Adding splashes of colour to your aesthetic has been the prescription from designers for some time.  There’s no doubt that colour can be a great inspiration, but no matter how many times I see gorgeous photos featuring vibrant walls, sofas and rugs, I find it really hard to commit any part of my living space to a daring swatch.  

But there’s something about a change of season that gets me all brave again about exploring colour possibilities, so I scanned the on-line catalogues of some of my favourite home decor retailers -- IKEA, Crate & Barrel and Anthropologie – for a look at fall colour trends.

To my pleasant surprise, a definite trend looks to be toward greens, blues and mauves – all colours of a peacock feather – colours that are quite easy to bring into the home.

Greens
Well if you can’t live green ecologically, do it literally; the greens showing are mossy, warm, and range between mid to light tones, without being lime (thank god). I love the mustard-y green in the bedroom on the right, making the neutral furniture pop, but if that’s too much for you then anything from rugs to throws to coloured glass accessories, such as the candle holders from Anthropologie, are an easy way to sample the palette. Green tile back splashes, such as the one in the IKEA kitchen featured below, seem to be particularly popular.

Clockwise from the top; IKEA living room with green wall, Anthropologie glass candle holders, IKEA kitchen with green back splash, IKEA bedroom with mustard green wall, Crate and Barrel green rug.

Blues
A long-running favourite, blue still seems to be true; a lighter blue can be safer if you’re looking to tint your walls, but for décor items such as the new night table and dresser from IKEA, as well as rugs, tableware and the window panel shown below, the blue is a deeper, cobalt hue. Chances are that you already have some blue at home, and if so, consider it a head start on fall’s décor fashions.  

Clockwise from the top; IKEA dresser, IKEA window panel, IKEA glass tableware, IKEA bedroom with blue wall, Crate and Barrel rug, IKEA night table. 

Mauves
My personal favourite. In the mauve department this season offers the gamut; from light, dusty lilacs on walls, to vibrant purples for bedding to deep eggplant for sofas and rugs. Mauve is definitely a commitment, I’ll give you that, but if you like it all (some people just don’t) you won’t regret it. Mauve looks great as an accent colour (remember what those designers keep saying -- accent, accent, accent!) with virtually any neutral palette; wood, chrome, black, white, grey, etc. Among furniture items to sport mauve shades the most this season are upholstered sofas and chairs (LOVE the chair from Crate and Barrel!)   

Clockwise from the top; Anthropologie bedding, Crate and Barrel eggplant rug, IKEA couch, IKEA beadroom with lilac wall, Crate and Barrel bedding, Crate and Barrel upholstered chair.