Paint colour trends for 2014 from Resene

ARTICLE Karen Warman

Call it retro or call it historical richness but brilliant yellows, pumpkin oranges and tomato reds are the accent colours of the season. Mix them with pretty pastels for a colourful balance and you have the hottest colour trends for 2014.
Think bold, luminous colours from your childhood paintbox and you've got the idea. Vibrant, optimistic hues like Resene Daredevil, a fluoro orange, Resene Spotlight, an egg yolk yellow, and Resene Windfall, a bright emerald and shamrock green. Or think Resene Elvis, a Memphis mid - almost electric blue - bold, brash and full of action-packed energy. Whether it's touches of colour in accessories and furniture or feature walls, these colours provide excitement to neutral colour schemes. Scandinavian inspired colour schemes are on the rise, with retro pastels being paired with bright red accessories.
Pastel blues, greens, beiges, whites and off-whites, and natural light wood tones are typical Scandinavian colours, with an additional vibrant accent colour. The neutral white surfaces (floors, walls, ceilings or furniture) and bleached wood using Resene Colorwood Whitewash offset the colour flow from pastels to bright hues.
But we're seeing a change to the latest neutrals palette, with greys and whites merging subtly with yellows. Decorators still want a white scheme, but where they used to choose whites with grey in them (think Resene Black White) we're moving more towards whites with a yellow undertone to warm things up. Whites such as Resene Orchid White, Resene Thorndon Cream and Resene Rice Cake are popular. Even classic Resene Pearl Lusta is coming back, but in lighter strengths, such as Resene Eighth Pearl Lusta.
While yellow is one of the trending leaders of 2014, blue - the colour of clear open skies and calm seas - is undeniably au courant. These blues and greens are the colours that work with our light and our landscape; they reflect our sea views or the beaches, rivers and lakes we drive past. The greens bring native bush home.
Soft blues that hint on the green side to mimic our seas include Resene Carefree, an opalescent tint of watery green, and Resene Reservoir, a pastel aqua green.

Bluer blues on the pastel front include Resene Half Escape, a break-of-day tint of sky blue, and Resene Onahau, a gusty breeze of pastel blue.
Decorators are becoming more experimental with colour. Which is a good thing, because brights are here to stay. If you're crazy about colour, 2014 is the year for you.

Resene: The paint the professionals use

Visit the Resene website for more on the latest colour trends.

You might be interested in reading: Colour your home with Resene’s trendy tones.

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