Stylish Paint Colors And Ideas For Your Living Room

When designing any room, the best place to start is the paint color. It sets the atmosphere for the entire space – light and bright, beautiful and bold, or dark and cozy. You must also keep in mind that you don’t have to stick to just one color; rather you can get as creative as you want! Think about a feature wall, color blocking, or even a gorgeous ombre. I have gathered plenty of inspiration to get you started on your painting journey!

Light and Bright

We will start with the simplest and most commonly chosen wall colors – light walls. Light walls are common for a reason; they give your space a fresh and clean feel. For small spaces, a light wall color is perfect because it will make the space feel bigger and more open. Additionally, this is the most versatile wall category. Light and bright walls look great in almost any style of home! For a Scandinavian Modern look choose clean white, for an airy crisp room choose a light blue, and for a country cottage choose cream or a hint of yellow. This wall choice truly has a lot of potential.

However, if you choose this color category, you’ve got to add other interesting elements to your room to keep it from feeling, well, boring. You don’t want your space to feel like an under-designed apartment! So if you choose to go light and bright, expose interesting architectural features, choose brightly colored modern accents, hang art, or make your furniture a strong focal point.

This wonderful white living room works because the lack of color draws attention to the beautiful crown molding. If you look closely, the paint colors actually accentuate the molding. The layers of architectural detail are painted in different shades of white to distinguish the texture, and the result is stunning! [from Alexander James Interiors]

The great thing about a white room is that any colors you add in your furniture items will surely pop. [from Etsy]

While stark white looks great in modern spaces, often a softer color is desirable for an elegant room. If that is the case for you, choose something with a hint of grey or yellow. I recommend staying away from anything too darkly beige — you will lose the airy open feeling. This color is Barren Plain 2111-60 by Benjamin Moore. Notice the contrasting decor elements: the black stripe on the curtains, purple couch, black frames and dark floors. [from Jane Lockhart Interior Design]

Light and bright rooms do not have to be white. The room below is colored with Benjamin Moore’s Ice Blue 2052-70 paint. [from Garrison Hullinger Interior Design Inc]

Dark and Cozy

Have you ever considered painting your walls black? This paint color is a bold choice but can look so elegant. Exactly the opposite of white paint, dark paint makes your space feel tighter or cozier. While I might not recommend black for a small room, it can make a large living room feel more homey. [from Lonny]

Just like dark furniture pops on white walls, light furniture pops on a dark backdrop. For a glamorous look, black, white and gold is a classic combo.

Black makes for a gorgeous modern interior as well, as pictured in this edgy San Francisco abode. [from Dwell]

Bold and Beautiful

Here’s where the fun begins! You can give your room a big personality with a liberal dose of color. There is a strong relationship between color and mood, so think about the personality you want your living room to convey, and choose your color from there. People are often afraid of bold colorful walls, but don’t be–if you don’t like it, there is an easy and inexpensive fix. You can even start off just painting one accent wall to make sure you love your color choice.

Similar to black paint, for a moody and glamourous look, choose a rich color like deep blue or eggplant. This wall color will complement lush fabrics like velvet, as well as gold accents. [from Lonny]

You can use color to distinguish spaces, like in this green living room. [from Hudson Interior Designs]

Orange is about as bold as it gets! Notice how the walls are shiny in this mid-century inspired home? They are painted with an oil-based high-gloss enamel. [from Lonny]

This hue of blue is both bold and calming. [from Lonny, Anthony Baratta LLC]

Wall Paint as Art

Think outside of the box — you can do anything you want with paint! With a little bit of creativity, your walls can be an art feature in your home. Consider color blocking, a wall mural, a stunning ombre effect . . . the possibilities are as great as your imagination!

This next living room might just have the most stunning paint job I’ve ever seen. The Parisian apartment was designed by Ramy Fischler’s firm, RF Studio. They modernized this historical dwelling with an ombre white paint effect that you are sure to be amazed by. [from Paul Graves for AD Magazine via Yatzer]