These Are the 6 Best Farrow & Ball Colors to Paint Small Rooms, According to Interior Designers
Compact spaces deserve as much color as their more expansive counterparts — here are the Farrow & Ball paint shades you need to know
Of all the decorating choices worth deliberating, settling on a paint color has got to be one of the most consequential. As a design writer living in a compact apartment, take it from me: this decision matters even more in small rooms. Get it wrong, and you’ll feel it as well as see it. Get it right, though, and you’ve done one of two things — blurred the boundaries, making your space feel bigger, or celebrated proportions and created a jewel-box effect.
The best Farrow & Ball paint colors succeed at doing both. Renowned for its sophisticated palette, the British brand creates pleasingly complex shades that have become an instinctive choice for interior designers in the UK and well beyond. Speaking from experience, working within its tight palette (there are just 132 shades on the color card) helps to steer decisions in the right direction rather than leaving you wandering through a maze of tonal hues. They’re also ideal for paint tricks for small rooms, maximizing tight dimensions or creating a sense of all-wrapped-up intimacy.
So, which are the best Farrow & Ball paint colors for small rooms? Is it best to be brave and go bold, or opt for a neutral with nuance? Pick up your paintbrush, and read on...
Article continues below1. Farrow & Ball's Matchstick No. 2013
"In this kitchen, large windows allow Matchstick to really come to life," explain its designer.
Farrow & Ball really know how to do neutral paint colors. From whites through to almost-blacks, its collection of tonal shades spans from cool and serene through to rich and warm. One of the latter, Matchstick, is the top choice of Tennessee-based interior designers Norris Studio.
“Matchstick is a creamy, warm neutral that appears alive,” explains principal and founder Samantha Feuer. “With yellow undertones, it often reads as soft yellow, especially as light shifts throughout the day. It’s highly light-sensitive, meaning it never seems flat."
This makes the color an excellent choice for small spaces. “Matchstick reflects light in a way that keeps the space feeling open and breathable, without compromising warmth,” explains Samantha. “It never looks overwhelming or heavy, making it especially well-suited for tighter areas.”
The Farrow & Ball palette is well-known for adding depth and character, making it a favorite in period properties as well as more contemporary projects. “In this kitchen, we chose the color to make the new construction feel more established and timeworn," Samantha adds. "Matchstick has the warmth and brightness we really needed.”
2. Farrow & Ball's Calke Green No. 34
"Calke Green is both timeless and of the moment," says Susie Pfeiffer.
Don’t be afraid to go a little bolder in small rooms: a nature-inspired hue gives tighter spaces a rich, grounded feel. “Green is one of the most versatile and emotionally resonant colors you can use, especially in smaller rooms,” says Susie Pfeiffer.
The interior designer nominates Farrow & Ball's Calke Green as her top choice for decorating a small room. “This deep shade sits somewhere between soft sage and forest green, offering the perfect balance between warmth and depth," she says. "It gives a nod to nature without leaning into a rustic feeling.”
Susie founded her eponymous studion back in 1996 and has been working on high-end residential projects. She is a color expert and regularly consults on the British Institute of Interior Design (BIID) Awards.
This quality makes the color an ideal option for rooms dedicated to relaxation. “Although painting a small room in a dark color can seem counterintuitive, this shade of green works differently,” reflects Susie. “It has a natural, calming quality that softly absorbs light and creates a cocooning effect.”
The latter can be maximized by using the paint shade for color-drenching, as in the bedroom above. “Calke Green hits all the right notes when used all over," says Susie. "It becomes soft, cozy, and warm yet still feels powerful.”
3. Farrow & Ball's Wimborne White No. 239
The founders of Park Interiors advocate the view that "not all white paints behave in the same way."
As someone who has previously argued against painting small rooms white, believe me when I say that Farrow & Ball’s Wimborne White is different. “Compared to a pure brilliant white, which can feel a touch too sharp, this color has more depth and softness,” agree Allison McAffee and Naina Hotchkiss, the duo behind Park Interiors.
“The color creates a gentle, inviting backdrop and allows layered materials like wood, stone, and softer textiles to feel richer against it,” the pair says, explaining their use of the shade in the small-scale living room above. “It works beautifully with warmer, material-driven palettes.”
