Should the carpet be lighter or darker than walls? We spoke to the experts

There are many things to think about when buying carpet for your home, and one of them is the colour; in this article, we investigate whether carpet should be lighter or darker than walls.

A carpet can completely change the atmosphere of a room by covering the floor in a layered rainbow of colour and soft, tactile texture. The carpet choices you settle on should be sturdy and functional for the room’s requirements and a beautiful compliment to the existing furnishings and colour scheme.

The fact that there is no universally accepted standard for determining whether carpet should be lighter or darker than walls should be familiar to everyone.

On the other hand, we’ll discuss the pros and cons of both options.

WHY A CARPET’S TONE INFLUENCES YOUR WALL COLOR CHOICES

While there is no hard and fast rule, most people find schemes contrasting the Flooring and walls to be the most aesthetically pleasant. Hence, if you have dark walls, a lighter carpet will look great, and if you have light walls, a darker carpet will look great. It’s essential to consider the effects of the colours you choose for the Flooring and walls of a room as a whole when designing the room’s aesthetic. It’s important to remember that Flooring is generally the first place interior designers look when deciding on a colour scheme for a room.

Consumers are more daring than ever with the fifth wall and the floor. The availability of a wider variety of carpets has emboldened homeowners to experiment with Flooring that incorporates a greater variety of colours, textures, and patterns. We advocate starting with the floor and working upwards when designing a space. Always choose your carpet first, advises Lorna Haigh, design director at Alternative Flooring, “since walls can be changed more readily than flooring.”

Should the carpet in your home be lighter or darker than the walls? To make sure you’re making the appropriate choice.

WHY CHOOSE CARPET THAT’S LIGHTER THAN WALLS

A lighter carpet may be ideal if your room is small or light-deprived, but you enjoy bold wall colours. To explain, these are the reasons why:

For A More Spacious And Uplifting Look  

A lighter carpet is ideal in rooms with darker walls because it reflects light and creates a sense of harmony between the two colours.

Flooring in light, breezy colours can make any room feel larger, brighter, and more open, according to Jon Flannigan, product manager at Kersaint Cobb.

Little living room ideas and small bedroom ideas can both benefit from a lighter carpet, as London-based interior designer Shanade McAllister-Fisher explains.

‘A lighter-coloured carpet, like beige or light grey, can open up a room and give it a more open feel. This is especially useful in smaller rooms where it creates the illusion of more space. I advise against selecting lighter carpet colours in high-traffic areas, but if you insist, try to find a texture that can assist disguise wear and tear.

To Establish A Stylish Contrast 

Using your carpet to generate striking colour contrast in a space, whether it’s with a lighter or darker carpet than the walls, can result in a genuinely one-of-a-kind and eye-catching design.

Try using the colour wheel to locate complementary hues; remember that contrasting colours look best together.

The yellow wool twill gorse carpet from Fibre Flooring in this blue hallway makes a striking contrast with the dark blue painted panelling, injecting life and levity into the otherwise severe atmosphere of this transitional, high-traffic area.

To Create For A Cozy Feel 

If you have white walls in your room, a dark carpet will help to ground the space, make it feel more warm and intimate, and create visual harmony with the other colours in the room.

This lovely country living room features a carpet with a warm, earthy texture that contrasts beautifully with the white walls and works beautifully with the antique timber beams.

A darker-coloured carpet, such as navy or forest green, can provide a sense of depth and cosiness in a room, especially when coupled with similarly toned walls, as pointed out by Shanade McAllister-Fisher. Ideal for larger rooms or other spaces where you want to create a warm and inviting ambience, this may make the area feel more intimate and comfortable. Choose a deep, dark carpet with a high pile for extra cosiness underfoot and an upscale appearance.

To Cope With Heavy Footfall

A darker carpet is preferable in high-traffic areas, such as entryways, because it better conceals dirt and grime brought in on shoes. A tiny room, such as an entryway, can feel more expansive and brighter by painting the walls a lighter colour.

‘It’s worth adding, too, that patterned carpet like the one above, is wonderful at masking dirt that both dark and light plain carpets can’t hide, so always think about this for busy spaces you don’t want to be vacuuming all the time,’ says Lucy Searle, Editor in Chief, Homes & Gardens.

To Make A Statement With A Patterned Carpet

Even more repetition. If the carpet is going to have a pattern and multiple colours, it is often the first material chosen for a project. After settling on a colour scheme, I select a shade on the carpet to use on the walls. Molly McGinness says, “I’ll go lighter or darker depending on the room’s atmosphere and the natural light source.”

No matter what type or pattern you choose for your carpet, it will look amazing against white-painted walls if you consider embracing white room ideas but still want to add colour to the space.

WHEN TO MATCH CARPET TO WALL COLOR

Matching your carpet to your wall colour might be a terrific choice for both a minimal and maximalist aesthetic.

Using this ‘fifth wall’ by matching your carpet colour to your wall colour may create a cohesive and fashionable area, whether you choose a beige or brown carpet to compliment your neutral room ideas or go all out with a vibrant pink or deep blue colour.

Molly McGinness, a Massachusetts-based interior designer, advises employing a monochromatic scheme with light shades and materials that offer a variation in texture if you want to make the room feel more extensive or more expansive.

To illustrate, consider a room with all-white finishes: a matte white on the walls, a white carpet with dimensional texture, and white furniture with textured materials. There won’t be two identical whites, and the monochromatic design makes the room feel bigger by not bringing attention to the transitions between the walls and the carpet.

DOES LIGHT OR DARK CARPET MAKE A ROOM LOOK BIGGER?

In general, lighter carpets will make a room look bigger. In comparison, darker carpets might make a room feel cosier and more intimate, as stated by HiHomePicks interior designer Jeanette Fusco.

A room can appear larger and brighter using neutral hues like beige, grey, and taupe. Alternately, utilize warmer colours like brown, crimson, or burgundy to make a room look cosier.

The simpler and more common approach to making a room feel larger is to go with a lighter carpet, although dark colours can also be effective. Dark walls and a dark carpet can be a successful choice for a smaller room in your space since they are less likely to draw attention to the room’s size, a common goal of interior designers when working with smaller rooms.

HOW DO I CHOOSE THE RIGHT CARPET?

The size of the room, the amount of natural light, the colour of the walls, and the type of material should all be considered when deciding on the best carpet for your home. To achieve a well-rounded and fashionable look, combine opposites like bright and dark hues, natural and synthetic materials, and neutral and dramatic hues. According to Jeanette Fusco, every room can appear its best with careful planning and the correct carpet.

Also included in Lorna Haigh’s tips for finding the ideal carpeting for your home is her insight into the various materials available. The flooring of a room plays an essential role in both the aesthetic and functional aspects of interior design. Because of its hypoallergenic nature and plush feel, wool is an excellent material for any room, especially the bedroom. Wool boucle and sisal boucle are good options for high-traffic areas like hallways and staircases, while patterned wool carpets make a statement in living rooms. Because of its affordability, durability, and wide variety of weaves and colours, sisal has quickly become the most popular natural fibre choice.