'Vintage with a twist' inspired the new Sherwin-Williams 2025 Color Capsule – here's how to incorporate these retro-ish shades into your home

Color trend season is in full swing, and the latest brand to reveal its top picks for 2025 is Sherwin-Williams. This year, the brand has unveiled a capsule color collection, spanning nine different paint colors instead of one standout shade, to mark 15 years of the paint brand's color trend announcements.

Combining Sherwin-Williams' classic paints and standout, colorful shades from the brand's Colormix Forecast, each has been carefully selected as colors of the year to spark room color inspiration for 2025.

While the collection ranges from light neutrals to bolder shades, each of them is united by a grounding quality that makes our homes feel comfortable and calm. To learn more about this brand new selection of color trends, we spoke to Sue Wadden, Director of Color Marketing at Sherwin-Williams, who shares recommended ways to decorate with the 2025 Color Capsule of the Year.

'It’s very special to commemorate our 15th Color of the Year anniversary by expanding to an entire capsule that is a modern, fresh take on color, with a balanced and usable assortment of shades,' shares Sue Wadden. 'Together – as a complete palette or expertly picked pairings – the capsule’s alchemy creates something to be treasured in any style or setting'.

2025 Color Capsule

'The common theme is vintage with a twist,' says Sue. 'The capsule feels very eclectic and reminiscent of the 1970s, which is making a comeback in home and design, but we added a few modern shades to keep it feeling fresh and fun.'

From light neutrals to richer shades, the 2025 Color Capsule transitions equally well between light and airy schemes and moodier, darker color schemes. Shades like Malabar and Sunbleached serve as timeless neutral paints, while Bosc Pear, Grounded, and Rain Cloud make more of an on-trend statement with their richer tones.

How to decorate with the 2025 color capsule

There are lots of ways to decorate with each of the paint colors from the palette, depending on your interior design style. Below, Sue talks us through her favorite color combinations from the palette, from colorful to calming.

For an on-trend look, Sue recommends decorating with brown: 'One of my favorite color pairings in the capsule is combining the browns with the whites, like Grounded SW 6089 and Sunbleached SW 9585. The combination of both feels elegant, yet restorative. I recommend using this color pairing in a master bedroom, where homeowners want to feel luxurious yet comforting.'

If you're looking for a more colorful scheme, consider the blue and yellow paints within the palette. 'An unexpected pairing I love is Rain Cloud SW 9639 and Chartreuse SW 0073,' adds Sue. 'Homeowners might not think of mixing blue and yellow together, but pairing the deep moody teal with a pop of this yellow-green gives a space a really fresh, light, and bright feel. This color combination would look great in a room where homeowners host their guests, to create a fun vibe, like a dining room or a sitting room.'

Or, if you want to keep things relaxed and understated, opt for the light neutrals. 'For a calm and neutral color pairing, I’d recommend going with Mauve Finery SW 6282 and Malabar SW 9110,' suggests Sue. 'The color combination of beige and purple creates a lovely soft and feminine look that would go great in a guest bathroom.'

Another expert-suggested way of decorating with the palette is to lean into a bold look and embrace color-drenching with one singular dark paint. 'I love the idea of painting all four walls in either one of our darkest shades: Clove SW 9605, Rain Cloud SW 9639, or Grounded SW 6089,' adds Sue. 'Even though they are dark and bold colors, they provide the perfect balance between elegance and comfort and would naturally ground a respite space like a main bedroom.'

Alternatively, for a more colorful and uplifting look with one singular shade, consider decorating with purple. 'I love the idea of incorporating Mauve Finery SW 6282 in one room in the home where you want a unique colorful yet soft look,' says Sue. 'This shade really brings a room to life – especially bathrooms given this color’s soothing characteristics, to create a spa-like environment.'

Lastly, if you want to use this palette to embrace slightly more color in your home, but don't want to venture too far with the boldest shades, Sue recommends Bosc Pear as a good introduction to color. 'I recommend going for an accent wall in Bosc Pear SW 6390, a very sophisticated gold-yellow tone that provides boldness in the most anchoring way.'

Looking for another way to bring the 2025 Color Capsule to life? Sherwin-Williams has partnered with NYC-based floral design company East Olivia to create a 'Forever Floral' bouquet inspired by the paint colors. For a limited time, US customers can shop the color-centric bouquet here.