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Fortune favours the bold: 5 characterful colour schemes for living rooms

2018 is the year of ‘more is more’, and so are these colour schemes. Read on for all the inspiration you need to revamp your living room in keeping with the latest trends.
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2018 has already seen some big, bold trends take to the stage in the world of interior design. And, for colour schemes, it’s no different. This year there’s a broad spectrum of tones to play with, from hazy pinks and blues to soft neutrals and even technicoloured explosions. But among all the diversity there’s one common denominator, and it has everything to do with being bold and brave in your choices. This year, if you’re going to go for a theme, you are officially allowed to see it through to the nth degree – no holds barred. Gone are the days of tempering our creativity with watered down versions of trends. The here and now is all about ‘going for it’ and bringing fashions to life in their absolute maximum form.

If your living room is in need of a makeover, now’s the perfect time to pick a characterful, bang-on-trend colour scheme and put this ‘go big or go home’ theory to the test.

Here are five of our favourites to get you started:

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1.Technicolour dream

There’s never been a better time to champion multi-coloured mayhem in interior design. And there are plenty of different avenues you can go down when exploring this trend, from the zingy pops of pink, green and orange found in Mexican themes, to the rich jewel tones of bohemian décor – think deep purples, bright turquoises and earthy reds. The key is to incorporate this layered, multi coloured vibe to its fullest extent for maximum effect, and that includes furniture too. We love this eye-catching Harlequin Fabric Corner Sofa, with upholstery you can buy on a mix-and-match basis, letting you play with a range of colours and fabrics across its different sections. A multicoloured, multi-textured, modular sofa? It doesn’t get much more 2018 than that.

2.Ice cream pastels

Gelato shades of pink, blue, purple and pale orange are in for spring, and can make for a bold living room transformation – if you’ve got the guts. This trend is all about bringing together gorgeous, creamy colours that harmonise in such a way that they’re neither too matchy-matchy or overtly clashing. The key is to pick colours that are unmistakably ‘ice cream’ in their tone – which generally means a halfway point between pastels and sunny brights. Think bubblegum pink over fuscia, washed-out but still vibrant turquoise over powder blue.

To incorporate the look in your living room, try going for contrasting walls – one in lavender blue, two in candied orange, one in millennial pink – and a dreamy, mid-century modern style sofa suite in a bold shade of peppermint green. Accessorise with rose gold metallics and sprays of white flowers for a look that feels light, airy and full of colourful character.

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3.Peach and grey

Another hot colour combination for 2018 is a revamped take on the grey scheme that has dominated much of the noughties’ interior landscape. But this time we’re bringing one of design’s most popular neutral colours to life with bursts of dreamy and refreshing peach. It’s important here, though, to ensure that you give both colours just the right amount of attention to get the balance on-point. We’re not talking about peach walls, carpets and sofas with a few grey accents – and neither are we thinking the opposite.

To bring this colour scheme into your living room, try to distribute the colours in even proportion – perhaps leaning towards grey as your ‘base’ colour – and break up with light beiges, dusty pinks and bursts of green.

4.Foliage green

If you’ve read any of our recent articles you’ll know that we’ve got a thing for houseplants right now – as does anyone who’s worth their salt in interior design, it seems! So why not bring some of nature’s most vibrant shades of green into your living room to really bring your overflowing hanging plants to life. Think olive-coloured velvet armchairs and mint green rugs, Dartmouth green accent walls and pistachio scatter cushions.

This really is one of the most versatile colours around so don’t hold back with layering up on different shades. The best thing about working with tones that are borrowed straight from nature is that they’re incredibly easy to work with and don’t tend to clash easily.

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5.Luxurious gold

This year all that glitters is gold, or at least it should be. Bringing bold bursts of this gorgeous, metallic shade into your home is one way not only to get with the times but actually ahead of them – whether you go for a tarnished, rustic vibe or prefer gold that looks glossy and new. It’s all about bringing that air of decadence into your home that simply can’t be achieved with other metals (silver and chrome, we’re looking at you!). Think heavy set, metallic-gold lamps, gold-framed mirrors and even golden wallpaper (granted, for a feature wall only). Pair your lashings of gold with rich, navy velvets, geometric rugs and dark, gunmetal walls.

So, there you have it. Five utterly fabulous and endlessly characterful colour schemes that will have you hop-skip-and-jumping all the way through 2018 in style. If one thing’s for certain about this year, it’s going to be anything but dull.

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