A beautiful blend of pink and orange, coral is a colour made for Algarve interiors. Like a Portuguese sunset, it’s the perfect shade to liven up a room and welcome in the hotter months. With the vibrancy of orange, the softness of pink and the intensity of red, it will make your home feel instantly inviting.
Don’t confuse coral with salmon or peach, it’s got a lot more depth and flavour. Think the flesh of a papaya, the inside of a Conch shell and the sun melting over the cliffs. Whether you use it sparingly or go wall to wall, juicy coral will cast a warm glow over your entire living space.
I always thought the colour coral took its name from a spindly ocean plant, but I learned last week (from a nine-year-old at a beach cafe) that coral is in fact a tiny marine animal. Astonished by my ignorance, my young friend explained to me that there are two main types: hard corals, which create reefs by forming an exoskeleton, and soft corals, which are flexible and look like vegetation. He went on to say that coral reefs are a vital ecosystem and essential to the health of our oceans. They provide a home and food source for hundreds of creatures, protect coastlines from erosion and play a crucial role in regulating the earth’s climate by absorbing and storing carbon dioxide. Did he get all this from school, the internet or the telly?
In my day, if your parents looked blank when you asked them a question, you had to run to the library and consult an Encyclopaedia Britannica. By the time you’d climbed up a ladder and manoeuvred one off the shelf (remember those giant leather-bound tomes with a million pages the thickness of wasp’s wings and print so small you needed a microscope?) you’d forgotten what it was you wanted to find out in the first place.
Keen to steer the conversation back to pretty colours, I asked this knowledgeable fella how coral gets its lovely pinky-orange hue, and he snorted at my stupidity. Coral actually comes in many different colours, from pink to blue to green, and its colour is affected by a variety of factors. One of the most significant is the amount of sunlight the coral receives – just like we get a tan when exposed to strong sunlight, coral gets more colour. Water temperature also affects its colour, if the sea gets too warm, the algae living inside the coral can perish, causing it to turn white and die. Pollution, overfishing, illegal collection of coral and global warming are killing reefs all over the world. I wish I hadn’t started this, all I’d done was admire his mum’s necklace. Now I was getting visions of coral being drained of its beautiful colour. I hadn’t realised complimenting her ensemble would lead to such depressing revelations. Let’s get back to the comfort of coral interiors …
Place banana palms and big ferns against a coral feature wall and you’ll feel like you’re living on your own coral reef. In fact, you are – did you know the Algarve has its own coral reef? The Armação de Pêra reef is the largest natural reef in Portugal and is estimated to be over 25,000 years old. It stretches from northwest to southeast over seven nautical miles from the Alfanzina Lighthouse, near Carvoeiro to the edge of Galé in Albufeira. This spectacular reef is home to over 800 different species of fish, invertebrates and algae, 11 of which are completely new to Portugal, the Iberian Peninsula and even to science. Scientists have found species that, so far, are only known to live there, making it one of the most precious reefs in Europe.
We’re very lucky to have such a reef on our doorstep, but if we’re not careful we could be on the road to losing it. Environmental scientists predict that unless we reduce emissions, all of the world’s reefs will be dead by the end of the century. I’m putting our amazing reef on my list as a place to take the moody teenagers this summer. It’s four miles off the coast and there are plenty of excursions that will take you there. The young ones can don all the gear and go scuba diving. I’m a scaredy cat so I shall be staying on the boat basking in my coral bikini, talking to the fish and marvelling at the wonders of nature.
Despite its unique appearance, coral goes well with lots of other colours. If you like a soft and gentle interior, pair coral with pastel pink, oatmeal and dove grey. If your style leans towards something bolder, try using coral in a colour palette that’s contrasting. In other words, combine coral with colours that are opposite it on the colour wheel like teal, mint green, and cyan. A contrasting colour palette will really make the coral pop, adding depth and character to sociable spaces like kitchens and living rooms.
Don’t turn your whole house peachy orange – that would feel a bit sickly. Take your cues from the natural environment and mirror the Algarve landscape when decorating with coral. If you balance it with sandy hues, natural wood and ocean-coloured accents, it will ground the senses and make the room feel energising and breezy. Bathrooms are the perfect spaces to experiment and give the contrasting look a go. Sea green and jade make bathrooms feel cool and spa-like, but if you put them beside a vibrant hue like coral you’ll create a playful oasis.
