Go Ahead and Paint It Deep Green (Your Room Won’t Turn Into a Cave)
Deep green doesn’t make a room dark. A room with no plan for its lighting makes a room dark, and that’s a much easier problem to tackle.
I know, I’m the pink-and-sparkles girl. But green has quietly moved into my house. When we thrifted the oval table for our smaller dining spot, my husband requested “anything but pink,” so I painted the whole thing green, top to bottom, and it makes me happy every time I see it. Now this isn’t a “deep green”, I’d actually call it a spring green but we do have a deep green office and I love it.
Deep green in the office feels very traditional and it’s a nice warm color that fits into our home and decor. No it’s not all sparkles and pink. We have room for all the colors in our lives!
So let’s talk about the voice in your head that says, “That’s going to feel like a cave.” I hear you. Deep green, the forest, hunter, emerald and olive-y shades, can feel heavy if you drop it into a room and walk away. Give it the right light, the right friends and the right spot, though, and it turns into the coziest color in the house. It’s the color that makes a room feel like a hug instead of a waiting room.
Pour a coffee. Here’s where I’d use it, what to pair it with and how to try it before you commit a single gallon.
Where deep green works best
Start with how you want the room to feel. If the answer is cozy, grounded or a little moody in a good way, deep green is your color.
Living rooms and dens. This is where green really shines, because these are the rooms we curl up in at night. Wrap a reading corner in it, paint the wall behind the sofa or the TV, or go all the way and do the whole room. A deep green living room with lamps on feels like a cabin, minus the spiders.
Kitchens. Green cabinets are everywhere right now, and I get why. They feel warm next to wood and brass, they hide fingerprints better than white and they still look fresh against a light counter. If you’re nervous, start with the island or just the lower cabinets.
Dining rooms. We mostly use dining rooms at night, so a darker color makes sense there. Add candlelight and a good pendant, and dinner suddenly feels like a night out.
Bedrooms. A deep green behind the bed is calm and cocooning, which is exactly what a bedroom is for. You’re asleep with the lights off anyway, so you don’t need it to be bright.
Powder rooms and small spaces. Here’s the thing: small rooms are the best place to go dark and bold. You can’t make a tiny powder room feel huge with white paint, but you can make it feel like a little jewel box with green. Same goes for a mudroom, a laundry nook or the inside of a closet.
Renting? Ask your landlord about painting and get the original color codes so you can repaint when you leave. I did exactly that with my daughter’s apartment. It was twice the work, and so worth it. If painting is a no, bring green in with a velvet chair, curtains or a big framed print instead.
How lighting changes deep green
The same can of green paint can look like four different colors depending on the window it’s next to, so check your light before you fall in love with a chip.
It’s much cheaper to buy paint samples or swatches and study them before you start than it is to repaint a room so take your time choosing the color. Make sure the undertones work with your space and that the color relates to your hard finishes (floors, cabinets, etc.),
| Your light | What deep green does | What I’d do |
|---|---|---|
| North-facing (cool, even light) | Leans cooler and darker, and can read almost black on a cloudy day | Pick a green with warm, yellow or olive undertones, and add warm lamps |
| South-facing (warm, bright light) | Looks richer and truer, and a little brighter at midday | You can go as deep and as cool as you like |
| East-facing | Brighter and warmer in the morning, deeper by evening | Test it at both ends of the day |
| West-facing | Deeper in the morning, glowing and golden late afternoon | Great for a room you use most in the evening |
| Mostly lamps (dining rooms, dens, small rooms) | Moody and cozy, with no daylight to wash it out | Use warm bulbs and plenty of them |
Bulbs matter as much as windows. Warm white bulbs, around 2700K to 3000K on the box, keep green cozy, while cool daylight bulbs can make it look flat and a little hospital-ish.
And please don’t rely on one overhead light. A dark room with only a ceiling fixture is how you get the cave. Give it at least three sources of light at different heights, like a table lamp, a floor lamp and a sconce or picture light, and the green turns rich and glowy instead of heavy.
One more trick is sheen. A little sheen, like eggshell or satin, bounces more light around than flat paint, and it’s easier to wipe down in real life. I love a low lustre or eggshell for walls and a satin for cabinetry or trim.
What to pair with deep green
Deep green is a great friend to almost everything, but these five are the ones I’d invite over first. Pick two or three, repeat them around the room and let the green do the rest.
Walnut and warm wood. Green and wood together feel like a walk in the woods, which makes sense, because that’s where both of them came from. Walnut, a warm oak or a vintage wood dresser keeps deep green from feeling cold. If you have green cabinets, a wood countertop, open shelf or cutting boards leaning on the backsplash will warm the whole kitchen up.
