It just might be time to paint your apartment orange

By Virginia K. Smith | February 29, 2016 - 9:59AM

If your apartment's dingy, off-white paint job is contributing to a case of late winter ennui, fear not: Better Homes and Gardens has just released its "Color Palette of the Year" for 2016, the better to inspire us to brighten up our blah apartments.

This year's honorees (or colors, to put it more plainly) range from neutral options like a light gray and a "midtone blue," to gutsier options like orange and light pink:

If you're a little hesitant about painting your entire apartment orange, you're not alone: BHG surveyed readers for the issue, and found that 58 percent of them list orange as the color they're least likely to decorate with, and 60 percent prefer to add pops of color by adding small touches like throw pillows, blankets, and flowers to a room. (And for those of you who've been putting off your weekend DIY project for months, take comfort in the fact that 59 percent of readers surveyed typically wait more than five years to repaint any rooms in their home.)

For color advice tailored to New York and its small apartments, we caught up with the magazine's Senior Style Editor Eugenia Santiesteban Soto, who tells us via email, "New York has all sorts of living situations, and loads of renters that might not want to paint or make a big statement with wallpaper, but there are so many fun ways to get color involved."

In lieu of a full-fledge paint job, she suggests options like painting or wallpapering the backs of bookshelves, inside cabinets or closets, and in smaller spaces like nooks, stairwells, and entry halls. "It makes you so happy to open the doors or walk inside and just see a pop of color," she says. (To make matters easier, more and more companies these days are turning out temporary wallpaper.)

"Textiles are great to add a touch of color, too," she says. "I love a skirted table (and you can always have the option to take it off), or adding some throw pillows to an otherwise neutral sofa, and of course, bedding that you can switch out seasonally or as often as you like. "

Perhaps it's time we tear ourselves away from the all-white-everything decor trend of the past few years, and brighten up.

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5 foolproof steps to painting any room—successfully

Everything you need to know about painting your NYC rental apartment

Live large in a small space: how to divide a studio apartment

A real person's 5-step guide to putting up temporary wallpaper

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