How to find colour inspiration in the everyday

“I’d like to paint my room a bright colour but can’t make up my mind which one. Where can I look for ideas?”

According to our exclusive global survey, around 33% of homeowners love to paint with bright colours. If you’ve just moved house, bold tones are a fantastic way to put your own personal stamp on your new pad. But which colours to choose?

One homeowner’s colour awakening

When Cathy Reuben shifted into her new apartment she was struggling to pick the right colour for her living room walls – until her eyes came to rest on a photograph on her fridge door.

“It was from a recent holiday in Ireland,” she explains. “It showed me in the foreground with lots of beautiful green hills rolling off into the distance behind me.”

“I decided that a similar shade of green would look great in my living room and I found the perfect paint in Dulux’s Colours of the World range. It’s a gorgeous green called Daring Energy from the Energizing Ireland selection, and I absolutely love it. The room feels so fresh and welcoming now.”

Five places to find colour ideas

Once you start thinking about it, you’ll find colour inspiration everywhere you look. Here are a few more bold and beautiful colour schemes you can steal from the things you see around you.

1) The natural world

Whether it’s a forest where you like to go for walks, your local park or even a plant on your windowsill, nature has lots of inspiration to offer. Inject energy into a space with tropical greens broken up with bright splashes of accent colour.

Which paints? Try Leapfrog, Fresh Lime, Fern Green

2) An urban cityscape

Cities are jam-packed full of colour ideas to copy. Create an edgy, urban scheme with pops of neon alongside an elegant grey, or take inspiration from the city skyline at sunset for a warm, laidback vibe.

Which paints? Try Midnite Hour, Pansy Violet, Corsican Treasure, Finnish Blue

3) A beach holiday

Bring that holiday feeling home with you by painting your walls in cheerful beach-inspired colours. Sandy yellows and ocean blues look great together and evoke the invigorating atmosphere of the seaside.

Which paints? Try Prairie Grass, Jacob's Room

4) A treasured object

This could be a painting by your favourite artist, a colourful ornament or a souvenir you brought back from your last holiday. Use your treasured object as the starting point for your colour scheme and you’ll find it hard to go wrong.

Which paints? Try Queen, Gulf Blue

5) Your wardrobe

Your little red dress or favourite blue shirt could be the key to your decorating scheme as well as your outfit. If you like the colour but are worried it’ll be a bit much on your walls, just paint one feature wall – behind a headboard, for example – or use it as the colour for your window frames or a statement piece of furniture.

Which paints? Try Frankly Scarlet, Virtuoso

Top tip

Still struggling to pick your colours? Use the Dulux Visualizer app to help you make the perfect choice and get a sneak peek of what your room will look like once it’s painted.