Palette: The Power of Red

Now see what happens when a third color--this time a cool one--is added to the red/yellow combo. The addition of green makes all the difference in this family room's temperature. Red still figures prominently in the palette as the sofa fabric. And it reappears in the fresh floral chintz dressing the club chairs, but only in a supporting role. Lime green, as the floral's ground, really is the room's main color statement. Yet the room still doesn't feel exactly cool. So what prevents a design with so much green from slipping into somnolence? The piquant wake-up call of red.