A Return to Earth: Organic Palettes Make Their Mark in 2026
Aidan Anderson - The Local Project, Founder
November 2025Aidan Anderson, Founder of The Local Project, predicts what colours will make a design impact in 2026.
Photography by Pier Carthew
Long defined by an affinity for restraint and minimalism, The Local Project has celebrated spaces where form and feeling coexist in quiet balance. But in the latest issue, a shift emerges – one that reflects the design world’s embrace of colour as a vehicle for depth, emotion and connection.
For more than a decade, cool neutral palettes have dominated interiors. Now, that pared-back clarity is evolving. In its place, designers are favouring earthy, organic hues, tones that speak to a desire to reconnect with the natural world, to engage the senses, and to create spaces that feel grounded and welcoming. Here are three tonal palettes that are having their moment in the sun in 2026.
Grounded reds
Among the emerging palettes, a family of soft, earth-toned reds is taking centre stage. Nuanced tones of rust, ochre, terracotta, clay and rose are surfacing across materials and details, from marble and metal to joinery and brick. Whether used in broad, immersive gestures or as subtle accents, they bring warmth and intimacy to architectural form.
In The Corner Shop House, a reimagined terrace in Sydney’s Camperdown by Downie North, this palette finds exquisite and generous expression. In the ground-floor living space – anchored by textural Krause bricks in autumnal tones – a rounded kitchen island in rose-toned marble from Artedomus is a sculptural centrepiece, complemented by a perforated metal staircase rendered in a muted, burnished finish.
Photography by Clinton Weaver
Mellow yellows
The current crop of yellows are gentle and luminous, subtle yet transformative, bringing with them a sense of optimism, ease and clarity.
In SSdH’s Dunstan – winner of the Residential Architecture category at this year’s (Emerging) Designer Awards – the shade is applied with precision and restraint. Yellow metal frames the expansive glass doors that bookend the main living space, their glow echoed in the timber beams that define the adjoining alfresco areas. The result is a residence that feels bathed in perpetual daylight.
Equally evocative is Lucy Folk's etc Le Bateau Ivre on the Sunshine Coast, a colour-saturated reimagining of a classic Queenslander, designed in collaboration with Sydney interior designer Tamsin Johnson. Recently featured on The Local Project’s new real-estate vertical, On The Local Market, the home features pops of yellow throughout – in the custom vanities and sculptural mirrors of the main bathroom, in a sun-drenched sofa that anchors the living space, in art and objects that punctuate walls.
Photography by Anson Smart
The nature of green
Moss, sage, pistachio, eucalyptus, grass – green in its many iterations has long been a defining hue but a more in-depth exploration of the verdant favourite is taking place. Drawn from the natural world, these tones lend a welcoming sophistication across residential and commercial projects alike – a reflection of our collective desire to reconnect with landscape and living systems. Biophilic gestures, too, are flourishing: living walls, internal gardens and densely planted courtyards.
In North Perth, Brunsdon Studio drapes Coronation House in green both inside and out, culminating in a striking kitchen where banks of sage cabinetry and striated green marble form a counterpoint to an ox-blood red island. Lighter green mosaic tiles ground the space, their tonal shifts echoed in pendant lights suspended above the adjoining dining table.
Designed by Lande Architects, 24 Glengeard Street, Malvern demonstrates a masterful use of verdant tones within a heritage framework. Sage-green panelling wraps the walls, its soft, chalky finish complementing the home's original Victorian architecture.
Underfoot, a moss-toned rug anchors the seating area, its textured weave bringing tactile warmth to the composition. Currently on the market with Jellis Craig Stonnington, the residence demonstrates how thoughtfully calibrated colour can honour architectural heritage while creating rooms of quiet sophistication.
Photography by AC Media
Currently on the market with Jellis Craig Stonnington
