For 2023, sofa color trends are all about bold shades. Think beautiful strong hues that are deeply rooted in nature to feel comforting and cozy, alongside pattern that brings character to a space. At the same time, we're seeing a spectrum of neutrals, from mushroom to cream to beige.
Grey sofas have long dominated, even with the occasional colorful upstart rearing its head along the way. 'As of the last six months, however, we’re seeing pops of color – bright orange and lipstick reds, bright blues and mustard yellow, but in smaller doses rather than full modular sets,' says Asa Hirst of design brand Ligne Roset.
For Jo Littlefair of Goddard Littlefair, these brighter hues of color are all about a deeper connection with emotion. 'There's a joyfulness when you see color and pattern mixed together in a skillful way that makes your heart sing a little. It’s experiencing something refreshing and just a little bit different or unexpected that gives us all mental lift,' she says.
But what palettes should we be looking at for a big investment like a sofa in 2023? We asked the experts, and these are the 8 biggest interior design trends for sofa color that they think you need to know about.
Oonagh is an experienced homes writer and editor with a penchant for all things interiors and decor. For this article, she spoke to the industry experts to offer insights into the latest sofa trends, and searched to find beautiful images to illustrate the trend story. Ultimately, she hopes to help her readers make the best design decisions for the home.
The sofa color trends that will be big in 2023
1. Invigorating blues
Blue has long been popular when it comes to sofas, but in recent years has been supplanted by dark greens that bring a sumptuousness and feeling of nature to a space. 'A less bold look than the hero green, we're seeing a real rise once again in blues,' says Dani Burroughs of Snug Sofa. 'With a grey undertone to the blue being the hottest hue in town.'
The popularity of this sofa color has a direct correlation to its emotional qualities. Calming and serene, there is a peaceful characteristic to this bright blue that makes it ideal for a relaxing living room.
'When we design interior, we think about the atmosphere that color creates,' says Zhuoer Wang of Office Zhu, who designed this space. 'The blue tone makes people feel calm, especially when it appears on a white background, which is a color that goes with blue. Such a combination is helpful to achieve a clean atmosphere, which I believe is adored by most contemporary designers.
'We predict that the more intense, bright blue will be the trend for the coming few years and low saturation, greyish colors will be less popular.'
2. Contrasting shades
As well as color blocks, sofa trends surrounding color also focus equally about pattern and the way the colors are used to offset each other to create an overall impact in your living room. While softer, more delicate contrasts have been favored in the past, designers are now turning to bolder contrasts to play up these intriguing patterns. Buchanan Studio, for example, have gone all out with its super cool Studio Collection, featuring red and white candy stripes, thick black and white stripes that create real contrast, and while we were wondering if the checkerboard trend was over back in September, it's bringing it back, with a checked black and white sofa that is nothing short of fabulous.
The designs are a product of a strong aesthetic and have a real 70s flair to them, a little tongue in cheek which we love to see. It feels fresh and kitsch all at once, and brings real character to the room. Expect more of these big and bold patterns and geometric styles for the new year, this design is by Ashe Leandro and exhibits these thick, block stripes in a beautiful dark room.
3. Mustard yellow
There is something super luxurious about this shade of mustard, used here by Crina Arghirescu Architecture to upholster a curved sofa in this modern living room. Paired against a cooling grey background, and in soft velvet material, the color adds such depth and warmth to the scheme.
For Marina Cassata of Studio MAK, it's less the depth of this particular color, but the nostalgia. 'We believe we are also in an era of nostalgia, in which we reminisce about the things we grew up with, including the colors, and we believe there is a growing trend of old things with a new modern spin on them,' Marina says.
'We believe that bolder colors such as mustard will return in a new way in 2023. The earthy calm colors connect us to the earth and inspire our well-being, while infusing the colors and items from our childhood memories in a new way, connecting us to those moments and making us happy.'
This room is in a Casablanca villa, and the owners gave Crina Arghirescu Rogard a carte blanche to design the interiors. 'The color of the sofa is reminiscent of the colors of the Moroccan desert, notably the saffron spice, so precious for the local traditions,' she says. 'The living room where the sofa is used is a modern take on the Moroccan lounge, or "salon marocain", a space used for family gatherings, and celebrating important family events. The yellow brings joy.'
4. Bright green
Green is much-loved for its calming properties. In times of strife, homeowners are looking to connect with nature, whether that's bringing more foliage and greenery inside, using natural textures, or as simple as a lick of paint to create a green living room, or a green statement piece of furniture. Across the spectrum, from olive to pine to mint green, green has dominated the sofa scene and it's showing no sign of slowing down as we enter 2023, but bright greens that bring a bit of joy to a scheme are set to be on trend.
