The term ‘colour drenching’ is one that you’ve likely heard a lot recently. By no means a new concept, we’re not even sure we’d call it a ‘trend’, it has become popular in the past year as an interior design technique. Painting all walls, woodwork and ceiling the same colour (or shades of the same colour) to create a ‘drenched’ effect. It’s a powerful tool in design for many reasons, but here at Hygge & Cwtch we always like to go beyond the aesthetic and understand what these techniques can do for our wellbeing at home.

Why is colour drenching used in interior design?

A one-colour approach to painting a room has many benefits in terms of creating a visual look. It has a certain simple, un-fussy, sophisticated feel which really enhances the mood of a space. 

We’re big fans of making your favourite pieces and treasured possessions the hero of a room. Colour drenching creates a perfect backdrop to allow those things to contrast and stand out. No blocks of colour or distracting lines. The colour creates the mood while the pieces in the room steal the show.

We’ve talked before on the blog about sensory design and how the most effective interior design considers all five senses. Colour drenching taps into our visual senses and kicks it up a notch. That visual impact of colour is not just a flash across a wall. Instead it becomes all encompassing when you walk into the room.

This technique also has the power to play with perceptions of space. Small cloakrooms or powder rooms have typically been colour drenched for a long time now. It’s all about blurring the lines between floor, walls and ceiling to create the effect of depth even in the smallest of spaces. In larger rooms, colour drenching in a light colour can maximise the feeling of space and airiness. Darker shades enhance the cosy, cocooned feel that you might be looking to achieve.

How are colour drenching and wellbeing linked?

Colour is one of the most powerful tools we have at our disposal in interior design. As we talked about in our seasonal colour psychology blog post, our interpretation of colour and what it means to us is completely individual. Tapping into a colour which aligns to you and connects to your emotions is the first step in creating a space which feels truly authentic. It’s how we create the mood that you want to experience in that room and how we feel at our most content and comfortable in our own homes. That’s wellbeing at home.

So by taking this colour and drenching a room in it, you’re giving it full power to evoke the response that you want to feel. Maybe you need to feel light and space. Perhaps you want to feel held and comforted, or even playful and alert… Taking a colour which hits the right note and running it throughout a room simply enhances the mood it creates.

Hygge & Cwtch’s favourite way to colour drench

Here in the design studio, we love a colour drench for creating restful spaces.

While in recent years homes have become central to both our work and personal lives, ultimately it’s the place we come to feel safe and comfortable, to rest and reset. Our priority is to create spaces which enable our clients to care for their wellbeing in a way which works for them. Restful spaces are key to this. We do everything we can to create an environment which evokes the ‘and breathe…’ response.

Colour drenching is a brilliant way to achieve this, especially in a snug or a bedroom. It doesn’t work well with an open plan concept. The borders between spaces are lacking therefore where one room ends and another begins is blurred. However a separate room, where you can close the door and feel fully ensconced in the wave of colour and mood it creates, can be absolute perfection.

Earthy tones are our go-to for a restful vibe. From terracotta to yellow-based greens to warm browns and everything in between. All shades inspired by nature, giving us that touch of biophilic design and our all important connection to nature. Colour drenching simply gives us that shot of rest and restoration in a bigger dose. 

If you’d like to try colour drenching at home but aren’t sure where to start, take a look at our range of new services and get in touch for a chat!