Everyone loves gray. It's become the go-to paint color.
Choosing the right shade can be tricky. I think it catches people off guard. If you have never worked with gray paint there's something you need to know, it's a "paint color chameleon". Here's a common scenerio...you unassumingly walk into a paint store, pick a gorgeous color, bring it home, put it on the wall and...
the color changes completely.
It can suddenly become blue, green, tan or lavender (light purple). Gray has many different undertones which appear much stronger once the color is on the wall.
Unlike many other colors,
gray is highly sensitive to it's surroundings.
I came up with this list of tips to help my on-line design clients choose the perfect gray...
{click on the list to view it to view it larger}
The following photos are from a really cute post written by Veronika's Blushing about her quest to find the right gray for her dining room {and how it drove her "gray-z"}.
She has a whopping 16 test colors on her wall. {Quick math 16 paint samples cost at least $100}
She still isn't 100% sold on any of them and is going to try more. Personally, my vote is for Mindful Gray, far left, middle row all the way to the right}. I've had success with this color in many spaces.
I borrowed these photos from Veronika to illustrate how different grays look when they go up on the wall. You can see here what I mean about some of them appearing lavender, baby blue, and tan.
My tips on choosing the perfect gray will not eliminate the need to test colors in the space but hopefully, they will help narrow down the choices and keep you from going "gray-z".
If you find yourself purchasing more than 4 or 5 samples, my advice is to cut your losses and call a local designer/decorator for an in-home color consultation. It will cost less than a million paint samples and your sanity.
I started a Pin Board with some of my favorite gray spaces, click here to follow along.
{Feel free to pin my tips while your there}
What gray paint colors have you used? Any favorites or suggestions for others looking for the perfect gray?
Posts
Fantastic post, Sarah! Thanks for sharing all the great tips! I love taking something away from here everyday! Have a terrific Tuesday!
ReplyDeletePerfect timing, thank you! I purchased 4 samples yesterday and I have a pretty good idea which one I want to use but this was very helpful! Going to stalk your pinboard now. Have a beautiful day!
ReplyDeleteGray is a tricky one, for sure! It's undertones can include blue, green, brown, purple, pink, or a combination of these. The real trick is deciding which undertone you can live with, because it WILL emerge. The most on-trend grays today (my the way, I am a Color Consultant)lean towards a brown and/or green undertone. Believe it or not, those with a slightly pink or purple undertone can also be lovely (like Ben Moore's Revere Pewter or Edgecomb Gray).
ReplyDeleteLove that pinboard with the grey rooms, I love your dining room color, such a rich grey! I've been contemplating painting my bedroom a grey, not sure yet, but this helps tremendously!! Thanks!!
ReplyDeleteLove this post! When we began picking gray paint colors, I searched blog land high and low for advise!
ReplyDeleteGray is tough! I have at least 2 dozen sample cans of gray from selecting our interior and exterior colors for our new house! I think the neighbors and our builders thought I was a crazy woman with all of those samples! I am so happy with our results though! We chose Revere Pewter for our main level, Repose Gray for our basement, Behr Ashes for our master, Chelsey Gray for our exterior, and Urban Bronze for our front door.
Here is the finished product: http://cerniks.com/2011/12/12/painted-walls
And here are the links to our embarrassing selection process!
http://cerniks.com/2011/11/01/paint-colors
http://cerniks.com/2011/12/05/paint-paint-and-paint
My favorite gray is Woodlawn Colonial by Valspar. It looks amazing in my living room: http://www.askannamoseley.com/2012/02/living-room-transformation.html
ReplyDeleteAnna
www.askannamoseley.com
This post is the perfect timing for me! I am in the process of picking a gray for my son's room and our first pick looked too lavender. He "did not want a purple room!". Great advice!
ReplyDelete-Shelley
This definitely came at the right time. I've been trying to decide on the perfect gray for months now, and wrote a post about it myself: http://tinyurl.com/7qhj54k
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tips. I think maybe it's time to bite the bullet and call in a pro!
Thanks for sharing - I am currently sampling grays for my living area, too!
ReplyDeleteAnne-Marie at 10 Rooms has some wonderful advice on using gray (or any other color). She is a color consultant and makes understanding color theory simple. Wish she had been my instructor in college.
ReplyDeleteI am so glad you posted this! I actually just posted on Twitter the other day that I needed suggestions for the perfect gray paint color for my dining room. This helps a lot! Thank you.
ReplyDelete-Erin Spain
DIYOntheCheap.com
I had a difficult time choosing a gray for our Master Bedroom. After about 4 or 5 samples we choose Coventry Gray by Benjamin Moore. And we LOVE it!!
ReplyDeleteHere is a link to my post about our room
http://cents-ablespaces.blogspot.com/2011_03_01_archive.html
I went with Nimbus Gray (Ben Moore) but matched in Valspar at Lowe's. It is a pale though slightly warm-ish silvery-gray. This was after investing a small fortune in 17 test colors. Luckily, all my friends now to get to borrow and test! LOL! My master and dining room is darker almost charcoal Amhurst Gray from BM matched in Valspar.
ReplyDeleteWe have a new construction home and our windows, Low E, are slightly tinted. It made one of my fav colors lean toward lavender. And honestly, the slight green undertone going into my master because of the tint on the windows. The dining room, next door, same color, has no green tinge though it gets the same light. The french doors don't have the same tint on the windows.
Lighting makes such a difference. I live outside of phoenix where it is sunny 500 days a year. However, we had to choose our paint colors the first part of december where we had 3 cloudy days in a row. Oh so maddening. I love Nimbus as my color throughout most of my new home but I could have gone darker.
My husband just painted his office using Behr Paint called Dolphin Fin. It's awesome.
ReplyDeletePavestone by Sherwin Williams is the perfect gray!
ReplyDeleteMy bedroom is painted Grayish by Sherwin Williams. It has lavender undertones but is a lovely gray! I'm still decorating but we are doing rustic orange accents. I love gray walls!
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone have a suggestion as to what the best light gray color would be with a warm wood kitchen? My kitchen cabinets are birch and are stained with a slight honey color, shaker style, my granite is black on the island and light gray on the counter. Our trim is all linen white with wainscoting on 3/4 of the wall as linen white also! Any suggestions would be so helpful! Thanks
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