50 Shades of Gray
Gray is hotter than ever, thanks to a hit novel full of risks and dark secrets. Tell us: Which paint shade possesses you?
Rachel Grace
June 27, 2012
Houzz Contributor
As E L James’ erotic novel Fifty Shades of Grey is flying off bookstore shelves, shades of gray paint are rocking sales at hardware stores as well, making gray the most talked-about color of the summer.
We’ve compiled 50 of Houzz’s most popular gray spaces to help you find the perfect gray. Whether you go light with Martha Stewart’s Dolphin, midtone with Benjamin Moore’s Gray Horse or dark with James Hardie’s Iron Gray, we guarantee you’ll find an irresistible gray here for you.
Then tell us: We’d love to know your answers to these two very important questions:
We’ve compiled 50 of Houzz’s most popular gray spaces to help you find the perfect gray. Whether you go light with Martha Stewart’s Dolphin, midtone with Benjamin Moore’s Gray Horse or dark with James Hardie’s Iron Gray, we guarantee you’ll find an irresistible gray here for you.
Then tell us: We’d love to know your answers to these two very important questions:
- What’s your favorite shade of gray paint? Please tell us the paint name, number and manufacturer.
- Who would have been your celebrity pick to play Christian Grey in a movie version?
The only competition Benjamin Moore's Tundra 2133-70 has to being the perfect gray is Christian Grey himself.
For a pale and subtle gray, choose Benjamin Moore's Gray Owl OC-52. It's the color I specify in every home I design.
Valspar's Rugged Suede contrasts beautifully with the white subway tile in this New Jersey bathroom.
Cool and bright, Benjamin Moore's Storm AF-700 is a true medium-tone gray.
Walls in Dolphin by Martha Stewart are a soothing choice for a baby's first room.
If you can't have Christian Grey in your tub, gray walls surrounding it are the next best thing. Graytint 1611 by Benjamin Moore is a handsome option.
Looking for a neutral paint color for kitchen cabinets? SW6192 Coastal Plain by Sherwin-Williams is a great option.
With loads of natural light, these kitchen walls in Solitude AF-545 by Benjamin Moore are radiant!
For a rich, dark gray choose Benjamin Moore's Kendall Charcoal HC-166.
Chelsea Gray HC-168 by Benjamin Moore is a mid- to dark-tone gray that pairs perfectly with architectural moldings.
Light enough for the walls and the ceiling, Behr's Prelude is the perfect choice for this nursery.
Benjamin Moore's Classic Color 1480 Sleigh Bells is a sumptuous light to midtone gray.
For a gray exterior consider James Hardie's Iron Gray JH90-30, handpicked by color pro Leslie Harrington.
Englewood Cliffs 1607 from Benjamin Moore is a midtone gray with a touch of purple.
Benjamin Moore's Iceberg 2122-50 is a light, bright blue-gray that's great for rooms with loads of natural light.
Made in Britain, Farrow & Ball's Plummett 272 imitates the color of lead.
Ask Sherwin-Williams about a perfect naturally neutral gray, and they'll recommend SW7031 Mega Greige.
Walls in Martha Stewart's Zinc are dramatic against crown molding and Arts and Crafts trim in Benjamin Moore's CC-20 Decorators White.
Benjamin Moore's Ashley Gray HC-87 is a muted shade of gray with a slight olive tint.
Just off the kitchen, pantry cabinets in Benjamin Moore's Rushing River 1574 contrast beautifully against the kitchen's creamy cabinetry.
Benjamin Moore's Raccoon Hollow 978 is part of the Classic Color Collection. It works beautifully with pebble flooring.
These living room walls in Intense White OC-51 by Benjamin Moore look fabulous in an eggshell finish.
Gray and yellow create the perfect pairing. I especially like Benjamin Moore's Iron Mountain 2134-30 used in an exterior setting with mustard accents.
