Paint it BM Lenox Tan. My winter LR gets no natural light. I had originally painted it BM White Sand, but it was dull and cold. I painted it Lenox Tan last year, and BAM! It is GORGEOUS. It's gold w/o the green undertone of actual gold paint colors. It is warm and luxurious in the winter, like being wrapped in caramel.

It's a wonderful color. It has the perfect depth of color for a north facing room, or a room that doesn't get a lot of natural light.

I will have to check out this color. I am sure my monitor doesn't do the color justice. It appears to be a deep color, something I would not have considered for this room. Thanks.

You want a deeper color for a north-facing room.

http://www.mariakillam.com/a-light-colour-will-never-come-to-life-in-a-dark-room/

The best paint colours for North facing low-light rooms are medium-toned warm colours.

http://www.kylieminteriors.ca/the-best-most-popular-benjamin-moore-paint-colours-north-facing-northern-exposure-rooms/

i agree with tibbrix. deeper colors work better for north facing rooms. our family room (north facing) was peach when we moved in and it felt very cold. we painted sage green (olive tate by Behr) and it looks much warmer and cozier.

Thanks, I will have to check out the more deeper and saturated colors. Maybe this is where I am having my block with choosing a color.

I have a living room with an attached sunroom. It gets very little light and it comes from the north as well. I was looking for a lighter color that was still a "color," that would NOT have a green undertone-- I have an aversion to colors w/green undertones unless they are green. My D.R. is windowless as it's in the center of the house. We've had medium to dark colors in those rooms and they just feel so heavy.

Anyway, I have fallen in love with SW Caen Stone. I've tried large samples on walls in all of my rooms (LR, DR and sunroom) and it is lovely. It is from their historical collection (Colonial Revival). It is in the "yellow" category but does not look yellow, which I also did not want. It tends to be a little orange but not peachy. I have paired various accents with it to test out-- emerald, coral, blues, browns, etc. and it works so well with them all.

Historical Collection: Colonial Revival

If you are looking for more of a true gold (I was not), there are others in the collection.

Full Collection

If the orange tone doesn't bother you, let me know if you want pics. I hope to have some of the rooms completed this week and can take photos.

but what if you don't want a "deep" color, but a lighter neutral?

Violet, that was my issue. My FP is a really ugly brick and I am going to paint it-- but the last thing I wanted was a big, dark, painted FP. I know it looks good in some rooms, but it would not be an improvement in mine! I tested out the Caen Stone on it and it looks lovely. Warm and light but not pale/white.

It's not the color but how it works with light. Light colors reflect light, so they look best in rooms that have a lot of natural light. Medium, deeper toned colors don't absorb or reflect light, so they do best in rooms which have little natural light and rely on artificial light. Dark colors absorb light, so they are best used in rooms with a lot of natural light but with limited wall area to be painted.

so, violet west, a light neutral color is fine in a north-facing room, but it might be blah and drab as there is no light for it to reflect. Might look washed out and cold.

The Caen Stone has an LRV value of 68, which is quite light. The Lenox Tan has an LRV value of 43. Personally, in a north-facing room with little natural light, I would go with a color whose LRV value is closer to 50, which is the break-even point of light reflection and absorption.

I do think something like the Caen Stone would be great for a fireplace, anele. Darker walls, lighter trim and accoutrements, like painted fireplaces.

I used BM Cream Fleece (LRV 64.65) in my north facing LV. I like it a lot. It's warm and cozy but light enough so the room doesn't feel dark. It has a slight green undertone.

Tibb-- I should add, too, that my rooms do not have very much wall space. My sunroom is mostly windows, the LR has many large openings + the fireplace, and the DR has large openings + built-in bookcases. (This all makes furniture placement very tricky!) There wasn't a color that I liked enough to go with coral/orange/reds in a medium tone. Don't want grays, blues, greens, or true gold. Oh-- and my trim is not light. It is natural wood, medium-dark range. I wish I did love greens as they work so well with my trim!

oh, man, anele, then take advantage and go with a rich, dark color. It'll be gorgeous.

Tibb-- like I said-- I would except I could not come up with one that would work with coral. And I really want coral accents. Not light coral, but a deeper one.

