Paint colors for your home, inside and out
Dining room · colors from 5 paintings
A kitchen and dining room that share one palette feel connected, even when a wall or an arch separates them. These five schemes come from paintings and give each room a light wall, a main color, wood tones and two accents. All five lean warm.
Quick answer
Use the warm cream #F6DDB9 or the honey #F5D591 on the walls, then repeat the wood and accent colors in both rooms. The olive and brown accents suit cabinets and chairs.
Each scheme is one painting's palette, split into walls, main furniture, wood, one bold piece and one textile.
From Madonna and Child, Bernardino dei Conti
#F5D591#D0A150#6B5440#664613#80140CA honey wall at LRV 69 with golden furniture and a deep red textile. It is the richest scheme and suits a formal dining room.
From The Family of Mr. Westphal in the Conservatory, Eduard Gaertner
#CFC8B2#C69965#5F4818#746818#7A3612A pale putty wall at LRV 58 with caramel furniture, bronze wood and a rust textile. It is warm and balanced for a combined kitchen and dining room.
From Sandy Road with a Farmhouse, Jan van Goyen
#D9CFAF#99917C#6D5231#483423#B89C63A sandy wall at LRV 62 with a taupe main color and brown wood. It is the most relaxed scheme and suits a farmhouse kitchen.
From Bacchante by the Sea, Camille Corot
#F6DDB9#CCB99B#9F8469#6D6952#48392CA bright warm cream wall at LRV 75 with olive as the bold piece. It is the lightest scheme and suits a small kitchen.
From Rocks at Fontainebleau, Paul Cézanne
#D6C3AD#E1B593#775D51#8F7263#A0A08AA soft clay wall at LRV 56 with a sage textile and chestnut wood. It suits a dining room with a lot of natural wood.
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 Madonna and Child.
Start with the wall color and let it run through both rooms. Among these schemes, the warm cream #F6DDB9 has the highest LRV, at 75, so it brightens a small kitchen. The honey #F5D591 (LRV 69) is richer and suits a dining room with lamplight.
If the rooms are open to each other, keep the same wall color in both and change the accent. Use the olive in the kitchen and the red or rust in the dining room.
If the rooms are separate, you can use two schemes that share a wood tone, such as the bronze #5F4818 or the chestnut #524640. Repeating one color is enough to link two spaces.
If you cook often, choose a wall color that hides small splashes. A mid-tone such as the sandy #D9CFAF shows less than a pale cream near cabinets and the stove.
Each scheme splits into walls, main furniture, wood, one bold piece and one textile. In the Van Goyen scheme, the taupe #99917C (LRV 29) suits cabinets or an island, and its nearest match is Bunglehouse Gray from Sherwin-Williams. In the Corot scheme, the moss #6D6952 (LRV 14) works for lower cabinets, with Eclipse from Sherwin-Williams as a close match.
For trim and ceiling, use a lighter shade of the wall, or a warm white. The dark browns #524640 and #5F4818 suit a table, a floor stain or open shelves. The near-black #1D1509 has no close commercial match and belongs on small details.
A textile in rust or crimson adds one warm accent without taking over.
In an open plan, a bold piece such as the crimson #80140C can appear once in each room, for example in a chair and in a runner.
Kitchens often have bright task lighting, and dining rooms often have lamps. Warm walls such as #F6DDB9 stay cozy in both, but in strong south light they can look yellow. If that happens, move toward the sandy #D9CFAF from the Van Goyen scheme.
In a north-facing kitchen, the warm yellow undertones help balance cool light. The olive #6D6952 and taupe #99917C can look gray in cool daylight, and warmer under evening bulbs.
Dark woods with an LRV of 7 absorb light. In a dim dining room, balance a dark table with a wall color above LRV 60.
Pendant lights over a dining table pull the eye up, so a warm ceiling in the same color as the walls can look especially cozy.
Test the colors where they will be used. Paint one sample in the kitchen and one in the dining room, even if you plan to use the same color. The two rooms usually get different light.
Place the sample beside your countertop, backsplash and flooring. Kitchens have many fixed surfaces, and a warm wall can clash with a cool counter. Look at the sample in the morning and with the lights on at night.
For cabinets, paint a small door or a board and check it in both rooms before you buy a full can.
Look at the samples while you eat a meal in the room. Your real habits show you how the colors work in daily life.
Use one light warm wall color in both rooms and repeat one wood or accent color. The Corot scheme has a bright cream wall at LRV 75 and an olive accent.
Not always, but they should share something. A matching wall color gives a seamless look, while a shared wood tone links rooms with different walls.
A light wall helps. The honey #F5D591 (LRV 69) and cream #F6DDB9 (LRV 75) both balance a dark table such as #524640.
The taupe #99917C at LRV 29 and the moss #6D6952 at LRV 14 suit cabinets. Both have warm yellow undertones.
The near-black #1D1509 has no close commercial match. Use it for small details and check a sample before you commit to a similar paint.
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 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.
