Colour Know-How: Home Office Paint Colours & Ideas

Fire up your productivity with inspirational home office paint colours.

You deserve to work in a space that inspires you towards success. Whether your office is a tiny nook, a cluttered spare room or a neglected corner of the living room, our small home office ideas do wonders for practicality, productivity and peace of mind while you’re working.

Bland office cubicles are a driving factor in the desire to work from a more comfortable, inspiring space. What they usually have in common is the monotonous, clinical feeling of plain white walls and furniture. Though you might be tempted by white as a base for small home office ideas, get creative with colour to focus the mind and give you a space that you enjoy to look at!

Blues and greens create a sense of balance and serenity to help you concentrate on the task at hand. And, what comes to mind when you think of golds or bronze? Along with abundant riches and success, gold tones represent wisdom and positivity. Saturating your office space in your favourite tones, some personal touches and motivational quotes can also bring you a sense of joy and happiness when you sit down to get to work. 

So, take a look at our ideas below to help you create that perfect work from home zone!

Calming colours for focus 

Carve out your own work from home zone using a geometric paint effect with a combination of stylish grey and a soothing mint. This not only gives you that feeling of a dedicated zone away from home life but the colours together create a sense of calm allowing you to focus. So even if you have to create a space to work within your bedroom, you feel like you are separating this from a relaxing nights sleep.

Pastel paint colours for tranquility

You have total control over how your home office looks and feels, so why not introduce a sense of tranquility to help you achieve your goals?

Taken from the Dulux Care Palette, which features Colour of the Year 2020 Tranquil Dawn, these home office paint colours transform your workspace into a relaxing and soothing space to get your head down and concentrate. See the full list of colours in this palette here.

Offset this palette of soft pastels and new neutrals with a crisp white desk or pale woods and an abundance of lush leafy house plants to bring the outside in and even help purify the air around you. Our partner Patch Plants can help you discover the best plants for your space and even has handy tips on how to keep them alive!

Home office ideas for small spaces 

If your room resembles a storage cupboard or you can’t find a desk to fit tricky angles, there’s always a solution. Space saving furniture is at the top of the list for spare room office ideas. The only way is up in a small space, so consider vertical shelves and wall mounted cupboards. Make your desk work as hard as you do, with multifunctional features like an expandable surface and inbuilt drawers or shelves. Choose furniture with slim legs and sleek lines to save space.

For those odd nooks in living rooms, converted cupboards or lofts, consider a custom-built floating desk, shaped to fit the space. One of the easiest ways to create a work zone in an open plan living area is to paint a feature wall to go with your desk. Add a few display items so it blends seamlessly with your living room décor. For extra privacy without limiting space, hang a wall divider curtain in a shade that ties in with your colour scheme. Need to make more space for guests? Choose a folding, portable desk to whisk away when you need to.

Above we have used warm neutrals Soft Maple and Muted Gold to make the space feel homely but fresh. 

Pink decor ideas for creativity

Adding personal touches to your home office brings it to life and invites you to settle in for work. Create a photo gallery above your desk or design a pinboard collage filled with inspirational ideas. Turn your office supplies into decorative pieces with colourful storage boxes or baskets.

If you have storage shelves, use bright containers and intersperse storage with cherished ornaments or your favourite books. Targeted lighting is a necessity, so you might as well make the most of it with decorative reading lamps or a statement pendant light above the desk.

A vibrant rug can make all the difference to bare floors, introduces texture for visual interest and feels amazing underfoot! It’s also an easy way to enhance a feature wall and harmonise your colour scheme with tonal shades, without taking up space. Lastly, there’s nothing like some greenery for a restorative mood boost. Add a cluster of small potted houseplants on the windowsill or in between books and storage. Above we have used Pressed Petal and Dark Garnet for a pretty pink creative corner.

Home office paint colours in action

If you’re not sure about your choice of colour scheme, see your small home office ideas in action with the Dulux Visualizer app. Simply download it for free, take pictures or videos of your room and tap your colour choices to watch them transform your space. Or, use Dulux paint tester pots to paint handy samples and compare the colours with your fixtures and décor. 

With inspiring colours, smart storage solutions and a personal touch, you’ll spring out of bed each day just to look at your fabulous home office!