21 ways to use red paint
The colour red is one of three primary colours, historically associated with danger, courage and sacrifice. In the United Kingdom, researchers discovered Britons most commonly associate the colour with heat, activity, passion, sexuality, anger, love and joy. When it comes to interiors, embracing red and its many shades is a bold decision, one that makes a striking addition to any scheme. “The greatest tool at your disposal is colour,” says interior decorator Douglas Mackie, “Enjoy it, experiment with it… there is nothing more wonderful than entertaining in a deep blood-red [room]", and we agree. Dare to be different and paint the town (well, your house) red… discover our top tips and heaps of inspiration from the House & Garden archive.
Can't commit to a full red re-do? Consider painting smaller alcoves such as pantry shelves or the inner walls of bookcases red, as was done in a Victorian house in south London designed by Honor Devreux. Additionally, add red detailing for an anchoring pop of colour – take inspiration from the fireplace in Alice Palmer's house in north-west London, which was painted in a candy-stripe fashion.
Red paint needn't be only applied to walls: to make a splashy statement, consider painting your floors red. Not only will it let the room's light bounce in a unique way, but red flooring can serve as a grounding, colourful element in an otherwise light-coloured room, as artist and maker Bridie Hall did in her Victorian house in west London.
Is there anything chicer than a shellacking of glossy red paint? Take your red-painted panelling a step further and let it shine with a coat of gloss, as was done in a corridor of Jos and Annabel White's London house.
While red is an eye-catching colour, it nonetheless can help to highlight certain design features in your house. Red gives a room a sense of character, too, and is certain to play off a room's other decoration or accessories. Former Vogue fashion director Lucinda Chambers' living room in west London is a perfect study of the red-paint-as-highlight effect: Little Greene's ‘Firefly’ work well with the mid-century chairs that flank the elegant fireplace.
Andrew Montgomery1/21Catherine FitzGerald and her husband Dominic West have rescued her family home, Glin Castle in Ireland, from being sold, and made it into a viable commercial concern. Here, the formal dining room is painted a vibrant, deep red.
Tom Griffiths2/21Inspired by a lifetime spent travelling to every corner of the world, Melinda Stevens, creative director of @loupe_uk, has created a house that treats the eye at every turn. The Red Room, which is really a mixture of a library and a TV room. Melinda found the artworks from Greek artist Eloise Fornieles on Instagram and her husband “just hung them, but they’re too heavy and now we can’t open the hatch to get to the screen”. The pendant light is from Collier Webb.
Dean Hearne3/21Designer Gavin Houghton and partner Boz with their dogs, Jack and Jill, in their garden in Stockwell; behind them is the red shed studio that is now reserved for Gavin’s ceramics and interiors projects.
Christopher Horwood4/21What was once a nine bedroom bedsit has been transformed by Natasha Howard, the designer behind Instagram's 'Philamena', into an elegant and inviting family home. The sitting room, painted in 'Murrey Red' from Papers and Paints, has a grown-up sophisticated feel, with a marble fireplace from Lassco, a mirror Reed & Wright and curtains made from Howe at 36 Bourne Street's 'Satin Stripe'.
Owen Gale5/21When Honor Devereux was asked by a longtime friend to overhaul her Victorian house in south London, a dream collaboration was born. The result is a comfortable, layered family home admirably laid out for modern life. Double doors, which were already in place, divide the sitting room from the study, which features built-in shelves that have been painted in Dulux’s ‘Ruby Fountain 2 Red Gloss’ – one of Honor’s favourite shades of red. The cane and metal chair was bought by the owners in Cape Town when they lived there and was woven by the blind makers at Cape Town Society for the Blind. The rug was another find from Morocco.
Rachel Whiting6/21The artist owners of this London house called on interior designer Beata Heuman to create a family home full of fun, distinctive design and strong colours. In one of the bathrooms, the zebra patterned wallpaper – ‘Zebra’ in masai red by Scalamandré – in vibrant red creates an intimate feeling. The wallpaper was also famously used in Wes Anderson's film The Royal Tenenbaums.
7/21The sitting room in designer Beata Heuman's “little garden house”, which she calls ‘Chatsworth,’ a name inherited from the previous owners of the house. The enormously deep loveseat is Beata's favourite place to sit.
Owen Gale8/21The sitting room in Alice Palmer’s north-west London house is full of character. The mantlepiece is covered in various knick-knacks, adding to the fireplace's zany, candycane-striped charm. The potted plant below adds needed vibrancy to the otherwise black hearth. The bookshelves, too, are full of charm: the books themselves – with spines of various colour and size – are not pin-straight, which adds a lived-in feel to the tableau.
