Tonal interiors: using a tone-on-tone color palette to decorate, each room in your home will be unique
Current color trends are clear: we are moving away from the dominance of neutral, very light colors and towards exploring the exciting possibilities of deeper or livelier colors, shades and tones. Doing so always first requires a careful study of space, the light and the surrounding materials. That said, there is an interior design technique that is becoming very popular and is based on using so-called "bold" colors.
Whether the colors are very dark, saturated or bright, you can choose the "tonal interior" approach to decorate your home. We explain exactly what is meant by this below:
What is meant by "tonal interiors"
"Tonal" color combinations are those that advance in a progression of shades/tones. In other words, you move from one color to another gradually, without crisp, clear divisions or "color divides". Gone are large accent walls and instead, shades and tones blend subtly one into the other.
This approach starts by choosing a principle "starting color" and then following this with differing saturation levels of the same color. This is a method that allows for the (judicious) use of bold colors - typically difficult to manage by themselves - as they are muted by the toned down shades of themselves which are in near proximity.
An all-encompassing decor
If done right, tone-on-tone/tonal interior decoration can make any space in your home look and feel elegant.
The key to succeeding with this approach is that you need to be really sure about the range of colors you want to choose from, as every element in the room will have to stick to the selected color palette. In fact, the shade gradations are incorporated into all the elements present in a room.
You also have to remember that every color has different undertones, and sometimes, putting these together can create a "jarring" effect. Take, for example turquoise, which contains green, and periwinkle which contains purple - if we combine turquoise and periwinkle, we could end up with a visual "mess".
Avoid this risk by ensuring you have a good color reference palette/catalog to hand when making these important decisions.
Pay attention to lighting
You also need to take into account the way in which each color will change when it is illuminated by natural or artificial light. Given this variable, you may need to adjust your lighting setup: do you need light/heavy curtains, bulbs which give off a warmer/colder light, soft up/down-lighters, wall scounces, etc?
There is room for some contrast
When most of the surfaces and objects in a room follow the tone-on-tone scheme, you can still introduce a few contrasting accents - such individual pieces of furniture, for example.This allows you some freedom in your decorating, even if you do follow a particular "plan" - and, after all, you need to be sure you're the one that is (most) happy with the final result!
