I love decorating except for one teensy weensy — okay, big — part. Painting. Not just the actual slapping of the paint on the wall (which I dread, especially in my large living room) but also the picking out of the paint color. It starts at the paint store, where I walk in, confident as can be, and then immediately crumple when confronted with over two hundred kinds of white paint. This time, I felt sure I had it easy. I only had to pick one paint out of three, suggested by my friends when I told them what I was looking for.
I'd like a very pale light grey with a lot of white in it that will give off a cool, contemporary, modern loft vibe. My choices: Gray Owl, Classic Gray and Abalone. My furniture: white Eames-style Plycraft chair, light charcoal grey couch, mostly brown and white hide rug, kilim pillows, Moroccan pouf, white curtains.
Looking at the paint swatches in the store, Classic Gray seemed like the obvious choice. But no, I was going to do things right this time and test out the colors at home.
Instead of painting straight onto the walls (my usual tactic), I picked up a couple of small 8x10 canvases at the art supply store (they come in a pack of 5 for about $5) and a mini foam brush. I slapped the paint onto the canvases one night and set them out to check out how the paint fared in my living room. Classic Gray had a yellowish tinge, Abalone looked brown and Gray Owl was a little cool and a little blue. I walked around the room with it, holding it against the items in the room and it made everything pop. Well, that was easy, I thought to myself, Gray Owl it is. And I went to bed.
In the morning, I went to collect my little canvases. Uh oh, what's going on? Gray Owl looked a little dark, like a dirty light blue in the morning light; Classic Gray read too light and Abalone, too brown last night, was the perfect pale gray in morning sun. I left the canvases, perplexed.
In the afternoon, things changed again. In the deepening shadows, Classic Gray was again the winner. I can't really paint my living room three colors! How am I going to decide which color to go with? Evening color, morning color or afternoon color? I work out of the house so I'll be living with the colors throughout the day.
I'd really like your input. What do you guys think?
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Comments (50)
I'm leaning toward Grey owl- from both photos I think that's the one I would definitely choose.
I think in the top picture, they mostly look the same. While they aren't actually the same, these grays are so similar to each other that any one of them will likely be a winner.
grey owl, from what I can tell from the photo...
I've used all 3 colors! Love the Ben Moore. I would first either paint a larger foam board for a truer, bigger color reveal. If you've bought pints, go ahead and paint your colors on the wall in various spaces (dark corner, bright corner etc.) Since one can't help but be influenced by the current wall color (reads as a yellow-toned neutral), you may consider priming part of a wall white first. If you really want to get neurotic about it that is. However, my experience has been Gray Owl is pretty much perfect. It has a very subtle blue undertone. I don't like Abalone because of it's "touch of pink" base, and Classic Gray could read as a off-white, not a soft gray. It should look intentional.
My choice would be grey owl, but after I read what you were looking for, I would probably suggest abalone.
Which brand is abalone? I painted my former office abalone - and while I loved the color, it had an unusually strong tendency to shift colors with changing light and often looked closest to a pale lavender (not so far from the pearly color on the inside of... an abalone shell...). It was very pretty but it did not look grey very often.
I like grey owl. But these colors are so similar this is almost a joke.
Why wouldn't you just paint some big swatches on the actual wall?
Grays fall either in the cold (blue) or warm (brown) family, and are rarely truly neutral. I prefer lighter or very dark grays and have found middle tones to rob the light out of a room. The surrounding colours can influence the feel of a gray. A bluish gray, cold by itself, may feel warm when placed near an orange object, its complementary colour. I prefer very light neutral grays, pearl grays, which complement creams, light green and blues, and look fabulous with metals and glass.
My bedroom is painted resene Athens Grey which is I think is in the middle of the grey owl / Abalone, it ranges from a cool slip of a color in the morning to a faded lavender in afternoon light, and blue grey at night, its that range that makes it so appealing. Great suggestion from K&K Colour on painting a foam board, remember to move it around a bit. I usually just do test swatches on the wall 30 cm x 30 cm by the woodwork. just remember to paint them back to white before overpainting.
I just went through your EXACT same dilema, same colors and everything, about 3 weeks ago. I ended up choosing Gray Owl. I am very happy with my choice. I was also really worried about it being too dark, especially in the morning light. Once I had all my walls painted, it was not too dark at all. I actually wonder if I should have gone a tiny bit darker. Sometimes, I think that there is not enough contrast between the wall color and the white ceiling. So, now I want to install crown molding.
