Be bold with upholstery [it’ll make you very happy!]
Are you in the market for a new sofa or armchair? It’s an investment purchase, and a grey one is the sensible choice, it’ll go with everything and you can always add colourful accessories, right? Most people go with this rationale. But here’s the million dollar question – will your expensive purchase make your heart swell with happiness everyday for many years? If you’ve answered yes to that, then fair enough, you don’t need to read further unless you really want to. Keep an open mind. 🙂
[I’d just like to point out here that I love grey in all its forms. It is the most versatile colour and can look absolutely beautiful. I have plenty of grey in my home (though not furniture) and refer to my dining room as the ‘shades of grey’ room. One of my favourite interior books is ‘Shades of Grey’ by Kate Watson-Smyth. So we’ve established that I have nothing against grey and do in fact love it. Let’s move on.]
If you’ve known me for any length of time, you’ll know I couldn’t do without colour, it makes me very happy. As a colour lover who believes in design longevity, I use colour in moderation; that’s my way of always enjoying it without going off it.
I bought my blue upholstered bed over 3 years ago; it makes me happy every single day and always gets wonderful comments. I don’t expect this joyous feeling to ever abate, I absolutely adore it! It was a significant purchase and I’m so glad I invested in a beautiful colour that makes me happy instead of grey upholstery and having to always worry about how to accessorise it with colour.
If there is a colour you always love, put your brave pants on and buy your next sofa/chair/ottoman/upholstered bed in that colour. Then balance it with neutral (or neutral-ish) walls and accessories, textures and plants. Happiness guaranteed! 😀
Need more convincing? Take a look at these swoony spaces all in real homes (no catalogue images here):
Doesn’t the gorgeous magenta sofa make this otherwise neutral living room feel so much more welcoming? Design by Sisällä Interior DesignLovely purple sofa in the home of Anna (@amotherdesigner on Instagram) bringing a big dose gorgeous colour to her open plan living space along with the pretty rug, art and cushions.I would be all too happy to come home to that situation every day! 💕 Home of Sarah Nelson (@homegirlpdx on Instagram)Pink AND purple! 💖💜 Bold and so beautiful! Home of Amelia Widell, founder of MeliMeli, whose stunning sofas and chairs are available in the UK at AttPynta in several different colours.Three sumptuous colours working beautifully to make this a wonderfully inviting living room in the home of Lizzie Ravn of Emmerson & Fifteenth.This living room with all its Victorian architectural features is stunning regardless of what furniture is in it, but Karen Knox of Making Spaces made it come alive with her brilliant design and this shot of blue from the sofa makes it a lovely welcoming family space.This stunning teal sofa in the home of Lauren (@doer.upper on Instagram) gets a lot of heart-eyed emojis on Instagram and it’s easy to see why!I could never tire of this green, so lush! Beautiful living room in the home of Jordan Ferney of Oh Happy DayDoesn’t this just make you want to dive in?! So gorgeous, welcoming and cosy in the home of Bukky (@lexden_home on Instagram)This mustard velvet beauty looks stunning in the home of Lulu (@lulu_mimis_home on Instagram), photo by @beautifulhomesinthenorthAnother brilliant design by Karen Knox of Making Spaces, this pair of beautiful green velvet armchairs look beyond beautiful in this breathtaking bedroom!Well you know I’m partial to a blue headboard 🙂 Doesn’t it look beautiful against the pale grey wall and teamed with brass and pink? Bedroom of House of HipstersOrdinarily I wouldn’t have bright yellow in a bedroom but wow, this stunning bedroom is making me rethink that! Home of Alessandra Tabacchi and Franco Mariotti as seen in Elle Decoration May 2017Doesn’t this kids’ bedroom just make you so happy? Lizzie Ravn of Emmerson & Fifteeth upholstered her children’s beds herself! That incredible red with the navy is such a gorgeous combination!
Have all these beautiful spaces convinced you that colour on at least one piece of upholstery furniture in your room is the way to go? 🙂
I love these images!! I’ve been wanting to swap our Ikea chair for something ‘showstopper’ for a while now… you’ve totally re-ignited my mission to find something vintage to recover. Brian won’t be happy! Haha!
I want it ALL!! I too love colour although you wouldn’t know it from looking at my Insta feed since we haven’t really got around to decorating properly yet. I’d love a colourful velvet sofa but I’m not sure it will ever happen whilst we have sofa-loving pets :/ X
I hear velvet is a good fabric for homes with pets as they can’t get their claws into it, provided you opt for the durable stain-resistant or washable type. Would be wonderful to be able to get a colourful velvet sofa! 🙂 xx
I love the green ones, I think they’re my favourite. We’ve gone with cream/grey for our sofas and I love them but we do need to buy some throws and cushions to add some colour and brightness. I’m always a bit scared to use colour, but these images have shown me that I don’t need to be.
Delighted to hear this post has you feeling bolder about colour, Sarah! I definitely believe if you pick a sofa in a colour you always like, you won’t go off it, and it makes much more of an impact. If you ever feel like toning down the colour for a particular season, you can just load up on neutral cushions and throws 🙂 xx
Oh, I totally agree with you on that. When we were buying our last sofa we went with an idea of a grey one but ended up buying a blue one instead. Now I’m dreaming of a green velvet like that corner one! Love it!
I love these images!! I’ve been wanting to swap our Ikea chair for something ‘showstopper’ for a while now… you’ve totally re-ignited my mission to find something vintage to recover. Brian won’t be happy! Haha!
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I’m very happy to hear that, Malcolm! Excited to see what you come up with! Perhaps you can show Brian this post to convince him 😉
I want it ALL!! I too love colour although you wouldn’t know it from looking at my Insta feed since we haven’t really got around to decorating properly yet. I’d love a colourful velvet sofa but I’m not sure it will ever happen whilst we have sofa-loving pets :/ X
Author
I hear velvet is a good fabric for homes with pets as they can’t get their claws into it, provided you opt for the durable stain-resistant or washable type. Would be wonderful to be able to get a colourful velvet sofa! 🙂 xx
I just love a bright colored sofa! It creates a “wow” factor in the room unlike any other accent piece. Thanks for sharing these inspiring designs!
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Couldn’t agree more Bobbi! 🙂 xx
I love the green ones, I think they’re my favourite. We’ve gone with cream/grey for our sofas and I love them but we do need to buy some throws and cushions to add some colour and brightness. I’m always a bit scared to use colour, but these images have shown me that I don’t need to be.
Author
Delighted to hear this post has you feeling bolder about colour, Sarah! I definitely believe if you pick a sofa in a colour you always like, you won’t go off it, and it makes much more of an impact. If you ever feel like toning down the colour for a particular season, you can just load up on neutral cushions and throws 🙂 xx
Oh, I totally agree with you on that. When we were buying our last sofa we went with an idea of a grey one but ended up buying a blue one instead. Now I’m dreaming of a green velvet like that corner one! Love it!
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Oh I love your duck egg sofa Anne Marie! And yes, that green velvet sofa is so beautiful isn’t it? 😍 xx