Design P.O.V. | Designer Dialogue
Design P.O.V. | Designer Dialogue
Our expert Design P.O.V. contributors discuss their favorite paint colors, design tips, and more.
Enjoy this round of advice from Benjamin Moore's network of savvy interior designers and apply their tips and insights to your next design project! See more Designer Dialogue Q&As here.
Drake/Anderson
How do you ensure visual cohesion from room to room?
I always start with one room, usually the "main event," a living room, great room or family room. Then build out the adjacent spaces from there. Finite spaces, bedrooms or others, can be individual events.
If going with classic white color on trim, moldings and ceilings, what do you use?
Decorator's White OC-149 is my current favorite, and for many years, I loved Mayonnaise OC-85.
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D'Aquino Monaco
What drives your color decisions?
Anything and everything from pieces of clothing, fabrics to barks of trees, stones, and yarn. And of course, we pull out our fan decks and our full sheet samples.
What is your favorite color for interiors? Exteriors?
Our projects are so varied, we don't have a constant, and the work is ever changing. Lately we do happen to use Whitewater Bay OC-70 on ceilings a great deal.
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Ellie Cullman, of Cullman & Kravis
What are your favorite colors for interiors? Exteriors?
White Dove OC-17, especially for trim. It has lots of character, and it's not too bright, nor too gray. Lancaster White OC-144 is always an exterior favorite.
Are there any new and inspiring ways that color has impacted your design work?
We recently completed a project in Miami for a family obsessed with color. The architecture of the residence flowed from room to room without any "breaks." So we left all the walls a crisp white, but painted wide, horizontal bands of color to set off the various rooms. For example, we painted a swath of bright orange in the living room beneath one of their paintings—such fun!
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Timothy Corrigan
What is your favorite color for interiors? Exteriors?
I recently discovered Pittsfield Buff HC-24 and used it for my living room and study; it is an incredible color that provides a great backdrop for artwork.
Any color tips or predictions?
While it can be difficult to get the exact tone right, I see yellow becoming more popular as people look to bring a sunnier, happier feeling into their homes.
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Paloma Contreras
What is your favorite color for interiors? Exteriors?
Without a doubt, Benjamin Moore White Dove OC-17, which I find works beautifully in every space.
What are your favorite colors for clients?
Each of my projects is quite different from the next, but I personally always find myself circling back to moss green and berry tones.
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Eric Cohler
What is your favorite color for interior? Exterior?
I'm a fan of blues and shades of black mixed with whites for interiors, and grayish whites for the exterior. With clients I'm extremely open; the palette depends on the location and quality of light.
Are there any 'color rules' you tend to upend?
Contrary to popular belief, I find that dark colors make walls recede and enlarge tight spaces. Why? Because there's a greater sense of infinity. Think of walking around at night, you bump into objects and walls; there's little sense of where something ends and another begins. Recently, in a small attic guest room with low eaves, we painted the entire room—walls, ceiling and trim—in Hale Navy HC-154 to give the spaces a larger feel.
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