These 9 Spaces Show How to Rock a Monochromatic Color Scheme
It’s no surprise: when most people decorate, they tend to focus on neutrals with a few pops of color or a feature wall or two throughout the space in order to give it personality. Rarely are entire rooms decorated in a monochromatic fashion, with one color acting as the base for nearly all the elements. But with a little variety in the tones and shades of the color, and an overall minimalist aesthetic that lets the color do the talking rather than focusing on multiple pieces of furniture, monochromatic spaces can be surprisingly sophisticated, calming, and daring. Take a look as we review nine of our favorites.
1) A Teal Sactuary in a Rural Farmhouse
A blue-hued bedroom in a farmhouse that architect Lucy Marston designed for her family plays with shades of blue carpeting and textured fabrics (like the linen curtains and patterned blanket) to lighten the darker color of the walls, door, door frame, and baseboards. A shock of yellow in the bathroom beyond provides just the right amount of contrast.
At the University of Lapland in Finland, interior design studio Silvola and Seppänen renovated a student common area for the art and design department with colorful, monochromatic seating areas. A darker pink carpet, with furniture in shades of blush, help delineate the space from the surrounding lounge areas. The pink-on-pink ultimately creates a layered, luxe feeling.
A six-story brownstone in Midtown Manhattan was transformed into a boutique hotel by In Situ Design and Lilian B Interiors in which each floor of the hotel was given a color treatment using "visceral" Benjamin Moore paints that are inspired by artwork. As in other monochromatic spaces, the use of multiple textures and shades of red make sure the elements don't blend into each other—yet still seem to belong together.
Taking cues from the outlying rolling landscape of this Malibu home, architect Bruce Bolander selected a bright green hue for the cabinets and refrigerator of this kitchen. The connection to nature is evident, thanks to the grand views through the windows above the sink and stovetop area.
In a major renovation and addition to an existing row house in Harlem, Laura Briggs and Jonathan Knowles designed unusual adjacencies, including this hot tub that opens into the master bedroom with sliding panels. The pink bed linens flow into the burnt orange-pink of the walls, which transitions into the orange bathroom beyond. Photo by Adam Friedberg
Green is the color of choice in this bathroom by architecture firm Min|Day, where the floors, walls, ceiling, and sliding door all feature the same color. The white sink is a breath of fresh air, and the chrome fixtures reflect the green throughout the space.
The dark, moody blue of this area's walls of a furniture showroom and gallery space in Toronto by George Yabu and Glenn Pushelberg are lightened by several mirrors on the walls, and broken up by a metal railing that's painted to match. On the top of the landing sits Eileen Gray’s 1935 Bonaparte armchair and Petite Coiffeuse occasional table from 1929, whose chrome legs reflect light and the blue walls surrounding them.
In Copenhagen, Norm Architects designed a new showroom for furniture company &Tradition, pairing a raw-concrete floor with light gray walls, neutral furniture, and a smoky gray light fixture. Although the grays of the furniture have a brown tone to them (as do the wood feet and attached side table), the overall composition is created through calm, subtle colors.
In this home designed by Andrew Dunbar and Zoee Astrakhan, blue mosaic tiles were selected in this home renovation for their budget-friendly price and glassy surface, which reflects light from the skylight above. The tile was carefully laid in the crevices of the bathroom drain and a storage shelf at the rear of the tub. Light blue panels line the upper parts of the bathroom walls. Photo by Justin Fantl
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