Deciding between one white or another is a classic interior design quandary, so what makes Wimborne White special? “Many whites can lean too cool, too yellow, or too flat depending on their environment,” say Allison and Naina. “This shade avoids the harshness of brighter whites while consistently offering a softness.”
It's a reminder that not all whites function the same way. "Undertone and depth matter tremendously,” the designers add. “Often, the most timeless whites are not the brightest, but the ones like this that offer a bit more warmth and complexity.”
4. Farrow & Ball's Preference Red No. 297
"Deeper shades of red, like Preference Red, feel more inviting," says designer Sophie Chapman.
“Farrow & Ball's Preference Red is a stunning combination of red, purple, and pink all in one,” explains Sophie Chapman, associate at The Vawdrey House. The color is the deepest red in the Farrow & Ball palette, making it a bold choice. “Many people incorrectly shy away from darker colors in small spaces, but this shade can actually add depth and height.”
While decorating with red can be a daring choice for a smaller space, this deep shade works far better than a brighter version of the color. “Preference Red is a deep, rich, and luxurious hue with warm, velvety undertones,” adds the interior designer. “A brighter red would appear jarring and have an adverse effect in small rooms.”
As a kitchen color, it is a considered design choice as it adds real contrast to the mix of different materials — wood, metal, stone, and more — typically found in the space. The darker shade allows the nuances of tone and texture to be better appreciated.
“Preference Red also gives a cozy, cocooning feeling and lends spaces a lived-in look,” says Sophie. “This is a perfect combination in a multi-functional space that has to encourage relaxation, socialising, and inspiration all at once.”
5. Farrow & Ball's Hague Blue No. 30
"This color turns a purely functional space into something far more refined," says Huseyin Bicak.
When you’re keen to make smaller spaces feel like jewel boxes, opt for a dark, dramatic tone. “Farrow & Ball's Hague Blue has a rich, moody character that creates a comforting, sophisticated atmosphere that looks striking and refined in small spaces,” says Charlton Brown’s Huseyin Bicak.
In this powder room, the dark color again allows materiality to take center stage. “There’s a real tonal richness to it, allowing it to act as a backdrop and letting other features in a space stand out,” explains Huseyin. “Here, it picks up and enhances the blue tones found in the agate basin and the glint of the brassware.”
Huseyin brings international expertise to the London-based interior design studio Charlton Brown. He has worked on award-winning projects across the UK, Europe, and internationally, with a focus on spatial experience as well as aesthetics.
Where light is limited, and you therefore have to rely on artificial sources, darker colors can feel particularly enveloping and give real presence. This shade’s inky undertones work well to create just that atmosphere without ever seeming closed-in.
“Hague Blue appears vibrant and blue in natural light, but really shines in dimmer spaces as it creates depth," Huseyin adds. "This makes it a bold statement color for small rooms, which is exactly why we chose it for this space.”
6. Farrow & Ball's Eddy No. 301
"This soft green is a good reminder that a neutal doesn't have to be beige or white," explains The Roost's Esme Amberg.
When is a neutral not a neutral? This complexity is characteristic of the Farrow & Ball palette. “Eddy sits somewhere between a classic neutral and a true color, changing slightly throughout the day depending on its light,” says Esme Amberg, in-house designer at The Roost.
“It is a gentle, easy green with a muted gray undertone,” she explains. “In smaller rooms, I tend to look for colors that feel soft and enveloping rather than stark, and Farrow & Ball's Eddy has that muted quality that helps walls to recede and rooms to appear larger.”
“The shade feels calm rather than fresh or sugary, which gives it more depth than a typical pale neutral. It makes rooms feel interesting without ever seeming loud or overpowering.”
This allows the color to work well in smaller spaces, which often need to tick multiple interior design boxes. “Eddy is ideal in bedrooms, small living rooms, or home offices,” instructs Esme. “It’s a top choice in rooms where you want to feel calm, but still want there to be character and personality.”
Whether you’re remodeling your compact home or simply giving one tightly-proportioned room a refresh, take inspiration from interior designers using Farrow & Ball’s sophisticated palette. These colors bring depth and personality, no matter how small your space.
Need more inspiration? Discover our pick of the best Farrow & Ball color pairings and sign up to Livingetc's newsletter to have ideas delivered straight to your inbox.
