iluvpink
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,310 
Location: Michigan
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Post by iluvpink on Feb 20, 2022 21:16:37 GMT
We are having our downstairs painted but can't figure out colors. My dh's aunt has helped us with decor before but I'm not loving the paint colors she recommended. And on top of that my dh loves them and he is not the type of man who doesn't give a crap about decor, no he has strong opinions.
We bought our house a bit over four years ago and they had just painted the downstairs a light gray. IMO it is too cool and that's why I wanted to paint it. Dh's aunt recommended a different shade of gray with a couple blue accent walls. Because I love blue. And I do. But I'm afraid gray and blue will look like an 80's office/mall. I was thinking more of a warm greige/beige. But I look at the chips and online and I feel so overwhelmed. I do like the idea of the blue accent wall though. We kind of like Admiral Blue from Behr. But I can't figure out a greige and dh is just stuck with the gray.
HELP. Can anyone recommend a good warm greige or other netural paint that wood look good with blue? We have lots of light in our downstairs and this would be the entry, living room, open dining room, kitchen, bathroom and laundry room. Our kitchen cabinets are white with the island being blue. The kitchen is semi open to the rest of the house but the island can't be seen from the living/dining room. After we paint we were thinking of getting new couches in blue to match.
I just do not have the decorating gene and dh wanting so much input on it does not help. So we are at loggerheads and I'm extremely frustrated.
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Post by sleepingbooty on Feb 20, 2022 21:23:08 GMT
Farrow & Ball's Cornforth White is a soft grey with pretty neutral undertones that is known in the decorating world for pairing well with a great range of blue shades. It's both sophisticated and inviting. Ultimately though, everything will depend on your natural light and orientation.  ETA: There is also the ever-polarising duo from Benjamin Moore, Revere Pewter vs Accessible Beige. RP is an actual greige but I find AB's slightly warmer undertones more pleasing, personally.  |
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Sue
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,238
Location: SE of Portland, Oregon
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Post by Sue on Feb 20, 2022 21:36:33 GMT
Here's a Pinterest page that you might find inspirational. Although it's not exactly what you thought you might like to do in your living room, I find the top picture of the traditional room quite pretty. And it uses the color blue so well. I think a light vanilla cream wall color would be nice with the blue. |
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Post by hennybutton on Feb 20, 2022 21:50:12 GMT
My living room is Sherwin Williams Sea Salt. I went with their Oyster Bay in my family room. We painted both about 6 years ago and I still love the colors. I'm planning on painting our smaller bedrooms in Sea Salt sometime this year.
Sea Salt is a light blue green that changes color depending on the furnishings and lighting. The swatches look green in the store, but on my walls, they lean more towards blue. It has enough gray in it to work where gray works.
Whatever you do, you need to test your color before you start painting entire rooms. You have to spens time with the color on different walls and at different times of day. There's a paint shortage going on now, so you may not be able to get sample cans. But there's a great site called Samplize that has 12x12 samples of real paint on a moveable peel and stick paper. It's a wortwhile investment to make sure you don't end up with a color you hate.
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quiltz
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,741
Location: CANADA
Jun 29, 2014 16:13:28 GMT
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Post by quiltz on Feb 20, 2022 22:12:41 GMT
Check the "recipe" for the paint colour.
If there is a little bit of yellow in the recipe, it is considered a "warm" colour or undertone.
If there is a little bit of blue tinge in the recipe, it is considered a "cool/cold" colour or undertone.
IT is difficult but stay within either cool or warm undertones.
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Post by dewryce on Feb 20, 2022 22:38:44 GMT
My best advice is to paint the colors on the 2 x 2 sample boards and try leaning them against different walls/or on different tables against the wall, in the same room at different times during the day. Especially with the color range you are considering. What might look great on one wall in the morning could look terrible on the wall next to it in the evening. And this color can be so hard to get right, I’d decide on it and then decide on a blue if you’re able to.
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Post by Crack-a-lackin on Feb 20, 2022 22:56:49 GMT
SW Anew Gray or BM Edgecomb Gray might work. Edgecomb is light and on tests in my house it’s very beige (I wanted more color) and Anew is a darker greige, though (in my house) not as dark as it appears online.
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knitnmomma
Junior Member
Posts: 66
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Post by knitnmomma on Feb 21, 2022 1:03:23 GMT
Benjamin Moore Northampton Putty is a nice color. We have it in a family room.
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Post by malibou on Feb 21, 2022 1:17:51 GMT
I really like BM Edgecomb Grey. It's a nice greige.
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Post by sideways on Feb 21, 2022 1:50:16 GMT
Go here to learn about color and undertones. People can make recommendations, but you need to pick something with the right undertones to work with what you already have. A “warm” griege has the potential to clash with blue depending on what the undertones are. www.mariakillam.com |
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Post by JustKim on Feb 21, 2022 5:47:18 GMT
I would get a sample and paint an area to see if you like it. Sample cans are inexpensive. I do this so I can see what it looks like with my lighting, daylight and evening. When I painted the outside I put 3 colors up and looked at them for a week before I confirmed my choice.
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Gennifer
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,039
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Post by Gennifer on Feb 21, 2022 5:59:41 GMT
My trim is painted Balboa Mist (Benjamin Moore) and I think it’s a lovely greige. It works both with my cooler white walls and my warmer white oak floors.
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Post by sunnyd on Feb 21, 2022 7:43:58 GMT
I work with lots of new construction clients so I see the gamut of paint colors people choose. I personally don't like accent walls. I'd rather accent with pillows, art and other decor. I would take note of the LRV (light reflective value) of the colors you are considering. I personally would choose a main paint color with a LRV of at least 70.