Yes, if the trim is wood, then I would not use a dark color anyway.

Anele - I would love to see your finished pictures. However, one thing I did not mention that I have to consider is that this room has a brick fireplace in it where the bricks are a medium, rose tone. I fear anything leaning toward orange will not work well. That was my my reason for considering colors having gold or green undertones. Like you, I have stained wood trim in this room, but it is a medium shade. Possibly shades with a rose undertone would look okay too, but I haven't pursued those colors.

Prettybluehouse - I will check your recommendation.

Tibbrix - I can see why lighter shades may not do a lot because they seem to disappear in the darker areas and the color seems to get lost. However, how can you determine the LRV rating of the paints out there?

Brenda, if you take a look at the "color details" on the SW page for each color, the LRV number is there. I think they are on the back of color samples as well. On the BM site it shows up when you look at the color sample.

I can see your point about the pink bricks. Can you post a photo? That may help with color suggestions.

Take a look at the second link that Tibbex posted, where BM Linen White is listed as the best paint for low light North facing rooms. We have it in our LR and it is a very versatile warm white.

Brenda, and if you pull up a Benjamin Moore color, the LRV is noted to the left of the swatch.

Here is the online swatch, for example of BM Linen White. See the LRV to the right of the swatch?

In my north bedroom, which does have another facing window, I used BM's Castletown Mist @ 50% and just LOVE the soft color. I had held up some curtains today with coral accents and it looked so nice, but won't go with the rug. Living room and hall are BM Beacon Hill damask, also lovely and flow well into the CM.

Most paint chips will have the LRV. Even if you don't have the chip, Google will give it to you.

We bought a house painted linen white and I'm not as much of a fan. For me, it reads too yellow. I've repainted one room that doesn't get much natural lightBenjamin Moore's pale oak. It looks griege with a greenish tint in certain light. One day I'll brave a richer, darker hue.

this would be nice too, a lighter version of the Lenox Tan. BM Wheeling Neutral LRV 51.55.

The main rooms of my house face north and it is in Maine (gets dark early in winter). I have chosen Benjamin Moore's Classic Gray after trying hundreds of dollars worth of paint samples. It is a tad warmer than many of the popular grays out there and is quite light and bright feeling.

BM Classic Gray

Okay, thanks, I see the LRV reading. Definitely some paint options I never considered. Here is a picture of my rose tone fireplace bricks.

That's actually really nice brick. I wouldn't paint it. Rather, I'd stain the mantel a darker color and remove the brass doors and get a black flat screen.

I have SW Blonde in my North facing dining room. There is a tree in front of the one window and the room is darkish most of the time. I agree to try a more saturated color. The lighter colors in my room didnt work, they all looked gray and dull. Here is a pic- the color is a goldish brown

I just went through the process of selecting paint for a north facing bedroom. The room gets very little natural light in the winter and in the summer it gets a small amount of morning light through an east facing wall. After trying several deeper colors that sort of sucked the life out of the room, I took a chance with SW summer white. It's a very soft yellow and the room now has a soft glow. It looks good with natural and artificial LED light (3000k). It is not dreary in the winter and not too bright in the summer. Everyone loves the color. I live in a lower latitude than most GWers so that might have something to do with how paint looks in my house and why the intense colors didn't work. I think it would look beautiful with coral accents or any shade of blue accent.

edited to add: I just saw the picture of your brick. Now I'm not sure if the summer yellow will work with the brick.

Wow Lori, now that was a thread stopper, LOL!! Just kidding, of course. However, I had to read your post several
times to make sure I was understanding it.
From the narrative, basically any color (that is not too bright/vivid)
is acceptable in a north facing room so long as it is close to its pure
(saturated) form, or only slightly muted (grayed). I can see that the less saturated a color is,
the more dull it becomes and, therefore, has less of a presence in this type of
light. However, I assume the LRV points
that tibbrix made should also still be taken into consideration to help avoid
colors that will suck up what little light these rooms get. From your definitions, even the blues and
grays would be acceptable in this type of light, even though those colors are
not recommended for northern light for the most part. BirchPoint recommended a gray
color that seems to work, so she has probably chosen a gray that falls along
the guidelines you have outlined. BTW,
the color wheel was helpful, thanks.