'This bright interior takes its cue from nature,' says Sarah Henry of La Manufacture Cogolin, who designed this piece as part of the Jardin intérieur Collection, in collaboration with the designer who knows a thing or two about color in her designs, India Mahdavi. 'Between the bright green of the sofa and the tone-on-tone pinks in the rug and the side chair, it's like stepping into a flower garden."
5. Rust tones
Rust will be bringing a real warmth and depth to a room as we enter 2023, as well as that coveted splash of color, as depicted here in this seriously cozy-looking set-up by Echlin. Perfect for an earth-tone living room, it's luxurious and grounding all at once.
'To me, the beauty of rust tones is the concept of rust itself, and how it marries both nature and the man-made through the corrosion of metals through its exposure to air and moisture,' says Samuel Pye of Echlin. 'It's a great metaphor for the way we live, wanting to combine the comfort and warmth of shelter with wanting to feel connected to nature for its well-being benefits.'
Whilst for most of us it feels fall-like, as color rules dictate that the complementary shade to the orangey shades is blue, it can be cooled down in the summer with those tones. Greens always go well and invite that feeling of nature into our homes. 'To me, there's a similarity between the corrosion of rust and lichen on a tree, with a lot of color overlap, so it's worth looking at lichen patterns too,' says Samuel.
6. Cream
Cream, contemporary sofas are proving popular at the moment, made popular by the ultimate in 2022 trend, the bouclé sofa. This wooly and typically cream or off-white colored sofa has had a real boom in recent months, reflecting the desire to embrace natural materials and palettes in the interior world. Filtering down, cream sofas are also gaining popularity.
'I think we'll see more cream and beige options wanted by buyers as the high-end French, Italian and Scandinavian design sofas that are famous on Instagram trickle into more living rooms,' says Samuel. This scheme is from Ohra, and the sofa beckons and welcomes you into its embrace with its soothing palette.
7. Light brown
The popularity of brown is showing no sign of slowing down either, and a light brown living room - not quite neutral, and giving some warmth - works beautifully for a warm minimalism scheme.
'In terms of Togo sales, we began to see an increase in natural colors at the warmer end of the neutrals spectrum – including camel and sand – joining the ever-popular pale grey couches last year,' Asa of Ligne Roset explains.
'This year we’ve seen a real rise in popularity for sofas that celebrate texture such as boucle and some bold pattern in monochrome, caramels, burnt toffees and natural hues and this looks set to be the same for next year,' says Abigail Ahern.
'With a high percentage of us still using home as our workplace too, the shift towards natural colour palettes ensures that we can seamlessly transition from work to relaxation mood.'
8. Magenta
Fresh from being awarded Pantone's Color of the Year, magenta is a strong and bold shade that is getting a fair bit of attention right now. With roots in the red family of colors, designers and homeowners will feel daring when going for a sofa in this bold shade.
'I for one want to go to spaces that seem to inject sunshine into the atmosphere, we want to feast on cool interiors and cocoon ourselves in tactile spaces that invite you to nestle in and spend some time enjoying the company of long-lost friends over a frivolous cocktail,' says Jo, and this Brabbu sofa in this deep and luxurious shade certainly achieves this mood, turning a lackluster space into a dramatic red living room.
9. Moss green
As well as the brighter version of green, a mossy and darker form of the color is proving popular as we go into 2023. Warm and reminiscent of the great outdoors, in a velvet material it is soft and tactile too, with a deep pile making it perfect to sink into. This sofa is from Ensemblier and is the Kinross Sofa, but Soho Home have made this color pretty popular in the last 12 months, and we expect to see more in moss green from them in the new year.
10. Mushroom
Not quote grey, not quite brown, mushroom is a sort of inbetween shade that can change in different lights. We expect big things from mushroom in the new year. 'Mushroom is one of the rich earth tones that's trending,' explains Glenn Lawson and Grant Fenning, co-founders and designers of Lawson-Fenning. 'Clients are moving towards warm neutrals for the larger upholstered pieces. After the ups and downs of the last few years, we think buyers want to live in a calming, warm environment.'
What sofa styles are trending this year?
Searches for camelback sofa are on the rise, as well as English roll arm, showing a move towards furniture pieces that are ornate in style, and associated with grand stately homes.
The English roll has a touch of country-core, have a low back and roll arms that make it a cozy piece. Think carefully about sizing your sofa and the sofa dimensions, as these arms take up more space than actual seating space. The Togo sofa is ever-popular too, a 20th century piece that has seen demand rocket as homeowners want to recreate a slouchy they've seen on Instagram.
Where to find the best design forward sofas
Lulu and Georgia - elegant yet comfy shapes
DWR - mid-century forms and classic designs
2Modern- a brilliant curation of directional and statement pieces
La Redoute - affordable and family-friendly couches
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