10 Neutral-Themed Rooms That Make Us Want to Redecorate This Instant

There's absolutely no doubt about it: Bold is beautiful when it comes to interior design. But there’s something so chill and calming about neutral-themed rooms that we can understand why they’re becoming a “thing” again. By staying in the same color family with your neutral décor, you can play with texture and subtle patterns—even a microprint stands out when the rest of the room is monochrome.

Decorating in this way also has the natural ability to make your abode appear fresh and clean at all times… and who doesn’t want that? Yes, we often see this muted palette in hotel bedrooms, but is this a look we can pull off in real life? The answer is a resounding yes. Whether you opt for stark white or cream with marble detail or moody grays and blacks, adding a neutral-themed room to your place will inject some serious character. If you’re more of a visual person, here are 10 of our favorite rooms to give you major design inspo.

There’s nothing fresher than an all-white kitchen when its boundaries aren’t defined. Simple touches like wooden stools with iron legs add depth (and a natural hint of color) to the starkness of the backsplash, cabinets, and granite.

Your home office deserves to be special—gold touches edge a few pieces like a lamp and mirror. Whenever there’s a hint of metallic, keep other colors muted, like white and brown.

When you’re dealing with shades like deep gray, white, and beige, even a hint of pattern goes a long way. Pick two relatively simple prints and mix them in with your neutrals. In this case, a striped throw blanket and ikat pillows in the same color family pair up for maximum oomph.

Neutral doesn’t have to mean white or beige, and this moody living room is the perfect example. Three key pieces elevate the basic black and gray: an edgy art print, a luxe fur throw, and a fringe throw rug.

A cream sunroom is fancied up with fur and cashmere throws, wire-detail seating, and a spindly light fixture that doubles as a work of art. Just slight variations in color rendered in the most luxurious fabrics are the trick to getting this chic look.

A neutral-themed room can be a little blah as a bedroom—that is, if you don’t know the right tricks. Your colors will work well together as long as you pick one focal point in the room. Here, it’s the high canopy with mirror detail on the headboard.

The rule of thumb is that only the add-ons have a pop of color. Gorgeous blooms and a coral coffee table book liven up the room without drawing attention away from everything else.

Play up windows with sheer curtains and elegant beige shades. A subtle glow makes any room—including this marble-detailed bathroom—naturally pretty.

Mix up a neutral-themed bathroom with three types of tile. Opt for subway-tile walls, a marbled-style floor, and slate-inspired accents in white, gray, and black. Varying the size of the blocks is the key to making everything just work.

This gorgeous kitchen relies on carrying the gold theme throughout—no detail is overlooked. Pendant light accents, cabinet knobs, the faucet, and even shelving brackets have the same color story. Yes, some serious forethought is needed to achieve this look, but the results are undeniably chic.

Up next: how NYC girls make small apartments feel luxurious.