Blues to live in

From the Resene colour inspiration – latest looks gallery

If you are looking for a new colour to decorate your living room, blue is a great option. The colour of both the sky and sea, blue tones are said to evoke clarity and pureness and have a calming and welcoming effect when used in your home.

Using tonal shades within the same colour family or multiple strengths of a single hue are not only very popular way to decorate, it’s also a look that’s easy to live with.

Mood board: Background in Resene Cut Glass, vase in Resene Malibu, Bowl in Resene Raindance and A4 drawdown painted swatches in (from top of stack to bottom) Resene Anakiwa, Resene Cut Glass, Resene French Pass, Resene Onahau, Resene Malibu and Resene Aquarius. Paint: Wall and floor in Resene Cut Glass, Bookcase in Resene Malibu, Small table (next to sofa) in Resene Anakiwa, Middle table in Resene Onahau, Large table in Resene Aquarius. Accessories: Large wooden bowl in Resene French Pass, Small vase in Resene Opal, Large textured vase in Resene Frozen, Round vase in Resene French Pass, Tall vase in Resene Bismark, Tiny vase in Resene Crowdpleaser, Plant pot in Resene Raindance, Basket in Resene Meditation, Low vase in Resene Anakiwa, Vase with monstera leaf in Resene Malibu, Bowl on coffee table in Resene Raindance.

The starting point for this tonal living room scheme was the Bondi Icebergs pool print. This print has multiple shades of blue from bright to soft seafoam hues. These hues have all been bought into the space for unity and cohesion.

When assembling your space, start with larger items of furniture: the sofa first, then the bookshelf, the two coffee tables, followed by the small side table. Then, place your bigger decorative items, medium and smaller items. When everything is in place, add a touch of greenery and hang your piece of statement artwork.

Mood board: Background in Resene Cut Glass, large vase in Resene Frozen, medium vase in Resene French Pass, small vase in Resene Crowdpleaser and drawdown painted swatches in (from top of stack to bottom) Resene Anakiwa, Resene Cut Glass, Resene French Pass, Resene Onahau, Resene Malibu and Resene Aquarius. Accessories: Hugo 3-Seater in Natural Weave, from Me & My Trend; Round Madras rug Rosedale Rattan Whitewashed Coasters; Cavaia Hurricane Candle; Cavaia Tea Light votive; Edie Scale White mug; Blue linen look cushion from Freedom Furniture; Fringed square cushion cover from H&M Home; Framed pool print; Round Dalia cushion; Bondi beige fringed cushion all from Kmart; Blue mug on coffee table from Spotlight; All books, magazine and plants stylist own.

Blue looks lovely when teamed with soft browns and creams. This natural linen sofa anchors the room as a key furniture piece for the rest of the room scheme to be built around. The sofa is layered with two blue and a natural toned cushion in a soft sandy colour which appears in the print.

To bring the same look to your home or bach, here’s a step-by-step breakdown of exactly how we built out our scheme:

Step 1

Step 2

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Step 1: Paint walls and floor in Resene Cut Glass. We used Resene Walk-on for the floor and Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen for the walls.

Step 2: Add a neutral sofa to anchor the space. This one is the Hugo 3-Seater in Natural Weave from Me & My Trend.

Step 3: Add a tall bookshelf painted Resene Malibu.

Step 4

Step 4: Add nesting tables in Resene Aquarius (large), Resene Onahau (medium) and Resene Anakiwa (small).

Step 5

Step 6

Step 5: Add cushions to coordinate with your colour palette. The blue linen-look cushion is from Freedom Furniture, the beige fringed cushion is from Kmart and the blue fringed square cushion cover is from H&M Home. Add books and/or magazines to the bookcase in stacks on three separate shelves.

Step 6: Add a basket painted Resene Meditation for small items that you’d like to keep hidden from sight.

Step 7

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Step 7: Start filling in the bookcase with larger vases painted in (from top to bottom) Resene Frozen, Resene French Pass, Resene Bismark and Resene Anakiwa.

Step 8: Start filling out the nesting tables with accessories. We added a vase in Resene Malibu, a bowl in Resene Raindance, a blue mug from Kmart and some woven coasters from Freedom Furniture.

Step 9: Add in smaller accessories, such as the two small vases on the bookshelf in Resene Opal (left) and Resene Crowdpleaser (right) and the blue-hued glass on the side table.

Step 10

Step 11

Step 10: Bring in greenery. We added a vine in a pot on the top of the bookcase painted Resene Malibu, a leafy plant in the middle of the bookcase in a pot painted Resene Raindance and a monstera leaf in the vase on the side table.

Step 11: Finally, hang up your artwork. We found this framed image of the cascading pools at Bondi Beach at Kmart.