Polaris: A Bold Interiors Guide for Colour-Confident Homes

Understand the Power of Contrast – How to Style Bold Interiors with Balance. 

In Polaris-inspired bold interiors, contrast is what keeps colour feeling intentional. It offers a space for both clarity and personality. Without contrast, even the most beautiful palette can fall flat.

In a Polaris home, contrast isn’t about chaos – it’s about composition. Light against dark, smooth beside textured, matte beside gloss – these pairings create rhythm and depth. Use them to define spaces, frame features, or draw attention to details that make your home feel considered.

If you’ve ever wondered why some colourful homes feel calm while others feel cluttered, this is why.
Contrast gives your eye direction. It anchors colour so that personality feels purposeful, not overpowering.

Before choosing a palette, ask yourself what you want the colour to do: expand, frame, energise, or soften.
When you know its role, every bold choice becomes easier – and infinitely more confident.

---

Choose Colours and Patterns with Intent

Loving colour is easy – using it well takes a little direction. If you’ve ever fallen for a bold paint sample or patterned cushion, only to second-guess it once you’re home, you’re not alone. Polaris is about turning that hesitation into confidence.

Start by thinking of colour as conversation, not competition. Every hue has a voice – some loud, some quiet – and the beauty of Polaris lies in knowing who speaks first. Anchor stronger tones with softer neutrals to keep the dialogue calm.

Avoid using every shade you love at once; instead, choose a lead colour and let supporting tones echo it through pattern, artwork, or textiles. Large-scale patterns and stripes feel brave but still balanced when surrounded by breathing space. Smaller repeats or gentle geometrics bring movement without noise.

If your home is traditional, lean toward slightly muted or chalky versions of your favourite colours; they sit comfortably alongside period details. In lighter, modern spaces, saturated hues and bigger prints can hold their own beautifully – especially when layered with texture or natural materials.

The result is a home that feels lively, not loud – colourful, characterful, and unmistakably yours.

---

Decide Where to Paint (or Paper)

Colour placement can transform a room just as much as the colour itself. It shapes the way you experience space – guiding the eye, shifting proportion, and defining mood.

In a Polaris home, paint isn’t just a finish; it’s a design tool. Use it to frame, zone, or soften. Carry colour around trims or ceilings to create shape, or stop it short to highlight architectural lines.

Wallpaper works the same way. Use it to add texture, pattern, or movement where flat colour feels too safe. A statement print behind a headboard or along a hallway can create personality without overwhelming a space.

If you’re unsure where to start, download the Polaris mood board for inspiration. Use it to explore where colour might bring focus or lift areas that feel flat or unexpressive. Pay attention to the parts of your home that feel like they’re missing something – a colour accent can draw the eye, add energy, or create a natural focal point.

Just keep it purposeful: one key focal point per space is usually enough to strike that confident, balanced look that defines the Polaris style – expressive, considered, and brave in all the right places.

---

Choose the Right Backdrop

Even the boldest rooms need somewhere for the eye to rest. A calm backdrop gives colour its stage – it’s what keeps expressive interiors feeling deliberate rather than loud.

In Polaris, the backdrop isn’t plain; it’s purposeful. The “right neutral” depends on two things – the direction of light and the strength of your accent colour.

• Cool light (north-facing rooms): use neutrals with warmth – Farrow and Ball School House White, Dimity, or Oxford Stone – to balance the grey-blue tone of natural light.

• Warm light (south-facing rooms): try neutrals with a soft grey base – Farrow and Ball Shaded White or Slipper Satin – to calm the warmth and stop it from yellowing.

• Bright, modern spaces: pair crisp whites like Farrow and Ball Wevet or Strong White with bold accent hues to keep contrast clear and fresh.

If you’re working with strong architectural features – beams, panelling, or natural stone, a mid-tone neutral such as Farrow and Ball Drop Cloth or Hardwick White will anchor the room and help colourful accents settle in.

And remember: your backdrop doesn’t have to be paint. Pale timber, limewashed walls, textured plaster, and natural fabrics all create visual quiet while adding layers of tone and tactility.

The Polaris Style Kit expands on this idea with orientation-based colour guides – helping you choose neutrals that respond beautifully to your light, flooring, and architectural materials. Here, the aim is simple: let your colours breathe. That’s what transforms brave decorating into balanced design.

---

Plan Well, Do Your Research – Then Be Brave!

Every bold home begins long before the paint tin is opened. Good design is never accidental, it’s a blend of planning, curiosity, and courage.

Start by gathering everything that speaks to you: paint swatches, fabric samples, photos, flooring offcuts. Lay them out together and notice how each material reacts to the next.
Does the colour shift in your morning light?
Does the timber tone fight with a wall shade you love?
These are the small observations that make a home feel considered rather than chaotic.

Keep a notebook or phone album for ideas that catch your eye – not to copy, but to decode.
What do you actually like about that image?
The contrast?
The texture?
The sense of space?
This process sharpens your design instinct and helps you filter trends from truths.

When you feel confident in your direction, commit to it. Bravery in design isn’t about being loud, it’s about being clear. Once you’ve built a foundation of thoughtful choices, trust them. That’s when your home starts to feel like you, expressive, personal, and intentional.

If you’re ready to go deeper, the Polaris Style Kit expands on this process with:

• Orientation-based colour palettes and anchor tones

•  Furniture shapes and material suggestions

• Practical flow and layout notes

• A visual moodboard to help you translate your confidence into action

It’s everything you need to take the ideas from this guide and apply them to your own home with the same clarity and balance that defines Polaris.