INTERIOR DESIGN
Elevate your decorating schemes with unique paint finishes that add texture, colour and depth to your home
1PERFECT BLEND
Reminiscent of ocean depths or atwilight sky, an ombre wall brings anew dimension to aroom scheme. ‘Ombre is ahigh-impact look that can be achieved relatively easily and with only afew paint colours,’ says paint expert Annie Sloan. ‘My tip is to work on small areas at atime; working with the paint while it’s wet and using artist-quality pigments such as those in Chalk Paint are the keys to success.’ Choose two colours –one light and one darker –and apply the darkest to the wall. Add alittle of the lighter hue to the first colour and apply it above or below the previous section, blending as you go. Continue until you have covered the wall.
2 TOP TO BOTTOM
Durable gloss is afavourite in hardworking areas of the home. But acompletely gloss room can look at odds with amore muted, country aesthetic. Achieve the best of both worlds by painting walls in two different finishes. Apply the gloss version of the shade to the areas of the room that need added durability, such as the lower half of ahallway, then use the matt version for the remainder of the room. ‘Not only will this deliver apractical finish, but the contrasting sheen levels will also deliver adesign detail, echoing traditional painted panelling in an elegant and contemporary way,’ says Ruth Mottershead, creative director at Little Greene.
3 TOUCH OF GLOSS
Dark colours are typically ano-no in small spaces –often making them feel smaller than they actually are. However, this is not the case when you consider working with gloss paints. ‘Gloss is abrilliant finish for ceilings as it will help bounce the light around in smaller, dark rooms. This reflective quality helps emphasise a room’s height and brighten the rest of the space,’ says Patrick O’Donnell, brand ambassador at Farrow &Ball. The reflective qualities of gloss aren’t just reserved for lighter hues either; a dark gloss overhead will create that cosy feel that only darker hues can bring, without making the room feel dark and d
