Vitamin C for the home, orange is a mood-enhancing, life-affirming shade that can be retro-groovy or contemporary and elegant. From turmeric to terracotta via shades of amber and full-on Le Creuset Volcanic, orange is the hottest hue of the moment. Keep it 20th century by combining saturated orange with brown or mid-greens and blues. Partner it with pink, lilac and blue for a contemporary look. Or invite orange into your home office to give your workspace a Berocca boost.
As our thoughts turn wearily to working from home — again — Betsy Smith, Graphenstone’s colour consultant, has been considering the best colour combinations for an energised yet serene home office. She reckons orange balanced with a warm neutral such as dusty pink is the solution. “In a workspace, orange adds a note of playfulness and joy,” Smith says. “Its qualities reinvigorate, encourage creativity and boost productivity.”
The aim, she explains, is upbeat decor without drama. “The shade of orange is vital to get right. Persimmon is a burnt orange, reduced in saturation, making it easy to live with, a shade that feels connected to nature.”
Some colours seem to come with a date stamp, and intense orange is a hue that is associated with mid-20th-century design. Fans of mid-mod may feel that they have been underserved lately, since power pastels and curvy silhouettes started getting all the interiors love. They will be delighted to hear that the ascent of orange puts it back on the interiors agenda for spring 2022.
Orange comes with weighty aesthetic baggage. The classic combination of orange with brown is such a strong retro statement that it can easily transform a room into period pastiche. Add a hanging chair and macramé plant holders to your living room and suddenly you are trapped in a 1970s Habitat catalogue. Unless granny chic is your goal, orange requires a firm hand. The interiors blogger and stylist Emma Jane Palin is known for her fresh take on retro style.
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“I’m a huge fan of orange,” she says. “It’s such a fun and vibrant hue that gives a nod to the 1970s but can be brought up to date with a contemporary colour palette of soft pinks and dark blues. It can look quite kitsch when used with a lot of pattern, but by adding texture such as cord and sheepskin you can easily modernise the look.” Her present furniture crush is a trio of amber glass coffee tables, back in stock at Rockett St George in early January (£655).
Easy does it is probably the best advice when introducing orange to your home for the first time. For no scientific reasons, the accent pieces that particularly suit the hue are cookware and curvy lamps. Try Pooky’s Wobster lamp base, in orange lacquered wood (£125), or a Ngami mushroom light from Habitat (£22) for a gorgeous sunset glow. The classic cast-iron cookware to buy is Le Creuset, in Volcanic, its much-imitated flame colour launched almost a century ago (3.3-litre round pot, £230). For a fraction of the cost you can (sort of) get the look with a 3.3-litre pot from Sainsbury’s Home (£36).
Even in small doses this fiery colour will give a tired interior a shot in the arm — and what could be more on trend than that?
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Bombay Sprout’s Stripes flat-woven runner, in a classic combination of orange and pink, £380
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Coffee pot from HK Living’s 1970s collection, £44, shown with set of four mugs, £32
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Coming next month from those maestros of orange, Mini Moderns: Catskills wallpaper, in Harvest Orange, £60 a roll
Loaf’s Pudding sofa in Spiced Orange Clever Velvet, from £2,085
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Coral Orange by Mylands, packs a punch in this period interior, and tones beautifully with Bedford Square (door), Proper Blue (staircase), Gentleman’s Pink (wall) and Peach Flesh Pink (dado), All Marble Matt, £53 for 2.5 litres
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Wobble amber glass vase from Henry Holland’s Modern Living range for Freemans, £40
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Graham and Green’s Deep Dream sofa, in carnelian velvet, £2,295 for a two-seat couch
Pure linen placemats and napkins from Designers Guild, set of four, £40
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Pooky’s Wobster lamp base, in orange lacquered wood, £125
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Walls in Marigold orange and Leather pink. Both Little Greene Intelligent Matt Emulsion, £53 for 2.5 litres
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Flare glass candleholders by Hay, £35
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Molly Mahon mixes pinks and oranges in her hand-block-printed Trellis pattern and Garden Path stripe fabric, £177 a metre
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Susi Bellamy’s spring collection will feature ruffle-edged cushions in this spectacular marbled gingham fabric called Lauren. Cushion, £125, fabric £95 a metre (susi-bellamy.com)
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MissPrint’s Pea Pods wallpaper, in Terracotta, £76 a roll
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Hiroki Pure Orange metal table is one of e15’s most popular dining tables, £5,612
The Yoko sofa bed in Atomic Orange, £199
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Sofa.com’s Bluebell armchair in Paprika Smart Velvet, £1,040, and Bluebell small square footstool in Paprika, £485
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Flame tiles from the new Craven Dunnill Jackfield and Burleigh Pottery collaboration. Burleigh Calico Décor and Chroma Field tiles, arranged in a herringbone, from £3 a tile
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Back in stock early next month, Rockett St George’s super-popular amber glass nest of coffee tables. Set of three, £655
Ikat Circles, hand-knotted Himalayan wool rug designed by Jennifer Manners, £845 a square metre
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Habitat’s Studio Arch Geometric Orange Bedding Set, £22 for a double
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Habitat’s 12-Piece Stoneware Dinner Set in Matt Coral, £25
Bedroom in a soothing palette of Auburn Flame, Spicy Paprika and Spiced Honey. All Dulux Mixing Matt Emulsion, £31 for 2.5 litres
