Design Dilemmas - A Dark, North Facing Room
I could probably dedicate my interior design career to writing about paint colours in the home. I am fascinated by the effects of light on paint. A north facing room and how to decorate it is a very common design dilemma - and it's all to do with colour. Getting the right colour in a room is a crucial step to make your house feel like home. The different paint brands and colour options, colour psychology, paint finishes, the light-reflecting particles added to paint (those exist!) …so for the purpose of this post, I will be your colour enthusiast!
How to decorate a north facing room
It seems easy, right? You go to the paint store, choose a few colours you like and voila! Pick up the paintbrush. But sadly, it is a bit more complicated than that. My clients will attest to me getting really excited about the colour. AS WELL AS the reasons why I choose a particular colour for their design.
So, if it’s not obvious yet, I could spend A LOT of time talking about paint colours. But for this particular blog post I am going to limit my colour talk to dark, north facing rooms. Why? Well, since I starting my interior design business it’s been my most ‘popular’ design dilemma (read: biggest house problem!).
Let’s start with this: There is no such thing as a bad colour… just a bad use of colour.
Most of us have at least one north-facing room in our house. The temptation is to paint a dark room white but white can often look dingy, grey or just fall flat in the room…this will NOT make a dark room feel light and airy.
Because the light coming into a north facing room already has cool grey undertones it’s important to choose a paint colour with warm undertones to combat this and create balance in your room. Your paint store or interior designer can help you identify undertones.
The way I see it, you have 3 options in a dark, north facing room. You might know by now, I like 3. I always provide 3 solutions to a problem, 3 design options for a room, and 3 price points… you get it!
A dark and cosy space
Solution 1: Come to the Dark Side
Embrace the dark. Sometimes the best option is to go with what you already have in the room (not much light!) and turn your room into a cosy, romantic space. This gets even better with a fire going or some lit candles. Can you imagine yourself there?
Here's my 3 top tips for working in the dark:
1. Darker colours will absorb light and to keep the room from looking ‘dark’ instead of ‘cosy’ you want to find a colour with less black in the base (your paint store will help with this).
2. You can add a bright, warm white to your moldings, woodwork, and ceiling to give the dark colour a bright pop and lighten up the mood of the room.
3. If possible go glossy on the walls. Just be aware that any imperfections in the walls will be magnified with gloss paint. Alternatively, you can try adding gloss paint to the ceiling or the woodwork. This will help reflect the light in the room.
Solution 2: Blinded by the light
The fear with going dark, is well, the dark. So if that’s not the right option for you let’s look at choosing a light shade for your dark room. As a reminder - white paint often looks dingy or grey in a north facing room. And white paint will not ‘add’ light to your room. Paint can only reflect the light you already have in the room. So, to clarify, white paint will NOT make a dark room feel light and airy (and this has been one of the biggest design dilemmas I have faced in the UK)…BUT, paler colors with warm or even green-ish undertones can add dimension and bring soft lightness into a dark room without being too cold or too dingy.
Top tips for working with lighter colours in a darker room:
1. A pale warm grey is my favorite non-white, light option. Additionally it works well with other colours and will bounce around the light without falling flat.
2. Add a bit more colour to your non-white neutral with any pale shade of colour really.
3. White walls and dark spaces do not mix (just want to reinforce this point).
A warm neutral wallpaper with peaches, yellow, reds in a floral design offset with complementary pop of blue by Carrie Cotton Design.
Solution 3: Bright is beautiful
If you are thinking what I am thinking that a bright colour will brighten up a room, you are correct! Warm lavender, sunny yellow, deep tangerine, and peachy pink will add a punch to your dark room. However, bright colours need to be tamed.
Top tips for working with bright colours
1. Offset it with a complementary color so the bright color is not too dominant. For example, if your walls are bright orange, use accents of teal or blue. If your room is light purple, try green in the room to create balance.
2. Make sure your bright colour is coordinated with other rooms/hallway visible to this room (otherwise your house might start looking like a bag of skittles).
3. To keep your bright colour from overwhelming your space use white on your molding and woodwork.
Finally please remember this about paint colours. It’s always best to try your sample on each wall in the room (2 coats please), wait 2 hours for it to dry, and then observe it throughout the day to see how light changes the colour. Happy painting!
There are many other things you can do in a dark, north-facing room to brighten it up. If you need some ideas, book a 1-on-1 design call with me. This design call lasts around 30 minutes and you will be speaking with me, personally. I'll help you identify what is already working in your home and give you ideas on how to improve.
Otherwise keep reading some of our other blog posts that are packed full of ideas. Our post on 5 Easy Steps to Design a Home You Love is a great place to start. It has practical advice on how to get started on your home design journey. You can also check out our new e-book ‘Ditch the Interior Designer’ that is full of ideas, practical advice, and design mistakes to avoid. It’s an easy step-by-step approach to designing your home. Grab a copy, HERE.
