{"id":346752,"date":"2026-05-07T11:28:06","date_gmt":"2026-05-07T15:28:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.sothebysrealty.com\/?p=346752"},"modified":"2026-05-07T11:28:06","modified_gmt":"2026-05-07T15:28:06","slug":"color-chart-the-joys-of-lilac-in-the-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/color-chart-the-joys-of-lilac-in-the-home\/","title":{"rendered":"Color Chart: The Joys of Lilac in the Home\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Our monthly series asks: How do you bring color into luxury design? The purple-lilac spectrum is having a moment, writes Jill Krasny<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"dining<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Charlottesville, Virginia<\/a> | Frank Hardy Sotheby\u2019s International Realty<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some homes make a lasting impression while others quickly fade from the mind. Almost always, the design and color scheme has something to do with it. Green enhances old-world interiors<\/a>, while yellow, used in the right way, is joyfully uplifting<\/a>. Shades of purple and lilac\u2014which our series on color in luxury design turns to next\u2014have a tricky reputation, but are very much back in vogue, working best in homes with a period feel.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s partly because of the color\u2019s \u201calmost noble past,\u201d says Stephanie Schabot, the design director of Pembrooke & Ives<\/a>, a New York-based interior design firm. \u201cPurple in any form was once so rare and costly to produce that it was reserved for royalty and the church.\u201d Years later, in the Victorian era, it became a mainstay of wallpapers, upholstery and ceramics, which also picked up on purple\u2019s floral reference points.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"pathway<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Rancho Santa Fe, California<\/a> | Pacific Sotheby\u2019s International Realty<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Interestingly, Victorian widows were encouraged to move on to wearing lilac after an initial mourning period of dressing in black, a detail that points to the shade\u2019s more uplifting qualities. These were also drawn on a century later. The Hyatt House Hotel<\/a>, a midcentury-modern building in Lincolnwood, Illinois, designed by Hungarian architect John Macsai, featured a purple glazed-brick exterior, earning it the nickname of the \u201cPurple Hotel.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nowadays, Schabot sees clients favoring the not-quite-purple shade of lilac for their hallways, bedrooms and occasionally bathrooms\u2014\u201cplaces where light moves slowly and people want to feel something,\u201d she says. \u201cThere\u2019s a real appetite right now for color that carries emotion,\u201d she continues, and lilac, with its echoes of wisteria and jacaranda blooms in late spring, evokes feelings of calm, innocence and nostalgia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"lilac<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Charlottesville, Virginia<\/a> | Frank Hardy Sotheby\u2019s International Realty<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The aptly named Sunday Lilac, a French provincial-style estate<\/a> in Charlottesville, Virginia, features a stately dining-room suite drenched in a muted lilac with adjacent moody-blue cabinetry and a bold chandelier hanging from the ceiling. The bright turquoise light fixture exudes energy, says Schabot, while brass sconces and a sunburst mirror draw out the warmth of the wall color.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A thoughtfully restored mansion in Ermoupolis<\/a>, the capital of Syros island in the Greek Cyclades, has a lilac-accented bedroom that evokes the sorbet colors of sunset. \u201cThe Aegean sky in late afternoon is lilac,\u201d says Schabot, \u201cand this bedroom seems to draw direct inspiration from the light and landscape, which is a beautiful reference point.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"rooftop<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Syros, Greece<\/a> | Greece Sotheby\u2019s International Realty<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A blush-colored bathroom in a luxury coastal home<\/a> in Lielupe, Latvia, similarly echoes the silvery light of the Baltic Sea. The simple metallic fixtures pair well with lilac, says Schabot, creating a \u201cquiet magic,\u201d enhanced by the monochrome pattern on the floor.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, the grayish-lilac exterior of a mansion in Scarsdale<\/a>, the affluent commuter neighborhood about a half-hour from New York City, also makes a bold statement in a subtle way. \u201cAn exterior must hold through every season,\u201d says Schabot, \u201cand the fact it breathes rather than shouts says everything about the power of a well-chosen tone.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"home<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Scarsdale, New York<\/a> | Julia B. Fee Sotheby\u2019s International Realty<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lilac, in particular, pairs well with warm colors, especially when they have a blush or honey base, says Schabot, who frequently finds herself turning to Farrow & Ball\u2019s Elephant\u2019s Breath, a paint color that reads gray, but carries a subtle hint of magenta. \u201cThose shared warm undertones mean the two pair well with each other,\u201d she says, not unlike the blooms on the jacaranda trees lining the road to a home in Rancho Santa Fe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Explore our Color Chart design series, from zingy orange<\/a>, bold red<\/a> and joyful pink <\/a>to classic green<\/a>, calming white<\/a>, crowd-pleasing blue<\/a> and uplifting yellow<\/a><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Our monthly series asks: How do you bring color into luxury design? The purple-lilac spectrum is having a moment, writes Jill Krasny Charlottesville, Virginia | Frank Hardy Sotheby\u2019s International Realty Some homes make a lasting impression while others quickly fade from the mind. Almost always, the design and color scheme has something to do with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":232770377,"featured_media":346759,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1399],"tags":[1423,1445,1455,1472,1508],"class_list":["post-346752","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-home-and-design","tag-california","tag-greece","tag-latvia","tag-new-york","tag-virginia"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Lilac_Greece2.jpeg","jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pf4gbL-1scM","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":344117,"url":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/what-is-a-perfect-home-for-a-cancer\/","url_meta":{"origin":346752,"position":0},"title":"What Is a Perfect Home for a Cancer?","author":"Kate Marburger","date":"June 23, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Our monthly series asks: What decor best suits each star sign? Soft-hearted Cancer likes simple pleasures\u2014and lots of comfort, writes Jill Krasny Pacific Palisades | Sotheby\u2019s International Realty - Pacific Palisades Brokerage Ever notice how some homes tick all your boxes, while others make you feel uninspired? Your star sign\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Home and Design"","block_context":{"text":"Home and Design","link":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/category\/home-and-design\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Header-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Header-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Header-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Header-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Header-1.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Header-1.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/346752","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/232770377"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=346752"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/346752\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":346767,"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/346752\/revisions\/346767"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/346759"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=346752"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=346752"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.com\/extraordinary-living-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=346752"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}