Lavender Color for a Bedroom: Three Shades and What to Pair with Them

Which lavender is best for bedroom walls?

Start with how much color you want on all four walls. The lightest shade, #DED2DA, has an LRV of 67. It bounces light and reads as a soft, slightly pink lavender. It suits most bedrooms and is the easiest to live with at night.

The cool one, #C9CEDC, has an LRV of 62 and a blue undertone. It reads closer to a pale blue-violet than a lilac. Choose it if you want a calm, airy room and your bedding or wood leans warm, because the warmth balances the cool.

The mid-tone, #B2A3B1, has an LRV of 39 and a violet undertone. It is the muted lilac or mauve of the group. On four walls it makes a snug, cocooning room. In a small bedroom with little daylight it can feel heavy, so consider it for one wall, a headboard wall or furniture instead.

If you are unsure, paint the walls in the lightest shade and bring the mid-tone in through a dresser, bench or headboard.

What colors go with lavender in a bedroom?

Lavender pairs well with colors measured from the same paintings. The pale green #D1D7BA, from Renoir's "Lucie Berard (Child in White)", has an LRV of 66 and a green undertone. Use it in curtains, a throw or a bed runner. A touch of green keeps lavender from feeling sweet.

The olive #A0905E, from Monet's "Vétheuil", has an LRV of 28 and a warm yellow undertone. Use it in small doses: a chair, a lampshade, a pillow. It is dark enough to anchor a pale room.

For wood, the warm brown #8B6B4A suits floors, a bed frame or nightstands. Warm wood takes the chill off the cooler lavenders.

For trim and ceiling, choose a soft white rather than a stark one. A very bright white can make pale lavender look grayer by comparison. Keep the ceiling white or a lighter step of the wall color. Rugs in cream, oatmeal or gray-green keep the floor quiet and let the walls lead.

How does lavender look in different bedroom light?

Light changes lavender more than most colors. In a north-facing bedroom the daylight is cooler, and lavender can drift toward gray or blue. The pink-red undertone of #DED2DA helps keep that room warm. The blue undertone of #C9CEDC will lean even cooler there, so use it only if you want that effect.

In a south- or west-facing room, the light is warmer, especially in the afternoon and evening. This is where #C9CEDC works well, because the warm light softens its cool edge. The same light can push #DED2DA a little pinker.

LRV matters too. At 67 and 62, the two lighter shades bounce light around the room. At 39, #B2A3B1 absorbs more of it, so it looks deeper and moodier, and the room will feel smaller.

Check your bulbs as well. Warm bulbs add pink to lavender at night. Cool white bulbs make it look grayer and bluer.

How do I test lavender paint samples?

Test with large samples, not small chips. Paint two sheets of poster board or two patches at least two feet square. Put one on the wall that gets the most light and one on the darkest wall. Leave a white border around each patch so the surrounding wall does not change how you read it.

Look at the samples in the morning, in the afternoon and in the evening with your lamps on. Hold bedding, curtains and a piece of your wood furniture next to them. Lavender is easy to misjudge in a single glance.

The closest measured matches are a starting point, not an exact copy. For #DED2DA, Sherwin-Williams SW 6281 Wallflower and Behr 110E-2 Brook Trout are near-identical. For #C9CEDC, try Behr PPU16-08 Hint Of Violet or Sherwin-Williams SW 6814 Breathtaking. For #B2A3B1, Sherwin-Williams SW 6556 Obi Lilac is very close. Screens vary, so always check a real sample.