How To Rock A Monochrome Room Look

April 8, 2020

One of the hardest things to decide when decorating or redecorating a new room is what color to choose. What color will be the walls? What furniture color should you choose? What color palette are you going to follow? There’s a lot to worry about with just that. One way to escape that pressure of coordinating colors is to go with a monochromatic color palette.

Why Go Monochromatic?

Designing your room with a monochromatic color palette gives you a unifying element right from the get-go. You simply have to decide on one color and you have your ultimate guide to pull together everything seamlessly. And this easily creates harmony.

Monochromatic colors also create a soothing and restful environment. With more than two or three colors in the room, your brain can have too much to process. But, with one dominant color, your mind has less to process and you can focus on your room’s best features. Plus, with monochromatic colors, your space immediately looks bigger and more spacious.

A monochromatic look is bold, intentional, and ultimately eye-catching. However, it’s also undeniably downright intimidating to create. After all, there are so many things to think of. Furniture, accents, floor coverings, decor, and so much more. But, then again, it’s worth it to bring elegance into your rooms without the need to hire a designer.

How To Pull Off A Monochromatic Look

You can pull off the monochromatic look in a number of ways. Whether you’re aiming for a subtle or saturated look, these tips can help you out.

Start Small

If you’re a newcomer to the monochromatic game, it’s best to start small. Maybe pick a bathroom or your bedroom. This takes off a lot of pressure and it is less intimidating than say the living room or the dining room. Plus, with small spaces, you have the room to make beginner mistakes which you can correct later on.

Think Texture, Texture, Texture

With monochrome looks, texture will be your best friend. Variations in texture will keep the color from falling flat. And it’s also the most inexpensive tool to add visual interest to the room. In addition to texture, patterns will also be your comrade in arms when decorating your monochrome room. Usually, mixing and matching too much is a no-no but, with monochrome looks, you can mix and match all you want.

Add a Pop of Contrasting Color

Monochromatic looks are dominated by one color. But, there isn’t a set rule that there should always be just one in this look. If you’re not ready to commit one color, you can always add statement pieces in a contrasting color to the one you’ve chosen. This won’t disrupt the harmony of the room. In fact, it will add more visual interest and a pleasant and energizing element of surprise to your room.

RDon’t Forget the Undertones

While picking design elements of your chosen color, don’t forget to consider their undertones or the hues that stand out in them when hit by the light. Although they might be of the same color range, putting two items together with different undertones won’t look right. It’s subtle but, you’ll know right away when you see it.

Make Neutrals Your Friend

Neutrals work with everything, even a monochromatic room. You can use whites or other neutrals to complement your primary color. This also gives the eye some rest from the overflow of the main shade. Aside from neutrals, you can also use natural materials such as wooden furniture or metal sets. Make sure to add coordinating pops throughout the room and you’ll get yourself a room that looks professionally designed.

Use Shapes

Aside from textures and contrasting colors, another way to add great visual interest to your monochromatic look is by using shapes. You can go for a softer more cozy look with curves, rounds, and soft shapes. On the other hand, you can go for a more modern look with edges, lines, and sides. Details like these keep the eyes moving and prevent the look from falling flat or too simple.

Go Subtle

If you’re still a little scared, one great tip from Architectural Digest is to go subtle. Take the color that you really love then choose its lightest shade as your main color. In most cases, it’ll almost be white but, that’s the beauty of it. You have a tint of your desired color while having a shade that is very versatile. With that, you can use other elements of the room to bring out the darker shades of the color you chose.