Paul Massey9/21The interior designer Caroline Holdaway had already decorated two houses for Robin Muir and Paul Lyon Maris when they enlisted her help on their new Cotswolds home. In the living room, a Victorian pendant light from The School for Scandal hangs near the tongue-and-groove panelled staircase, which is painted in ‘Kasbah’ by Paint & Paper Library. French provincial portraits – chosen for the quality of their frames – have been grouped together for decorative effect.
10/21When Max Hurd called in his friend Benedict Foley to design his London house, the result was an explosion of clashing colour. In the attic space, red walls are gloriously combined with purple fitted carpet and a lilac patterned fabric by Viola Lanara. You can see the full story in our December issue, which is out now (and stand by for a special festive edition of our video series Design Notes with Benedict and Max).
Jan Baldwin11/21It might not be a real house, but one wall of this Seventies Palm Beach-inspired open-plan living room is painted with Little Greene's 'Bronze Red'. It's ideal for a little warmth and drama, without being too shouty.
Dean Hearne12/21In Simon Hutchinson's bathroom in his Yorkshire family house, the walls are warmed up with a lick of Little Greene's ‘Masquerade Mid'.
Paul Massey13/21When Jos and Annabel White bought a Victorian house in London after 15 years living in New York, they knew exactly who to turn to for help – architect Basil Walter and designer Suzanne Sharp. Downstairs, a corridor with panelling in Farrow & Ball’s ‘Rectory Red’ leads into the games room.
Davide Lovatti14/21The former owner of Farrow & Ball (and co-founder of Fermoie) Tom Helme's colourful and comfortable Scottish retreat with spectacular views of the islands of Sanda and Rathlin on the furthest point of the Mull of Kintyre. The gunroom has the original monogrammed game bags for James and Kate Boyd.
Davide Lovatti15/21Lamb's House in Leith has been lovingly restored by the conservation architects Kristin Hannesdottir and Nick Groves-Raines. The pavilion's hallway is painted in Farrow & Ball's archive colour 'Terre d'Egypte'.
Michael Sinclair16/21Keith Johnson and Glen Senk’s search for a retreat from Florida’s heat took them to a Grade II-listed house in south-west England, which, after restoration and redecoration, is a refreshing amalgamation of creative American spirit and English country ideals. An Art Deco light from a flea market stands out against walls in Farrow & Ball’s ‘Rectory Red’, which unite this space in the older part of the house with a generous hallway that accommodates an English Regency sofa
Elsa Young17/21The textile designer and dealer Susan Deliss is known for her skilled use of colour and pattern. Now she is applying her talents to interior design projects, including this colourful flat in Edinburgh. A curtain in ‘Susani Red’ linen by Robert Kime picks up the fiery off-red of ‘Charlotte’s Locks’ paint from Farrow & Ball. A cushion in Carolina Irving’s ‘Aegean Stripe’ linen sits at the head of the bed, which has a bedcover made from an antique West African Ewe cloth.
Owen Gale18/21For former Vogue fashion director Lucinda Chambers, the decoration of her west London house has been a 30-year evolution, choosing and adjusting the elements of each room as she would her clothes – with a sense of colour, character and above all stylish comfort. Walls in Little Greene’s ‘Firefly’ red showcase mid-century chairs with cushions in eye-catching fabrics from a stall on Portobello Road, W11. The ‘Super Shaggy’ wool rug is from Colville.
Dean Hearne19/21Taking on a brief to create a holiday mood in this house on the coast of Kent, Nicola Mardas has filled it with bright colours and bold patterns, making it an irresistible retreat from city life. The woodwork is painted in Designers Guild's ‘Damask Rose’.
Paul Massey20/21Artist and maker Bridie Hall has made her mark on her Victorian house in north London with eclectic collections of antique finds and her own eye-catching works set against bold blocks of colour. Bridie’s colourful intaglio cases and intaglio lamp are set off by a floor in Dulux ‘Hot Paprika’ paint.
Simon Brown21/21The renowned Iranian-born interior designer Alidad is welcoming visitors to his exquisite London flat and sharing the secrets of his layered, luxurious style of decoration that delights all the senses. The rich shade of red used for the bookshelves in the library is continued on the walls as the framework for an Islamic pattern featuring traditional palmettes and arabesque motifs, stencilled and hand painted by Alex Davidson. The painting above the chimneypiece is by the couturier Victor Edelstein.
