The divisive colour trend that is back in fashion

Citrus, canary or a rich mustard, there is a shade to work for your home. The experts reveal how to make it shine

Once considered one of the least popular colours in interiors, yellow is once again having its moment in the sun. According to Pinterest, in the past three months alone, searches for “light yellow aesthetic” have gone up 60 per cent, “yellow kitchen cabinets” has leapt by 70 per cent and “mustard sofa living room ideas” has jumped 80 per cent. In addition, yellow often pops up in various shades in the works of some of the country’s hottest interior designers, such as Sophie Ashby, Beata Heuman and Ben Pentreath.
“There’s something so warm and sunny about yellow rooms that I’m just naturally drawn to,” says Pentreath. “My husband Charlie and I painted our kitchen in Dorset a bright gloss yellow years ago and we love it. It’s like living in an egg yolk and even on the darkest morning in the winter it feels good. I love the strong yellows of the regency period, and the ‘Mr Happy’ yellow of the 1970s. For me, it’s a colour that’s never gone away.”
Despite its tricky reputation, yellow is more versatile than it looks, insists interior designer Emma Sims-Hilditch. “It can be used in a rustic farmhouse or in the most contemporary house or city flat. It works beautifully with a whole spectrum of colours. It also has an ability to create a hopeful, optimistic atmosphere, which many people want at the moment.”
Ruth Mottershead, the creative director of paint brands Little Greene and Paint & Paper Library confirms there has been a rise in the sales of sunshine hues in the past year.
“Almost everybody has stayed away from yellow for a very long time and it was more of a colour used – along with blue – in children’s bedrooms,” she says. “But over the years we have seen a transition to colours with a rich, warm undertone to them and the interest in yellow has stemmed from that.” And clients have become braver with the choice of shade, Mottershead adds: “It’s more of a stronger yellow – these are classic tones that are making a comeback.” She recommends using strong yellows in north-facing rooms, to add warmth.
Patrick O’Donnell, colour consultant and brand ambassador for Farrow & Ball, advises pairing yellow with warm whites. “Yellow is a colour that works well in isolation,” he says. “It’s a really nice colour for kitchen cabinets – I would suggest using it for the lower units, with a lighter colour above.”
But there’s no need to worry if you are yellow-wary. “Some of the most successful schemes are the ones where yellow is used as an accent,” says Sims-Hilditch. “It could be curtains, cushions or a rug, and then you can use complementary colours with that. Blue-greys look so beautiful with yellows, as do warm creams and soft greeny-blues.” 
Need more convincing? Here are eight examples of how to successfully decorate with yellow. 
1. In this Edwardian London home, interior designer Sarah Brown uses yellow – Nicotine by Plain English – as an unexpected jolt in the inside of this walk-in pantry to create a cheerful and immersive space, further enhanced by the unusual combination with pink. “Yellow is such a positive colour but many find it hard to live with in a whole room,” says Brown. “It’s a nice surprise to use it instead on the inside of a cupboard or pantry for a dose of sunny joy in the morning.”
2. Adding yellow to a space is not limited to paint. In this drawing room designed by Ben Pentreath, he uses his brightly-hued Willow wallpaper, part of a collection for Morris & Co, to create an uplifting feel. The wallcovering injects modernity into a traditional design, while perfectly complementing the brown furniture. Having several punctuations of yellow can be just as effective as a full wall, as seen here with the banana-coloured sofa and the vase of daffodils. 
3. In this bathroom designed by Emma Sims-Hilditch, she has played with different tones of yellow for a sophisticated feel. “Yellows can feel very calm and very soft,” she explains. “I think you shouldn’t go strong yellow in a bedroom because it could then become too vibrant and impossible to sleep. But a soft yellow can work well in bedrooms and bathrooms.” Here, a canary hue turns the bath to a dynamic focal point and is tempered by the paler wallcovering. 
4. Interior designer Beata Heuman is renowned for her judicious use of colour, as shown to great effect in her west London studio. Here, the woodwork, including the angled ceiling, which leads to one of the upstairs office spaces, is painted a welcoming and vibrant yellow, a shade developed by the designer and paint brand Mylands. This is cleverly offset by Heuman’s “Florentine Flowers” wallpaper, which adds freshness and prevents the yellow from feeling too overwhelming. 
5. If you are feeling brave, an immersive yellow treatment can reap rewards. In this kitchen, Little Greene’s Guillo clads all the walls, as well as the cabinetry and ceiling. Apart from the striking impact, having the wall and the cabinetry the same colour visually shrinks the units into the wall so the space appears bigger. The dark accents, including the worktop, ground the scheme and stops it from looking overly playful or saccharine.
6. In the Italian home of interiors writer and podcaster Kate Watson-Smyth, a yellow framed window – painted Sole and part of a recent paint collaboration with Graphenstone – is a striking addition and draws the eye to the outside view. “I have used Sole strategically throughout the house – on a ceiling in an otherwise dark hallway and on the window frames in a bedroom.” says Watson-Smyth. “So it feels like the sun is always shining even in the depths of winter.”
7. The under-the-stairs bar in this seaside cottage was painted Gamboge by Paint & Paper Library to make a statement and set it apart from the green of the rest of the space. 
“We wanted it to be a standout feature, something that instantly catches the eye and brings a sense of joy,” explains interior designer Melissa Hutley, co-founder of Hutley & Humm. “Mustard yellow was the perfect choice as it adds a vibrant pop of colour that surprises and delights, proving that small spaces often shine brightest when painted in bold hues.” 
8. In this sitting room designed by Octavia Dickinson, golden yellow makes the perfect backdrop for a colourful array of furnishing. “Yellow is the perfect background colour that neutralises a room, allowing the furniture and fabrics to become the focus and dance to create the ideal balance,” she says. “I would use a strong yellow in a darkish room, and a light yellow in a light room.” When it comes to combining colours, she advises: Yellow can look sweet and girly combined with pink. Mixing a navy blue yellow feels more masculine and nautical. Yellow and red feels smart, great in a library, drawing room or dining room.”
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