Are you installing any backsplash tile?

And I would lean towards doing a bold accent color on the wall you indicated and then carrying the main room color over to the next room (great room).

I love this for the backsplash for this kitchen, but not with the marble countertop---I think it would clash. Simple white subway tile would probably be best.

[houzz=]

These were done using S-W's Color Visualizer. Edgy Gold + Netsuke. Sassy Green + Mindful Gray. Denim + Tony Taupe. (Not necessarily in that order - the photos files are saved with the paint names)

I would not try to 'settle' on a color until your floor is exposed so you can get a better feel for how it is going to look in the overall space. Your ebony-finish floors are going to make the space feel dramatically different than what you've got going on right now.
I would certainly do a design board (piece of cabinet color, floor color, countertop piece) and look at it in your actual kitchen lighting to get some paint ideas. But I think you are going to feel differently about the space once the floors are exposed. You may even feel like you prefer a more simple pallette, keeping the walls an off white with certain 'tones' of color, rather than a fully saturated color. Hard to know for sure....
Something must have inspired you to go with those beautiful cabinets and dramatic floor. Go back to your inspiration pictures, maybe they will help you with wall color.
Lastly, keep in mind that you can accent with color through your backsplash (though I prefer a tmeless subway with your elements), counter accessories, pictures, etc.

You mention a lot of afternoon sun. That is important to keep in mind as that sun will impact your colors. Your cabinets are beautiful, so there is your gray. Take a look at BM patriotic white. It will hold its own against the sun. I learned the hard way. I painted a west facing dressing room Monroe bisque because it complimented the bathroom marble. Yuk and yuk! It turned the ugliest yellow when that sun came around the house :>)

There is a general rule to use cool undertones on south and west facing rooms and warm for north and east facing rooms, because of the sun.

I have Storm in my diing room (with a light blue ceiling) and love it! But I can't say it will be right for you. Beige looks good with grey. Also, Dove White is another favorite of the designers on Houzz.

Anyway love your kitchen!

Love ccwatters advice! I also thought about looking back at design pictures - particularly of the Pottery Barn pieces and your cabinetry inspirations.

Thanks everyone for your great advice. Yes, I am going to do a backsplash and will probably do it in white subway tile. Can't afford that until after I have moved in.
I visited another BM store today and brought a sample of my cabinet to try to match some colors. The guy at the store put it under his computer and came up with the color BM graystone. I went up the color chip and got some samples of silver chain and gray huskie which were lighter colors and it really blended well with the tone of the cabinets. Got some big chips to bring to the house tomorrow to see how it looks with the lighting at different times of the day. Wish me luck.
My kid got a pedestal sink and I have no cabinets in the laundry so I could get these gray cabinets. Want to make sure I choose the right color. Thanks again for your help.
My inspiration piece? A oval staub graphite cast iron pot I got off the sale rack at Williams Sonoma . See picture with the pot and cabinet against my floor.

Nice...it seems you know what you want. I think you should just go for it and be brave! Here are a couple pics I found on Houzz. The one with the red is cool. Just thought I would throw it in there.

I know you said you want color, but I agree with all that said to wait until your floor is exposed to decide. I think a gray and white kitchen is beautiful. Use your Pottery Barn white dishes against a white wall. It will look classic and clean. Pop in some yellow accessories too. Love, love gray and yellow.

Only problem is that this is a whole great room. Next to the kitchen is a dining room and beyond that is the living. I need to unify the space and I need a light gray color on the wall. I plan to use brown furniture and pop color thru accessories. Then I need to have other gray colors flow thru the house. I have a entrance hall and stairwell that continues thru the great room. I have a brown wood distressed table that will go in the dining area. My couch is chocolate velvet. (Which will change in the future). I am putting two benson pendants above the peninsula.
This is a picture standing the kitchen. I have lots of light in the space.
Any suggestions?
Thanks

http://houzz.com/photos/681797

Just an idea for inspiration. I think something extra special on the fireplace wall would be great. Then leave the rest very neutral. Your house is gorgeous. I love the kitchen cabinets.