Olive and gray meld together like the book's Christian and Ana to create Benjamin Moore's Hampshire Gray HC-101.
Feel free to combine many grays in a single space. This living room features walls in Benjamin Moore's AF-685 Thunder and upholstery in three different shades.
It's a Benjamin Moore trifecta! The walls are Gray Horse 2140-50, the ceiling is Decorators White CC-20 and the trim is White Dove OC17.
Choosing dark base cabinets and light upper cabinets is in vogue. CliqStudios' bottom Rockford cabinets in Harbor look sensational.
Silvery Moon 1604 is the perfect choice for walls in a nursery where you'll read Goodnight Moon countless times.
Painting your kitchen cabinets is a great way to update your kitchen. Interior designer Jason Ball specified Behr's Dark Granite 780F-6 for the cabinets in this cookery modernization.
With white cabinetry and white subway tile, these walls painted SW7642 Pavestone by Sherwin-Williams pop.
Pairing Benjamin's Moore HC-159 Philipsburg Blue (the vanity) with 2127-60 Feather Gray (the walls) proved to be an excellent choice by Jones Design Build.
For a beachy gray-green, select SW 6204 Sea Salt by Sherwin-Williams. Can't you just smell the salt air?
AC-30 Winter Gates by Benjamin Moore is a midtone gray with a generous helping of brown. It's one of America's most popular colors.
Available at Home Depot, Glidden's Granite Grey is easy to get your hands on.
C2 may be the only paint company in the country that makes color chips with actual paint. Get yourself a sample of the Alloy C458 shown here.
Benjamin Moore's Classic Color 1600 Timber Wolf is a rich blend of blue and gray.
Benjamin Moore's Abalone 2108-60 is part of Candice Olson's Designer Picks collection for good reason.
Walls in Benjamin Moore's Solitude AF-545 pop against the white wainscoting and built-in dining banquette.
Pittsburgh Paints' Dover Gray 518-5 is an excellent exterior color choice, especially when paired with trim in Gypsum 520-1.
Sherwin-WIlliams' SW7664 Steely Gray brings out the wood tones of this natural maple.
Considered an off-white color by Benjamin Moore, Balboa Mist OC-27 is a lovely option for a very light gray paint.
Dark base cabinets in Sherwin-Williams' SW6249 Storm Cloud ground this open-floor-plan kitchen.
Shaker-style kitchen cabinets come alive painted in Gray 2121-10 by Benjamin Moore.
Benjamin Moore's HC-169 Coventry Gray works marvelously with stark white cabinetry and black countertops.
Match the top of your tray ceiling with your walls, just as Lowery Design Group has done in this dining room with Benjamin Moore's La Paloma Gray 1551.
When creating a frame collage, it's smart to feature the artwork on a wall painted in a neutral, such as Benjamin Moore's Gray Huskie 1473.
Weaver Custom Homes painted the beadboard wainscoting in Sherwin-Williams' SW7035 Aesthetic White and the wall above in SW7504 Keystone Gray.
For a rich bluish gray choose Benjamin Moore's London Fog 1541.
Gray is a neutral that works beautifully with other neutrals. Walls in Baby Seal DE6361 by Dunn Edwards work brilliantly with the brown saddle leather seating and dashes of black and white in this Newport Beach, California, living room.
Reminiscent of the majestic white oak, Benjamin Moore's Pale Oak OC-20 is part of Candice Olson's Designer Picks collection.
Your turn. Which is your favorite? And who should play Christian Grey in the movie?
Next: 20 More Gray Paint Picks | More Ways to Decorate With Gray
Your turn. Which is your favorite? And who should play Christian Grey in the movie?
Next: 20 More Gray Paint Picks | More Ways to Decorate With Gray
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What color is this is the most popular question on Houzz...please see this blog before choosing your color. https://www.clawsonarchitects.com/blog-entry/2019/1/7/what-color-is-that-an-update-on-how-to-choose-colors-for-your-home