High-Contrast Color Combos to Elevate Your Home

Designers often use the color wheel to build palettes because it shows how colors are related. Analogous colors sit next to each other on the wheel, and because they’re similar, they always work well together. The rooms in this story feature complementary colors, which are opposites on the wheel. When they appear together, they look more intense and striking, which is why you’ll see them in logos for big brands like FedEx and IKEA. Read on to find out how to use these bold color combos in your home.

This Washington, DC, dining room looks super moody thanks to deep blue walls paired with Zoffany wallpaper. The space needed levity, says designer Zoe Feldman, so she painted the inside of the built-in cabinet Viking Yellow by Benjamin Moore. Bonus: The sunny shade shows off the glassware better than a dark color would.

Dallas-based designer Susan Bednar Long was delighted when she learned the little girl who sleeps in this bedroom loves pink and green equally. “We used solid colors without pattern to keep it modern,” she says. White accents, including a funky egg chair from Fine Mod Imports, make the pairing pop even more.

Purple walls paired with a matching velvet sofa create a cocoon-like feel in this tiny TV room by Newport, Rhode Island, designer Jocelyn Chiappone. The deep color “helps visually expand the space,” she says. She added the orange tables just for fun. “They’re a total conversation piece!”

Blue is one of designer Taylor Jacobson’s favorite colors, and because this Los Angeles client wasn’t afraid to go bold, she added orange to the mix. “I like to have a light touch with the contrasting color. Just a hint of orange makes this room playful,” she says. A wood door and West Elm nightstand balance the bright colors and patterns.

You might be reluctant to pair red with green because of a certain winter holiday, but the two can be great together any time of year! For this seating area, the team at Cameron Ruppert Interiors in Washington, DC, bridged the colors with a bold blue sofa, creating a jewel-box effect that looks classy, not kitschy.