Neutral Décor: The Design Trend That Keeps On Giving

Grey is gone…

The grey shades that have dominated interior design for the last decade have slowly faded away this year. Instead, softer neutral interiors and earthy hues have made a comeback, taking over grey as the ‘neutral of the moment’. Like every other cyclical trend, this one comes reborn, making it an easy choice to incorporate within your home.

So why have nudes made such a comeback?

While grey as a palette pairs well with a whole host of colours and textures; conventional, dependable and practical in nature, too much can be perceived as slightly conservative and sometimes a tad ‘boring’.

To the contrary, those neutral beiges mixed with warm tones have been coined as ‘Cool, calm and collected’ by many interior enthusiasts this year.

Deriving from the Fashion Design phenomenon of “nude” and “camel” tones, it is not surprising that many top interior designers are calling upon this palette as the new foundation to their work.

Reflective Qualities

One of the key benefits to implementing a more neutral inspired colour palette to your home is the reflective qualities it brings.

Particularly for smaller rooms, using a more muted neutral colour palette can help to bounce natural light around the room, giving the illusion of a bigger space. That’s why it is sometimes best to keep the darker and more moody colours for larger rooms.

Essentially, colours such as beige, ivory, taupe and shades of white / cream are the go-to base colours for any successful neutral colour palette.

Textured Elements of Neutral

Unless you’re a design expert, novices can forget about the importance of textured elements.

Simply put, a neutral backdrop has the major benefit of creating a welcoming interior when paired with warm textures such as wooden elements, shiny tiles, and brushed velvets. If opting for a bright and bold colour that is typically the focal point of any design, this can often make those highly essential textural elements fade into the distance.

While this is not always a negative thing, creating an environment where the colours and furnishings nicely complement one another can help create a refined and well-designed space. Scandinavians designers have had this style mastered for centuries. Take our city line Murphy Bed as an example, painting your walls in a beige tone and installing a fusion maple finish to your furniture truly makes the rustic interiors pop out for a warm and welcoming home interior.

Flexibility with Timeless Décor

Everyone wants a unique interior that suits your individual style and décor. Thankfully, with many neutral backdrops, your personal tastes can come to the forefront. Whether you are modern, traditional, eclectic, or love rustic country charm— a neutral backdrop is ideal for you. Home stager, Barb Schwartz, stipulates that neutral tones work with any range of taste, allowing prospective home buyers to envision their own furnishings in the space.

Indeed, natural coloured décor enables the architectural elements in your home, particularly in modern interiors, to come alive and be noticed. You can easily add a pop of a brighter colour in your room through furnishings or accessories, without being tied to a particular color scheme that can quickly become outdated. A neutral wall can be made that bit more special with artwork, whether its sentimental pieces, abstract pop art or even wildlife art - the choices are endless. Neutral provides that much needed interior flexibility.

This is particularly the case as open floor plans continue to be the standard for new homes and renovations, with multi-use spaces dominating the interior world with a focus on less formality and more functionality. With home offices doubling as guest rooms with the addition of innovative murphy beds desks, or finished basements as a media room - neutral palettes facilitate this multifunctional lifestyle. You’re not tied down to ANY particular scheme or purpose in your room. Neutrals can accommodate a range of purposes and people without being solely tied as ‘the guest room’ or ‘the living room space’.

So there you have it, neutral color schemes are the ideal choice for any interior style statement. Use neutral colors in your home to ensure that you never grow tired of your design choices, thereby creating a classic home that never gets old. Neutral colors are also great options for modern interiors, allowing the architectural elements of your design to take center-stage. Plus, if you get bored of your neutral backdrop, then you simply add a few inexpensive, brightly-colored cushions. Proving, that neutral is anything but boring, rather it is for the savvy home designer that loves keeping their options open.