Chinoiserie Chic Color of the Year 2014

In September of 2013, I predicted that purple would be named as the color of the year for 2014. Indeed, Pantone's Color for 2014 is Radiant Orchid -

And Sherwin Williams has chosen Exclusive Plum.

I personally do not like these mid range purples. I like my purples either very pale and soft like lavender or very deep and dark like aubergine. I don't think either of their picks will catch on.

So now on to my choice.

Tony Duquette often said that coral pink was his neutral. I too love pink and especially coral pink. Lately, I have fallen for gray paint colors. Shades of gray have become my neutral as I tend to dislike white and beige walls. I also love soft lavenders and lilacs. So for my color of the year, I have combined -

*My love for the coral pink of flamingos
*My love for gray as my go-to neutral
*My love for soft purples like lavenders and lilacs
*My prediction of purple as the 2014 color of the year
*My discovery that newborn flamingos are born the most exquisite pale lavender gray color

My Chinoiserie Chic Color of 2014 is a Lavender Gray I have named Baby Flamingo. It is a soft pale heathered gray with lovely lavender undertones. It is a complex shade that changes colors depending on the time of day and the light. Lest you think the name is too weird, here are some of my favorite Farrow & Ball paint color names -

Cat's Paw
Smoked Trout
Mole's Breath
Elephant's Breath
Dead Salmon
Hound Yellow
Pale Hound

Here is the lovely color of baby flamingos -

These are inspiration boards I created using pale lavender gray walls. As you can see, this color works beautifully in an entryway, living room, dining room, or master bedroom. It would be a great gender neutral choice for a nursery. And it is an amazing backdrop for Chinoiserie - stunning with blue and white Chinese porcelain and black and gold Chinoiserie furniture. It is gorgeous with silver and gold. Leopard and zebra are other great pairings. Of course it is perfect with coral pink, the color of Baby Flamingo's parents.

And now some wonderful rooms using lavender grays - 

Verandah House

Susan Dowhower

Charlotte Moss

Thomas Jayne

Velvet settee and silk taffeta curtains with hand painted Chinoiserie wallpaper

Amanda Nisbet

Phoebe Howard

Kimberly McCluskey

Aerin Lauder

Kendall Wilkinson

I think Baby Flamingo is a wonderfully versatile color. Gray is a fantastic neutral - much more modern than whites or beiges. With lavender undertones, Baby Flamingo pairs the neutrality and versatility of gray with the very hot color trend of purple. The purple undertones are also a very fresh update on the pure grays, blue grays, and green grays that have been popular in recent years. And you will see how great it looks with virtually any colors you choose to pair with it.

I have found some paint colors that come closest to my idea of Baby Flamingo. I am also thinking of repainting my living room this color this year, so I will be testing out many lavender grays and if I can't find my vision of Baby Flamingo, I'll have it custom made for me.

Check out these paint colors - Farrow and Ball Calluna, Sherwin Williams Lavender Wisp, Benjamin Moore Touch of Gray, Benjamin Moore Spring Iris, Benjamin Moore Winter Gray, Ralph Lauren Duchess Lilac, and Behr Mystic Fairy.

I have created a Pinterest board here on my color of the year where you will find rooms and paint colors in lavender gray.

2014 Color of the Year?

I have posted several times lately about how I am seeing more and more shades of purple used in interior design and how beautifully purple combines with Chinoiserie. I especially like lilacs and lavenders and soft purples with gray or blue undertones. I have a Pinterest board on the subject here. I remember being at a Farrow & Ball party a few years ago and asking one of the F&B executives why there was not lavender or lilac in their color range. The response was, "We don't do pretty colors." Farrow and Ball has now added a lavender gray I love called Calluna that they describe as "a much requested pretty heather colour." I guess they changed their minds.

Above is another wonderful example of combining purple and Chinoiserie - Nicolette Horn's master bedroom in Oslo in violet. I suspect that we are about to see colors in the purple family named as hot colors for 2014 and perhaps even as color of the year by someone. We shall see. For lots more inspiration on combining purple and Chinoiserie, don't miss my September Houzz Ideabook here.

Farrow & Ball Calluna

Trending - The Color Purple - My New Houzz Ideabook

Charlotte Moss

I see the color purple as an emerging trend in interior design. No longer relegated to the rooms of tween girls, it is popping up in stunning dining rooms, living rooms, master bedrooms, and powder rooms as a modern and sophisticated choice. Purple ranges from very soft gray with a hint of purple, to lavender, lilac, amethyst, all the way to deep plums and aubergine. The combination with Chinoiserie is amazing - purple is especially wonderful with blue and white Chinese porcelain. I also love it with Chinese red and coral. Please check out my new Houzz Ideabook for more inspiration on this very chic duo. And thanks to Houzz for featuring my Ideabook on "Chinoiserie to Put You in the Pink" over the Labor Day weekend. You can find it here.

Suzanne Kasler

Katie Riddder

Audrey Curl

Amanda Nesbit

Kelli Ford and Kristen Fitzgibbons

Kimberly McCluskey

This new colorway lilac/purple/cream in China Seas Trellis Background is going to be a big hit -

Purple and Chinoiserie

Suzanne Kasler - Veranda - Gracie Wallcovering

I must admit that purple was never a favorite color of mine in fashion or interior design, but, as with most things, combine it with Chinoiserie, especially lavender or lilac and I love it. This bathroom by Suzanne Kasler with its Gracie wallcovering is absolutely gorgeous. Here is more inspiration on combining purple and Chinoiserie and my Pinterest board on the subject.

Lavender & Chinoiserie & Inspiration Boards

A color that you may never have thought of combining with Chinoiserie is lavender. It is a favorite of mine. It is wonderful with gold faux bamboo, blue and white Chinese porcelain, black and gold Chinoiserie furniture and red lacquer. Walls painted in a soft lavender act as a neutral, but so much prettier than beige or white. Here are inspiration boards of mine to inspire you as well beautiful rooms, fabrics, and wallpaper combining lavender and Chinoiserie.