The Earthy Paint Color You'll Regret Using In Your Space, According To Designers

When it comes to interior design, earthy colors are enduringly popular. Not only are these hues considered warm and inviting, but their nature-inspired aesthetic can also make your home feel more relaxed. Earthy color options span the full spectrum of browns, blues, greens, and oranges. This doesn't mean that all of these hues make for good wall colors — even if, generally, today's hottest interior paint trend isn't going anywhere. Such is the case with rusty orange. It's one earthy color that select interior designers advise against using boldly on your interior walls. Use it, and you may end up regretting your choice.

Orange is arguably a statement choice in home design. The cheerful color invokes a lot of energy, so it usually works best when used conservatively inside a home. To avoid creating walls reminiscent of bright orange traffic cones, homeowners and experts alike turn to subtler shades of the hue. This is how rusty orange has made its way into the earthy palettes currently popular in interior design. With its brown undertones, rusty orange could theoretically pose fewer problems than bright oranges. When used as a paint color, however, rusty orange causes all sorts of design headaches. Choosing to use it may even interfere with your efforts to create a cohesive color palette for your home.

Rusty orange can definitely be used in your home, but painting large areas in this color is ill-advised. Rusty orange is bolder and heavier than other earthy tones. This can cause the space to look smaller than it is. It may even make the room look dated. What's more, rusty orange can be more difficult to decorate around, especially when compared with more neutral earthy wall paint options like blues and whites. This might not be so problematic on a small area, such as a door, but it may prove challenging if you paint the walls of your living room, bedroom, or dining room in rusty orange.

If you're still intent on adding orange to your space, there are some tricks to making this statement color work without overwhelming your interiors. First, try swapping out rusty orange paint for a softer orange hue, such as terracotta or peach blush. Another option is to forego orange walls altogether and reserve the color for accent pieces and décor — throw pillows, planters, bedding, vases, and furniture in rusty orange. Designers also recommend toning down the vibrancy of orange generally by contrasting the hue with cool colors like blue or white. If you already have a rusty orange wall you're starting to regret, consider pairing it with colors that can offset the heaviness, such as cream, slate-gray, and olive green. You may even consider bringing earthy tones to your home décor with this rich and gorgeous color combo: rusty orange and autumnal viridian.