Muted Color Combinations
When I look at an interior, immediately, I'm struck by the colors used throughout and how the hues work together in harmony. When I first began designing, you know, at home all by myself and with no actual client to work for, I really did struggle with the colors that I felt I needed and/or wanted to use. It was quite difficult for me choosing the right combinations, and this alone would take me a whole lot of time to narrow down. It's hard, not gonna lie. I guess my problem was I wanted to use timeless hues that coordinated beautifully and that felt sophisticated, along with the furniture choices that I had made. So how do you coordinate colors and make them look incredible together? There's no actual top secret... We'll share with you a few of our finds so that you too can mix and match colors like a pro :D
Tips To Consider
- Make a list of colors you love and are naturally drawn to. Be true to your interests here for the best results.
- Determine the saturation you want the colors to have, either vibrant or muted. In or case, for Synonymous projects we tend to gravitate towards soft, dusty and subdued shades. We find these colors are very soothing, calming and timeless.
- What colors do you tend to mix in your everyday life, such as in your outfits?
Once you've answered these questions you'll more or less know which colors you like best together, which should be a great starting off point to your color palette. Although we absolutely love soft, neutral tones, we'll almost always inject a darker color somewhere in the scheme for impact and contrast.
Like we mentioned in our post on "How To Mix Patterns" choose 2 - 3 colors to work with in your scheme. Make sure those colors are under the same saturation for a balanced look. Also, look at your surroundings, observe nature as it's the biggest inspiration for color palettes there is. Not only does nature offer a natural assortment of hues, you'll be sure to find color combinations you never even considered there.
Muted Color Combinations We Love
- White, Gray + Gold
- Rust, Cream + Gray
- Blue/gray + White
- Gray, Taupe + Cream
- Navy Blue + White
- Purple/gray, Cream + White
- Blue/gray + Caramel
- Caramel, White + Black
- Olive Green, Cream + Black
- Dusty Pink, Gold + Cream
- Mustard + Blue/gray
- Lilac + Dusty Blue/gray
- Caramel, Gray + Olive Green
- Blue/gray or Dusty Blue, Caramel + Cream
- Lilac, Soft Gold + Beige
Choose The Right Color Combination
If you're really struggling with finding the best mix of colors, try...
- Using VERY different shades of a single color (3 - 4) works. For example, 3 different shades of gray, taupe, white, blue/gray. This approach will create an interesting and depth filled monochromatic scheme that will always look timeless so that you don't have to worry about re-decorating every 6 months. We say this approach looks best with muted shades, specially, because of the calming effect that they have on the overall space.
- A great idea would be to look at a paint color card and group 3 - 4 colors that are placed right next to each other on the card. From there, you can select the perfect colors that look great together. See? You didn't even have to combine them yourself :D Paint cards tend to group similar shades together and/or coordinating shades from their collection, which is great as you may choose your favorite hues, color match them to fabrics that you may ultimately use throughout your space.
- Find your favorite fabric or artwork and draw the color palette from the tones used on this piece. Objects are a great help for creating color palettes, yes!
