His massive rise, which is due partially to his ways with colour that are fearless, has made Patrick Mele a designer you should be watching. He proclaims that he loves bold statements and he is never afraid of colours. He also states that he enjoys rich hues. He goes onto say that he doesn’t really work with tertiary or muted colours. He prefers crisp black, crisp white and crisp vibrant colours for his overall statements.
So How Does He Do It
We were lucky to get a small preview on his most current design project, and we asked if he could decode his choices in colour, for each room, and then the lessons just started to flow.
1. Think In Colour Families
At first, the entryway to the home appeared to be a colour riot, but after speaking to Mele, you will start to realise that he worked with a very tight palette. He starts off by saying that he wanted lots of white, followed by a combination of orange and blue. The secret? To work with the different hues in each of these 2 colour families. The blues that he used included navy, Delft, turquoise, and cobalt. And with the orange, he used grapefruits, tangerines, and corals. These are rich hues that are not muted.
2. White And Blue Always Work
When it comes to Mele, using the combination of white and blue can be compared to wearing blue jeans with a white T-shirt. This colour combination is classic when it comes to interiors and it can also be dressed down or up. Mele used a blue grasscloth, denimlike shade in the living room which added texture and colour, which really helps the wingback-chairs and silhouettes from all the white accessories to really pop. The effect overall is casual yet polished. He thinks that white and blue are like white and black but it is definitely not as bold and fierce. These colours are also a lot more welcoming to many people.
3. Choose A Palette, And Repeat
When you work with streamline colour palettes it helps each room to feel cohesive, and also assists with transitioning from one room to the next. If you stand in the centre of a foyer and you can see every other room you will notice the same colour families repeated yet in a different way for each space. Case in point: The breakfast room walls have been painted with a blue that is close to the colours used for the family-room. Yet in this space, like the paint from the entryway, the pop from the orange upholstery emits a striking yet at the same time a grounding effect.
4. Experiment With Percentages
A very clever way to get the most mileage from a group of colours that are small is to use a type of flip-flop. This involves pushing a colour that was used previously as an accent into the foreground. Mele did this in the music room when he used tangerine lamps and orange curtains while allowing the white and blue to recede using an armchair. Mele says it ties in the blue so that it matches up to the remainder of the home.
5. Use White For Freshening Things Up
Mele is really a huge fan when it comes to painting items white and this is especially true for furniture. He believes that white freshens and modernises, and really complements your flooring and any wooden hardwood windows. Many people are scared of their grandmothers old found furniture, yet they have fabulous forms that remain timeless. He also feels that white gives a personality that is contemporary to furniture, along with a youthful and fresh spirit.
6. Strike A Pattern-and-Colour Pattern Compromise
When you dial up your pattern, in some cases it is better to dial the colours down in order to achieve a less chaotic and calmer effect. When he worked on the master bedroom in the home he began with a Matisse-esque pattern which was bold and then made subtler colour choices from there. He decided he wanted this pattern everywhere while not breaking it up with the use of different patterns and colours. For this reason, he avoided the introduction of vibrant colours that he had used across the ground floor of the home. I wanted this room to feel quieter and a bit calmer, even though this is not a quiet and calm fabric.
