Pastel colours are the most gentle and soft, and they will help create an atmosphere of lightness, weightlessness, and comfort in the interior. Interior design in pastel colours will look sophisticated and spring light. The pastel palette consists of tones diluted with white: pale shades of yellow, blue and purple, as well as mint and other colours of a similar range.
Pastel colours in the interior can be present in the main background, furniture or accessories. The colours of this range are perfectly combined, allowing them to be used in different stylistic areas of design. It is worth choosing combinations of shades based on what atmosphere you want to create in the house and in what style you want to decorate the room.
Pastel colours have several advantages, thanks to which they are popular in interior design:
- Calm neutral tones reflect and mute the surrounding vibrant colours. Therefore, the use of more saturated colours in the summer creates an atmosphere of freshness and coolness, and in the winter, on the contrary, it will make the room ‘feel warmer’.
- Pastel colours make the interior calm, sophisticated and light. You must choose the right colour combination, furniture, and accessories.
- A room decorated in pastel colours will be visually brighter and more spacious. This property will be especially useful for small rooms.
Furniture in pastel colours
Furniture in pastel colours looks clean and comfortable and has a welcoming feeling. Wood and pastel colours are a perfect match, especially if the fabric used for the delicate part of chairs or sofas is of good quality. Of course, pastel palettes have many shades, but if you are not that brave or don’t know what colour to go, go for more versatile colours such as sand, beige, or grey.
Hunter Furnishing offers a great variety of furniture in all design styles, but the more specific one with beautiful modern/traditional furniture in pastel colours is Ercol. They have something for every taste and will look great used in Scandinavian interior as well as French provincial and modern. Check Hunter Furnishings selection of Ercol Furnishing products here.
Selection of shades by cardinal points
The dominant pastel colour in the room will be based on the two main cardinal points- south and north.
South
For the south side, it is necessary to choose cold shades. These include lilac, turquoise, ultramarine, and white with a blue tint. This palette is suitable for both small and spacious rooms with a lot of natural light, the room will not look faded, and on sunny hot days, it will be visually filled with coolness.
North
For rooms on the north side, you should use warm colours like peach, pink, sand, and light brown. These shades of pastel colours in the interior will visually make it warmer.
Choosing pastel colours according to the interior design style
Choosing a stylistic direction for design in pastel colours depends on what atmosphere you want to create in the house and what interior design style you prefer.
Scandinavian style
The Scandinavian style is characterised by a large amount of air and light. Perfect white is often used as the main colour, making all pastel shades appropriate for such an interior. A combination of white, grey and blue will contrast well with wooden elements. Light shades make the interior fresher and airier and visually expand the space.
Provence
Provence in design embodies comfort, tenderness, and freshness. Accordingly, the most suitable shades for this style will be soft lavender, azure, blue, yellow, olive and always white. The floral print is very often used in the style of Provence, both for upholstery and for selecting decorative elements.
Wooden products’ various variations are in perfect harmony with the pastel palette. The shade of the wood is chosen following the main colour of the interior. So for wood with a cold undertone, such as white oak or maple wood, lavender or sky blue will be most suitable.
Shabby chic
The main tones in the interior of the shabby chic style are white, pastel pink, and blue. The furniture, textiles, or accessories must also be in similar colours.
Minimalism
The traditional combination of black and white, characteristic of minimalism, can be successfully replaced with light and airy pastel tones. They have the same ability to give the room a visual “expansion” and a feeling of weightlessness. In this case, pastel colours in the interior can be used both as primary or dominant colours and pre-dominant too for decorations, etc. There are no restrictions on the choice of shades.
Attic space
Ideally, an interior in this style needs a lot of space and light. Rough textures are used in the decoration: brick, raw wood, and concrete. An excellent option would be white brick walls, combined with furniture or accessories in pastel colours such as pink, yellow, orange, etc.
Final thoughts,
Pastel colours have been a trend for a long time and don’t seem to go out of style soon, so if you want to change the interior of your home or repaint it and do small bits and bobs, going for pastel colours might be a great choice.
