Every House Needs a ‘Red Thread’—Here’s How to Find Yours
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Do you ever look at a room in your house and think, something about this design just isn’t quite working? Though the room could be full of beautiful furniture and furnishings, designer Kate Watson-Smyth, who just launched her first online course with Create Academy, says that the colors you choose—and how you carry them from room to room—can make or break your interiors. She says, “You don’t want color to play second fiddle, and you need to find a way to have it all fit together. Watson-Smyth says, “This is called finding your red thread.”
The idea of a “red thread” isn’t a new one: It can be found in just about every culture and religion, dating back to Greek mythology with Ariadne’s red thread in Theseus and the Minotaur. In the myth, Ariadne gives her lover, Theseus, a red thread and tells him to unravel it as he goes into a maze to kill a minotaur. With her thread, he is able to retrace his steps and escape the maze after his battle with the monster. While you may not need to slay any minotaurs in your home, the red thread is representative of a common theme running through every room—think of it as a north star that guides your color decisions and makes your space feel more cohesive. With a red thread, you can trace your steps through each room and feel like it all seamlessly flows together.
Watson-Smyth says, “Once you start to think about it, you’ll find that you unconsciously have a red thread. There will be a color or something that’s running through that you’re drawn to again and again.”
To be clear: Though it’s called a “red thread,” your common color doesn’t have to be red, and it doesn’t even have to be the exact same shade. In fact, Watson-Smyth says in her own home, her red thread is actually the color pink. She has a spotted deep burgundy staircase runner, a pale pink sofa in her living room, and deep pink sitting chairs in her library.
Here are five ways to create a red thread in your own home.
Repeat Materials and Textures
If you walk into a room and feel like one piece of furniture sticks out like a sore thumb, but you can’t figure out why, look at the material it’s made of and the materials you have throughout that room. Watson-Smyth says, “If you have this piece of furniture that doesn’t at first sight appear to go with everything else, have a look at it and see if you can bring something else in in other parts of the room.”
This type of red thread comes in handy when you’ve, say, inherited a fabulous piece of furniture that feels too grand for your home or you fall in love with a funky antique but you’re not sure where it belongs. Watson-Smyth uses the example of a desk with a brass knob and asks “can you pick up brass somewhere else?” She adds, “It’s about just creating links, which very often will be subconscious. They will make the place feel more pulled together, and therefore you will feel more comfortable.”
Play with Shapes
Watson-Smyth says that few people think about shapes in their home, but they are so important. She says, “You might walk into a room and might feel it’s a bit off and not know why, because at first sight the colors all appear to work and the styles of furniture all seem to go together, but it’s not quite right.”
To combat this, she first recommends adding some tension to the room for balance. This can mean bringing in hard and soft materials, new and old furniture, or light and dark colors. Next, look at your room and break down the shapes. Watson-Smyth says in rooms that tend to be more angular, like kitchens or bathrooms with lots of cabinets, it can be nice to add contrast with rounded chair cushions, art with circles or wavy lines, or even an oval rug.
She says, “Look to see if you can disrupt those shapes a little bit by adding a curve in a picture or in a lamp, or just bringing florals or circles into your cushion patterns so you’re creating that contrast and mixing it up again.”
Find a Disruptor Color
To prevent your interiors from feeling too basic or one-note, Watson-Smyth recommends finding your disruptor color. This is different from your red thread, since it’s used only sparingly as an accent. She says, “It’s like the black pepper in a meal, or a sprinkling of lemon on a fish…just something to make everyone go ‘woah that looks amazing,’ but they haven’t really analyzed why. The importance of the disruptor color is that it stops everything feeling too matchy-matchy.”
Say you love neon green, but don’t want to commit to bright paint or a neon green couch—you can make that your disruptor color. However, Watson-Smyth cautions, “if you just have one splash of neon in one room, it’s going to look a bit random. And we’re always trying to avoid the idea of random.” So if neon green is the pop of color you want to go with, try to add a bit in each room through decorative accents like a vase, paint on the edge of a door, or even plants. That way, it feels cohesive but still a bit mysterious.
Pay Attention to Your Home’s Views
Watson-Smyth recommends walking around your home and paying attention to views both inside and out. She says, “You must also bear in mind the views in and out of rooms, because sometimes you’re just walking past a room and will just catch a glimpse inside a room.” She adds, “Take a moment while you’re decorating to stand outside the room and look in, or stand inside the room looking out to the hall or landing beyond.”
Watson-Smyth says to use these vantage points as an opportunity to add some beauty and surprises to your decor. For example, hang a piece of art in your bedroom that you can see from the hallway, add beautiful patterned pillows to your chairs, or position your sofa to face windows with beautiful garden views.
Invest in Quality Pieces You Love
Watson-Smyth recommends skipping furniture that feels too matchy-matchy, and instead investing in high-quality, comfortable pieces that you’ll cherish for years to come. She says, “I believe that a three-piece suite will lead to the long, slow death of your soul. Because you will have bought it because it was easy, and it all looked the same, and it matched. But it’s not very exciting.”
The bottom line? You can weave a red thread through your home without being overly matchy. Whether you buy antique furniture in the same wood tone, bring brass finishes into each room, or opt for varying shades of yellow, you can make your space feel more cohesive with these tips.
VERANDA partnered with Create Academy, a digital learning platform that helps viewers build their creative confidence. Follow along as we break down their lessons from the pros—and use code VERANDA15 for a 15% discount to watch full lessons on topics ranging from design and gardening to wine and crafting.
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