While it's hard to imagine moody tones being associated with fall, a true autumnal palette includes not just the classic warm ambers and deep reds, but unexpected colors that balance those earthy tones with brighter, uplifting hues.

A time to get creative with color, fall is the season many await to cocoon their homes in rich, saturated shades that shift with the light. These comforting fall color schemes add real depth to our living spaces and provide solace from the cold outside. Yet balancing the palette with brighter hues can create just as much coziness, whilst keeping things timeless and always inspiring.

Farrow & Ball's new 'Colors of Autumn' palette proves how perfectly autumn shades can mix with less expected seasonal shades. Blues and greens sit alongside reds and yellows to create a scheme that's less cliché and far more timeless. 'I will always consider the obvious connotations of fall with amber and burnt reds, but it’s lovely to consider other elements like wet stone and glistening lichen on boulders and long, low light casting delicious shadows through trees and over fields,' Patrick O'Donnell, Brand Ambassador at Farrow & Ball. 'It’s my favorite time of year.'

Just like this year's fall color trends that flaunt a variety of autumnal tones vibrant hues, Farrow & Ball's autumn colors prove your scheme doesn't need to be restricted to moody colors to feel seasonal.

Of course, a few familiar tones feature within the palette. Organic greens like Cardamom, a green-infused brown paint, Trechon, a cult classic known for its gray-green undertones, and the beloved mossy green Bancha, are all inherently fall-esque, but paired beside more unexpected tones, they feel entirely new and fresh. Stone Blue, a powdery, mid-tone, would shine beside these grounding greens, as would Selvedge, a denim-blue with a faded feel.

'I think my three favorites from this mini edit would be Tack Room Door, Cardamom, and the wonderfully complex Stone Blue,' says Patrick. 'All three would work harmoniously together – maybe in a kitchen where it’s easier to play with multiple colors due to the higher concentration of cabinetry in the space. Tack Room Door in Flat Eggshell would look wonderful in an attic bedroom on tongue-and-groove walls.'

While burgundies and oxbloods are typical of this time of year, it's not the expected red paints that make this Farrow & Ball palette feel fresh – it's the mix of an almost brown red (Etruscan Red) and a fiery red-meets-orange titled 'Harissa.'

'I deliberately didn’t go for wine colors or oranges this year (they may have cropped up in my 2025 edit) but wanted to look to more ‘grounded’ and moody colors,' explains Patrick. Straw, a warmer take on butter yellow, brings a gentle ambience to the palette, providing some lift and balance against the deeper browns and greens. With changing autumn sun, it's a clever choice for rooms blessed with natural light in abundance, creating a warming, golden ambience.

'Blue is still a big part of autumn and should be present in our considerations, and it’s a false path to decorate for a season; this is more about color shifts and mood than decoration,' Paddy adds. 'I think autumn is a particularly sensory time; clocks change, our food habits change, even the scent of candles shifts from lighter floral notes to tobacco and leather notes, the scent of an old dust jacket or well-worn library chair…'

Farrow & Ball's 'Colors of Autumn' combines traditional timelessness with a playful, fresh edge. It evokes a nostalgic, wintry feel with earthy greens, caramel brown, and a moody red, balanced by a handful of bold, sharper colors. A warm yellow, fiery red, and a pair of soothing blue hues create beautiful contrast against these organic tones. They also give new meaning to 'fall colors' and encourage us to introduce vibrancy into our homes, even if the weather is a little colder.

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