Just like any other trends, paint trends, too, change every year, every season or every few months. And they often set the tone for the near future, identifying what colours, techniques and paint ideas we’ll be wanting to update our homes with next.
We all get the itch to update our home a little bit at least once a year to reflect our evolving tastes – and paint is the perfect tool for this form of self-expression, whether you completely repaint the walls of your lounge in a new living room colour scheme or switch up the shade of your skirting boards.
Inspired by everything from what DIY influencers are doing on social media to fashion trends of the moment and even current cultural movements, all of these influences culminate in this handful of the most prominent paint trends.
Paint trends 2024
This branch of home decor trends is largely identified by large paint brands on the market, as well as smaller but cool ones, such as Dulux and Lick, which then translate them into new shade releases, colour of the year or colour palette of the year, depending on the brand.
‘We conduct thorough trends research throughout the year to identify emerging trends – we focus on what’s happening culturally that will influence the way we self-express,’ Tash Bradley, director of interior design and colour psychologist at Lick, gives insight into the brand’s process of coming up with the central colour palette of the year. ‘Cultural moods shift, and they always find themselves manifested through how we choose to creatively express ourselves. Whether that’s through our fashion, the food we eat, the music we listen to. Our lifestyles reflect our anxieties, our dreams and our desires.’
And this is what the paint experts have confirmed will be the key paint looks of the next few months we’ll all be going crazy for.
1. Focus on the ceiling
The ceiling often gets forgotten or simply left white, while the walls all get all the colourful treatment. Colour drenching is the trend that’s been more inclusive of ceilings in the past couple of years but the newest trend actually makes a feature of the ceiling, also known as the ‘fifth wall’.
‘Painting the ceiling is getting bigger and bigger and bigger,’ says Marianne Shillingford, creative director and colour expert at Dulux. ‘People are seeing this idea of having colour just up on the ceiling rather than the walls and bringing it down a little bit from the ceiling.’
Painting the ceiling is the perfect small bedroom paint idea as it doesn’t overwhelm the space and it draws the eye upwards, taking advantage of the vertical space and making the room appear bigger than it is. Especially if you opt for a bright colour like the Dulux colour of the year for 2025, True Joy.
2. Try your hand at freestyling
Perfection is no longer a requirement when painting your home’s walls – now, ditching the masking tape and embracing imperfect painted shapes is in. Whether that’s not completely straight stripes or irregular scallops, anything goes.
‘What I think will come through next year is hand painting style. Circles, scallops but really simple ones, doing stripes without masking tape… And it looks amazing. And again, you need to be brave, you need to take a leap,’ Marianne at Dulux says, referencing the brand’s bravery and confidence-inspired colour of the year for 2025.
3. Embrace dark earthy tones
There's nothing more inviting and cocooning than wrapping your hands around a mug of hot chocolate, or a caramel latte. So it’s no surprise that these delicious but earthy colours are being seen more and more, along with shades of terracotta and spices. But while neutral, earthy colours have been popular over the last couple of the years, going forward, the colour palette is getting deeper and darker.
‘We’ve seen more and more decorators embracing deeper, richer tones - red-based browns, dark clay reds, earthy oranges, dusky pinks, terracotta and plum purples - and then layering on lighter sky blues and warm taupes. Why? These earthy tones are surprisingly calming and cocooning, bringing people comfort in their homes. Neutrals are not just white and grey, they take the shape of taupes, beiges, reds, browns, oranges – you name it. Just think of gorgeous landscapes and the rich natural pigments found in soil and clay – these colours are undeniably grounding and in the home, they will work to create spaces that feel irresistibly cosy,’ Tash at Lick explains, giving us some cosy living room ideas.
Part of Lick's colour palette of the year 2025, this delicious and warm shade of brown with red undertones is cocooning and grounding. But equally, the shade has a brightness to it and since it's not too dark, you don't have to worry about making your home look too dingy.
Terracotta reds are beautiful because they are both reminiscent of the earth, as well as holidays in Mediterranean countries. So warming! As far as terracottas go, they can be even darker than this but we love the brightness this one from Farrow & Ball brings.
Also part of Lick's colour palette of the year for 2025, this orange shade proves that pretty much any colour can be earthy as long as you opt for the right shade. This grounding shade has a touch of brown and is the brand's earthiest orange shade.
4. Choose meaningful colours to you
This trend is a bit of an anti-trend actually as it encourages people to ignore colour trends and instead inject their homes with the shades that mean something to them personally or make them feel something, whether that’s joy or calm. Our homes are our own, our refuge from the world and having our personalities and interests reflected within our interiors is becoming increasingly more important to us – this includes the colours we put on our walls or even furniture.
‘People are using colour in a much more emotional way. Rather than just looking great with all of your stuff, it's giving you something,’ Marianne at Dulux says.
Tash at Lick continues as the brand’s colour palette of the year for 2025 was inspired by the feeling of nostalgia. ‘Nostalgia is all about memories. This trend will be a factor in choosing paint shades because it encourages decorators to think about the colours that mean something to them. It’s bringing awareness to how colour is so personal and how certain colours can trigger really different feelings and associations. Just like a song or a scent.'
'More and more, we are seeing decorators wanting to create spaces that feel like a true reflection of their personalities and experiences – filling their homes with little trinkets from their travels, or designing spaces that remind them of their favourite places growing up. The nostalgia trend is encouraging people to tune into their relationship with colour and choose colours that trigger those positive, happy memories, so that they can create homes that bring them emotional comfort and refuge.’