Cream. This is the secret to green that doesn’t feel dark. Swap stark white trim for a soft cream, and add cream in a rug, curtains or a nubby throw. Cream gives your eye a place to rest, and it makes the green look intentional rather than heavy.
Brass. Deep green and brass are a classic for a reason. A brass lamp, cabinet pulls, a mirror frame or picture lights add a little sparkle, and you know how I feel about sparkle. Brass also catches lamplight at night, which helps the room glow.
Blue. Green and blue sit next to each other in nature all the time, so they look calm together. Try a navy velvet pillow, a blue-and-white ginger jar or a patterned rug with both colors in it. Keep the blue a little lighter or a little darker than your green so they don’t fight.
Warm pink. You don’t have to ask which one is my favorite.
Blush, coral, terracotta pink or a full-on hot pink pillow against a forest green sofa or wall is one of the happiest combinations in decorating, and it’s the fastest way to make a deep green room feel cheerful. Start small with a pillow, a vase of pink flowers or a lampshade, and if you love it, paint the back of a bookcase pink. Ask me how I know.
Walls, cabinets or furniture?
If you’re on the fence, paint a wall first, because it’s the cheapest, fastest and easiest green to undo. Here’s how I think about each one.
| Where | Best when | Commitment | My take |
|---|---|---|---|
| Furniture | You want to try green without touching the walls | Low: one weekend, one piece | My favorite way to start. A thrifted table, dresser or nightstand painted green is pure joy. |
| One wall | You want a cozy backdrop behind the sofa, bed or TV | Low: a gallon and an afternoon | Great for renters who get the okay, and for anyone who wants to see green in their own light first. |
| A whole room | You want the full cocoon feeling | Medium | Paint the walls and the trim the same green (or one shade off) and it actually feels softer and less choppy. |
| Lower cabinets or an island | You love green but want the kitchen to stay bright | Medium | A great middle ground. Keep the uppers and walls light. |
| All the kitchen cabinets | Green truly makes you happy and you’re keeping the kitchen a while | Higher: more time, more money, more prep | Go for it if you love it. Pair it with a light counter and warm wood so it doesn’t feel heavy. |
I usually say keep the big pieces classic and play with trends in pillows and art, so I’ll be honest about cabinets. Green cabinets are popular right now, and that’s not a reason to do them.
Loving green is the reason. If green has been your color for years, it’s not a trend in your house. If you’re only drawn to it because your feed is full of it, try it on an island, a painted piece of furniture or a wall first and see if you still love it in six months.
And if you paint the whole kitchen and change your mind later? Cabinets can be repainted. It’s a lot of work, but it’s paint, not a tattoo.
How to test deep green before you commit
A tiny paint chip under store lights tells you almost nothing about deep green, so test big and test at home.
- Narrow it to two or three greens. Lay the chips next to the rug, fabric or art you love most in the room, and keep the ones that look happy next to it.
- Go big with samples. Use peel-and-stick samples or paint two coats on a big piece of poster board, about 2 feet square. Leave a white border around it so your current wall color doesn’t trick your eye.
- Move it around. Tape it on every wall, next to the trim, by the floor and near your cabinets or sofa. Green can look totally different on the window wall than on the wall across from it.
- Check it all day. Look in the morning, mid-afternoon and at night with the lamps on, for at least two or three days. If you mostly use the room at night, the night look is the one that counts.
- Try it on something small. Still unsure? Paint a nightstand, a picture frame or the inside of a closet with your favorite. Living with a little bit of it tells you a lot.
Pick the one that makes you smile when you walk in. If it still makes you smile on a rainy Tuesday, that’s your green.
I still waiver about halfway through all of my projects that I’ve picked the wrong color. And I’ve spent a lot of time studying color so I’m pretty good at choosing them. I always stick through to the end of the project and I always love it when it’s done so don’t let the messy middle make you second guess your decision.
Paint doesn’t show you how amazing it is until you get the decor around it back in place.
So what would I do?
If I were starting from scratch, I’d find the one green thing I can’t stop thinking about, whether that’s a velvet chair, a rug or a paint chip, and build the room around it. Then I’d test the paint big, warm up the lighting, bring in cream and wood so it feels soft, and sneak in a little pink, because of course I would.
If a whole room feels like too much right now, start with one piece of furniture or one wall. You can always add more green later, and you can always paint over it if it’s not for you.
Your home is allowed to feel cozy and rich and a little dramatic. Go ahead and live colorfully.
Now tell me: where would you put deep green in your house? The wall, the cabinets or a thrifted table that’s begging for a makeover?
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