NEW YEAR, NEW HUES
Ask any interior designer, and they’ll tell you that the easiest and most affordable way to reinvent one or more living spaces in your home is with a brush, roller, and bucket of paint—preferably in a fresh color that’s currently popular and different from what you have on your walls now.
This strategy is so commonly followed that paint manufacturers consistently announce new “Color of the Year” choices annually, intending to spark creative ideas among homeowners and inspire the desire for change, which doesn’t necessarily have to correspond to a given period like spring (the season when many people start thinking about cleaning, updating, and home improvement). In fact, these new hue announcements are often made well before the turn of the calendar year—like autumn 2021 for 2022 color of the year products.
“The color of the year that is a tried-and-true pick for our clients is a subtle green with warm brown undertones. This color is ideal for those who want to update their gray-tone home to a warmer pop while staying neutral,” says Morgan Metcalf, owner of Williams Metcalf Interiors in Hanover, New Hampshire, and Park City, Utah. “It’s a paint that can coexist with bright colors, too; for example, bright blue walls in a powder room can be balanced by painting the vanity and trim.”
Metcalf says colors of the year are highly valued by many homeowners. “That’s because these colors are driven from global inspiration about what will be popular in the year to come. For example, if a homeowner is going to sell their home in a timely fashion, choosing a current color could make a major difference,” she says.
The dominance of green among paint-makers this year isn’t surprising to many of the experts.
“Working from home, dining outside, and attempting to bring nature indoors when applicable are reasons why colors of the year are trending toward green. Homeowners are striving to find balance in this strange new world we are navigating. These new colors enable us to return to nature, restore, relax, and also provide a sense of home and healing,” Metcalf adds.
Whether it’s an entire home, a single room, or a smaller project, paint can truly transform the look and feel of your interiors, says Arianna Cesa, associate manager of Color Marketing and Development for Benjamin Moore in Montvale, New Jersey.
“Personal preferences and tastes are always evolving. Looking to these colors can help you find your style and discover colors and designs you hadn’t considered before,” Cesa notes. “As our homes grow and evolve with us, updating its colors is a way to express and reflect who we are.”