Color Drenching Is the All-in Paint Trend to Try for a Soothing Space

If you’re a believer that you can never have too much color, you’ll be thrilled to know that the painting method known as color drenching is taking over homes. No wallpaper or accent walls exist in color-drenched rooms—every surface is covered in the same color (not neutrals, though) for maximum impact. Ceilings, walls, doors, trim, and baseboards all get painted the same shade—and if color-drenching sounds like a lot, that’s the point.

Fans of the technique say it gives a room a calming sensation, which may sound counterintuitive, but it all depends on the color you select. Think about the sensation of floating in a pool of blue water while looking up at a blue sky, or hiking on a trail through a canopy of green trees with green grass under your feet—that’s the experience color drenching should convey: “Some say it creates a cocooning effect of calmness,” said TikTok creator heygranty in a video about the trend.

How to Try Color-Drenching for Yourself

The lighter the color, the more peaceful a room will feel. For example, a pale yellow will have a serene effect, a deep golden yellow creates coziness, and a bright, sunny yellow will be energizing. Use warmer colors in a north-facing room that doesn’t get a lot of sun and paler or bolder colors in a room facing south that gets brighter, more consistent light. A gloss or matte finish works best for this treatment, too.

Painting all the walls in a room one color also immediately makes it feel more contemporary and elevated. While modern, minimalist spaces are generally painted in neutral tones, often to highlight artwork, a space drenched in a brilliant orange or jewel-toned jade gives the same result—but a neutral room won’t have the warmth of a color-drenched space. 

You’ll need more than just a color swatch to pick a hue for this technique: Create an oversized paint sample by taping together four to six pieces of poster board covered in your shade of choice, then move them around the room as the sun moves during the day to find the right shade. If you’re going to drench a room in a single color, you need to be absolutely certain that you love it, so really invest the time and effort into finding your perfect shade.

If you’re not ready to fully commit to painting all the surfaces in a room a single color, try color drenching in different tones of the same shade. You can pick colors based on the sample strip of your chosen paint and use lighter and darker variations for a little contrast and a slightly gentler take on color drenching.

When picking out furniture for a color-drenched room, think about how you can add contrast to the space with other colors and patterns that work cohesively with the walls. The point of color drenching is to make a room a relaxing space, so the furnishings and accessories should add to that atmosphere and not create too much visual dissonance.