Many of my clients think their only option for creating visual interest is to paint a solid-colored wall. But I’m here to say there’s another method out there that can be as subtle or as bold as clients want to be: stripes. Whether thin or wide, vertical or horizontal, tonal or boldly contrasting, stripes create instant interest.
Stripes can add sophistication, elegance, whimsy, edginess or casual cool to a space. As I always tell my clients, paint is perhaps the most affordable way to give your home a fresh new look. And painting stripes creates a look comparable to what can be achieved with wallpaper, but at a fraction of the cost.
You need to consider several important factors when planning to create a striped room. I spoke with Ericka Moody, director of design at Design Line Interiors in Del Mar, Calif., who provided some basic rules of thumb for stripes.
“Horizontal stripes tend to be more contemporary and bold. They’re also nice to use when you have a room with a lot of windows, doors and vertical elements that divide up the room, because horizontal stripes make a room appear more spacious,” says Moody. As for vertical stripes, they’re “inclined to be more traditional, yet, depending on how they’re used, can make many different statements.”
When selecting your accent colors, play off the colors in the room, or select various neutrals (try mixing in creams or whites), which will provide more flexibility in the decor later on.
For instance, try putting them below a chair rail or, as Moody suggests, even under another paint stripe. Regardless of the orientation of the stripes, the colors you select will play the biggest part in the success of this technique. Try choosing a color one to two shades darker or lighter on the fan deck than the main room color. When selecting your accent colors, play off the colors in the room, or select various neutrals (try mixing in creams or whites), which will provide more flexibility in the decor later on.
“Choosing all neutrals enables you and your clients to switch out pillows and decor at whim,” says Moody.
If you’re still a little uncertain, experiment with different finishes instead of colors. “Using Wool Skein (SW 6148), for instance, in both a flat and high-gloss finish, can create a very classic, elegant and sophisticated look,” says Moody. Try this in more formal spaces, such as living and dining rooms, or for subtle drama in master bedrooms.
If you want to go bold but are wary of painting every wall, paint one impact wall. “Choose at least one neutral color with some contrast from the main room color, so that adjacent walls don’t blend together,” suggests Moody.
Click on the images to open and view larger images.
Of course, there are some areas of a home that are just begging for a more whimsical approach, such as children’s rooms, bonus rooms and laundry rooms. By using a variety of widths for the stripes and pairing them with vibrant colors, you can achieve a fun and fanciful look. Moody suggests choosing at least one neutral to act as a grounding color, or as a backdrop for the more vibrant hues. She also suggests using the vibrant colors on the thinner stripes, so they stand out against the wider neutral stripes, without overpowering the room.
Moody offers the following tips for those considering a striped wall:
- When painting horizontal stripes, err on the side of larger stripes (12 to 24 inches wide) to create interest without making the room look too busy.
- To avoid unequal horizontal stripes, divide the overall height of the wall into equal parts. This will ensure you don’t end up with a small stripe at the top or bottom of the wall. When using vertical stripes, divide the overall width of the wall into equal parts.
- When selecting paint colors, start by looking for both color and style direction in all of the design elements in the house, such as flooring, cabinets, countertops, fabrics, furniture and window treatments.
Want some help picking just the right color combinations for stripes? Here are a few of my suggestions:
- Softer Tan (SW 6141), Extra White (SW 6004) and Worldly Gray (SW 7043).
- Anjou Pear (SW 6381), Kaffee (SW 6104) and Solaria (SW 6688).
- Domino (SW 6989) and Downy (SW 7002).
- Relaxed Khaki (SW 6149), Oyster Bay (SW 6206) and Alabaster (SW 7008).
Have you used stripes successfully in projects? Tell me all about it.
Post your reply below.
Kelley Stratton has been active in the interior design industry for more than 10 years. After graduating from the Interior Designers Institute in Newport Beach, Calif., Kelley specialized in residential and model homes, and has worked on projects spanning the country. Kelley is the owner of
Salt Interiors, publishes their popular blog, and has written design articles for the
Examiner.
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For my own personal design job I used a stripe around my son’s nursery that mimicked a stripe found on the back of his baby quilt. It worked out really well and I think it actually made the small room feel larger somehow!
Pulling from bedding, art, etc. is a really great way to find inspiration for room decor. And horizontal stripes can definitely help make a room feel a little larger! Glad it worked for you!
