Rooms in Bold Colours

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From House & Garden’s Complete Guide to Interior Decoration,
From House & Garden’s Complete Guide to Interior Decoration,

We welcome our new columnist – the amazing Steven Holt of drydockshop. First up, a celebration of marvellously coloured interiors

Today is the first edition of our new interiors column by design aficionado Steven Holt of drydockshop. Inspired by his childhood and the stylings of the 70s and early 80s, Holt's blog is a haven for anyone with a yen for "Wood panelling, house plants, macrame, split-levels, plastic laminate, bulky HiFi." Here we present the first iteration, a celebration of all things bold and primary.

One of the first things you'll learn in any design class is the color wheel – a vibrant rainbow of related and contrasting inspiration. Some of today's interior designers seem to have forgotten this first (and some could say most) important lesson. Take a look around at today's interiors and most use of colour is relegated to 'pop' accents or the occasional rug. A vivid oasis in a desert of monochromatic modernness. 

You know who did colour right? You know who lovingly embraced a kaleidoscopic array of colors? Your parents, that's who. Floors, walls, furniture – 40 years ago bold colour was front and centre. If designers in the past couldn't decide between red and blue, they used both. For good measure, they'd add yellow to round things out. But why stop there? Let's throw in purple and green because, really, who cares when you're having so much fun? These 10 prismatic interiors prove designers from the 70s and 80s didn't study colour theory – they practiced colour fact.

Words by Steven Holt