As color trends shift away from the cool grays and whites that have dominated the past decade, warmer shades are at home once again—and one cozy color is making a comeback. “From new fabrics, paint colors, and products, brown is emerging as a new and differentiated go-to neutral,” says design and decor expert Benjamin Reynaert.
Browns range from dark and saturated to lighter shades like caramel and tan. A common color for more traditional settings, brown can bring drama to modern looks as well. Reynaert points to accents like modern-retro mushroom table lamps and traditional gingham tablecloths as quick and easy ways to incorporate brown. But this is not an accent-only color.
Brown walls add warmth, complement trendy moody decorating styles, and act like any other neutral by letting architecture or decor stand out. “I think a rich chocolate brown on the walls in a study adds depth to a space and allows what's in the room to really sing, from the various spines of books on the shelves to lush upholstery fabrics like velvet,” says Reynaert.
Why Shades of Brown Are Seeing a Resurgence
Brown was a memorable part of both 2000s and 1970s decor, and now similar influences are helping bring the color back. Like the 2000s, the shift toward warmer colors comes, in part, because we’re responding to the prolonged uncertainty of the pandemic by incorporating more comforting colors into our homes.
It’s also a natural shift away from the gray palettes many of us spent so much time surrounded by. Like the 1970s, we’re seeing an environmental consciousness and desire to connect with nature driving brown’s appeal. This is not only bringing more sustainable materials into the home—natural woods rather than fabricated materials, for example—but also more earth-inspired colors and decorating styles like organic modern style. As part of this overarching eco trend, natural textures are also reigning, from jute rugs to rattan wall decor and wood flooring. These elements, and their various shades of brown, are staples in trending designs.
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How to Use Brown as a Neutral
Brown is a versatile neutral that can warm up any room and complement any style. Here are some tips for avoiding a dated look and bringing today’s brown into your home.
1. Pair with Modern Colors
Instead of the heavy reds, yellows, and terracottas of the previous eras’ palettes, pair brown with trendy jewel tones and earthy blues and greens. On the walls, brown makes an excellent neutral base; as trim or flooring, it can subtly accent other colors. “If you're the daring type, try a bold green or chartreuse-y green for a sofa or chair to add a natural color to the mix,” says Reynaert. Jewel tones are en vogue, and a rich neutral brown can warm up and elevate those hues. Get inspired with these color pairings featuring brown.
2. Take Cues from Wood
Ditch painted trim in favor of stained wood trim that embraces brown tones. Create a moody look that's modern while accentuating your home’s architecture by retaining wood trim and accents to act as your home’s neutral, then applying rich wall colors through paint or wallpaper. Wood furniture, like sideboards and hutches or chairs with elegant wood frames, can bring brown neutral accents, too. Check out these tips for choosing colors to pair with wood accents and furniture.
3. Lounge on Leather
Leather furniture is available in a variety of brown shades. Leather's finish as well as accents like tufting and nailhead trim contribute texture to a room. Avoid the overstuffed furniture look of the 2000s and look for slim-lined contemporary pieces. Try these tips for decorating with a brown sofa.
4. Confidently Create Contrast
“Brown and white is always a choice combination,” says Reynaert. But avoid the dated look of the 2000s brown walls with shocking crisp white trim. One solution is to incorporate multiple natural browns through wooden furniture or wall decor, or even mix modern black accents, to ease the transition between the two shades.
5. Mix Textures and Finishes
As with any color, don’t go monotone with your monochrome. Mix in varied textures and finishes for depth when using multiple browns as the dominant color in a space. Wood paneling, rattan, and plisse cabinetry accents add of-the-moment dimension to the natural, neutral hues. Plush and woven textiles are another tactile example, while varying matte and glossy paint finishes can also keep brown from looking flat. Metallics like brass, gold, and copper have brown undertones that literally reflect the neutral color’s warmth.
6. Create Intimate Spaces
Use deep brown walls to create snug and relaxing areas in your home. “Tanner's Brown is a deep, drab brown that creates a wonderful backdrop for a cozy nook or reading space,” says Reynaert. “Lit at night, this color glows and looks especially spectacular in candlelight.”
1. Pair with Modern Colors. Instead of the heavy reds, yellows, and terracottas of the previous eras' palettes, pair brown with trendy jewel tones and earthy blues and greens. On the walls, brown makes an excellent neutral base; as trim or flooring, it can subtly accent other colors.
“Brown has become a new neutral.” “A carefully selected brown hue works organically with tonal schemes,” says interior designer Carrie Moore of Durham, North Carolina. “Brown walls are an impactful way to shake up an otherwise prevailingly neutral interior.” And consumers are catching on.
You can create brown from the primary colors red, yellow, and blue. Since red and yellow make orange, you can also make brown by mixing blue and orange. The RGB model used for creating color on screens like the television or a computer uses red and green to make brown.
The fundamental answer for what colors make brown is the three primary colors—red, yellow, and blue. To make brown paint, mix and vary the amounts and ratio of red, yellow, and blue to alter the shade of brown you get. There are multiple shades of brown, from light, sandy beige to dark mahogany.
Rich, brown wood furniture will be taking Southern homes by storm in 2024, as well as warm, brown upholstery. “We'll be drowning in brown in all the best ways in 2024,” he says. “Think about coffee, cappuccino and lattes and how those warm colors hit the spot just like your afternoon Starbucks fix.”
Wearing brown is actually pretty trendy due to other factors. Given the current penchant for minimalism and natural beauty, it makes sense that this natural tone has been embraced on runways and in street style alike. From deep dark brown as chocolate to light sand, the entire spectrum of brown is on trend.
The trend has prompted brands to embrace neutral earth tones, like browns, taupes, and greens, because they reflect natural elements. “There's a desire among a certain type of consumer to appear connected to nature,” explains Altman, who is a friend of this author. “Brown is a very utilitarian color. It's economical.
If we are to believe this season's biggest designers and ready-to-wear brands, brown may just be the new black. The color has been seen all over this year's runways, making early appearances in Fall/Winter 2023 collections, then dominating the more recent Spring/Summer 2024 shows.
You can make black paint by mixing together equal parts red, blue, and yellow paint. You can also mix opposite colors on the color wheel to make black, like red and green, blue and orange, or yellow and purple. Blue and brown mixed together will also make black.
Basically, brown is all three primary colors combined: red, yellow and blue. One can also take a secondary color and combine it with the remaining primary color to make brown (purple + yellow; orange + blue; green + red).
Grey is the secret chameleon of the color palette that effortlessly bridges the worlds of brown and black. It also tempers the color combo, in case there are times you feel your shades are too stark when worn alone.
Taupe is a vague color term which may refer to almost any grayish-brown, brownish-gray, or warm gray color. It often overlaps with tan and even people who use color professionally (such as designers and artists) frequently disagree as to what "taupe" means.
These are the most neutral of neutral colours. Colour is light in specific wavelengths. In physics, black and white are not listed as colour because they're not found on the colour spectrum, as they do not have specific wavelenghts. Black is the absence of light, and white is the mixture of all light.
Some consider white to be a color, because white light comprises all hues on the visible light spectrum. And many do consider black to be a color, because you combine other pigments to create it on paper. But in a technical sense, black and white are not colors, they're shades. They augment colors.
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