5 tips to help you choose the right colour window dressings

Sophie McCreadie

BY Sophie McCreadie

Published: 07 May 2019 Updated: 25 March 2024

When it comes to choosing the perfect finish for your window furnishings, it can be difficult knowing what is the right colour to go with.

Consider what the room will be used for

As well as furniture and accessories, colours can have a huge effect on the atmosphere and overall feel of a room. Warmer colours like redsoranges and yellows are perfect for sociable spaces in your home like the living room or kitchen, as they help to create an uplifting mood and even add energy. Whereas cooler colours such as bluesgreens and purples tend to offer a more calming and relaxing feel. Here, the deep Calista cobalt blue curtains in this bedroom bring a comforting sophisticated feel.

Dark blue curtains fitted to two wide windows in a bedroom with dark wooden floors and a grey bed

Pick from dominant colours in the room

A simple way to style your window furnishings is to match with colours that are already in the room, just like how these blinds and curtains complement the teal sofa in this living space. This can also work if you have a favourite patterned item in the room, such as a geometric rug or eye-catching artwork. Simply pick the most prominent colour and find a fabric or paint colour to match, which together with other accessories can help you create a more cohesive and considered colour scheme.

teal coloured eyelet curtains fitted across three windowsand matched with blinds in a room with a an armchair and side table

Choose colours that sit together

If you want to be reassured that multiple colours are going to work well together, it helps to stick to tones that do not move too far away from your dominant colour. The lime green shutters in this living space, for example, sit in between the pastel yellow walls and the darker green accessories. If you don’t have a colour wheel on hand, you can stay on the safe side by keeping a pastel colour scheme soft and light like this space, and for a bright colour scheme try to use any bold colours sparingly and keep neutral shades for most of the room.

green tier on tier shutters fitted to tall windows above a sofa in a living room

Don’t over complicate small spaces

While larger spaces can have several different colours working through them, smaller spaces can easily feel overpowered by too many distractions. This doesn’t mean though that you have to pick bright or neutral colours to make the room feel bigger. Sometimes choosing a rich dark colour can leave you with a more intimate and interesting space, perfect for a study to help you concentrate or a den to help you relax. Complementing dark colours with a cool light window furnishing like the white Silhouette® blind pictured here will also help to draw in natural light so the room never feels too closed in.

silhouette blinds fitted to a small and large window in a room with a chaise longue

If in doubt stay neutral

Neutral colours are still a classic choice for all interior styles. Keeping your window furnishings in a neutral shade will allow you to experiment with other accessories or furniture in bolder accents colours, giving them breathing space to stand out. Creating a minimalist and open feel that is likely to work in any style of room around your home.

grey duette blinds fitted to three windows in a dining room

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