Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Feel-good interiors that have reinvented the rainbow and struck gold
Chasing rainbows has become quite the affair as of late with multi-coloured flags flying high and taking over the streets of the US and Australia alike. There’s no stopping rainbow fever in interiors, either. Here, we round up some of our favourite takes on the magical band of colour in Houzz interiors.
Dreaded 3.30-itis isn’t so bad when a paper rainbow cascades over your workspace. Dedicate a weekend – or a lazy Monday – to painting white cardstock with watercolours and stick them onto the wall with double-sided sticky tape for a cheap and cheerful way to dial up the drama on your walls.
Multi-coloured built-in cabinetry sits pretty in this New York family home, brightening up a neutral scheme that could otherwise look a little dull.
The key to ensuring the cabinetry doesn’t overpower the space lies in the white trim, which, when the cavities are shielded with books, means the pastel colours are actually rather discreet, especially from a front-on perspective.
The key to ensuring the cabinetry doesn’t overpower the space lies in the white trim, which, when the cavities are shielded with books, means the pastel colours are actually rather discreet, especially from a front-on perspective.
This storage unit, on the other hand, packs a colourful punch. Many manufacturers offer modular systems in which you can choose the colour of each door and drawer front – but if that’s not an option, purchase a handful of sample paints in your favourite colours and wile away an afternoon painting the fronts yourself.
When the decorating bug hits, and you feel a sense of colour is in order, take to your bookshelf. Colour-coded book displays were once confided to the glossy pages of magazines and catalogues, but are now popping up in homes all over. Try it for size if your space needs a little oomph, or if you want to tap into a design trend that won’t cost you an arm and a leg.
More ways to use colour as an organisational tool
More ways to use colour as an organisational tool
Here, a sheer rainbow curtain made from tapestries the homeowner picked up from Urban Outfitters casts an ethereal glow over the room, and, combined with a leather beanbag and orange floor lamp, makes a stylish nod to the technicolour era.
Is your home ready for a 1970s revival?
Is your home ready for a 1970s revival?
In a children’s nursery, a weird and wonderful mural welcomes personified rainbows, swimming popcorn and hilltop whales.
The importance of colour during your child’s early years
The importance of colour during your child’s early years
If kids had it their way, plantation shutters would be rainbow. Here, they offset the need for a decorative window treatment in an all-white bedroom, and filter in a little ray of sunshine, too.
More hard-working plantation shutters
More hard-working plantation shutters
In this beach-side Clovelly home in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, rainbow-coloured glazing creates a focal contrast between a brown brick wall and white plastering. It also ticks off the homeowners’ request for eclectic and colourful hints throughout the home, which extends to cabinetry and finishes.
See more of this house
See more of this house
In this London family home, bespoke wallpaper adds a burst of energy to an all-white room. Try the look at home on a smaller scale using canvas or material you can frame.
There’s something special about light passing through coloured glass. Placing this eclectic collection in front of a window ensures the view is appreciated, places the glassware where it won’t be forgotten – no reaching blindly into the dark depths of your kitchen cupboards – and doesn’t hinder the inflow of light. Just secure some floating shelves to the frame of a forgotten or disengaged window and you’re done.
Your rainbow infusion needn’t stop at one item either. Bold, strong colours you didn’t think could look so good together flow from one furnishing to another in this New York living room. How do they do it? With acute attention to scale and proportion. Large zones of colour help to buoy and balance one another, while small hints of each colour – the framed polka dots, for example – tie the scheme together.
TELL US
How are you reinventing the rainbow in your home? Show and tell in the Comments.
MORE
Stickybeak of the Week: Chasing Rainbows in a Growing Girl’s Bedroom
Put a Little Colour Into Your Dreams: Paint Your Bed
How to Be Truly Confident With Colour
Dare to be Different: Colour Combos That Break the Rules
TELL US
How are you reinventing the rainbow in your home? Show and tell in the Comments.
MORE
Stickybeak of the Week: Chasing Rainbows in a Growing Girl’s Bedroom
Put a Little Colour Into Your Dreams: Paint Your Bed
How to Be Truly Confident With Colour
Dare to be Different: Colour Combos That Break the Rules
See more of this bathroom