Dramatic Red Rooms

When it comes to decorating, nothing stirs up passion like the color red. From scarlet to tomato to brick, this bold palette injects instant drama to a space.

Seeing Red

Walls painted in Benjamin Moore’s Million Dollar Red bring a sharp, sophisticated look to the Manhattan living room of Estée Lauder executive John Demsey. Decorator Bibi Monnahan employed a similar burnished shade on a Patrick Naggar sofa and club chair, both upholstered in Bergamo fabrics.

Polished Look

Scarlet-lacquered walls and dark trim bring high-style flair to an elegant Manhattan dining room designed by Brian McCarthy. A 19th-century glass chandelier offers a touch of neoclassical grandeur to the glossy space.

Sleeping Beauty

Bloodred curtains made of pleated silk by the Silk Trading Co. create a romantic sense of privacy in the bedroom of Rita Noroña Schrager’s New York loft, which features floor-to-ceiling windows. A 19th-century rosewood canopy bed and an antique Indian cabinet add to the room’s exotic appeal.

Scarlet Fever

Forgo paint and consider fabric upholstery instead, as decorator Miles Redd did for a young family in their New York City home. Redd sheathed the living room walls in a rich red felt and created lyrical silk window treatments trimmed in lipstick-red. The Louis XVI–style bergère, linen-covered sofa, and antique Oushak rug add to the room’s vivid elegance.

Small Space, Big Impact

Small spaces are perfect for experimenting with vivid colors. Decorator Martha Angus chose geranium-red paint for a powder room in her Napa Valley home and used it from floor to ceiling (even on the molding). The sconces, mirror, sink vanity and fittings are by Waterworks.

Red-Hot Dining

In their 18th-century Marrakech house, Caitlin and Samuel Dowe-Sandes splashed the dining alcove in cherry paint and suspended a scarlet-patterned barrel light made by Henry Cath above the table. The handcrafted floor tiles are by Popham Design, the couple’s Moroccan-inspired tile company.

Crimson Tide

From the ceiling to the furnishings, red rules in textile maven Lisa Fine’s Paris apartment. A fabric with crimson floral accents covers the walls and ceiling of the tented parlor; matching red bookcases, cabinets, and an upholstered wrought-iron chair from the South of France mingle with an English Regency mirror and a wood-camel side table from Galerie Flore.

Danish Modern

Gallery owner Mikael Andersen spiced up the kitchen of his Copenhagen home by painting it a warm rust, providing a handsome backdrop for contemporary artwork. The vintage table is by Hans Wegner, and the chairs are midcentury designs by Kaare Klint.

Height of Style

Jewelry designer Kenneth Jay Lane’s Manhattan duplex features a double-height dining-and-mezzanine area saturated in dramatic red. Nineteenth-century paintings, a George IV table, and Regency chairs add to the theatrical grandeur of the elegant surroundings—fitting touches, given that the brownstone was designed by the venerable Belle Epoque architect Stanford White.

In the Pink

If you can’t commit to a completely red room, hang fabrics in varying shades of the color as a stylish alternative. At nightclub owner Jaouad Kadiri’s Marrakech getaway, the four-poster in his bedroom is draped in embroidered pink-and-gold saris that he picked up on trips to India, with pillows to match.