Stepping away from fifty shades of boring

If you grew up in a Bangladeshi home, you know our furniture has lived in two shades forever: "wood" and "slightly darker wood." From glossy mahogany varnish that yellows over time to MDF covered in wood-grain stickers, our interiors often look like a forest that forgot to evolve. Functional, sure but monotonous.

As a designer-turned-mom, I've learned that colour is what makes a home breathe. I crave white furniture for its calm, but with kids who think walls are sketchbooks and three cats that believe in chaos theory, white is a dangerous dream. So I go darker for practicality but always with a pop of colour. Olive drawer fronts on a white chest, mustard cushions on a navy sofa, or a bright blue stool breaking up beige monotony. It's the little rebellions that make a room feel alive.

I once toured a home "done by an interior decorator." The homeowner proudly said she'd selected every material and colour. Every room, including the kids' room, was wrapped in the same glossy grey marble textured board. Every table, every cabinet, every wardrobe. White walls, grey everything, and shiny tiles dividing kitchen from dining. It looked perfect in the way a catalog does minus warmth and personality.

Design Do's and Don'ts

●  Do play with contrast. One colourful piece can redefine a neutral space.

●  Do match your tones with the season. Cool whites in summer, warmer hues in winter.

●  Don't make everything match; cohesion isn't cloning.

● Don't fear colour. It's easier to repaint a drawer than to fix a boring room.

colour gives your home a heartbeat. In winter, I replace my white linen summer curtains with bright yellow or mauve to offset the darker, colder light. It's a small ritual that changes the mood of the whole house and mine with it.

Colour keeps a space from feeling static, even when life (and kids and cats) are anything but. Real homes like real people are never just one colour. They're layered, unpredictable, and a little messy. And that's exactly what makes them beautiful.

Writer is a former interior designer who now designs around kids, cats, and chaos.