light rose pinks to fluoro pink to fuschia on show. Whether it’s on the walls, the fabric of your furniture or in accent pieces, pink is a great colour to bring some life to a living room, kitchen or conservatory. Don’t work with it alone, however. There are some great complementary colours which will bring the look to life. Here’s how.

Working with Pink

If you’re looking to insert a little colour and style into your rooms without revamping the entire setting, using pinks and complementary colours might just be what you’re looking for. If you stay on the paler side, a light and airy colour palette evokes the light green, white and pink palette of the early spring countryside or the famed cherry blossoms of Japan. If you go bold, you can nod towards sun-drenched late-night beach bars and cocktails, as in the Habitat x House of Holland range which we featured when it launched. It’s also pretty versatile room-wise and can brighten up your living/dining room as well as your kitchen or conservatory. It’s time pink came out of the bedroom, right?

What’s the best way to style the look?

A good way to work with pink is one which uses the colours of the spring countryside, including soft pinks, neutral whites and off-whites, light green and just a pop of fuschia and pea green for contrast.

Furniture and accessories in this design style are streamlined and functional, and include white or cream-painted wooden furniture, light-coloured woods and accessories and fabrics in pink, fuschia and green. To make the colours sing, this is not a cluttered style and a few, well-chosen accessories are preferable to a jumble of possessions.

Design pieces that look great in this scheme

Below are a few ideas to help you put together your own pink-loving room. We’re including some great ideas from Andrew Martin for the first time today. His collection of fabrics, accessories and furnishings are influenced by a broad variety of cultures based on his own travels. He’s really going to town with pink this season and we love it!

Cushions

Try some Pink cushions. Andrew Martin offers the perfect hues to accent your pink scheme, everything from dark fuschia to pale pink. This square, ikat print cushion in vibrant hot paradise pink makes a perfect contrast to a neutral-coloured sofa, chair or settee. £59

Dining table

Consider a light Dining table. This light wood dining table from Maisons du Monde coordinates well with a pink design palette. You can dress it up with a soft pink table cloth or let the beauty of the wood enhance the look of your dining room. £286.

Coral softness

Add pink with an area rug. For a different take on pink, bring in some warmness with the orange tones of coral to complement pink accessories, fabrics and wooden furniture. For additional layering, put this rug over pale maple or oak plank flooring. (£175.00 – £650.00)

Go Large

Have some room to expand with a console/dining table. For a larger room and for entertaining, this white high gloss table is a combination console and dining room table: a perfect addition to this scheme to give your colour accents centre stage. When you’re not serving a meal, the two pieces stack together to form a sleek console table. When it’s time to entertain, they fit together to seat up to 12 guests. £999.

Take a seat

Team with some dining chairs. Of course, you’ll also need the perfect dining chairs for your new room and we particularly like these white faux leather dining chairs from Habitat (£180). Being a neutral backdrop, they’d make a great place to showcase colourful pink accessories, such as these amazing animal print cushions (£59).

Reflections

Reflect on a wall mirror. Adding a mirror to your living or dining room is a great way to lighten the room and make the space seem larger than it really is. This rectangular wall mirror that stands over 2 metres tall has a silver metal frame that hints at the exotic streets of North Africa or the Middle East without detracting from your pink palette. (£1,550 for the largest).

Neon and pink

This sectional sofa from Andrew Martin covered in Savannah Paradise fabric (£1595) in pink ticking stripes. Not as bold as some of his other designs, this creates a great backdrop to more statement accessories and looks amazing with these vintage travel posters.

Cocktail time

And finally, we can’t talk pink without reminding you of this amazing cocktail chair from Henry Holland x Habitat (£595). It’s a limited edition, it’s in hot pink velvet with blue piping, and would bring a bright splash of colour to any room. Love. It.

Incorporating a pink direction into your home decor is all about getting the right mixture of subtle and bright colours, casual, multi-functional furnishings, well-chosen fabrics and useful accessories. With a little time and effort, the right choice of pink can give your home that light and ethereal look of the English countryside just after dawn, or sunrise over the savannah, even if you live in the heart of the city. With a choice of brighter pinks, on the other hand, the night is yours.

Spencer Thorpe

Friday, May 5, 2017

Vibrant Colour Scheme: Get In the Pink