March 06, 2025

Pastel Palette Prelude

Palettes of pastels imbue interiors with a distinctive, refreshing mood. Airy and gentle, these hues create an angelic atmosphere, palliative for the eye. If you’re like most people, only a few colors come to mind when you think of pastels—pale yellow, pink, and maybe blue. In actuality, pastels can be made from any primary or secondary color, simply by adding white; the bright pigment serves to soften the tone of the base shade, decreasing its saturation and brightening its luminosity. As a result, designers can choose from a wide range of hues, from peaches and lavenders to mint greens and rosy reds, each exuding the delicate refinement unique to the pastel family.

Pastels’ relaxing auras make them a strategic option for designers looking to conjure tranquility. We highlight two spaces that demonstrate the distinct ambiance pastel color palettes bring, chosen by designers precisely for their ethereal nature.

We first travel to Boston, where cosmetic brand Glossier’s shop gleams in pastels. Designed by the company’s in-house team, the space is bathed in Glossier’s signature, peach-pink color. The walls, covered with the shade, bear bright white lights that set the pastel hue aglow. Display tables showcasing skin and lip care products invite customers in, finished in a gentle pink. Throughout the store, decorative molding lines doorways and mirrors, painted a delicate green.

“’Our influences for Glossier Boston’s design include collegiate fashion and the decorative characteristics of Boston’s local architecture,” the designers said. One building in particular, the nearby Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, served as inspiration for the store’s color scheme; the museum boasts “’blush pink stucco, verdant green stone, and verdant plant life.’” Taken together, Glossier’s pastel palette radiates the same freshness that its merchandise accords patrons.

Photo courtesy of Deezen

In Brooklyn, design firm Almost Studio has renovated an apartment within a former chocolate factory, fittingly selecting sugary, pastel hues. The Loft for a Chocolatier, with its high ceilings, large windows, and eccentric design elements, resembles a whimsical candy land. The kitchen incorporates playful, lime green shelving, with curving wooden cabinetry finished with a pink tint.

The dining room area, floating on an elevated platform, integrates baby blue chairs and peach flooring. To get to it, one must walk up a flight of bright green steps flanked by two, pale pink screens. Even the sitting room area includes pastels, with plush chairs outfitted in rosy red and icy pink velvet. With the natural light that floods in from almost every angle, the design yields a bright, optimistic space, sure to raise the spirits of any homeowner.

Photo courtesy of Deezen

As we head into the final days of these wintry months, we could all use a bit of light. Peruse a collection of our sweetest, pastel shades here: