Design tips for adding fun colors to a living room

Hoping for a house full of happy color, the owners of this new build in Needham knew just who to call: Dina Holland. Having decorated the adjacent dining room with a dark blue grass-cloth wallcovering and exuberant multicolored drapes, Holland chose similar colors in different saturations and less boisterous patterns for the living room. The ombre dyed velvet sofa fabric by Zoffany is the star, and the surrounding pieces supporting characters. And, she left the walls white. “You don’t need a lot of color for a room to look colorful,” she says.

1 The cerused white oak coffee table gives the sofa some breathing room, allowing it to remain the focus, while the black-stained oak side tables help anchor it in the center of the space.

2 The armchairs’ graceful frames don’t obstruct the view or flow between the living and dining rooms. The cushions are upholstered in a Chanel-like tweed with rose, sea foam, and chartreuse threads. “It’s more fun than a solid, but reads like a neutral,” Holland says.

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3 Holland collaborated closely with the upholsterer to land a green stripe down the sofa’s center and wide merlot stripes on the sides.

4 Roman shades made from Ferran fabric custom-colored to coordinate with the sofa have a scroll motif in a tight vertical stripe that plays off the upholstery.

5 The coco-shell pendant light by Palecek is a playful touch. “The design is organic, but also stripy,” Holland says. Like the curvy white Visual Comfort & Co. lamps, it adds interest without color.

6 The ivory rug with navy dashy dots is from The Carpet Workroom. “It has a cheetah feel, but I say dots because men tend to have strong reactions against animal prints,” Holland says.

Marni Elyse Katz is a contributing editor to the Globe Magazine. Follow her on Instagram @StyleCarrot. Send comments to [email protected].