Decorating With Red

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.