Hot colours

It’s the new black in trends. Rose Hughes gives her take on colour blocking.

One of the recent trends to move from the fashion catwalk to our living spaces is a concept called ‘‘colour blocking’’. If you remember Mondrian you’ll know what I’m talking about but the idea is to use contrasting blocks of solid colour rather than stripes, textures or patterns, hence the name. It’s a great way to jazz up a couple of spaces in your home.

Colour blocking - picture frames

Colour blocking - dining room

Picture frames: This is an opportunity to have fun and introduce brights and colour you might not want a whole wall of, but where a highlight is perfect. Let your imagination run wild and consider any colours and colour combinations. You can try painting a fake bedhead above a bed, you can highlight art or wall lights by painting a panel around them. Have fun and live life on the wild colour side. You can always paint over it when you have had enough. Bird artwork: We have a divider between the living and dining spaces, this has a lovely decal–birds again, but here was the perfect opportunity to introduce some colour to an otherwise single colour wall and I thought a strip to highlight the decal would work.

I had previously distressed an old table. It sits in the entranceway and though the colour of it relates to a wall in the adjacent office, the table always felt a little alone. An easy fix was to introduce some supporting colour to make the look more cohesive.

What you'll need

For the frames: 4 x black photo frames.
Paint brush
Paint – I choose test pots in Resene Daredevil, Resene Adrenalin, Resene Clockwork Orange and Resene Juicy from the new Resene Fashion Range 16 fan deck.

For the wall colour block

Tape measure and pencil roller and paint tray.
Fine grade sandpaper
Low tack masking tape
Paint – I used Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen waterborne enamel in Resene Flourish.

Step-by-step instructions

If you are painting a previously painted surface, clean to remove any grease and marks. Measure and mark the area on the wall with pencil marks. Lightly sand the area to help the new colour key into the previous paint.
I removed the decal first, and stored it back on its original backing paper which I had kept. Using the low tack masking tape, markout the area to be painted. Rub the edge of the tape to ensure it has adhered well to the wall so you don’t get any bleed of the paint underneath.

Step 1
Step 1

Step 2
Step 2

Using a roller or brush apply the paint in your chosen colour. Allow to dry then recoat. Ask paint shop staff for advice on the best option for your own situation. I used Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen waterborne enamel in Resene Flourish. This colour works well with the dining chairs which I had painted previously. Carefully remove the masking tape just before the topcoat has completely dried. Reapply the decal.
I bought four inexpensive black picture frames, all the same size. I picked four colours from the new Resene Fashion Colours 16 that would co-ordinate with the orange of the table. I have a bird thing happen in and had collected together some black and white images. I also found a lovely feather from one of my chicken girls to frame as well. Put frames back together and mount on the wall. I chose a two by two arrangement but you can try all in a line or whatever will suit your space.

Step 3
Step 3