The new neutrals

From habitat plus - decorating and colour trends 2022

After two decades of cool, flat greys and whites reigning as the preferred neutrals, there has been a shift towards warmer and more complex options. Character neutrals, which feature more depth in their subtle undertones, are all the rage.

Stone greys, biscuit beiges, blush suedes, steeped whites, olive taupe, slate greys and complex pewters like Resene Cobblestone, Resene Anglaise, Resene Calico, Resene Tea, Resene Cargo, Resene Blue Bark and Resene Silver Chalice represent the new neutrals that are trending today. Immensely flexible thanks to their rich and intricate undertones, each of these hues make a solid base for those who like to regularly change up their accent décor. Simply layer them with warmer-toned accessories like Resene Fire and Resene Americano in the cooler months and crisper tones like Resene Quarter Frozen and Resene Zumthor when the mercury rises to regulate the ‘visual temperature’ of your home.

Turn up the texture

It can be a stellar look to take tasty tones like butterscotch, toffee and caramel from tip to toe within a single space. But if you’re worried about these sugary colours becoming overpowering, try just taking them halfway up a split wall or use them to create a unique painted feature wall and balance them with solid neutrals like Resene Talisman, Resene Spanish White, Resene Canterbury Clay or Resene Blackjack. It’s easy to create an eye-catching look through simple masking to create a single stripe, or even a series of them, depending on how much visual texture you want to incorporate in your space.

Trend: stripes, see "Other trends"

Today’s take on tonal

While tonal or tone-on-tone looks originated with layering multiple strengths of a single hue within a space, today this trend usually sees a variety of colours being used together for added depth and interest. For example, rather than using Resene Tea on your walls, Resene Half Tea on your floor, Resene Quarter Tea on your trims and Resene Eighth Tea on your ceiling, mix and match a number of colours that have similar undertones together. Pair Resene Tea walls with a floor in Resene Blanc, furniture and trims in Resene Bison Hide and accessories in Resene Tapa for a richer look.

For even more texture, try layering a number of similar timber tones within the same space. Walls in Resene Silver Chalice look extra sophisticated with a wooden floor finished in Resene Colorwood Mid Greywash, timber furniture stained in Resene Colorwood Ironbark and accessories in Resene Quarter Sandstone, Resene Dune and Resene Mondo.

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