Kevin McCloud’s colour advice

Strong match, powerful effect

Kevin says... Never underestimate the importance of putting red and green together. They're complementaries, and so fire each other off, even when a little muted as they are here. For centuries they've battled in a love-hate relationship, ever since they were introduced to each other in the designs of 17th-century Mughal textiles. These fabrics, destined to influence designs into the 21st century, were decorated with rose and leaf patterns on an off-white background - exactly like the colours shown here.

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