Vibrant shades excite

A pop of colour can transform any room from being boring and understated into a bold or lively space. 

Vibrant shades are eye-catching and can create a positive and playful aura while also adding warmth. The dash of colour can come from a cleverly-placed accessory in a monochrome room or as one large statement piece such as a sofa or even art work.

One brightly painted focal wall can also make a difference by turning a small space, for example, into a seemingly bigger, cosier or more dramatic room.

One colour that has been decorating homes since January 2019 has been Pantone’s Colour of the Year, ‘Living Coral’. It’s been deemed by experts as a ‘welcoming’ shade that encourages ‘light-hearted activity’.

It symbolises people’s innate need for optimism and joyful pursuits as well as the desire for whimsical expression.

Interior designers have been enjoying the light colour that brings comfort and familiarity to any home and experts suggest opting for diverse shades to make a statement as well.

Amit Yadav, head of marketing at Gulf retailer, 2XL Furniture & Home Décor, said: “Colourful settings convey cheerful energy as colours make people smile.

“Soft palettes when punctuated with contrasting colours can create a dramatic impact.

“Ideally choose a piece of furniture or accessory that picks out the colour from the setting for a perfect combination.”

Amit suggested a velvet emerald Alyx four seater sofa to symbolise opulence and nature or a Douglas polyester dining chair in mustard yellow that will make your dining room the ‘talk of the evening’ at any dinner party.

Cushions are another affordable way to add colour to a room. Cover cushions can be changed easily in the off chance you get bored of the look or want to be more festive during the holidays.

If you aren’t sure how to pick a shade then try colour blocking with primary colours or picking out woodwork in eye-popping candy tones. Why not brighten up a dark room with sunshine yellow? You can do that by setting off a statement piece in front of a dark and dramatic backdrop.

For the bedroom, your best bet is to stick to cooler tones in intense hues such as vivid teal or an electric blue. For the colour shy, start off with adding hues in the form of curtains.

Warmer colours such as red, yellow, orange and pink are best limited to small splashes in bedding, lighting or artwork as to not overwhelm yourself when you are trying to relax and unwind.

Colour isn’t just about what pleases the eye, but also how it makes you feel. Think of what you want to achieve from that space and don’t be afraid to be daring.

GulfWeeklyBookClub – in association with The Bookcase

 BOOK OF THE WEEK by Linda Jennings – 12 RULES FOR LIFE: AN ANTIDOTE TO CHAOS, JORDAN B PETERSON, 9780141988511 , PENGUIN, BD4.900 for Gulf Weekly Book Club members

What are the most valuable things that everyone should know?

Acclaimed clinical psychologist Jordan Peterson has influenced the modern understanding of personality, and now he has become one of the world’s most popular public thinkers, with his lectures on topics from romantic relationships to mythology drawing tens of millions of viewers.

In an era of unprecedented change and polarising politics, his frank and refreshing message about the value of individual responsibility and ancient wisdom has resonated around the world.

In this book, he provides 12 profound and practical principles for how to live a meaningful life, from setting your house in order before criticising others to comparing yourself to who you were yesterday, not someone else today. Happiness is a pointless goal, he shows us. Instead we must search for meaning, not for its own sake, but as a defence against the suffering that is intrinsic to our existence.

Drawing on vivid examples from the author’s clinical practice and personal life, cutting edge psychology and philosophy, and lessons from humanity’s oldest myths and stories, 12 Rules for Life offers a deeply rewarding antidote to the chaos in our lives: eternal truths applied to our modern problems. 

READ IT NOW IN PAPERBACK

THE OUTSIDER, STEPHEN KING

9781473676398 HODDER

BD3.900 for Gulf Weekly Book Club members

King’s new novel, The Outsider, starts out as a crime story. Ralph Anderson, a detective in Flint City, Okla., orders the arrest of a popular local English teacher and Little League coach, Terry Maitland, at a baseball game packed with cheering families.

Anderson directs the officers to handcuff Maitland in front, instead of behind his back – and when an officer protests that’s against protocol, Anderson is adamant: “I know and I don’t care. I want everyone to see him led away in handcuffs. Got it?”

Anderson has clear evidence that Maitland raped and mutilated a child. The crime is awful but the proximity – the sense of trust that Maitland enjoyed – is what truly horrifies the detective.

So the officers arrest the coach in front of everyone, announcing the charges loudly. As he’s led away, Maitland insists, just as loudly, that he’s innocent – he was 70 miles away, with an iron-clad alibi.

So Detective Anderson sets out to investigate the impossible: how can the suspect have been both at the scene of the crime and in another town? Fans of King will not be disappointed with what happens next.

MY FAVOURITE

READ OF THE WEEK

NORMAL PEOPLE, SALLY ROONEY

9780571334650, FABER & FABER

BD4.400 for Gulf Weekly Book Club members

Winner of Novel of the Year and Book of the Year at the British Book Awards 

Connell and Marianne grow up in the same small town in the west of Ireland, but the similarities end there. In school, Connell is popular and well-liked, while Marianne is a loner. But when the two strike up a conversation – awkward but electrifying – something life-changing begins.

Slipping in and out of friendship and romance as they make the transition from their final year of high school in quaint Carricklea to Dublin’s Trinity College, Connell enjoys peak popularity as a top football player while Marianne (noted with disdain for her bare face and ugly, flat shoes) is a social pariah known for committing the crime of taking off her blouse in the girl’s bathroom to wash out a stain.

They meet on more intimate terms in Marianne’s kitchen where Connell’s mother, Lorraine, works as a cleaning woman and spend their afternoons quietly upstairs in Marianne’s bedroom.

Outside that large, chilly house, they pretend they aren’t even on nodding terms. Yet once at Trinity, it’s Marianne who has the upper hand and Connell cast as the outsider. Whether in Dublin or Carricklea, intimacy and power prove inseparable, and Rooney makes the most of this seemingly contradictory link. 

Maintaining a close third person point of view, Rooney shifts between Connell and Marianne, offering readers agonizing windows into the things they keep from one another. 

Normal People is a story of mutual fascination, friendship and love. It takes us from that first conversation to the years beyond, in the company of two people who try to stay apart but find they can’t.