How to Add a Tasteful Touch of Neon to Your Home

Tasteful neon is no longer an oxymoron, and these interior designers offer fresh ways to incorporate the look into any style.

By: Meredith Rosenberg

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Photo By: Costas Picadas

Photo By: Planterra

Photo By: Tomas Espinoza

Photo By: Costas Picadas

©Jane Beiles

Photo By: Decorilla

How to Make Neon Hues Work in Almost Any Style Room

Neon has long held a bad rap in the design world, often relegated to the same space occupied by lava lamps, velvet paintings and '70s wood paneling. But neon's perception is changing and is no longer limited to garish signs tucked away in basement bars. Plus, it's now possible to find stylish neon options in everything from wallpaper to furniture, prompting one to rethink neon's place in a home.

"Bright colors and neon can go beyond accents and serve as part of the design language of a space," says Jessica Shaw, interior design director at The Turett Collaborative.

Two Words: Neon Plants

One of the easiest ways to experiment with the neon trend is by adding a neon-colored plant. Shane Pliska, president of Planterra, a company that provides interior landscape services, specifically recommends plants such as the 'Neon' pothos and Dracaena fragans 'Limelight.' Both are considered low-maintenance plants and you can add as few or as many as you want to brighten up your space.

Take Neon Outside

"Paint a front door or accent door something bold and neon," suggests Leigh Spicher, an interior designer for Ashton Woods. "Doors can be the best place to test bold color because they can easily be repainted." She adds, "Neon should be a stand-alone star. In other words, create a big focal point with neon by adding it into a neutral background or palette." For balancing neon, she recommends black, blue, brown and green as grounding neutrals.

Hang a Subtle Neon Sign

Another way to ease into the neon trend is by hanging a neon sign. It can be subtle, like this one, or fully commit to the concept with a fun piece like this.

"In a current Chelsea duplex we are in the process of designing, we are combining a personal motif for the homeowners into a neon sign in the entry," says Jessica. "A mirror across from the neon helps to expand its lighting reach. Here, the neon is a design element as well as a light source."

Brighten a Room With Neon Curtains

"In a family home we designed on the Upper East Side, our client was not afraid to venture beyond accents, and allowed us to play with various bright colors, which create a wonderful frequency in the apartment," Jessica says. Here, that includes neon ombre curtains and a Day-Glo orange sculptural piece.

Add Some Neon Furniture

In the same apartment, Jessica added an unexpected neon green sofa and chairs, while keeping the rest of the space neutral and unassuming.

Contrast Neon With a Moody Palette

In a bedroom, go beyond neon accent pillows and hang neon wall decor for a real statement-maker, as Jessica did here. Not only tasteful, this electric purple also brings a real current of excitement to an otherwise muted room. The key is balancing bright neons with a moody palette to maintain a calming effect.

Paint an Accent Wall in Neon

"For those who are not ready to take a full-color plunge, I recommend trying out neon in a smaller space, to serve as an element of surprise, such as a powder room, entry or kids’ room," Jessica advises. In this child's room, she used neon orange as an accent wall, complemented by neon colors in the carpet, artwork and decor.

Raise the Focus With a Neon Light

"I love playing with scale and using oversized lights and pendants to create a focal point in the room," says Denise Davies of D2 Interieurs.

"In this boy's bedroom I used an oversized bold neon-colored pendant light that really sets the stage for this room," she notes. She added matching neon colors to unite the design and grounded the room with an ocean-blue area rug.

Feeling bold? Try adding a statement neon light to another part of your home.

Mix the Old With the Neon

"Historic homes provide endless opportunities for punches of color and modern drama, something that often feels unnatural or 'cold' in new-build homes," offers Devin Shaffer, a lead interior designer at Decorilla. "Although I advocate for keeping as much original charm as possible — in this case keeping the original fireplace finish — that's not always an option. Because the mantel had already been painted a multitude of times, our designer was forced to either replace the entire piece or add a new coat of paint. By going with chartreuse, the home's architecture is given new life, and its brightness allows for a visual association with the vibrant colors of the flames and colors of a fire."

Not only that, he adds, "I love how the fireplace is further elevated by an oversized rug that extends from the floor to the fireplace wall. We often think of adding brightness to the upper half of a room, however, by adding neon colors to the flooring materials and accents, a room can quickly feel two to three times larger. This is especially effective when the same color of neon is used. That said, you can always mix a variety of undertones, finishes and patterns to accomplish the look."

Go Bold With Neon in a Less-Used Room

"This lounge space is one of my all-time favorites by our design team, mainly because a commercial grade carpet was used — one that you'd typically find in a bowling alley or movie theater," Devin shares. "Why does it work? The answer is that it's used in the most unusual of spaces, a high-class room with luxury materials. This style of flooring would never work in a room with neutral wall colors because it would absorb all of the focus and overwhelm the room," he adds.

How to get this look? "The use of three primary neon colors (plastic pink, UFO green and proton purple) does the trick without detracting from the other unique design elements in the space," Devin advises. "I always urge clients to be daring when mixing a variety of styles. It's part of the luxury of living in postmodern times. In this particular design you can find traditional, transitional, eclectic, classic, contemporary, rustic, modern, masculine and feminine," Devin says. In other words, neon can work with any style when properly incorporated.