Seems like you're not thrilled with any of those.
I painted my whole apartment in BM Silver Satin - a neutral, classic gray.
If you're going to be painting the wall then why do the colour samples on canvas?
I think painting the canvas instead of the wall keeps your place from looking like crap while you make up your mind.
i wouldn't put the colors you are choosing from in front of the yellow, because that is not going to be an element in the room, and it changes the way the colors that you are considering looks.
Also, give yourself some time. Keep looking at them in different lighting and with different elements in the room. If you imbibe, do so, and then hold the color up, relax your eyes and try to see the color covering a larger area.
Definitely abalone. It's grey, but has a rich enough color palette to pick up changes in light color and quality. The others are too blue.
Yes, don't evaluate them around the yellow, and also don't evaluate them near each other.
Grey Owl for the win.
I agree with moonleib, abalone.
owl
Hi
All the colors are lovely but I think Gray Owl is your winner.
Abby - this is great! I would go with Grey Owl, looks to be my fav shade of grey. Good luck!
i love the grey owl- my home is painted moth grey- which looks similar
i like grey owl.
Paint something that mimics a corner, because the color will reflect off itself. Some people paint the inside of a shoe box to see how four walls would look. You still need to move it and look at it in different light.
Grey owl looks best to me - the others are too washed out.
Put each one up to your face. Which one makes you look prettiest? Pick that one.
Doing much the same, was looking for a gray shade to put my blue/aqua/green/purple pottery against. A designer friend pointed me gray that I thought was disappointingly brown (Benjamin Moore ... "Gray Paloma?"... mmm, I'll have to find the name), but I got a sample of that and of the one that was my inclination, and painted small canvases. Put the pottery in front of both. Whaddya know -- they pop WAY more in front of her gray. I like the cooler grays, personally, but the warmer grays are the hot item stylistically right now. lol
Hey, skidou -- know the name of yours?
I like the abalone BUT have found that colors with a lavender-ish tint don't fare well under most normal lights; the yellow of the lights makes them muddy. I had to use blue-tinted lightbulbs in my lavender bedroom and was so glad to finally repaint (now the room's a very light glass-green with ultra-pure-white wainscotting, yum).
As K & K Colour says, the classic gray could look unintentionally off-white. I think it would look nice with a soft brown, lighter than your floors, but might not be enough of a contrast in your situation.
The slightly darker Gray Owl could complement the floors well, I think, as well as the white woodwork.
I know though, isn't it unbelievable how one day you can be 100% certain that one swatch is far better, and the next day feel completely different? For me, it happens even when the light DOESN'T change, LOL!
Grey Owl all the way.
I agree with skidou. I say go with the grey owl, and if it is too blue at night, do something like have bright orange curtains or red/orange/pink warm accents to brighten up the space. Also, if you like the look during the day, more than at night, play with the color of your lightbulbs. i.e. not just wattage but "day light" vs "full spectrum" etc... Many CFL bulbs like GE's reveal and others, filter out the warm tones emitted by other lightbulbs resulting in a "cooler light" if you switch to a warmer light, you might find the color is closer to what you have with the sun during the day.
to see what i mean http://www.gelighting.com/na/home_lighting/products/reveal_tour/foyer.htm
my vote: grey owl, a too blue gray is easier to fix than a too brown grey. In my experience it is easier to warm a grey that is too cool than to cool a grey that is too warm like the abalone.
just painted our entire condo grey owl..Love it..
I have grey owl in our bedroom. We accented everything with yellow- yellow mirror, yellow lamps, and crisp white curtains. I threw down a few faux sheepskin rugs and its the most luxurious room in the house! I would definitely recommend it. Its very calm and soothing, but the pops of color make it super fun, too.
Really, try Silver Sage BM. It's perfect. At least try it.
You did exactly what I always tell my clients to do : live with the color swatches for a few days in diff light. Here is my opinion: Gray Owl up top is blue-ish, Classic Gray bottom left is prob what you want (you said you wanted a white-gray), Abalone bottom right is a warm gray, with more of a brown,dare I say, even purple background which is what I would usually go for expect this one still has a touch too much blue in it for my taste. I chose 'Ashes' by Behr for my own home. Perhaps a little darker than what you had in my mind -but I have no regrets ...it goes with everything and I love it : you can check it out here : http://julieloveshome.wordpress.com/2011/04/05/my-entry-hall/
Good luck!
