Bright red-pink and bursting with energy, honeysuckle is dominating home decor trends in 2011 as a playful and vibrant alternative to the serene turquoise of 2010.
Love it or hate it, the hue is everywhere this spring. And design experts say there are many easy ways to incorporate it into your home without breaking the bank.
“Add a lively flair to interior spaces with honeysuckle patterned pillows, bedspreads, small appliances and tabletop accessories,” says Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute.
Honeysuckle is the official color of 2011 as chosen by the institute, the research arm of the Carlstadt, N.J.-based Pantone Inc., which largely sets color standards for the fashion and home industries. This year’s reddish pink shade lights a fire to your senses and revs you up, says Eiseman.
“The color says we need to be hopeful and think of things that satisfy as many senses as we can,” she says.
A striking, eye-catching shade, honeysuckle works well for day and night, and complements a variety of blues, greens and oranges, Eiseman says.
“I can’t think of a pink combination that doesn’t work,” says Carey Vizzi Jacobs, an interior and wallpaper designer in Maryland and Pennsylvania. “Honeysuckle pairs nicely with so many colors.”
• Paint and wallpaper
One easy and inexpensive way to brighten up your home and stay on top of design trends is by painting an accent wall in honeysuckle.
If pink walls seem a bit daunting, try a wall in the bedroom first — whether it’s paint or a luxurious wallpaper, Vizzi Jacobs says.
“Wallpaper does wonders to warm up the bedroom,” she adds. “I like that feeling of pink surrounding you and giving you a nice warm hug.”
A new wallpaper collection by New Jersey-based Thibaut Designs features honeysuckle in a variety of vibrant lattices, damasks and florals on frothy pastel and rich velvety backgrounds.
Bold wall choices like honeysuckle are a good balance to neutral furniture, particularly white, cream and tan, says Thibaut’s Molly McDermott Walsh.
• Throw pillows
Bright and lively throw pillows are another cheap and easy way to pepper your home with this warm hue.
Bed, Bath and Beyond is carrying several pillows with bold honeysuckle stripes and other prints for under $50, as is World Market, says Morgan Cullen of Austin, Texas, who created the home decor blog Casa Cullen.
She also suggests heading to the fabric store and making your own pillows or chair cushions.
“Honeysuckle chair covers on all chairs or just the head of the table would be quite the statement maker in the dining room,” Cullen says.
• Textiles
If pillows aren’t your thing, try drapes or linens in a honeysuckle print for an instant update in the kitchen or bedroom, says Vizzi Jacobs.
“In the bath, honeysuckle embroidered or appliquéd monograms on white towels are a pleasant surprise,” she says.
Another easy way to brighten up your bathroom is with a pink rug or shower curtain, such as Pottery Barn Teen’s white cotton percale shower curtain ($49) edged with a honeysuckle ribbon, Cullen says.
Table runners, napkins and sheets are also showing up in shades of honeysuckle this spring.
• Accents
Honeysuckle can be popped into small accent pieces throughout your home for a more understated, yet updated, look.
Cullen suggests painting three wall frames with honeysuckle-colored spray paint and placing them around black-and-white photos as easy do-it-yourself wall art for any room.
She also suggests painting the back wall of built-ins, media or bookshelves in honeysuckle for a burst of color, as well as real honeysuckle flowers in a vase on the dining room table or next to your bed.
