When it comes to color vs. bright white interiors, we're seemingly on the fence: One week, we'll feature gorgeous (typically Scandinavian) interiors in all white; the next, we're celebrating vibrant colors (banned be damned). But if there was a way to combine the clean, crisp look of a white interior space with the attitude of an amazing Technicolor dreamhouse, we'd venture to say that photographer Tosca Radigona did just that in her Texas home.
Tosca's home takes advantage two things: vintage details from the home's 1941 architecture; and the wonderful eclectic charm--and sun!--of Austin, Texas. Instead of painting the walls an off-white, she opted for base colors that would complement not just the wood finish of her mid-century modern furniture, but the orange, reds, and yellow accents as well. The end result? Each room still looks airy and light, with just the right amount of color added in.
The living room is painted a celery-green with the trim kept a bright white. Keeping the main centerpiece of the room (the sofa) white, Tosca accessorized the room with both cool and warm accents--except she kept the intensities of the colors in line. The blues and greens are much more muted compared to the saturated reds and rich browns.
A cost-effective way to bring some color to a corner: A diptych of canvases, painted sunshine yellow. And if you love the look of her credenza, it could be easily replicated by simply painting the drawer faces.
Another view of the living room: Those shutter doors letting the afternoon light in are amazing.
The wall color may have be tweaked from green to a pastel blue, but the principles remain the same: Keep the main centerpiece of the room (in this case, the dining table and the majority of the Eames shell chairs) white, and work the colors around it. The mismatched collection of chairs ranging from cream to the orange leather covered one at the head gives the room some personality.
See the rest of Tosca's gorgeous home at Martha Stewart Living.
(Images: Martha Stewart Living)

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This is a great post! The rooms are gorgeous and the analysis of why they work is really helpful.
Curtains in the second picture... DO WANT! Source?
Definitely a helpful analysis of why the colors work together. Love it :)
Great post! I'm loving these color combos. I could look at these photos all day.
Amazing. I too could look at these pictures all day.
Beautiful place!
lovely, warm, inviting...
Agreed with sally305. Not only are these pictures beautiful, the analysis of why the color works is incredibly helpful! This is exactly the kind of information some of us less artistic, more analytical folks can use when designing our own places.
I'm not entirely sure I'd call these warms "Fiery" nor would I call most of the background colors "Cool Pastels."
Maybe it's a monitor thing.
The living room looks cream/light yellow on my monitor. Maybe that's just my computer? The kitchen is my favorite. I too cannot decide on warm or cool colors and find that my favorite colors to decorate with are light blues/greens and reds. So this is good inspiration for me, even though my style is quite different from hers. Lovely home.
I agree with livc--the living room walls read more like butter yellow than green for me...
But still quite lovely.
Yes! Can you please share the source of those curtains in the first photo? At least the fabric source? And the lamp in the fourth photo, sheesh- i love that!