Perfectly Imperfect: Bold Bohemian Color Meets the White Box

It's the perfect look for the color lover who's wary of living in an oppressively vibrant gypsy wagon. Most homes need a balance of interesting color and refreshing white, which in the average house usually translates to bold hued walls and white slipcovers. We're loving this striking and livable version of the reverse...

Color compromise is a slippery slope especially for those dwelling in a lively home with lots of visitors, young children, or pets. Your color cravings have you splashing the rainbow all over your walls, which leaves you feeling claustrophobic, so you buy some bright white sofas to even out the mix, but then find it's too stressful to keep them looking clean, so you swap them out and settle for a stain-hiding brownish beige...only to end up with a rather bland, haphazard looking home. Whew!—it's an exhausting process for a not so great end result.

So why not embrace your white walls and opt for plenty of spill-masking patterns for a look that's casual, comfortable, but still hints at clean?

(Images: 1: Bridget Kelly via Kids Today Online, 2: James Merrell, 3: Lauren Resen, 4,5: Marie Claire Maison, 6: Ashley Ann via Ohdeedoh)

Comments (6)

I would love to see more of the home in the first picture. I love how you almost don't recognize the Ikea. I usually prefer a minimal look but I'm really drawn to that room.

posted by Kit_Kat on August 26th 2009 at 10:49pm
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i am not afraid to live in an oppressively vibrant gypsy wagon, however the white background is quite refreshing. my walls aren't white. i try to balance the brights with a foundation of earth tones, rich browns and a little white here and there.

posted by Lady J on August 26th 2009 at 11:26pm
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I love your home. I too painted my house BM Linen White and everyone is telling me that I should paint the walls with some kind of color. I prefer a neutral canvas and colorful accessories like you. You have put it together nicely and I hope to accomplish the same for my home.

posted by momof3andluvit on August 27th 2009 at 1:50am
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I love the first three shots the most. Great artwork!

posted by mirandabee on August 27th 2009 at 7:00am
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"I love how you almost don't recognize the Ikea."

For some reason I found this really funny! And I really like the balance of color and white in these rooms. I used to live in an oppressively colorful gypsy caravan (and loved every minute of it) but now I'm more in the zone you've featured here.

posted by sally305 on August 27th 2009 at 9:17am
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. . . or "white envelope" as Met Home's Donna Warner is so fond of saying.

posted by ChrisToronto on August 27th 2009 at 9:20am
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