You love burgundy on Pinterest. You're not sure you'd love it on all four walls of the room you sleep in. Fair enough.
So paint one wall. The one behind the bed. You see it when you walk in, and your back is to it when you're asleep, so you get all the drama without living inside it. It's a quart or a gallon of paint and one afternoon, and if you hate it, it's one wall to repaint.
Which wall to paint
Almost always the wall behind the headboard. Here's why:
- It's the natural focal point when you enter the room.
- The bed and headboard break up the color, so it doesn't feel like a solid red slab.
- You don't face it when you're lying down, which keeps the room calm at night.
The exception: if your bed is under a window, pick the wall you see from the door instead.
How to choose the shade
For an accent wall, you can go darker than you would on four walls, because the other walls balance it.
- Sherwin-Williams Sommelier: deep, almost oxblood. The one here.
- Benjamin Moore Cabernet: wine-toned.
- Farrow & Ball Preference Red: browner and softer.
Pair any of them with a warm cream on the other walls, like Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee or White Dove. Cool whites next to burgundy look stark.
Make one wall look deliberate
The risk with accent walls is that they look like you ran out of paint. A few things make them look intentional:
- Paint the whole wall, corner to corner and floor to ceiling. No stripes, no half-walls.
- Let the bedding connect, with one burgundy element on the bed.
- Add one more burgundy thing elsewhere in the room, a small cushion on a chair or a print with red in it.
The color should appear at least three times in the room, in different sizes.
The headboard
A cane, rattan or light oak headboard looks best against a dark accent wall. The texture and light tone stand out. A dark wood or dark upholstered headboard disappears into the burgundy.
Lighting the accent wall
Two ceramic lamps on the nightstands, both at 2700K, light the wall from below and make it glow. If you want more drama, wall sconces mounted on the burgundy wall itself throw light down across the paint.
Art on a burgundy wall
Less is more. One large piece centered above the bed, or nothing at all. Gold or oak frames look good against burgundy; black frames look harsh. A landscape or abstract in cream, rust and olive tones fits the palette.
Small bowl of chestnuts, and other small moves
Small objects in the room can echo the wall color without adding more burgundy. A bowl of chestnuts on the dresser. A dark red dahlia in a bud vase. These tiny touches make the accent wall look like part of a plan.
Taping and cutting in on a dark accent wall
The edges are what make an accent wall look professional or amateur. The corner where burgundy meets cream, and the line at the ceiling, need to be crisp.
- Paint the cream walls first, including a few inches onto the accent wall. Let it dry fully.
- Tape the cream side of each corner with a quality painter's tape, pressing the edge down firmly with a putty knife.
- Seal the tape edge with a thin coat of the cream. Any bleed will be cream on cream, invisible.
- Paint the burgundy, then pull the tape while the last coat is still slightly wet, at a 45-degree angle.
At the ceiling, cut in by hand with an angled brush rather than taping. Ceilings are rarely perfectly straight, and a hand-cut line follows the ceiling better than a taped one.
How much paint you need
A typical 12-foot wall with an 8-foot ceiling is about 96 square feet. One gallon covers roughly 350 to 400 square feet per coat, so a gallon is plenty for two coats. Buy a tinted primer too; deep reds almost always need it. Total cost: about $80 to $140 for premium paint and primer.
Mistakes to avoid
- Painting the window wall. Backlit burgundy just looks dark.
- Stopping short of the corners. Always paint the full wall.
- Too many accent walls. One is an accent; two is a trend fighting itself.
- Bright white trim on the accent wall. Paint the trim cream or match it to the wall.
Burgundy accent wall bedroom FAQ
Which wall should be the accent wall in a bedroom?
The wall behind the bed, unless it has a window. Then the wall you see from the door.
What color goes with a burgundy accent wall?
Warm cream or off-white on the other walls, with oak, rust and brass as accents.
Are accent walls outdated?
Badly done accent walls are. A full, well-chosen dark wall behind the bed still looks current.
Can I do a burgundy accent wall in a small bedroom?
Yes. It adds depth and can make the wall feel farther away.
