I’m really excited to share this Colour Couch interview with you. If Manoj Malde looks familiar it could be that you have seen him on BBC2’s Your Garden Made Perfect where he has been a much loved member of the garden design team for the past few years.

Or perhaps you have come across his brilliant book that came out last year, Your Outdoor Room: How to Design a Garden You Can Live In.

Or maybe you remember when he made history at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show in 2023 by being the very first person to marry there. The very first wedding at Chelsea and still the only one ever held. What a backdrop.

I was introduced to Manoj through Thorndown Paints and it turns out he had also read my book. We quickly found common ground through our shared love of colour.

Over to Manoj on the Colour Couch to find out more…

What is your earliest colour memory?

 Probably the blue of the sea. My dad used to have a lovely, basic beach cottage. I remember being able to go through the palm trees on to silver sand and collecting cowrie shells on the beach and the blue of the ocean stays in my memory. Maybe that is why I have such an affinity with the sea. I feel most at home when I am near the sea.

What does colour mean to you?

Colour means joy and life to me. How dull would life be if we just saw the world in black and white.

Do you have a favourite colour or a colour that you find yourself constantly drawn to? And why?

I love the colour orange. I also love tones of orange, from the palest to the brightest, to the deepest. The reason why this colour resonates with me is because I was born in a hot country and it reminds me of the sun and the warmth. I feel there is something almost sacred about the colour orange. It is also an energetic, joyful, playful and powerful colour.

Do you have a colour that you least like? And why?

I don’t like grey. I think having been born in a tropical climate, coming from a colourful Indian heritage and now living in the UK where the weather is dull and grey most of the year round, the colour grey depresses me. It does nothing to lift the human spirits.

What do you love most about working with colour?

As a garden designer one of the first things that my clients request is colour in the garden. My recent garden at the Chelsea Flower Show had a lovely colourful planting palette of purples, oranges, pinks and yellows all playfully intermingled and one of the comments we heard repeatedly was “This is our favourite garden because of the colours”. Colour brings joy and happiness into peoples lives.

As garden designer I have the ability to enable people to come together and connect with nature through designing and curating beautiful outdoor spaces with the use of colour.

What do you think your life would be like without colour?

I cannot even stand the thought of having to live a life without colour. Would life be worth living? There would be loss of emotions, loss of cultural richness. I think we would find life without colour very challenging.

What’s your favourite colour story?

At the moment I am going through a phase of loving soft, pale pinks, apricots, creams, pistachios, vanillas. This change has come through seeing some stunning embroideries on georgette saris. The ice-cream like colours are cool and calming.

Were you ever afraid or wary of colour? And what did you do to overcome this?

I’m Indian. I think colour is in our DNA. We are not scared of colour.

Do you have a favourite colour place that you visit (or have visited)?

India would be my go to place for colour. There is colour everywhere and it is used with absolute confidence. You see the women from the poorest backgrounds who have very little, but the way they put together their blouses, saris and petticoats and walk with confidence, I find that very inspiring.

If you could pick any colour and give it a name, what would that be?

Mango Whip.

For anyone afraid of colour what would your number 1 piece of advice be?

Give it a go. Watch your life change for the better. You can thank me later ☺

Which colourful person do you most admire and would love me to interview for the On the Colour Couch series?

Sabyasachi Mukherjee the incredible Indian fashion designer.

I just love that Manoj’s favourite colour is orange because it is mine too. And I can just imagine what mango whip would look like. A light, airy orange. A tint of orange that feels as if it has been beautifully whipped.

If you would like to discover more about Manoj, head over to his instagram @manoj_malde.

You can find his book over here on Amazon.

And if you would love some help to reignite your colour confidence, you can download the first chapter of my book – The Little Book of Colour for free.

Wishing you a colourful day,
Karenx

Image credit: Photographer Paul Madeley