Lovely lavender. It’s female and spring-like and contains the dewy freshness of childhood. That is why it shows up in a lot of nurseries. But lavender isn’t just kid stuff. It’s a sophisticated, varied and flexible colour that works in any room in the home.
Authentic lavender is a mixture of purple and white and is named for the flower. But what we call lavender incorporates an immense spectrum of colors, from light purples to pale pinks, to blues and grays. Generally its purple and pink versions — and these vary in tone from very mild to moderate dark — evoke femininity and freshness and youth, whereas the grayer hues are more neutral, tasteful and grown-up.
Its complementary colors depend on which lavender you are using. Every variant looks crisp and bright with white. The brighter, purple versions looks great with lime green and orange. The grayer lavenders seem great with beige, magenta and yellows (golden and warm browns). However, as you may see from the photographs below, there is almost nothing you can’t put with it. It’s seen here with charcoal, navy, turquoise, terra-cotta and much more. Did I leave out anything?
Mercedes Corbell Design + Architecture
Lavender on the Walls: The Purples
A mild purple lavender with a shock of bright, vivid chartreuse saves this open, modern room from the anticipated glowing white of numerous rooms in this style. I love it.
decordemon
This bright, true lavender seems to pop off the wall. But in such a setting it looks complicated and modern. It could easily go overboard using different accessories.
A warm, purple lavender looks so rich and lovely with this wainscoting. It’s young and fresh but maybe not so babyish that you would want to paint over it as this child grows. I think that this specific combo may work in a lot of different rooms.
Clifton Leung Design Workshop – CLDW.com.hk
This very pale lavender is so soft and innocent. But it is not babyish. It works for an infant, but it would work for an adult also.
MANDARINA STUDIO interior layout
The Pinks
This rosy pink lavender is so unexpected and so very beautiful with these stained glass windows. This space brings contemporary and traditional design together perfectly. Does not it just seem calm?
MANDARINA STUDIO interior layout
A pinkish-lavender stairwell is simply a little bit glamorous. It provides a soft warmth into the grays and glowing whites who live with it here.
MuseInteriors
This very pale pinky lavender adds to the female nature of this home office. And it looks so beautiful with the golden tones at the mirror, floor and chair.
Chris Donatelli Builders
The Grays
This shade of grey lavender was on the cover of each design magazine at 2010. It’s warmer than a real grey but strong enough to function as a neutral. It has an elegant, rich feel. It also looks great as upholstery.
Elizabeth Gordon
A lighter, and possibly even grayer, version. It’s the great neutral with this diverse but formal living area.
Alexandra Torre Interiors & Design
This is a really blue lavender, almost a periwinkle. I love it with all the glowing pinks and purple. In spite of the daring, vivid colors, this chamber is quite conventional and not at all over the surface.
Feldman Architecture, Inc..
Another pale blue lavender on the walls. Since everything is so colorful and glowing, the wall shade recedes to a nice, warm neutral.
Haus Interior Design
From the Bath
This touch of lavender adds a few femininity and keeps this glowing white bath from feeling too sterile.
Alex Amend Photography
Lavender is the perfect background for major glamour, particularly when paired with gold.
Mark English Architects, AIA
From the Bedroom
Length of lavender and purple fit right in with this earthy bedroom, possibly since they so frequently appear in the natural world.
WA Design Architects
Lavender gets along perfectly in this diverse room filled with colour. It looks especially good with the golden curtains, do not you think?
Elad Gonen
From the Kitchen
A bank of hypermodern lavender-gray closets provides this space its life and even a touch of humor.
Caesarstone
Lavender Ceasarstone granite counters. This kitchen is pretty frilly, but I think that this may work in a really modern kitchen with fresh lines and very little embellishment too.
Jeff King & Company
Lavender cabinetry is both homey and modern.
Juliet Pegrum Layout
Decorating With Lavender
This is that grayish-lavender upholstery I was speaking about. It’s modern, but it’s also classic. And it looks so great with golds and creamy white.
More grayish-lavender upholstery. It looks rich and tasteful inside this marvelously eclectic area. That gold and lavender suzani couch makes me swoon.
COLECCION ALEXANDRA
True-blue lavender upholstery paired with a dark, grayish lavender accent wall and lots of gold. Colorwise this area has got it going on (I am less sure about the design of the furniture).
Zeterre Landscape Architecture
Lavender Outside
The real deal. Most of the lavender colour you see outside will come from lavender flowers and other landscaping plants, such as catmint, echium and wisteria.
Suzanne MacCrone Rogers
Lavender shutters from a turquoise home equals fun.
Suzanne MacCrone Rogers
A lavender door using its Caribbean sister colors.
Benjamin Moore
Iris Bliss 1383 Paint
A dark purple lavender.
Sherwin-Williams
Enchant SW6555 Paint
Lighter but still quite purple. That is what most people think of when they think of lavender.
Benjamin Moore
Spring Lilac 1388 Paint
Lighter and brighter.
Sherwin-Williams
Euphoric Lilac SW6835 Paint
Getting pinker but nevertheless lavender.
Benjamin Moore
Peace and Happiness 1380 Paint
A paler version of pinky lavender.
Benjamin Moore
Beach Plum 2072-60 Paint
Very soft, pinkish lavender. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that this is really for babies and little girls only. It could be a great neutral.
Benjamin Moore
Slip AF-605 Paint
A light grey lavenderplus a great neutral for partitions.
Benjamin Moore
Instinct AF-575 Paint
An extremely blue lavender, still with a great deal of grey.
Serena & Lily
Bluebell Wall Paint – $45
Almost baby blue but nevertheless lavender. See that purple hue?