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Time to rethink coloured ceilings and woodwork
The classic approach to ceilings and woodwork is fairly simple: paint them one of the dozens of shades of white available. It’s a tried and tested look, and one we’ll never tire of. But some houses, and some rooms, call for something different. Painting the ceiling, skirting boards, door trims and joinery can add a sense of enveloping drama or jaunty playfulness to a room, whether you paint everything in one single colour – a trick that works well for darker spaces and creates a cocoon-like atmosphere – or go for a bold trim in a contrasting colour to a patterned wallpaper.
Whatever bright and bold colours you’re envisioning for your room, here are our favourite examples from the House & Garden archive.
Lucas Allen1/19Joanne Burgess' house is a colourful wonderland, with lots of painted woodwork. In the Georgian part of the house, the walls are painted in ‘Light Blue’ by Farrow & Ball, with panelling in 'De Nimes' and glossy woodwork around the windows in ‘Bancha’.
Lucas Allen2/19Walls and woodwork in Edward Bulmer’s ‘Jonquil’ and panelling in ‘Yeabridge Green’ from Farrow & Ball make for a bright and energising space throughout the bedroom suite.
Lucas Allen3/19The hallway is painted in ‘Light Blue’ on the walls and panelling in ‘De Nimes’ by Farrow & Ball, with a third colour on the door.
Simon Brown4/19This Notting Hill house by Studio Vero is full of painted woodwork, starting from the moment you walk in the door. Farrow & Ball’s ‘Brinjal’, a rich aubergine, is used for all the woodwork in the hall and right up the stairs, while the walls, in ‘Jonquil’, Edward Bulmer’s tender pink, loses any hint of the boudoir when teamed with this strong colour.
Simon Brown5/19The blue of the 1960s Italian desk, found at 1stDibs, in this study-cum-bedroom is picked up in Common Room’s ‘Best Buds’ wallpaper. The bespoke blue paint colour 26-4M from Papers & Paints was used the woodwork.
Simon Brown6/19The walls and woodwork in the main bathroom have been painted in ‘Aquamarine Mid’ by Little Greene – this is a great example of colour drenching, when you paint an entire room in one colour, ceiling and all.
Owen Gale7/19In jewellery designer Sandra Barrio von Hurter’s wonderfully colourful house, walls in ‘Lichen’ by Farrow & Ball gel with woodwork picked out in ‘Hunters Dunn’ in a gloss finish from Paint & Paper Library.
Paul Massey8/19The deep mustard yellow ceiling in this hallway at Eildon Hall in Scotland offers a piquant contrast to the cool blue walls – adding a little excitement to the space, but staying comfortably within the realms of taste.
Paul Massey9/19This Berkshire house decorated by Nicola Harding can be found in our current June issue. ‘I have sleepless nights about how it’s going to turn out,’ she says of her colour combinations, and her unexpected choices certainly knock the stuffiness out of any room. In the dining room, ‘Stone Blue’ paint by Farrow & Ball on the ceiling and built-in bookshelves creates a vibrant background for brass accents.
Paul Massey10/19In another of Nicola Harding's projects, Farrow & Ball’s ‘Stone Blue’ was used on the ceiling of this basement room and carried down to create a false cornice above the ‘Tanner’s Brown’ walls. The same blue was used on the woodwork, providing a contrast with the red ‘Basset Sofa’ from Howe and the green antique Swedish rug.
Elsa Young11/19In the hallway of the same flat, Edward Bulmer’s ‘Verdigris’ paint on the woodwork complements ‘Lioness & Palms’ wallpaper in the midday colourway, an Arts and Crafts design by CFA Voysey available from CommonRoom.
Owen Gale12/19Another set of contrasting walls and trim at Jeremy Langmead's country house in Suffolk, decorated by Susan Deliss. The back corridor upstairs is papered in Robert Kime's 'Wattle' pattern, with woodwork in Sanderson's 'Bengal Red' eggshell paint.
Michael Sinclair13/19In this London house designed by Rachel Chudley, walls in a stormy grey created by paint specialist Donald Kaufman creates an atmospheric backdrop for artworks. Ceiling, walls and skirting boards are all in the same colour.
Michael Sinclair14/19A small space can be a great opportunity to go bold with colour. Sanderson's 'Mimosa Yellow' paint brightens this tiny bedroom in Audrey Carden's London house, but it stops halfway across the ceiling and is taken over by the grey of the entrance.
15/19In another bedroom at Audrey Carden's London house, the mood is dramatic and luxurious. Blue, paper-backed, suede-effect fabric lines the walls of the bedroom and dressing area, and a tray ceiling in the bedroom painted in the same shade.
Paul Massey16/19A glorious yellow doorframe divides the sitting room and library, in the home of interior designer Suzy Hoodless. It acts as an architectural valance in the open ground-floor space. Yellow has a reputation for being tricky to work with, yet the effect here is like a halo and shot of sunshine in one. The colour balances with the blue of the kitchen cabinets as well as the softer tones of the library.
‘The idea was to bring some excitement with a flash of colour dividing the area,’ Suzy explains. ‘It’s uplifting and uncompromising, but also neutral. I think spaces need to be pushed – to have a rhythm and pace to them – and that’s what this yellow is about.’
Paul Massey17/19In the same house, bathroom walls painted in Farrow & Ball’s ‘Railings’, match the Emery & Cie cement floor tiles, for a seriously enveloping feel.
Paul Massey18/19In this London house by Ben Pentreath, the dining room's panelled walls, window frames and skirting boards are painted in ‘Bromine’ by Emente.
Elsa Young19/19The textile designer and dealer Susan Deliss is known for her skilled use of colour and pattern, and has made bold use of paint colours in this Edinburgh flat. The fiery deep orange of ‘Charlotte’s Locks’ paint from Farrow & Ball covers walls, bookshelves and skirting boards in the bedroom.
