If you ask people what type of color tends to work best in almost any home setting, they’ll tell you neutral colors are the cream of the crop. They often mean white, cream, tan, or grey. What most people don’t remember is that brown is a neutral color too, to a point. When used correctly, brown can offer a new way to add a beautiful touch of elegance to any home.
Of course, trying to find the right way to add that “pizazz” to a home is what many people struggle with. Curtains are a great place to start, but only if you know how to pair them and only if you know which shade to pick. That’s why they’re often said to frame a room.
Are you considering getting brown curtains? We did a little research on the topic and were wowed with the results. To help you brainstorm a great look for your living room, we rounded up 21 of the most popular ways of adding some brown to your life.
1. Crystal Clear
When people think of brown living rooms, they very rarely think of modern setups. The crystal chandelier and lamp setup add a unique twist that walks the line between modern and traditional here. To make sure you get the best outcome, take a cue from this room and go with a monochromatic look throughout your home using subtle shade changes.
2. Crisp And Modern
What the designers for this room did is create a matching look by pairing the curtains with a dark floor. The end result is a more traditional take without making your room look too cramped. To make it work even better, they added sheer curtains alongside the focal point curtains. Chic!
3. Light N’ Bright
Brown curtains do not have to mean dark curtains, and that’s important to remember. Here’s a good example of light brown (actually tan) curtains that have been paired with midcentury furniture and geometric rugs. It’s retro, but at the same time, modern. Oh, and the way they mixed throw pillows? That’s just icing on the coordination cake.
4. Contemporary And Clean
Brown has a tendency of making a room look cramped or old fashioned if not added into a design well. This is a good example of how you can use brown, paired with large furniture pieces and modern accents, to keep a room looking clean. The contrast between the table, the framed artwork, and the floor is what makes this room look so expansive.
5. A Little Green
It’s no secret that brown and green go together. It’s one of the most common color schemes found in nature. This room takes that theme by the horns with subtle touches of granny smith green in the artwork, pillows, and living room table decor. If you’re a fan of bold dark, this light contrast will work wonders for your home.
6. Pretty In Pink
If there’s one color combo millennials taught us to love, it’s the brown, pink, and marble color combination. Here, light brown curtains are paired with pastel pink roses, a geometric rug, and a marble pattern.
7. Teal Me No Secrets
Teal is one of those colors that had its own short-lived magic moment when combined with richer shades of brown. Here, we see that older trend given a new life with a teal geometric curtain, a teal vase collection, and a matching pillow set. It’s gorgeous, right?
Click here to get teal and brown pillowcases from Amazon.
8. Foresty Whimsy
Pairing florals with brown curtains is one of the easiest ways to add a touch of whimsy and wonder to your living room. Here, we see a lush green sofa paired with lilies and paintings of trees. The end result is a stately look that has a storybook feeling without it being over the top.
9. Brown And Gold Decadence
Brown doesn’t get the love it deserves for being decadent, but it should. Here, we get to see the more elegant side of deep browns by matching mahogany curtains with a brocade print, a lighter velvet sofa, and some gorgeous pillows. It looks almost baroque, and yet, still has that modern look.
10. Sunburst
This cool living room proves that brown can hold its own when it comes to modern looks. The reason why this look works so well is pretty clear: it’s the metal artwork and the metal accents. The sofa, dining table, lamp, and wall art all are made of straight metal lines.
Click here to get a starburst mirror from Amazon.
11. Traditional Class
In a lot of ways, this home doesn’t look too different from what you’d expect to see in a luxury hotel chain. It has a monochromatic look that features cream carpets, brown rugs, multi-hued brown sofas, brown curtains, and black tables. And yet, the patterns are what help give it a more homey and inviting appearance. It works beautifully.
12. A More Modern Take
Are you a fan of modular homes made from shipping crates? Finding something that gives you that industrial-modern look can be hard to do. This take uses stark white, greyish teal, and rich brown done up in a hypermodern style to give you that perennially chic, Space Age look that people adore.
13. Brown ‘N Yellow
When most people think of contrast, they think of brown and white. This cool concept comes with a smart way to turn that classic trend on its ear. Here, bright yellow offers up a stark contrast against brown and gives your room a wild pop of color. Daring? Absolutely. Easy to do? Of course, with the right throw pillows.
Click here to get these throw pillows from Amazon.
14. Princetonite Charm
Did you know that Princeton’s school colors are black and orange? It’s true and, to a point, this room calls to that Princetonite charm with more intellectual decorations and a splash of orange. It’s stately enough to look true to a dining club’s interior, and yet looks homey enough for a living room study area.
15. Warm And Modern
If there’s one thing that brown is good for, it’s pairing with warm colors. Here, the designers at West Elm showed how true that is by adding warm gold accents, fiery oranges, and deep browns alongside brown curtains. This room couldn’t look more inviting if it tried.
16. Double It Up
This room offers a new take on brown curtains, by using darker brown curtains as an underlay for matching curtains of a lighter hue. It adds dimension to the room, still gives it a fresh look, but keeps things in line with the antique ambiance that the designer was a fan of.
17. Colors In The Southwest
Are you tired of seeing ideas involving brown curtains that don’t have much color? This Southwestern take on the brown curtain trend adds desert vibes while using richly colored textiles in almost every shade to add that artsy pop of color you crave.
Click here to get a Southwestern blanket from Amazon.
18. Santa Fe Bliss
If you love the idea of having a splash of color but found the other Southwestern option a bit much, why not go for a warmer shade of brown. In this home, clay brown curtains are what make the room’s turquoise accents stand out. It’s striking, but it’s not overwhelming.
19. Coastal Tans
Coastal designs are usually based in light colors, but here, we see a little divergence from the norm. The sandy light brown curtains offer up a very gentle touch of warmth, while the whites and darker blues add that nautical twist this room style is famous for. Together, this gives the room the ambiance of life under the boardwalk.
Click here to get this coastal clock from Amazon.
20. High Contrast
This is one of the best living room examples we’ve seen when it comes to getting that stark, brilliant luxury look that deep brown and bright creamy white can offer. The room uses clean lines and a strict two-color theme to make it feel ten times more luxurious than a typical room.
21. Brick It!
With all the beauty that brown can offer on white or dark walls, it’s not surprising that exposed brick also happens to work well with this color range. Here, we see brown and white in action, right in the form of a midcentury curtain pattern. It adds an urban twist that would be ideal for a loft life. It just goes to show how important choosing the right curtains for your living room really is.
In Closing
We hope that you feel inspired and have found the perfect brown curtain idea to incorporate into your own home!