Bright Paint Palette Ideas

Photo by Jeffery Cross, styling by Miranda Jones

Tips for getting started

Swatch-test colors before committing. Really. We mean it. Printed pages (even ours) and paint chips can vary from the actual paint color. Happily, you’ll now find many paints in inexpensive sample sizes.

Choose low- or no-VOC paints. In addition to the formulas available from eco-friendly brands, almost all paint makers now offer one or both of those options in all colors.

Use a tinted primer for dark and bright colors. Testing for this article turned us into believers; it greatly improves coverage. Ask the paint retailer for a custom mix compatible with your surfaces and paint.

Photography by Jefferey Cross, styling by Miranda Jones

Cascadia

A rich peacock blue gets a hip midcentury look thanks to cool slate and pale gray.

Main Blue Jewel 510B-6 (behr.com for stores)
Trim Strictly Silver 140-2 (mythicpaint.com)
Accent Orion Grey TH14 (ralphlaurenhome.com for stores)

Photoy by Jeffery Cross

Try a whole new palette

Orange-kissed red paints are the newest way to show off your wild side. Here's one inspired by San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge.

Tone down a lipstick-worthy hue (in a good way) with a cool taupe and a warm off-white.

Main Claret Rose 2008-20 (benjaminmoore.com for stores)
Trim Morocco Sand 515-3 (pittsburghpaints.com for stores)
Accent Nourish .04 (yolocolorhouse.com)

Photography by Jeffery Cross, styling by Miranda Jones

Mountain spring

Majestic purples are taking on softer pink tones. Their nature-inspired companions are mossy green and a near-pistachio shade of white.

Main Orchid Blush GLV05 (glidden.com for stores)
Trim White Cap 081-1 (mythicpaint.com)
Accent Sorrel P-H8IE1A1 (greenplanetpaints.com)

Photography by Jeffery Cross; styling by Miranda Jones

Southland retro

This jade color has us dreaming of classic cars and vintage kitchenware. Give it an updated spin with inky blue-black accents and cool white trim.

Main Cedar Green 2034-40 (benjaminmoore.com for stores)
Trim True North FA016 (freshairechoice.com)
Accent Coal Blue E16-1 (dutchboy.com for stores)

Photography by Jeffery Cross, styling by Miranda Jones

High Desert

Like a sunrise in Taos, this pretty palette is all peaches and misty mauves.

Main Animated Coral SW 6878 by Sherwin-Williams (sherwin-williams.com for stores)
Trim February Frost C44-1 (olympic.com for stores)
Accent Smoky Mauve GLN07 (glidden.com for stores)

Photography by John Granen

Sunset loves

We checked out several free online paint tools and found Benjamin Moore’s Personal Color Viewer (benjaminmoore.com) the easiest to use.

The site allows you to preview paint colors in its sample rooms (lots of style choices) or in photos of rooms that you’ve uploaded. It’s great for trying out color combinations before paying for paint. (But you’ll still need to swatch-test!)