Duck Egg Blue, the Friendliest Color Around

There are some shades that stand confidently apart from fashion and resist any attempt to be tied to a specific interior style or look. Duck egg blue is one of them. Equally at home in a country kitchen, an elegant French bedroom or a funky child’s room, this soft, appealing shade earned its design stripes years ago and, at the same time, worked its way quietly into our affections.

We love its ability to span the divide between a neutral color and an accent color, working beautifully as both a backdrop and a feature shade. It adds personality and warmth to a room without shouting about it and, as these lovely examples demonstrate, it can make friends with a host of other colors and interior styles with ease.

Celebrate its sophistication. Duck egg blue comes in a range of shades and can look beautifully sophisticated when used as a backdrop in a restrained and elegant design.

In this traditional living room, it introduces subtle and appealing color to a space decorated with dark wood furniture and neutral flooring. The effect is tasteful but not at all stuffy.

Paint: Green Blue, Farrow & Ball


Ramp up its rustic edge. Yes, it’s a soft and delicate shade, but duck egg blue can hold its own in a rustic context.

This bedroom has salvaged doors as a headboard, painted in a duck egg shade that leans toward gray. The vintage lamp adds another shot of rustic blue, and the whole space is balanced by abundant white and shots of black.


Create a classic country feel. Duck egg blue is a much-used shade in country schemes, and it works particularly well in a Shaker-style kitchen. When used on all surfaces, the shade can read as a little cloying, but it’s easy to avoid the effect. Simply follow this pared-back kitchen’s lead and team it with white and wooden flooring for a fresher look. Solid, attractive fittings, such as this Butler sink, help to ground the shade and give it a utilitarian vibe.

See more of this kitchen

Paint: Celestial Blue, Little Greene


Combine it with a pattern. Subtly boost the interest of this muted shade by combining it with a pattern. Pick a wallpaper with a backdrop of duck egg blue and a delicate pattern overlaid to add gentle color to a wall.

Here a Nina Campbell wallpaper design creates a feature behind the bed, while the other walls are painted simply in a similar blue shade.

Wallpaper: Birdcage Walk


Enjoy it everywhere. This warm and inviting living room has a bluer version of duck egg as its core color. The shade is used on the walls and also the seating, with notes of it also found on the china, lamp shades and even the fender cushions. Crisp white woodwork and warm tones of red prevent the look from appearing too coordinated and balance the blue beautifully.


Go half and half. Bathrooms often contain a mix of materials on the lower half of their walls, from tiles to paneling, to help the space function well and stand up to splashes and moisture.

The upper half of the wall, though, is the perfect place for some color, and duck egg blue, with its soft, watery tones, is a great fit in a country-style or traditional bathroom.

Paint: Summer Shower, Benjamin Moore


Introduce it as an accent. You might imagine that accent colors must be bold or bright, but this bedroom shows how softer tones can break up a white scheme beautifully. Duck-egg-blue bedspreads and headboards draw the eye to these twin beds, while a mural of pencils contains blue notes too, for a softly coordinated effect that transforms an otherwise white scheme.


Use it in a child’s room. Duck egg blue has the right blend of sophistication and friendliness to make it ideal for a child’s room. It’s a shade a child won’t quickly grow out of, or a parent object to! It’s also easy to funk it up a little, as this bedroom illustrates. Lightbulb wall stickers add some fun, while striped bedding brings energy to the scheme and a wooden chest of drawers supplies some contrasting dark color.


Treat it as a neutral. More interesting than beige, warmer than white and less edgy than gray, duck egg blue has its own personality but can work as a neutral backdrop. The key is to team it with a handful of eye-catching pieces. Here a red bedspread and stripey armchair pop out, so it takes a moment to notice that the wall color is not a classic neutral white but a lovely soft blue.

Dare to Choose a More Colorful Neutral


Make it modern. Nudge duck egg blue toward a more modern feel by picking a shade that contains a little more depth than the classic powdery version.

This hue still offers the same welcoming, easygoing vibe and works well as a backdrop but has a little more weight, so it suits contemporary furniture and a pared-down aesthetic.


Interested in trying a version of duck egg blue yourself? Consider one of the four paint colors shown here in addition to the ones previously mentioned.

More: The Case for In-Between Colors

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