Color Expert Hildur Blad on the Power of Color, Conscious Choices and Creative Courage
- Nordic Design Institute
- Dec 22, 2025
- 6 min read
With over 20 years of experience in color, interiors and communication, Hildur Blad has become known as one of Sweden’s most knowledgeable voices in color design. She teaches and lectures for both companies and creatives – and since 2025 she has also been a partner and lecturer in our Higher Vocational Education program for Interior Designers.
In this interview, Hildur shares her journey, the most common pitfalls when working with color, and why the courage to act is often more important than striving for perfection.
Hi Hildur! To begin – how would you describe yourself and what you work with today?
I work as a strategic color designer, educator and lecturer – with a focus on developing people, environments and brands that want more. My work is about visual, verbal and mental communication: how we reach out, communicate what we want to say, and create real change – both within ourselves and with those we collaborate with.
I am trained in NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) and have deepened my knowledge in color, communication and (self) leadership – three areas that together form the foundation of everything I do. As a person I am curious, straightforward, driven and goal-oriented – always in motion and with a strong desire to contribute to development and awareness.
You have worked with color and interiors for over 20 years and have built a strong brand in the field. Can you tell us a little about your journey – how it all started, and what drives you in your work today?
Ever since I was little and decorated my own room, I’ve been very sensitive to my surroundings – how I live and what’s around me affects me deeply. I have always worked in sales and actually started already at the age of eight, when I went around the neighborhood selling newspapers.
A year after graduating from high school, I got a job in a paint store, and that was where I truly realized what an enormous difference the right color can make, and how difficult it actually is to choose correctly, because so much affects how we perceive color. That was also when I realized the advantage I had in being able to talk about color and argue for my choices based on the customer’s needs, rather than just “feeling” color or having an opinion. Suddenly I gained customers’ trust more quickly, shortened the sales process and increased sales – while customers became even more satisfied.
After several years in the paint industry, a meeting with a customer led to a new opportunity – I was recommended for a job as a salesperson and interior designer in the public sector. A few years later I felt ready to stand on my own and started my first interior design company.
After a few more years, a new opportunity appeared, and I began working as a product manager at one of Sweden’s largest furniture and interior companies, responsible for developing and renewing the assortment with a focus on sales, news value and positioning.
Since 2022 I have once again been self-employed, this time with a focus on color design and developing people, environments and brands through visual, verbal and mental communication. Today I train professionals in the color, furniture and interior industries, as well as future interior designers, project managers and visual merchandisers in color design, sales and self-leadership, and in how we set and achieve our goals.
Back in 2006 I started my interior blog, which became the starting point for much of what I have experienced and worked with over the past years. I have always appreciated the meeting between people and have constantly strived to develop my ability to meet the person in front of me – to truly reach them and create change.
In your book “Färgboken: a guide to conscious color choices in the home” you guide readers to making conscious color choices. What are the most common pitfalls you see when people use color in their homes – and how can they avoid them?
Pitfall 1: Believing that decorating with color means strong hues and many different colors. Working with color is rather about creating feeling and balance.
Pitfall 2: Adding pops of color instead of coloring the entire room. Color needs color. By blending shades within the same tone, the whole becomes softer, and even if you use more color than usual, the room often feels calmer and more harmonious.
Pitfall 3: Choosing colors based on trends and what others think is pretty, instead of starting from yourself. Think about what you need and want to feel in your home. Color design is fundamentally about how you want to experience your home – not about what is popular right now.
You have worked with both private clients and large companies such as IKEA and Mio. How does the process differ when you create color concepts for a brand compared to a private home?
At paint, furniture and interior companies, I teach color design and communication – so they can make conscious color choices and combine their sense of color with strategy. The goal is always the same: even more satisfied customers and increased sales.
I also work practically with larger companies and brands, where through a process I develop their unique Spatial Identity – think Brand Guidelines or a graphic profile, but adapted for physical environments and spatial design. It functions as an interior concept and a color palette based on the brand’s identity and values.
A Spatial Identity is used as a starting point for additions, renovations or new constructions – to keep the whole cohesive and create a shared target vision to work toward.
In private homes the process is shorter, because fewer people are involved and the budget is smaller. The questions that need to be answered are the same – but the preparatory work does not require as much time.
During both the spring and fall terms you’ve lectured for our YH students and future interior designers in Sweden. What did you want to convey most to them as future professionals?
That it’s not only about having the theory and knowledge but how important it is to take action, to do – even when it feels difficult for some reason. That is how you continue developing and reach your goals. You learn and get better by doing, evaluating, adjusting until you are satisfied with the result and have reached your goal.
Many people let themselves be limited by high demands, perfection and various kinds of fears. That’s why it’s so important to get to know yourself and have tools to handle your own thoughts and obstacles that appear along the way.
What color trends do you see right now, and how do you think an interior designer should relate to trends versus timelessness?
Following trends creates a sense of security. When you choose the same as everyone else you don’t have to explain yourself and you fit into the group. That’s why trends greatly influence what we choose. I have nothing against trends as inspiration and a way to get ideas – however, it is always a risk to go all in on a trend because the result will feel dated more quickly. If you mix trendy colors and shapes with something else, you create dynamism and it becomes difficult to attach a specific year to the result.
I always recommend that color choices should be based on what you want to communicate with the help of color and what feeling you want to create. Then the colors and combinations will feel right – even when the trend has passed.
Finally – you also work with topics such as mindset, sales and presentation. How do these connect with your work with color, and what do you think creatives should keep in mind today?
It’s not enough to “just” be good at the creative work and have the feeling if you can’t get the client to say yes to what you propose. You need to be good at selling and getting others to believe in your ideas. I like the quote “If you doubt – they doubt you.” A client who hesitates takes longer to make a decision. A client who hesitates wants to make changes. Everything starts with you – you need to believe in yourself and your ideas and have the ability to present them in a way that builds trust and creates anticipation in your client, so you get to bring to life what you envision.
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