Interiors: Boudoir, millennial or Scandi pink – it doesn’t matter what you call it, it’s the hot colour trend of 2018
Despite February’s snowdrops and a smattering of spring bulbs, winter wasn’t done with us this week. So let’s look on the bright side with the hot trend for 2018 – luscious, glamorous pink.
We saw it emerge a couple of years ago with blush home accessories, but now interior designers have gone to town to explore what a showstopper boudoir pink (sometimes called millennial or Scandi pink) can be as a whole interiors scheme.
“Pink has always been an optimistic colour and has a breadth of tone that means it can work in a variety of schemes, from tonal neutral to retro Eighties,” says Paul Dawson, design director of Honky.
Westbury Velvet Chair in Blush, £550, coxandcox.co.uk
When conceived for entire rooms, think layers of tones, such as sundae pink with the new heather-like Heart Wood paint (Dulux colour of the year), and accessorised with bare wood, brushed brass or gold detailing on furniture and door handles, trinkets and the finest glassware.
“Real or faux plants add life and movement to the space,” says Dani Taylor, head of buying at Cox & Cox. “Green and pink can be a fabulous pairing, but using varying shades and introducing neutral tones such as taupe and grey will help to avoid a stark contrast.”
Avoid sugary and kitsch – we’re going for elegance here – imagine fine flutes of vintage pink champagne and you’ve nailed it.
Where to see it best? In Hong Kong, Tate Dining Room & Bar won best new restaurant at the Wallpaper* Design Awards 2018 for its glamorous pink décor (tate.com.hk). Chef Vicky Lau trained as a graphic designer but ended up with a Michelin star. Re-opening Tate last year on Hollywood Road, Lau teamed up with the architect James Acuna to create a palette of soft pretty pinks and natural bleached wood, achieving a softly sensual appeal thanks to luscious upholstery and chic lighting.
The Tate Dining Room in Hong Kong
To perfectly complement the scheme, decorative pot plants bring a zing of lime and pops of freshness. This is the way to go. Flashes of metallics, natural marble and crisp white porcelain keep it all surfing the wave of good taste.
Here in the capital, the interior designers 1508 London showcase the look in a genuine “boudoir” setting at the Lanesborough Club and Spa at Hyde Park Corner. It’s worth booking a spa treatment for the décor alone – the women’s dressing room is accented in blush pink, rose, plum and champagne, with textures of antiqued glass, mirror, crystal, leather, silk and diaphanous drapes. It’s a jewel of a space, finessed to perfection.
Or how about the famous Sketch Gallery dining room, designed by India Mahdavi, which illustrates pink’s unique combination of frivolity and sassiness (and has just been updated with a new collection of David Shrigley artwork).
“For me, pink is more than a colour, it’s a mood, a way to express strength and fragility in one colour and in one space,” Mahdavi says.
Just re-opened is the Bloomsbury hotel on Great Russell Street, where the maximalist Swedish designer Martin Brudnizki has even created a cocktail bar named in pink’s honour – The Coral Room. Go for inspiration, pink fizz in hand.