Rich red gives a warm, cosy feel

From the Resene/Your Home and Garden Colour Home Awards Competition - Feb 2010 finalist

Swapping dull green for the warm red of Resene Old Brick has enhanced Sally Thompson’s enjoyment of her lounge immeasurably.

“When the sunlight makes the walls glow, the room feels warm and inviting,” says the Christchurch homeowner. Her bedroom, painted in Resene Cut Glass, has the opposite effect. “It is stunningly calm and reminiscent of gorgeous beach days,” says Sally. The porch walls are painted in Resene Half Pearl Lusta, with Resene La Bamba and Resene Cut Glass on the shelves to match the stripy chair fabric.

Warm red of resene old brick.
Right: The cool blue of Resene Cut Glass in the bedroom is calm and restful. With Resene Half Pearl Lusta on the porch walls, Sally has used Resene La Bamba and Resene Cut Glass on the shelves to match the chair fabric.

Rich colour

Tip Today’s living rooms are often open spaces that link to other areas. Knowing where to start and finish the colour scheme in an open-plan space can be hard. Try painting a feature area between two spaces. Or paint one colour in the open plan area then, with accents, repeat that colour in different parts of the house.

Tip Provide visual interest by combining low sheen with semigloss by using a finish such as Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen or Resene Zylone Sheen on walls and a semi gloss waterborne enamel such as Resene Lustacryl on trims.