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Decorating With Color

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Red entryway with benchDavid Prince Page 1 of 27

Decorating With Red

By Deb Schwartz

Learn to apply this powerful, commanding color with confidence.

Red 101

“When people walk into a red room, they immediately respond,” says New York City interior designer Scott Sanders. Color experts describe red as a stimulating shade. It grabs focus (think stop signs and fire engines) and, on walls, becomes the defining element of a space. High-octane orange-tinted tones make you feel energized and alive, while subtler, old-fashioned purplish shades―burgundy, maroon, brick―can evoke the cozy, insular vibe of, say, an 18th-century library. Either way, “red is a statement color,” says New York City interior designer Janine Carendi MacMurray. So choose your reds carefully, and if you’re risk averse, get your infusion through objects rather than paint.
Next: Go Bold
Skip to Daily Finds slides.
Red entryway with bench
Kitchen with red cabinets and drawers, brass chandelier
Elegant room with deep red walls, gold-framed antique mirror and red antique chairs
Dining room with heavy patterned red drapes and wooden chairs with red seats
Dining room with red chairs and a striped lamp
Benjamin Moore Currant Red paint
Sherwin Williams Red Obsession paint
Benjamin Moore Dinner Party paint
Sherwin Williams Habanero Chile paint
Crates to organize toys
Farrow Ball Picture Gallery Red paint
Halogen credenza from CB2
Benjamin Moore Ravishing Red paint
West Elm Humboldt chair
Componibili storage unit from Kartell
Ikea Karlstad sofa with cover
Jacqui tea table from Bungalow5
Living room
Conran Classic bin
Double Concentric pillow by Jonathan Adler
Vitra Sunburst clock by George Nelson
Vine Red tufted rug
Strawberry Lamp
Chloe Mirror from Bungalow5

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