When we moved into our new home, one of the things that I was in love with was the freshly painted white walls. Our new space was definitely bright, light and airy. This was until we realized just how plain the rooms were. The bright white walls along with our neutral furniture made for some really boring spaces.
Searching for decor tips on the internet, it was easy to see that neutral-coloured rooms are definitely in style. Neutral colours are not only gorgeous but they also help make rooms feel larger, fresher and more welcoming. This made me realize that the neutral colour scheme in our new home was a good start for us, and I only needed to incorporate some colour to add expression and character to our new space. Creating accent walls and using designer cushions, throw blankets and accessories are some of the solutions I used to add a pop of colour to our home.
Add a Vibrant Throw Blanket
Throw blankets in vibrant colours are one of the easiest and simplest ways to add colour to a neutral decor scheme. A colourful, cozy blanket tossed over the arm of the couch or accent chair adds instant colour, texture and style to the room. Versatile enough to be used in any room, throw blankets are especially perfect for adding colour to living rooms and bedrooms. A throw blanket tossed over an accent chair in our neutral home office was a really easy way to a touch of colour to the space.
Decorate with Designer Cushions
Cushions are not only items of everyday luxury but they are also very functional. Plus, they are not costly. All of these characteristics make them the perfect pieces for home decor. Want something for your sofa so that you and your family can be comfier? Get a bunch of soft cushions. Is your bed looking rather too plain? Get a set of decorative pillows.
For our living room, I was wondering what colour cushions with a grey sofa to combine. While searching through home decor websites, I discovered that orange and red cushions combined with grey sofa add warmth and a retro feeling to the space while cushions on the green palette create a more natural tone. Black and white cushions work particularly well with grey sofas as well.
When it comes to textures and patterns, there is a diverse range of prints for designer cushions. The trick for mixing different prints, such as flowers, stripes and spots, with plain cushions involves nothing more than finding designs that share a common colour. This way, even if the prints may be different, the colour will bring them together and give life to the arrangement without being garish.
You can also consider mixing cushions of different shapes and play sizes to achieve dynamism in the decor scheme. You can go for the more classic shapes like square or rectangle or try something more original, like round cushions. Feel free to try different combinations until you’re happy with the result. Want an expert decor tip? Place the smallest cushions in front and the big ones behind. This will help create a sense of depth.
As for how many cushions to use, the rule of thumb to follow is to put one cushion more than the number of seats that the sofa offers. For example, for a 3-person sofa, put 4 large cushions. If you decide to go with small cushions you can use more, but make sure you stop before the sofa becomes uncomfortable.
Wallpaper
A wallpapered accent wall is a simple solution to add colour to a neutral room, and online wallpapers retailers offer so many options for you to choose from. We used grey and white striped wallpaper to create an accent wall in one of the kid’s bedrooms and add geometric wallpaper to one of the walls in our dining room too. The best part was that we didn’t have to change the white wall in the rest of the rooms because the patterns complemented what was already there. Plus, creating just an accent wall helped us save money on paint.
In addition to the wide range of colours and patterns that wallpapers come in, online wallpapers retailers also offer now a variety of textured looks such as marble or brick and even velvet, and these wallpaper options can add another dimension to the room. You can also find wallpapers that are embossed and gloriously tactile, which certainly adds to the “feel” of the room.
Many people avoid wallpaper with the assumption that it is difficult to install and takedown. However, thanks to new innovations, this is no longer the case. Unlike traditional wallpapers that were printed onto paper, modern wallcoverings are printed onto a non-woven base, making them a paste-the-wall application. This enables the wallpaper to be hung and stripped with ease.
Wallpaper also offers you the chance to hide wall imperfections. If you live in an older house, cracked walls can be unsightly and wallpaper works wonders at hiding this. Patterned wallpapers are perfect for hiding smudges and blemishes too. Wallpaper tends to be pretty easy to clean too with just a sponge and water, making them a great option for a family with small messy kids like ours!
Wall Hangings
Wall clocks are great decor items for adding depth and interest to walls so is a bright picture or an interesting gallery wall. For a little more colour, you can easily spray paint frames. One thing that I like to do is find a vibrant picture and use the colours in it as an inspiration piece to decor the whole room. You can find great budget-friendly pieces at the craft stores, as many of them are carrying more and more home decor items.