Again, I would wait until your ebony floors are exposed before buying a couple gallons of paint. I wanted to point out, however, that it looks like you have a substantial 'separation' between your kitchen and dining area. So I don't think you need just one color for the walls of all your rooms (kitchen/dining/living) and hallways.
If I had to pick a direction without the floors being exposed, I would keep the kitchen walls a white (BM Dove White maybe) to keep that area very bright due to the gray cabinets. Again, you can accesorize with kitchen countertop decor or backsplash (though I'd choose white subway/gray grout or marble subway).
In the dining room---if I had to pick a direction without the floors---I might go with BM Revere Pewter which is a beautiful tan/gray neutral that is a perfect backdrop for just about any color. You would have to make sure it complements the particular gray tone of your cabinets, of course, but it's one idea. Again, you could bring in more 'color' by way of pictures on walls, vases, etc. You could even put the Revere Pewter in the kitchen if it ends up wotking with your gray on your cabinets, but I personally would keep the walls bright and let that room kind of sparkle on its own, a bit of a focal point.

If you don't want to go with a tan neutral in the Revere Pewter, BM Alaskan Husky is another color I think is beautiful. It is a very quiet pale blue/gray. Don't be fooled by the paint swatch, put it against white and you can see how pretty it is.

I would lean toward "light" colors, however, as you are going to have a very dark floor.

I also have crystal cabinets and I am very happy with them. We stayed with a light color that picks up on the gray tones. Benjamin Moore Pale Oak. We also painted the ceilings the same color and it looks great. I am not crazy about an "accent wall" I think it will take away from the great color of your cabinets.

how about a nice soft sage green. Shades of green are great with gray.

Hockey456 made methinks of Pottery Barn's colors. I found this picture and I am in love.

Went to the Benjamin Moore store and they put a cabinet sample under their computer. Came up with cape may cobblestone 1471. Went up the chip to a lighter color and chose silver chain. Really looks good in all the and places in the great area. Also painted the lighter color shoreline but seems like silver chain is the best. This color chip really blends with the cabinets much more than any other I have tried. Another friend recommended stonington gray ( brown tone), but this looked better. In the main areas I will use silver chain and in the study, laundry and powder I will go down and use cape may cobblestone. Below are two pictures of the cabinets with the lighter colors. Should I go lighter or darker?

I like the second picture. I assume it is the lighter one? It just looks so good with the cabinet color.

Second---
The first one brings out the cabs bluish/green undertone---paired with the cool grays of the cararra and bamboo flooring-the cabs will look even more green/blue---unless that's what you intend to have. Therefore the second is the better choice---I'm 99.9% certain of that. :)

Have a ?
Did you ever pick up those color charts I suggested? The colors you have are quite close-just a little off in undertone---just wondered..............

I actually kind of like the first one...and i LOVE your cabinet color. Very nice!

Hi Sym Rankin, Marie here.
Wow - gorgeous blank canvas. Well done. DO NOT pick your paint colour until you have decided on a few more key pieces in this space.

What colour are your dishes?
Are you going to be adding any furnishings in here?
Is there an opportunity to introduce fabric on chairs, window treatments?
Tea Towels, oven mitts, all play a roll in your monotone palette, so do accessories
Do you want everything gray or do you want a pop of colour ? Where are you going to
put that colour?

DO NOT take advise for colour online, there are way too many variables.
My best advice for you - pick your top three or four paint swatches.
Tape those paint swatches to a blank piece of white paper.
Repeat this process about 5 to 7 times, (so you can hang that piece of paper on different walls).
Tape the pieces of paper with the paint chips on each wall facing a different direction
this obtains varying degrees of hue and saturation from natural sunlight hitting the colour.

THEN, at different times of the day, look at each piece of paper, the one your eye is drawn to
and appeals to the most at that moment - gets a "check mark".
At the end of a couple of days or a week of repeating this, the paint chip with the most check marks
is your perfect paint colour!

Good Luck I'm here to help if you need more info...

