How to beat colour shyness

“It’s sad to think of all the uniform beige living rooms out there but then it’s understandable,” says Sarah Quilliam, head of product design at Hillarys. “Introducing colour into your home can be a little daunting.”

To help those who want to brighten up their abode, Hillarys has teamed up with creative consultant and lifestyle blogger Will Taylor. Will, who writes the brightbazaarblog.com, has compiled his top tips on how to be a shade or two more daring.

*Take it slowly: Don’t feel you need to choose all your colours at once. Before you even decide on a space to decorate, it’s best to take note of colours you are drawn to. This way you can gradually build up an idea of your perfect palette. It also means you are not creating a scheme “blind” when you do start the decorating process. Knowing you already gravitate towards a hue in other areas of your life, including what you wear, will make you feel more at ease when bringing these colours into a decorating scheme.

*Find a focus: Perhaps you know the colours you like but you’re struggling with where to start. My advice is to pick a key piece for your scheme and use it as the reference point for the rest of the palette and room design. This could be anything from a rug to a smaller item, such as a vase or painting. Take a picture of it on your phone so you can always refer back to it when shopping for co-ordinating pieces.

*Pin-point your approach: Once you’ve narrowed down the colours you like, it helps to pick the right shades and tones to introduce across the room. Often, spaces that use colour most effectively and stylishly are those where there is a consistent contrasting, tonal or harmonious palette throughout.

*Section the space: Start by layering colourful cushions and throws onto your sofa and live with the new hues before you introduce colour to other parts of the room. Living with the shades and seeing how they work will make you feel more confident when it comes to making bigger decorating decisions, like painting and wallpapering or buying a new sofa.

*Look for the light: The light in a room has a big impact on how colours will look in-situ. In a north-facing room, warm and rich tones will balance the cooler light. In south-facing spaces, using paler shades will make the most of the abundance of light. Always do a test patch first.

*Hillarys has launched a Creative Colour competition to find British homes that display the most creative use of colour. The best will win £1,500 to spend on shutters and the three runners-up will each get a £100 Hillarys voucher. Bright Bazaar blogger Will Taylor, who has more than 2.5m followers on his blog and social media channels, is judging the competition. For details on how to enter visit hillarys.co.uk/creative-colour. For inspiration visit Will’s blog www.brightbazaarblog.com.