The full palette list
The table below is the book as printed — palette name, base, secondary and accent hex values, the metal that belongs with it and the rooms it suits.
| Palette | Base | Secondary | Accent | Metal | Best in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Warm minimal | #F4EFE6 | #DCD3C4 | #8B7355 | Brushed brass | Small living rooms |
| Cool minimal | #F2F3F1 | #D5D8D4 | #5A6560 | Brushed nickel | North-facing flats |
| Japandi | #EDE7DC | #C8BFB0 | #3E3A34 | Blackened steel | Bedrooms, study |
| Coastal | #F6F7F5 | #CBD8D6 | #3C5A61 | Chrome | Sea-facing flats |
| Terracotta earth | #F3E9DF | #D9A384 | #8C4A2F | Antique brass | Dining rooms |
| Sage calm | #F1F0E8 | #B9C4AE | #5A6B4F | Brushed brass | Bedrooms |
| Deep forest | #EFEDE6 | #7E8F7C | #22372B | Brass | Studies and bars |
| Midnight study | #E9E7E1 | #4A5568 | #1B2233 | Brushed gold | Home offices |
| Monochrome | #FFFFFF | #C9C9C9 | #1A1A1A | Matt black | Modern living rooms |
| Greige neutral | #EEEAE3 | #C6BFB4 | #7A7167 | Nickel | Whole-flat schemes |
| Blush and bronze | #F7EDE9 | #E3C0B6 | #8E5B4C | Bronze | Master bedrooms |
| Mustard warmth | #F5F0E4 | #D9B451 | #6B5324 | Brass | Accent walls, foyers |
| Teal and walnut | #F0EDE6 | #2F6B6B | #6B4A2F | Brass | Dining, crockery units |
| Charcoal and oak | #F2F1ED | #3A3A38 | #B08A5E | Matt black | TV walls |
| Indian contemporary | #F6EFE2 | #C1502E | #2E4A38 | Antique brass | Living and pooja |
| Marble and brass | #FAF8F4 | #E3DED4 | #B08D57 | Polished brass | Luxury bathrooms |
| Clay and cream | #F5EFE6 | #C98B6B | #7A4A34 | Bronze | Bedrooms |
| Slate and sand | #F1F0EC | #9BA2A5 | #C2A882 | Nickel | Passages, utility |
| Olive and linen | #F3F1E7 | #8A8B5F | #4E4F33 | Brass | Libraries |
| Powder and pine | #F2F5F6 | #BCD2DB | #3E5C52 | Chrome | Kids rooms |
| Plum and grey | #F2F0F2 | #9E8AA0 | #4A3550 | Brushed gold | Guest bedrooms |
| Rust and ivory | #F7F1E6 | #C0663A | #6A3A22 | Antique brass | Dining accents |
| Graphite and lime | #EFEFED | #3C3F41 | #A8B830 | Matt black | Home gyms, studies |
| Cream and cane | #F8F3E9 | #D8C3A0 | #7C5C3B | Brass | Balconies, sit-outs |
How to use the palette book
- Apply the rough 60-30-10 split. The base covers walls and large surfaces, the secondary takes joinery and soft furnishing, and the accent appears two or three times in the room, not ten.
- Pick the metal first if you already own fittings. Existing brass taps rule out the chrome palettes entirely, and that is a cheaper constraint to accept than to fight.
- Convert the hex to a paint shade properly. Take the value to a tinting counter or match against a fan deck; a screen hex and a mixed litre are never identical.
- Test the accent at night. Deep forest, midnight and plum all behave differently under 2700K than they do in the afternoon.
Three mistakes this prevents
- Two metals in one room. Brass handles with chrome taps reads as an oversight rather than an eclectic choice, every time.
- An accent used everywhere. The moment the accent covers more than about a tenth of the room it stops being an accent and starts being a second base.
- Choosing a palette from a screen. Hex values on a backlit display are more saturated than pigment on a wall, which is why a colour always looks flatter in the room.
Download the palette book (PDF) →
Try the colour palette generator and see the paint shade cards.
Frequently asked questions
What is the 60-30-10 rule?+
A rough split of a room’s visible surface: about 60 per cent base, 30 per cent secondary and 10 per cent accent. It is a proportion guide rather than a law, and its real value is preventing the common failure of two colours in equal amounts, which reads as indecision.
Can I use two metals in one room?+
It can be done, and it is difficult enough that it is rarely worth attempting. Where it works, one metal dominates clearly and the second appears in a single deliberate place — a brass pull on an otherwise black kitchen. Two metals in equal measure looks like two shopping trips.
Which palette suits a north-facing flat?+
The warmer ones. North light in Mumbai is cool and steady, and a cool palette in it reads grey and slightly flat all day. Warm minimal, sage calm, clay and cream, or greige neutral all counteract it. Cool minimal and coastal are better in south and west-facing rooms.
Do hex values translate exactly to paint?+
No. A hex value is emitted light and paint is reflected pigment, so the wall will always read slightly deeper and less saturated. Use the hex to find the nearest shade on a fan deck, then paint a 2 ft test patch and judge from that rather than from the screen.
How many colours should a flat have?+
One base across the whole flat, and then one palette per room built on it. That gives continuity in the passages and character in the rooms. A different base in every room makes a Mumbai flat feel smaller than it is, because the eye has no continuous surface to follow.