The eternal appeal of blue and white schemes
“It’s a match made in heaven, a classic pairing, the design world equivalent of milk and cookies – or better yet, Champagne and caviar.” So reads the introduction to a recent book by fabric house Schumacher – Blue and White Done Right: The Classic Color Combination for Every Decorating Style. We couldn't agree more. Like all the best colour combinations, this is one taken straight from nature, the foam on a sea wave or a cloud scudding across the sky, and it has been incorporated into interior schemes for centuries. Blue and white Chinese porcelain is perhaps the design that immediately springs to mind, and for many amazing rooms these intricately designed ceramics can be the foundation of an entire colour scheme. Toile de Jouy provides another classic reference – large-scale patterns in blue (or red) against a white background are a cornerstone of traditional French style. Since blue and white naturally brings to mind images of sea and sky (and sailors' uniforms), its a combination that is frequently used in coastal houses to great effect, but it doesn't have to stay there. These are our favourite examples of blue and white schemes from the pages of House & Garden.
Simon Brown1/11The blue-and-white scheme of this dining room in interior designers Philip Vergeylen and Paolo Moschino's cottage is based on the eighteenth-century painted French screen that hangs on the wall. The hand-painted blue design is 'deliberately not like wallpaper.' Philip worked closely with the artist Dawn Reader to create this effect.
Christopher Horwood2/11For a tranquil yet pattern-filled bedroom, we love this scheme in a London house by Natasha Quick, where the walls are papered in Nina Campbell's 'Pamir' and the blinds are in Bennison's 'Wabi Sabi' design. Touches of gold and yellow are excellent for contrast.
Christopher Horwood3/11The bathroom of the same house also has a lovely blue and white scheme, with a bathtub painted in a striking shade that recalls Yves Klein Blue, and tongue and groove panelling with a blue dado rail. In the mirror you can just see the shower, which is entirely lined in Delft-style tiles by Petra Palumbo – another way to bring these colours into your interiors.
Paul Massey4/11For classic coastal design inspiration, look no further than this Cornwall cottage designed by Paolo Moschino. The colour scheme for the whole house plays on crisp, nautical combinations of blue and white, and gives the interiors a continuity that contributes to the sense of spaciousness.
Mark Roper5/11Blue and white schemes don't have to involve super high contrast between the blue and the white. In this bedroom in a Sussex house by Phoebe Hollond, the walls are in Farrow & Ball's pale ‘Borrowed Light’, with white curtains and bedding. Red accents warm up the entire scheme and provide the necessary lift.
Mark Roper6/11The bathroom of the same house offers a similarly modern take on blue and white, this time courtesy of some bold Bert & May tiles.
Simon Brown7/11Sky blue is one of the most popular colours around at the moment, and it has been used to great effect in the hallway of this London house by Sims Hilditch. The wall and woodwork are painted in Farrow & Ball’s “All White” and “Oval Room Blue” respectively, and the table lamp is by Porta Romana with a Penny Morrison lampshade. The stair runner is Sophie Cooney’s “Eye Design” in Blue.
Owen Gale8/11Proving once again how good blue and white is for a bathroom, this space in the 8 Holland Street Townhouse in Bath is a vision in Peggy Angus' ‘Small Medallions’ print, available from Blithfield. The Svenskt Tenn rug and Water Monopoly bath add interesting forms to the room.
Chris Horwood9/11A more denim-y, stoney blue can be a great way to make a blue and white scheme feel contemporary. ‘River Stone’ by Fenwick & Tillbrook sets the tone in one of the spare bedrooms of Sophie Warburton's house, where the headboard is made from a vintage indigo wrap from Adire African Textiles. The throw on the bed is a vintage Chinese indigo hand-loomed weave, sourced by Sophie's mum. As for the orange chair, Sophie bought it at Kempton Antiques market and upholstered it in a mud cloth that she bought in Morocco and it adds a vibrant contrast to the blue.
Dean Hearne10/11In the kitchen of her Highbury house, former de Gournay Design Director India Holmes changed the colour of the brand's ‘Porto’ wallpaper to go with Farrow & Ball's ‘Stiffkey Blue’ on the cabinets and shelves, and also redesigned it to work perfectly in the space she had.
Simon Upton11/11In this smart Regency house in Norfolk, Veere Grenney has given each bedroom a strong colour scheme, and this one has been decked out in blue and white. The beds are done in marine ‘Rafe Stripe’ by Veere for Schumacher and ‘Malmaison Rayure’ in cedrat from Pierre Frey.
