CLOSET COLOR STORY
One of the first design decisions I work through with my clients is their closet color!
You’d think on the surface this would be fairly straightforward. But, the reality is, there are a bazillion colors to choose from! Though many naturally gravitate towards neutral tones like white, blush, champagne and grey in an effort to create a clean palette, there are so many slight variations, this process can take awhile! So, unless you have a very clear vision, selecting the perfect hue can be a headache.
Perhaps that’s why I partnered with Portola Paints to develop a custom color, “Closet Cashmere,” for my closet. I rely on Portola Paints, along with Valspar and Benjamin Moore to source the precise paint color that’s right for a project. Once we nail that down, a lot of the other design details fall into place.
Beyond paint, wallpaper continues to be a favorite medium in which to give closets depth, personality and whimsy through color. From a traditional Hermès print, like what I did on my dressing room ceiling, to beautiful butterfly motifs to feminine florals to ombré, there’s no limit to how wallpaper can give a closet a playful punch of color!
Whitney Port was one of my first clients to integrate wallpaper into her closet with a banana leaf print inspired by the Beverly Hills Hotel and it still remains one of my favorite wallpaper executions!
With both the use of paint and wallpaper, as well as carpet, we’re seeing the trend of people going bolder and brighter with their dressing room, even if it’s just used in a small part of the space. At one point, using a pink shade was considered brazen or reserved for a girl’s closet; now, it’s pretty much a neutral and a consistent client favorite. We’ve used blue hues (in boys’ closets and beyond, including a blue carpet!), a purple-grey in Monique Lhuillier’s closet, deep red-brown in Jaime King’s dressing room and pops of yellow in Tyra Banks’ space.
My next color goal? I would love to design more soft blue and green color closets and have it be seen as a “neutral.”