Julie
It's difficult to tell due to the variations in computer screens what colour would work well for you in your home. Looking at my fan deck, I can tell you that if you want a true gray, classic gray is the way to go. Abalone has a purply brown hue, and could end up looking muddy. Gray owl definitely has a blue base, so if you were looking for something warm, you should stay away from it. If you're worried about classic gray being too light, you may want to choose another from the same paint strip; I suggest winds breath.
Keep in mind too that gray is the ultimate neutral. It will make any other colour in your room appear true, so any colour is going to really pop. If you don't want the browns you already own to pop, you may wish to go with a gray that has a brownish hue.
Ah, completely disagree with an earlier poster, it is hard to pick a grey! Think I went through 20 swatches... Anyways I painted my apartment in Grey Owl. I love it, it's very soothing, howev it does read blue. In the morning it can almost look powder blue. I think paint an entire wall with it & see how you like it.
abalone looks the whitest grey.
I recently painted my apt a few months back Behrs dolphin fin after agonizing over various greys.
It is a silverish grey with tons of white. It looks almost like a shadow in some corners and I love how it subtle changes color throughout the day.
I have East/West windows on both sides of the apt so I tend to get shady at noon and dark earlier and its totally lightened up my space.
I think with any of those grays you chose though you wont go wrong.
I've got Abalone in my kitchen and a hallway along with Silver Fox. FYI they go lavender in my house in shadowy light. I personally wanted a shade of gray that shifted slightly during different times of the day, so I love it. Silver Fox is especially purple in the evenings.
Grey Owl!!.
I like Grey Owl. It has a cool modern vibe to it.
I say go dark, at least darker than your couch. Based on your description, I think a darker gray will make the items in your room stand out more. If I remember right, I used BM's Wolf Gray in our home office [see first pic in next post about Etsy workspaces].
Gray is a very difficult color to pick out, but it does go with everything. I have three different shades of gray painted on my walls! Hope you find the right fit : )
Classic grey looks closest to your description of a pale, light grey with a lot of white - it would make a lovely backdrop for your furnishings, and goes nicely with the dark wood floor. Grey Owl looks very blue/cool, and Abalone has purple/warm undertones.
From the photos and descriptions of other items in your space, I'd vote for Gray Owl. It seems to have a nice soft blue undertone to it, which would be a nice contrast to the charcoal gray that you mentioned. Gray Owl would probably also work better with the yellow in your photos than your other gray choices.
I totally get what you mean about the amazing difference through the day/night, however. After many years of living in a rental with white walls, it was a revelation to me when I bought a place and was trying paint samples and (gradually committing to one color or another) and seeing how they changed in appearance over the course of a 24-hour cycle.
After you decide and paint your space, it'd be cool to see more photos of the completed job, no matter what color you wind up going with. Good luck! Enjoy!
Seriously? They all look the same...
Just eeny-meeny-miny-mo it!
Gray owl...the others don't have enough pigment in my opinion.
I'd go with the Grey Owl, but if you do end up going back to the paint store for one more try, give Moonshine a shot. It's a little greener than Grey Owl, so it won't look as 'cool' or blue in some lights. I love Abalone, but in my house, it always goes pink-y/brown.
grey owl!
IMO, you're going to be disappointed with any of those. I've used each while looking for my own perfect wall color, and none have the tones you say you're looking for. What's more, it's going to be nigh impossible to make a good choice using swatches while your room is still that bright yellow - the reflection from the walls is going to throw you off. Try painting your walls with white primer first. THEN start swatching - big swatches. Whole corners work well, as has already been suggested. Live with the swatches for a couple of days and then decide.
if you really want to be sure, by a quart, paint a large swatch in each room, and live with it for a week or so. You're going to paint all the walls anyway. And I agree that putting your swatches next to yellow walls can throw all the gray colors off.
Also, consider the finish you're going to use. Eggshell will look slightly different than flat, which will look different than gloss. The tiny samples only come in eggshell (at least with BM). I bought Nimbus in a sample and was amazed at how different it looked when we bought a quart later in flat. The eggshell looked green-gray, the flat had more violet.