Revere Pewter is gorgeous but it's dark and depending on the natural light, can go very green. I painted one house (with tons of natural light) Revere Pewter & it was perfect. Tried it at another house and it was SO DARK. The LRV is only 55.
I just had a client use Sherwin Williams Fleur de Sel and it's gorgeous. LRV is 72. I wish my house was this color.
Also, SW Alabaster LRV is 80. It's warmer. My buyers that have used it, love it! It's very popular.
My current house is SW Agreeable Gray. I loved it when we painted 4 years ago but it's darker than I want now. LRV is only 60.
Do you know the name of the current gray color that is too gray? What color of gray did dh's aunt recommend?
Picking paint color is hard!
ETA: We flipped a house last year & ended up with a custom color by requesting Sherwin Williams Repose Gray with only 25% of the pigment. I loved it and we are planning to do that again. You can buy quart samples at Sherwin Williams for around $5 before you fully commit to a color.
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Post by peasapie on Feb 21, 2022 11:47:29 GMT
My trim is painted Balboa Mist (Benjamin Moore) and I think it’s a lovely greige. It works both with my cooler white walls and my warmer white oak floors. I love Balboa Mist. Here is a link to a few similars colors with Balboa Mist included. www.tagandtibby.com/blog/8-of-the-best-greige-paint-colors |
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Post by cmhs on Feb 21, 2022 13:33:04 GMT
I painted my living room SW Accessible Beige last summer and I'm very happy with it. My room is northeast facing so it doesn't get a lot of direct light. Our living room opens onto our dining room which is painted a light blue. I think the two colors works well together.
I wanted a greige that was more beige than grey and I couldn't be happier with the choice.
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Post by craftedbys on Feb 21, 2022 14:30:12 GMT
I just want to say first off, pick colors *you* like and don't worry about what is trendy or the online "things that make your house dated" articles say.
Go to the paint display and look at the color section that YOU are drawn to. From that section pick a wide variety of color strips that you like.
Take them home and start narrowing it down by asking yourself what color undertones you want. For instance do you want a grey that has more blue or more green.
Eliminate the ones that don't have the right undertone.
Eliminate anything that you no longer like because looks different than it did in the store.
Keep narrowing it down until you have a few shades you like before doing the test patches.
Be sure to place the test board in different areas of the room so you can see them at different times of the day.
You may have to go through several test patches before you find the color you like.
I went through five different color choices for my kitchen before I went with the one I did. I didn't notice with the small test patches that depending on the light source the grey will sometimes read more purple/lilac and I really love it.
Remember, at the end of the day it is just paint. If you decide you don't like it once it is on the wall, just paint over it.
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Post by maryland on Feb 21, 2022 14:40:25 GMT
I work with lots of new construction clients so I see the gamut of paint colors people choose. I personally don't like accent walls. I'd rather accent with pillows, art and other decor. I would take note of the LRV (light reflective value) of the colors you are considering. I personally would choose a main paint color with a LRV of at least 70. Revere Pewter is gorgeous but it's dark and depending on the natural light, can go very green. I painted one house (with tons of natural light) Revere Pewter & it was perfect. Tried it at another house and it was SO DARK. The LRV is only 55. I just had a client use Sherwin Williams Fleur de Sel and it's gorgeous. LRV is 72. I wish my house was this color. Also, SW Alabaster LRV is 80. It's warmer. My buyers that have used it, love it! It's very popular. My current house is SW Agreeable Gray. I loved it when we painted 4 years ago but it's darker than I want now. LRV is only 60. Do you know the name of the current gray color that is too gray? What color of gray did dh's aunt recommend? Picking paint color is hard! ETA: We flipped a house last year & ended up with a custom color by requesting Sherwin Williams Repose Gray with only 25% of the pigment. I loved it and we are planning to do that again. You can buy quart samples at Sherwin Williams for around $5 before you fully commit to a color. Great info! Do you have any photos of the SW fleur de sel in the house? Or the Repose Gray with 25% of the pigment? They sound very nice (I googled the colors). I like a very light paint color. But something that makes the white trim stand out. I once used off white SW Dover White in our foyer, and in our house it looked green. So I am nervous about green undertones.
It must be fun to see the paint colors your clients pick!
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iluvpink
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,310
Location: Michigan
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Post by iluvpink on Feb 21, 2022 19:14:30 GMT
Thanks everyone. This is helping. I'm looking up some of the terms. Tomorrow we are going to go to Sherwin Williams together and look some more. I will check out the colors suggested here etc.
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Post by rst on Feb 22, 2022 1:00:05 GMT
Following along and gleaning ideas. We're re-doing our kitchen and attached sitting room. Choosing paint color has potential to be polarizing in our house.
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Post by chitchatgirl on Feb 22, 2022 2:27:55 GMT
I have grey walls with neutral and navy blue decor. Whatever you do, get test cans of paint for whatever you think you might like. Grey is weird in that depending on your room and your lighting it can looks waaay different than the swatch. We went through 15 samples until we landed on Agreeable Gray for our livingroom. Some would look purple, some were too dark. Some that we thought would be sure hits looked weirdly moldy greenish. It was crazy. I’ve had the same problem with finding the perfect navy blue and I’m still looking.
I cannot overstate the need for sample paint enough. And paint it on different walls in the room. Then wait a few days. You’ll quickly figure out what you like.
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Post by imkat on Feb 22, 2022 2:50:35 GMT
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Post by Legacy Girl on Feb 22, 2022 9:20:10 GMT
Here's a Pinterest page that you might find inspirational. Although it's not exactly what you thought you might like to do in your living room, I find the top picture of the traditional room quite pretty. And it uses the color blue so well. I think a light vanilla cream wall color would be nice with the blue. I wish I had the home to pull this off. Just beautiful. TFS! |
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