Place your courser over the “Stripes” gallery and also the “Kid’s Rooms” gallery. There are a number of different striping techniques I have done. One of my favorites is the red, white and blue patriotic room theme.
The most difficult were the small stripes in “Matthew’s” room and the Green Bay Packer Football field wall.
Thank you ,
Kim Van Thiel, Interior Designer
Walls of Distinction
Yes,
I have used stripes several times.
One of my stripes design got me a 1st prize award on a Desing contest
photos of the project could be seen on my website:
williamlinares@yahoo.com
One might think there would be information other than the latest colors and mimimal information on stripes.
There are formulas for insuring that both horizontal and vertical wall stripes whether on accent walls or entire rooms come out “even”
Another area that needs attention is the masking and painting process so that ridges and bleeding are mimimalized.
Making this type work sound too easy only results in scoffs from the professional painters and contactors and makes what are commonly called “Formica Queens” less credible than they already are.
Hi Bill. You are correct in that there are many areas that need addressing aside from just colors. The article was focusing on the aesthetic of stripes, not necessarily the implementation. If you have any links you’d like to share with the readers that would be helpful in this matter, please feel free to share them here.
The wall texture involved determines whether stripes are a good choice for your room, or not.
An experienced contractor can use special tape (Frog Tape, etc) and caulk the seams for best results, but at a certain point, texture is simply too rough to allow for a crisp line.
If your room has splatter-drag, crow’s feet, or heavy skip trowel, it’ll probably need sanded and/or floated smooth to stripe well.
We did horizontal grey stripes in our Living area. They are on walls which have a textured Monterry finish. Not for the faint of heart. Turned out great. Will send photos if e-mail replys are sent to our website e-mail address.
I do a lot of striping in dining rooms with a chair rail. A darker solid color is painted on the bottom. A lighter color is painted on top in a satin finish. Then I hang painter’s tape, creating four-inch stripes. After the taping is finished, I use the same color in a semi-gloss and paint every other stripe. When the tape comes off, the results are spectacular. The finished produce resembles satin stripe wallpaper.
I painted horizonatal stripes in my hallway and LOVE the results. I used SW6150 Universal Khaki and SW7042 Shoji White – Cashmere/Flat.
The Frog Tape worked wonderfully…thanks to a tip from my local SW manager to wipe the edge with a damp cloth before painting.
You can see the before and after pics on my blog http://www.elegantnest.blogspot.com
Stripes are Dee-Lightful! Often I will spec stripes in a home to give a tired and sad room the “oomph” I believe it has been longing for.
However, if I am going to be completely honest, I will say that the vertical stripe has left me feeling uninspired and flat lately – a big ol’ case of the stripe blahs! As a result I have been gravitating towards the horizontal stripe and I’m really digging how they work in just about any space.
Laundry rooms? Throw ‘em in there! Powder Rooms? Heck ya! Hallway entry gotcha down? Revitalize with stripes!
And yes, I have tried them in my own home. If I’m gonna spec ‘em, I gotta know about ‘em, right?
I did 10 inch horizontal stripes in my son’s room with only a 10 percent saturation difference between colors – I believe I used Aura White and Mild Blue. I popped a barn red quilt with cream stars on the bed for the “razzle dazzle” and called it a day.
I love, love, love it. You know how you finish painting a room and you just stand in the middle of space and stare? and stare. and stare…taking it all in? Yup, that was me.
My sons reaction? Well, he’s five. He ran in, said “That’s cool Mommy” and ran back out to play.
Shona Tiffin
Red Door Studio
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GREAT TIPS! Now to get the guts to do it..Thx Kelley
This is a timely subject for me as I just painted 15 inch horizontal stripes in a commercial bathroom. I was asked to do a NASCAR theme and what better representation of a race track than horizontal stripes. I used frog tape and a laser level and divided the space above a tile wainscot into 3 stripes. I used frog tape and wiped it with a wet rag before I painted. I was super happy and so was my client! The colors I used were Denim sw#6523 and Sanderling sw#7513 and Buff sw#7683. Check out the images at http://languageofcolorandtexture.blogspot.com/ and go tape some stripes!!
[...] Full Spectrum: Stripe It Rich | STIR by Sherwin-Williams Kelley examines how using stripes can really change up a room's look and mood. [...]
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