Instantly go from casual to formal dining

If your dining room hosts just as many family meals as it does dinner parties with your husband’s colleagues, you’ll want to make sure the colour scheme you choose works just as well for casual settings as it does for formal. A neutral palette accented with one bright colour is an easy way to get a feeling of comfort and elegance in equal measure. Look to classic combinations such as charcoal and crisp white, slate grey and pale yellow, or cream with rich chocolate brown.

Introduce a touch of glamour into a primarily casual space with a feature wall or panel painted a rich colour like burgundy, burnished gold or sage green. If you’d like to make your formal dining room feel more relaxed, you could try using a crisp white on your ceiling and woodwork or, for an instant update, paint your dining table or shelves a bright shade, like cheery teal blue or fuchsia pink.