5. Go soft with peach fuzz
Pantone's colour of the year for 2024 is the delightfully summery 'Peach Fuzz', so if damson is a bit too rich for your liking then this could be a sunnier alternative. It's mood-boosting qualities make it ideal for a bedroom where you want to awake with joy or for adding brightness to any room in your home that doesn't get much sunlight.
‘Pantone 13-1023 Peach Fuzz brings belonging, inspires recalibration, and an opportunity for nurturing, conjuring up an air of calm, offering us a space to be, feel, and heal and to flourish from whether spending time with others or taking the time to enjoy a moment by ourselves,’ says Leatrice Eiseman, executive director at Pantone Color Institute. ‘Drawing comfort from Peach Fuzz, we can find peace from within, impacting our wellbeing.’
6. Be bold with colour drenching
As already mentioned, colour drenching has been steadily gaining popularity for a while now, but we expect to see make its way into the mainstream in 2024. It involves painting walls, ceiling, architraves, doors and even cabinetry all in the shade which creates an enveloping effect. It can feel like a commitment if you're not very colour confident, but it's certainly replaced feature walls as a way to make a statement. You could start small with a colour-drenched cloakroom or create a cosy living room coated in a deep, inviting hue.
'Even if you have a smaller room… colour-drench it!' advises Tash at Lick. 'It opens up the whole space and you don’t notice the edges of the room. So, if you have a windowless bathroom for example, don’t leave that ceiling white, paint the ceilings and the woodwork in the same colour as the walls.'
'A darker colour can be used to create a cosy and inviting space. This is a good choice for rooms that are used in the evening, such as bedrooms or living rooms. Deep yet muted green tones, such as Paint and Paper Library’s Salvia, are perfect for creating a relaxing and inviting atmosphere,' adds Michael Rolland, managing director at The Paint Shed.
7. Primary pairings
Take inspiration from colour-blocking, still found to be popular in the fashion world, and think about dressing your kitchen like you would pull an outfit together! One colour for the top and another for the bottom, with a little injection of colour for accessories - like this pop of yellow.
Joa Studholme, colour curator at Farrow & Ball, explains how to achieve this, ‘The biggest overall paint trend will be about how we use colour as much as the colour itself. The use of stronger, simpler colours is extremely popular. Eclectic mixes evoke the warmth and harmony of a more innocent age’.
She goes on to say, ‘this can be achieved by using two colours on one wall – easy if you have panelling or a dado rail, but if not then arm yourself with masking tape and just paint the bottom third of the wall in one colour and the top in another. The blue tones of Selvedge are made to feel all the more upbeat when combined with deeply saturated green Beverly and this look sums up this growing trend of using a friendly combination of block colours.'
8. Mix matt and gloss
A wonderful way to create depth and interest on a flat wall is to mix matt and gloss paints in the same colour. Try a checkerboard pattern, alternate stripes or like in this image, zoning an area. The change in paint finish means that light will bounce off them in varying amounts, creating interest to an otherwise plain wall.
Take this hallway idea as an example, Andy Greenall, creative director at Paint & Paper Library, says, 'Paint finishes, from high gloss to chalky matt, have a profound effect on colour. Our new versatile and self-priming formulations give designers permission to play with finish, to be creative in their choices and confident that the finishes are durable enough to withstand any situation.'
'I love to see finishes used in surprising ways; the same colour set side by side in contrasting finishes will create a contemporary moment in a traditional space. Consider juxtaposing the chalky matt Architects’ Matt with our high sheen Architects’ Gloss.’
9. Create a piece of art
Accentuating areas within a room with a strong colour can help create a painted masterpiece, and give a room a one-of-a kind look. For example, choosing to paint an alcove to create a bold statement, or to highlight a fireplace surround in a striking complementary colour, will give a room a truly personal touch.
‘Look out for areas which lend themselves to be ‘pulled out’ to give an instant punch of colour’, Emma Bestley, co-founder and creative director of YesColours, explains. 'Colours can be used to manipulate the way your architecture looks and feels. And for homes without these details; colour can also create the appearance of architectural features, even if all you have is a few blank walls and a flat ceiling.'
'Painting using earthy colours like our warming Loving Orange, can completely transform a structural detail into an eye-catching feature. It grounds the scheme which then becomes a more inclusive and inviting space. The same goes for the use of olive green in the skylight reveal, it turns the emptiness of that space, drawing your eye towards the subtle but cheerful detail.'
10. Embrace dusky pink
We have been drawn to earthy tones of pink to help bring comfort and warmth to our interiors during the past couple of years and it’s something that looks to continue into 2024.
This earthy tone of pink is moving away from baby pinks and soft white pinks and is more a blend of blush and beige mixed to create a grounding shade of pink. And it's also reminiscent of the serene Dulux colour of the year for 2024, Sweet Embrace.
‘A pale, soft pink, like Thrift, is a calming, gentle colour with a warming, nostalgic feel. It’s an important colour for 2024 as it’s incredibly versatile, working in bedrooms, drawing rooms, kitchens and bathrooms. It pairs beautifully with a number of shades, including ochre, blue, grey and green. Most importantly, it’s a colour which makes a house feel like a home’, says Francesca Wezel, founder of Francesca’s Paints.
Which paint trend are you feeling most inspired by?
