Colour drenching: How to embrace the style at home

Colour has long been the quickest way to completely transform a room. It’s often the first thing we do when we move into a new home – paint some swatches on the walls and pick out a new colour that feels more suited to our personality and style. After many years of playing it safe with neutrals like grey and cream, people have recently become bolder with their colour choices. But while dark coloured interiors like navy saw a huge rise in popularity, ceilings and woodwork remained traditionally white.

This year, however, colour drenching dominates interiors inspiration. In this guide, we’ll focus on what is colour drenching, as well as colour combinations and how they affect a room, plus tips on how to colour drench correctly in key areas of your home.

• What is colour drenching?
• How does colour drenching work?
• Colour drenching combinations
• Flooring for colour drenching
• How to colour drench in a bedroom
• How to colour drench in a living room
• How to colour drench in a hallway
• How to colour drench in a bathroom
• How to colour drench in a kitchen

How does colour drenching work?

There are many reasons why colour drenching is a good idea:

Makes rooms feel bigger

Only using one colour is a great trick for smaller rooms because it makes them appear larger. Because there’s no colour contrast between the ceiling and the walls, the eye has nothing to focus on. Everything feels toned down and softer – quite the opposite effect you’d expect from using one strong colour in small space!

Softens straight edges

Colour drenching also solves the age-old decorating problem of cutting in, where you need to carefully tape up the corners of the room or have a very steady hand to ensure crisp, clean lines between the white edge and the coloured wall.

Easier to decorate odd-shaped rooms

In awkwardly shaped rooms such as loft bedrooms where the ceiling and walls merge into one, colour drenching means you can just paint them all the same colour!

Creates a backdrop for focal pieces

Having the background in one colour turns it into a blank canvas, so all your furniture and accessories come into the foreground. Artworks and picture frames ‘pop’, while feature walls decorated with wallpaper or a mural stand out much more.

Hides storage and ugly radiators

Painting built-in cupboards the same colour as the walls makes them disappear like magic, creating the illusion of a bigger room in the process. Radiators also camouflage into the background when they match the wall colour.

You can also pick colours in a complementary tone from the same colour family when colour drenching, it doesn’t have to be the same floor to ceiling colour. For example, a living room painted a mid-toned green can have bookshelves painted a couple of shades darker. There’s a 60-30-10 colour theory which proposes that 60% of your room should be one colour, 30% should be a secondary colour (this could be a complementary shade) and 10% should be an accent colour, which is a good rule of thumb to follow when colour drenching or embracing the art of colour clashing.

Colour drenching combinations

When it comes to colour drenching, the possibilities are endless. You can pick a strong colour for something perky and fun, or drench a room with only neutral shades for a chic and pared-back look.

Light & neutral

A blanket of beige is far from boring! Choosing to colour drench with a neutral creates a very simple and elegant space. Think rich, truffled tones with warmth like Pantone’s Colour of the Year ‘Mocha Mousse’. You can then punctuate a lightly coloured scheme with black, gold or natural wooden accessories, or add a vibrant green plant to help to make the room feel less flat.

• Tapi Top Tip: Use textured fabrics like boucle, linen, and jute to add a depth when your scheme is just one colour.

Mid-tones & monochromatic

Dip your toe into the colour pool by choosing a lively colour that evokes happiness like dusky pink, leaf green or sea blue. Without the contrast against a white ceiling or woodwork, a strong colour can be softened and make a space feel calm, even though the colour itself is uplifting. Picking out tints and shades of the same colour such as lighter curtains or a darker rug will make the space feel more unified.

Dark & dramatic

For smaller rooms, especially those with minimal natural light, fully embracing a dark shade from top to bottom can transform a space into a cosy little haven. Dark grey, midnight blue, and rich emerald green are all super luxurious and inviting colours. Matching a deep, squashy sofa to your walls will take the relaxation level up another notch. Ambient side lighting is key to maintaining that cosy feel so add wall lights, floor lamps, or table lamps to bring that welcoming glow. A dramatic ceiling light looks great against a dark ceiling but whatever you do, don’t turn it on!

Flooring for colour drenching

The ceiling must be painted the same colour as the walls when colour drenching, but the rules around your flooring colour are a little vaguer.

Carpet

Coloured carpets are rising in popularity so if you can find a colour that matches your walls, we say go for it! At Tapi, we have a rainbow of coloured carpets to choose from if you’re feeling brave. A rich burgundy or plum carpet will definitely make a design statement. Or you could get a carpet whipped into a rug instead to achieve a similar look but have that added peace of mind should you decide to redecorate in the next few years. This handy article can help you decide what carpet colour to choose.

Hard flooring

For hard flooring, something that’s in a similar tone will work really well. Go for a dark wood floor if you’re drenching in a dark colour, or a very light wood if you want to create a calm space decorated in paler colours. You’re sure to find something that matches among our collection of laminate, luxury vinyl, and engineered wood.

How to colour drench in a bedroom

For a colour drenching bedroom scheme, soothing colours like greens, blues, pinks, or simple neutrals work well. Choose a super soft beige carpet or light wooden floor then colour drench in pastel tones to achieve a calming effect. You can even match your bedding and add an accent chair in the same shade.

How to colour drench in a living room

When choosing your colour drenching living room decor, a sofa that’s the same shade as the walls makes a real statement and helps to create that feeling of being cocooned by colour. If your living room is mainly used in the evening or is north facing, then dark colours are better for making it feel like a cosy space you can settle down in.

How to colour drench in a hallway

Colour drenching a hallway will make this long, narrow space feel much bigger. As it’s a transitional space rather than a room you’ll spend a lot of time in, it’s a chance to have a bit of fun with colour, too. Painting panelling or molding is a great way to bring out detail, and a huge feature ceiling light will add a focal point. Staircases painted in the same colour or shade darker or lighter will help to subtly separate the two sections of the hallway, while a striped or patterned carpet featuring that particular colour will connect the two floors.

How to colour drench in a bathroom

Bathrooms are often one of the smaller rooms in a home, so colour drenching a bathroom can really open everything up. A bathroom with a shower or a wet room tiled in the same colour as the painted ceiling brings a fresh and bold look to a functional space. If you've inherited a coloured bathroom suite in avocado or candy pink, colour drenching is the perfect way to make it feel modern. Go one step further and add towels and soap dispensers in the same shade.

How to colour drench in a kitchen

Colour drenching kitchens can be fantastic for reviving old units. Choose a warm and lively shade and get painting! If you have a small kitchen and lots of floor to ceiling cupboards, colour drenching will ensure your kitchen still feels spacious, even when full of colour. But you don’t have to colour drench the entire kitchen to enjoy this trend. How about painting the ceiling and walls with a single colour that contrasts with the colour of your kitchen units, such as hues of pink and blue; two different shades of green; navy and sage; or mustard yellow and forest green. You could then add monochrome patterned tile-effect flooring for added character and visual interest.

If you’re looking to redecorate this year, colour drenching can completely transform a room. Visit our lookbooks for colour ideas or head to the Ideas Hub to read 10 easy ways to add colour in your home and other inspirational articles.