Blue and green bedroom walls are calm because the two colors sit close on the color wheel. This page gives deep and light blues, dark and olive greens, and warm neutrals to ground them.
Quick answer
Paint the walls the pale blue #BECAF4, use the deep blue #4A7283 for the bed wall or furniture and add the olive #726F53 in textiles.
Every color on this page was measured from one of these public-domain paintings.
Blue and green
#4A7283LRV 15
Deep harbor blue
A deep cool blue at LRV 15 from El Greco's Saint Martin and the Beggar. It works on a headboard wall or in furniture; the closest match measured is Sherwin-Williams SW 9149 Inky Blue.
The same paint reads differently in cool north light, warm south sun and under evening lamps. Find the column closest to your room.
Color
Neutral daylight
North light
South light
Evening lamps
Pale lilac blue
Soft parchment
Cornflower blue
Try these colors in a room
Pick which color goes on the walls, the big furniture and the bold piece. Floors, shadows and trim follow your choice.
The framed picture on the wall is Saint Martin and the Beggar.
How do I balance blue and green in a bedroom?
Choose one as the lead and one as the support. If blue leads, paint the walls the pale #BECAF4 at LRV 60 and use green in textiles and plants. If green leads, use the olive #726F53 in larger areas and the blue as an accent.
The two deep colors, #4A7283 and #44472E, have LRVs of 15 and 6. Do not use both on large walls at once, or the room will feel dark.
Keep an eye on undertones. The olive has a warm yellow undertone, while the blues are cool. That contrast gives the room life, but it works best when you limit the olive to one or two items.
A simple method is the 60-30-10 split. Use about 60% pale blue on the walls and bed linen, 30% in the olive and taupe on furniture and curtains, and 10% in the deep blue or forest green as accents.
What neutrals work with blue and green?
The parchment #DACAB0 at LRV 60 and the taupe #877561 at LRV 19 come from the same landscapes as the blues and greens. They work as bridges between the cool colors.
Use the parchment for trim, the ceiling or bed linen. Use the taupe for a rug, a wood nightstand or a headboard.
A soft off-white also works, but choose one with a warm tint so it sits comfortably next to the pale blue.
Natural materials suit this palette well. Linen, cotton and wood keep the room soft, and the parchment color in the bed linen picks up the same tone as the landscape painted by Constable. A woven rug in the taupe grounds the floor.
For the ceiling, use a plain light shade that is lighter than the pale blue wall, so the room does not close in.
How do blue and green look in bedroom light?
North light will make the pale blue #BECAF4 look cooler and slightly gray. A warmer sample or a touch more parchment in the room will balance it.
In south or west light, the blue brightens and the olive turns warmer. The deep blue #4A7283 stays rich and does not shift much.
At night, warm bulbs bring yellow into the greens and soften the blues. Check the samples under the bedside lamps.
Window position matters here. An east window gives cool morning light, which suits the pale blue, while a west window gives warm evening light that brings out the olive.
If your bedroom has little light at all, use the pale blue #BECAF4 with LRV 60 on all four walls, and add the greens in objects rather than paint.
How do I test blue and green paint?
Paint large swatches, at least two feet square, on two walls. Compare them in the morning, at midday and at night.
Blue-green mixes can drift toward gray, so place your bedding and curtain fabric next to the sample before you buy a full can.
Look at the paint match names only as a starting point, since each is the closest measured, not an exact copy. Ask for a sample pot, put it on the wall and live with it for a few days.
Paint the pale blue and the olive samples next to each other on a board and see whether they feel like one family or two. The paintings pair them, but your room has its own light and furniture.
Live with the board for a few days, and look at it at night with your bedside lamps on.
FAQ
Do blue and green go together in a bedroom?
Yes. They are neighbors on the color wheel, and the colors on this page were measured from the same landscapes and portraits.
What blue is best for bedroom walls?
The pale blue #BECAF4 (LRV 60) is the suggested wall color. The deeper #4A7283 (LRV 15) suits one feature wall.
What green should I use with blue?
The olive #726F53 or the darker forest #44472E, depending on how bold you want to be.
How do I keep the room from feeling dark?
Use the lightest blue on the walls and keep the dark greens to small areas.
What neutral works with both?
The parchment #DACAB0 (LRV 60) works on trim and linen and warms the cool blues.
Save these colors
A card with every color on this page, its LRV and the paintings it comes from. Pin it, or take it to the paint store.
Painting images: The Art Institute of Chicago, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, public domain (CC0).
Colors measured by Light & Pigment. Paint names belong to their brands and matches are approximate. Colors look different on screen than on a wall, so always test a sample.
From Saint Martin and the Beggar, Domenico Theotokópoulos, called El Greco