Got some sample pints and I have painted these colors everywhere in the house. Have the weekend to decide. I know it is hard to tell online but the silver chain works best with the tone of the cabinets. Remember this is a black highlight which takes the original paint to a completely different tone. The cabinet designer was over yesterday and thought the silver chain was better.
Answers to your questions...
Shelves will be iron corbels with reclaimed wood shelves. Two shelves on each side of the windows.
Dishes are pottery barn great white collection. I plan to bring color into the kitchen with accessories. Two benson pendents in polished nickel will be above the peninsula. Knobs on the cabinets will be an dark oil rubbed bronze I have a distressed medium brown farmhouse looking table with iron bottom that will be going into the dining area.
Will add color to the window seat and living room. In the cuter may do subway cararra or white tiles for a backsplash. The cabinets are beautiful and I want those to stand on their own.
Thanks again for everyone's help. Love your advice cause it helps with things I may have overlooked.

More pictures

I love where you are.going with your accessories! Can't wait to see the finished product!

Sym! Do you have any updated pictures of the finished product?? I am going through the exact same dilemma! I want to have gray cabinets; however the space opens up to the dining and living room (so I want the same color to unify the space and don't want to use white). What did you end up going with? Thank you!

I chose a Benjamin Moore color called silver chain. For the living and kitchen area. I went with two shades darker in the study, powder and bedrooms.
Take a look. My house was on Houzz.
http://www.houzz.com/projects/277026/energy-star-30-certified-home

http://www.houzz.com/projects/277026/energy-star-30-certified-home

Look under professionals in Illinois on Houzz. JB Architecture. They have pictures of my-house

after all that my cabinets have been painted much lighter gray called gray owl BM and Im having a major dilima on what to to do the rest of the kitchen and the whole bottom floor any advice on paint colors the kitchen is in the north side of home dont have pics to share yet

I have dark brown distressed bamboo floors. I love my marble counters. I would go two shades darker for the walls. With white woodwork it will pop. My whole house is painted in shades of gray. I use a different accent color in each room.

I have seen grey cabinets that went beautifully with peacock blue walls in a somewhat subdued shade. Color is a personal preference, of course, and I am suggesting this in case you do like blue.

We just updated to gray cabinets with black glaze and marble countertops. We painted the walls with a beautiful white with the tiniest hint of gray. There were already enough focal points in the room. The walls needed to recede into the background.

As you can tell by the pictures I also have darker gray cabinets with a black glaze. I used the color silver chain by BM for the walls. I was only allowed three colors and did the bedrooms, study and powder room two shades darker. The master suite was done in a more brown gray color, I think thunder. Love the way the house just flows.

SW Shoji white no question....

LOVE it! Now get your color with some great rugs, preferably orientals! You will love it!

I believe in color & not so matchy-matchy. So many kitchens are beautiful but they look as though we are still living in the black & white TV era. We live in Color. The more color-the more real.

My whole house is in shades of gray. I bring in all the color with accessories. I love that I can change the color with the seasons.

I've been looking for a gray paint for my cabinets. Your color is very close to what I had in mind. Your cabinets look great! You said the base color was Stonebridge....did you paint them yourself, and if so, could you tell me what store carries this color? Thanks!

There are some lovely blues with gray undertones. My daughters bath has grey stained maple cabinets and white tile with blue/grey walls.

I like this black glass tile with the black

Wait for the flooring before deciding on the wall color. Once the floors are in, compare several colors by painting samples on whiteboard and moving it around to test sun and lighting's effect and how it looks with the flooring. I would discourage any more gray. As already suggested, your "color" can come from your accessories: canisters, towels, curtains or window shades (custom Roman shades in a great Sunbrella fabric), a new mixer in your color (I would select the mixer first), pot holders, art, clock, etcetera. A kitchen needs lots of accessories. When you get tired of that color, put them away and add some other color for a mood change. I love orange or aqua with gray.

SW shoji white is perfect for your walls...OMG your cabinets are fabulous!!!

The cabinets were from Crystal. Stonebridge had a blue undertone but the color changed completely when we applied the black glaze.

The colored the cabinets were gray with a brown undertone after the glaze was applied.

Home Depot has an app that you can take a photo of your kitchen and add any color you want to it. I used it before and it's very helpful.

Karl this post is from 2016!

I need help! My kitchen cabinets are gray and my decor is red but I need a color for the dining room wall can anyone help me in this area.

@sdc1979 This is an old post. By creating your own one you would get more help.