This interior designer concept isn’t new; people have been successfully using it for many years, however, some interior designers forecast that this year it will see a revival as an effective way to add splashes of colour into our homes, particularly for those who don’t like patterns per-say.
You can use colour blocking in any room of your home and it’s a great way to make rooms appear higher and longer – vertical blocking can be used to add height while horizontal blocking will make walls and rooms appear longer.
Colour blocking doesn’t only have to be carried out on walls. Flooring can use blocking – the simplest forms being rugs with geometric prints. You can use colour blocking on curtains and soft furnishings as well. In the bedroom choose duvet cover sets and bed throws with solid blocks of colour to create the effect for you, or use different fabrics to create your own colour blocked headboard.
The name implies that you have to use squares and rectangles however, circles, triangles and other shapes can also be used. The blocks of colour don’t have to tone, you can deliberately clash colours to create a striking look or use complimentary colours to great affect.
In many ways colour blocking is similar to patchwork – the difference between the two is that colour blocking is used primarily with plain fabrics and materials and the are also identical in size, whereas patchwork pieces are identical in size to form specific patterns, such as stars, and then interspersed with other shapes and forms to create the patchwork effect. However, the very simplest patchwork of squares can be interpreted as colour blocking.
This type of decorative pattern isn’t only for use in contemporary homes, traditionally styled interiors can also successfully use the concept by using more muted colour tones. Art works can be displayed using the technique along with cheap cushions in plain colours. For the best results don’t try and over complicate things, as with many interior design ideas too much of a good thing can very quickly turn into a disaster.
If you going to try this technique using fabrics why not ask for free fabric samples and then you’ll be able to visualise the end result far easier. Likewise, if you’re going to use colour blocking on a wall try sample paint pots first and then go larger when it comes to painting the actual wall.
