Mocha Mousse & Beige Dreams

 

As anyone familiar with my art probably knows by now, I love bright colors. In fact, this blog used to be called The Colormobile. I also love home decor (sometimes I think I should have been a decorator, as it runs through both sides of my family). Every once in a rare while, I do get tired of color and feel the need to be washed away by soothing creams and neutrals, something more earthy.

As you also probably also know, I live in a van. As I travel the country looking for a place to move, I construct various online mood boards dedicated to decorating my future space.

Lately, I have been dreaming of being enveloped in some kind of beige cocoon of decor. Indeed, I am actually hoping to live out some majorly earthy beige dreams in a calming, cafe au lait castle.

Maybe I am just missing the desert, though? There is nothing like a cold desert night, with the stars twinkling above, lounging in an earthy cocoon of warmth while the mesquite is burning.

Maybe it’s psychological. Earthy tones are safe and stable, while the world we live in is increasingly not. Perhaps wrapping ourselves up in a blanket of taupey beige feels good and right in these times of strife.

The color brown, in general, connotes a sense of warmth, comfort, and security, and is associated with the traits of resilience and dependability.

 

 

Concurrent with these ideas, Pantone released Mocha Mousse as its 2025 Color of the Year.

 

 

 

 

 

Here are some reactions to this color taken from Apartment Therapy:

 

“No. 80's surplus paint color for sad condos. As soon as you spread it you regret the day you were born.”

“Depression in a can.”

”Looks like a warm shade of 'Somber'. Not cheerful or uplifting, just SOMBER.”

”I painted over dark depressing colours like that. I prefer happy colours.”

“Makes me think of old dirty blankets in a nursing home.”

”Is this even a color???”

“Boring Beige 2.0”

“Bandaid.”

Apparently, many people think it is kind of drab. To be honest, I think calling it “Mousse,” and then showing an image of a wet gooey substance has partially led to the collective groan over this color.

These are something like the comments I would have made in years past. But I was never tasked with decorating an entire home and trying to find a unifying color that isn’t white, yellowish beige, or light gray 😑.

In my opinion, though, Mocha Mousse is a little bit pink-toned and probably too dark to colorwash your entire home in.

What I do like, though, is that these mocha and taupe colors lend themselves to traditional, transitional, modern, and boho styles of design:

 

 

(I do realize that some of these images that I share are hideously AI, and for that I apologize. I’m just trying to express some thoughts with what’s available out there.)

In a home, it is important to create a cohesive theme. The easiest way to do this is through color. You can have a bit of an eclectic decor style, yet it can still be unified through color.

Mocha Mousse is not as light as beige, and not quite a deep brown. You can conceivably use tints or tones of this color as a great neutral backdrop that can go with many other colors in your decor.

 

As you can see, variations of Mocha Mousse can be a surprisingly attractive backdrop to any number of other colors you might have in your decor while still creating a sense of warmth and comfort.

 

Here are some suggestions from Pantone:

 

 

 

 

I think you could conceivably throw touches of almost any color at Mocha Mousse. You can read more about these combos on their site, if you wish.

While I am in love with earthy browns lately, when I think about colorwashing my new home in any color other than white, yellowish beige, or light gray, this is mostly what I am thinking of:

 

 

 

These off-white, but not too bright colors are wonderful alternatives to all of the pure white, yellowish beige, and light gray tones you see that people have ‘renovated” with. They are dusky and neutral, warm, and engaging.

 

It is important to choose the right undertone for the light within, as well as the other decor in your home, if you are to paint it all a single color. This, I guess, is why most people just paint their walls pure white. But if you want something a little more elegant and welcoming, I suggest some of the tones above.

 

Here is a great video I found from a designer on YouTube that explains some different dusky white neutrals and how to assess and use them in your space:

 

https://youtu.be/AKtZ0fMEXZA?feature=shared

 

What do you think about Mocha Mousse and these more earthy tones?  Would you use it on your walls?