Discover the Colour Trends Shaping 2026

Dulux Heritage offers interior design looks inspired by the colour and design trends taking hold across Irish homes this year: Saturated Spaces, Coastal Calm, Soft Neutrals, Layered Luxury, Grounding Greens and Heritage Whites. Each one offers a different way to create a home that feels calm and considered.

The Dulux Heritage Interior Design Hub will feature two very different interior design looks and it’s where the Dulux Heritage colour consultants will be joined by leading interior designer Charlotte Bradshaw.

The Dulux colour experts have noted a marked shift in interiors and colour choices of Irish homes. Homeowners are preferring to invest in their existing homes rather than move.  

Dulux Heritage Colour Consultant, Jane Witter explains the shift, ‘Consumers are enjoying the freedom of choice afforded by Dulux Heritage paint. They know it’s the easiest and quickest way to transform any room in their home. From super fresh whites to rich reds and browns, Consumers are inspired. Colour drenching is a huge trend currently and lends itself to creating cosy spaces.’

To give you real life examples, Dulux asked a leading designer to create two very different rooms that give expression to their vision of how versatile paint can work.

Charlotte Bradshaw
Founder, Charlotte Bradshaw Interiors
www.charlottebradshawinteriors.com

Charlotte Bradshaw is the founder of Charlotte Bradshaw Interiors, a design studio based in Bray, Co. Wicklow, working across Dublin and beyond.

Her approach is best described as quiet luxury: rooms that feel considered rather than decorated, where quality reveals itself slowly, in the weight of a fabric, the depth of a colour, or the way light moves across a wall through the day. Colour sits at the heart of her work. She believes the right shade can do more for a room than any single piece of furniture, and she chooses palettes the way others choose art, for how they’ll feel to live with rather than how they look on day one. She’s a firm believer that a beautifully finished room often comes down to smart choices rather than big budgets.

Charlotte works with private clients, developers and hospitality brands on period homes, new builds and commercial spaces. Many of her clients are returning to Ireland or relocating here, and she has a particular talent for helping people feel at home quickly, creating spaces that respect a building’s character while suiting the way they actually live.

For Charlotte, luxury isn’t about excess. It’s about getting the details right, so a home feels effortless, timeless and entirely your own.

• How colour can completely transform an existing space.
• Creating rooms that feel personal and tailored to the homeowner.
• Investing in timeless design choices that will stand the test of time.
• Layering colour, texture and design details to create a sense of understated luxury.
• Practical inspiration for homeowners looking to refresh or renovate the spaces they already have.

Both of these room sets show two very different ways of transforming an existing space. The Snug uses deep, enveloping colour to create atmosphere and intimacy, while the bedroom uses paint in a fresher, more graphic way. In both cases, the starting point is the same: work with what you have, introduce colour with confidence, choose materials that will last, and create a home that feels personal to the people who live there.

The Snug

For The Snug, Dulux Heritage wanted to demonstrate just how transformative colour can be within an existing home. By colour drenching the room in ‘Wild Blackberry’, with the deeper ‘Dark Aubergine’ introduced through the wall panelling, they have taken what could have been a traditional snug or television room and created something much more immersive, dramatic and personal.

The idea behind the space is that renovating does not always mean starting again. Sometimes the biggest transformation can come from looking differently at the room and pieces you already have. Colour can completely change the mood and character of a space. A colour drenched room not only creates a daring scheme, but it also creates a cosy enveloped room, the perfect place to relax and get stuck into the best new TV series or film.

Although they have chosen rich purples, the same design principle could be applied using a homeowner’s own favourite deep navy, green, red or another colour that feels personal to them. That is what makes colour such a powerful tool when transforming the homes we already love, it allows a room to feel completely individual without necessarily changing its entire footprint or function.

Dulux Heritage has also looked at ways of working with existing furniture rather than automatically replacing it. Removable tailored covers can give a much-loved piece a completely new identity without committing to permanent reupholstery. It is a simple idea homeowners can adopt when renovating, allowing existing pieces to evolve alongside a new scheme.

The wall panelling introduces another layer to the room. As well as bringing architectural detail and texture, it allows them to work with two closely related Heritage shades, creating depth and interest while maintaining the cocooning effect of a colour-drenched interior.

For Dulux, understated luxury comes from this layering of colour, texture, architectural detail and thoughtful reuse. Rather than relying on one statement piece, it is the combination of considered details that gives the room its character and makes it feel both luxurious and enduring.

The Boys’ Bedroom

For The Boys’ Bedroom, Dulux Heritage deliberately took a very different approach to demonstrate another way paint can completely transform an existing room.
The scheme is built around a bold blue-and-white stripe, using ‘Oxford Blue’ and ‘Edelweiss White’. The stripe introduces personality and a sense of playfulness, while the classic colour combination gives the room a timeless quality that can evolve as the children grow.

One of the most important ideas behind this space is that transformation does not always have to mean buying something new. Dulux repurposed existing four-poster beds and painted them in Oxford Blue, linking them directly back to the wall treatment and giving them an entirely new lease of life. A simple change of colour can make an existing piece feel completely relevant to a new interior. That approach reflects the wider idea behind Transforming the Homes We Love – looking at what is already there and considering how it can be adapted, refreshed and reimagined before replacing it.

They also wanted the bedroom to feel layered and collected rather than overly themed. Natural materials including leather, different timber finishes and sisal introduce warmth, texture and an understated sense of luxury. These materials have been chosen because they age well and have a longevity that goes beyond a child’s bedroom.

As the boys grow, many of these elements can remain while the room evolves around them. The beds can be repainted, textiles can change and the stripe can be adapted, but the core pieces and natural materials still work. Investing in adaptable pieces and timeless materials allows a room to change with the people living in it rather than requiring a complete redesign every few years.

Visitors can meet Colour Consultants at the Dulux Heritage Interior Design Hub who will guide them on their colour journey. Discover more about Dulux Heritage and find your local stockist at www.duluxheritage.ie @duluxheritageireland.

The PTSB Ideal Home Show runs from 16th-18th October, RDS Simmonscourt 
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