I will check into the colors everyone has suggested. I hope others won’t stop posting as there are
many color options available that I know they have tried out and found to be
successful for this lighting.

I need some help for picking a paint color for my north facing living room,den,dining room.I have been to the paint store buying sample pot after sample pot and every thing is looking faded and ugly.You see I have lime green pillows,dark chocolate couch,and many green plants with white curtains with gold thread leaf motif design.I came home with B moore paint color camofouge thinking it would look nice but once it was on the wall it was dirty grey.The only time was at night it seemed to pick up the curtain thread which was very pretty.I have another color b.moore georgian green and will try that tomorrow.I want my room to have a pretty serene look and my plants and huge fall painting to look nice but it seems nothing is working.I recently painted my kitchen cabinets grey and at certain times of the day they start to look blue,ugh and well i am not going to change that .I have a small living room,dining and den that is mostly open concept.When i go down the hallway towards the bedroom i wanted to paint the glass door a very vivid pretty color which i was thinking a bright lime green?I do like color but am not a huge fan of coral,peach,gold,or bright yellow.Will i be doomed with trying sample after sample and driving myself batty trying to figure this out?I would love some ideas of what to do?and mostly color choices before i go broke thanks.

Hi Dorothy, I was the originator of this thread on paint for a north facing room. There is some very good advice given. However, that you are dealing with gray cabinets, I am sure that would impact your color choices. Also, I strongly recommend you start your own thread on this topic. When you tack onto on older, rather long thread, you tend to get few responses. And, though it is well intentioned, I hope no one replies with a very detailed response on light, saturation, LRV, etc., because they have an in-depth understanding of light. I appreciate their knowledge, but believe it tends to stop other people from responding as they think their replies on color selection will be incorrect; such a detailed response can be overwhelming to understand. Let's face it, many people have an innate and natural ability to decorate (not me), whether or not they understand the "whys," and I looked forward to seeing their successful results. I personally prefer that detailed replies be emailed to me rather than posted. Definitely start you own thread and I wish you luck, I know how frustrating picking paint color is. Also, it might be helpful if you could post a picture or two so people can better see your situation.

Dorothy, I, too was faced with a north facing DR. Plus it has a screened in porch behind it. No light at all. I tried samples of various greens and yellows. The Sherwin Williams store rep suggested a color I thought was ugly! Bought a sample and loved it. Called Rice Paddy. Don't let the color on the swatch deter you as it did me. I love how it came out

And to corroborate much of what has been stated here, I had a north facing bedroom in my last home with low natural light. It was out of my comfort zone to go lavender on the walls BUT I was talked into painting it the lovely Ben Moore Affinity color, 'Slip' -- I had white linen window treatments (think breezy and airy), and white pintuck bedding with natural hardwood floors and natural wood furniture which helped ground the color so it didn't look too feminine. The ceiling that was once a very drab grayish white was repainted Cotton Balls and wow, just wow, what a transformation, it was my favorite room in the house .. so fresh and airy. Slip worked with all the white I had in the room and it's a beautiful elegant lavender, it really brightened up the space. I loved how fresh it looked and it made me realize my preference towards fresh clean colors vs dirty colors. So the moral of the story here, you don't need a dark rich color in a north facing room, and cotton balls is PERFECT to brighten up a north facing room without looking stark. Similarly, we went with BM 'snow on the mountain' in our basement with very little natural light and it totally brightened up the space and never looked cold. Thinking that a dark space needs a rich deep color is a misnomer.

Hello everyone. I loved all your suggestions above. Great stuff. I have a north facing living room with a large bay window so I do get plenty of light BUT I also have a taupe couch and an oversized chair that are giving me nightmares because I just can't find a wall color that works with the northern light and taupe couches. The colors I've tried either wash out my taupe and make it look dull and dirty or are a wash out on the walls. I just tried dark gray on two walls as accent but frankly, even though my couches stand out nicely I don't feel cozy but cold in the room now. Please help!

Divecarribean, I think your point about the ceiling is so important. I haven’t had my ceiling repainted since I painted (I need to learn to paint ceilings!) and the grayish white is very ugly. I don’t think it would matter quite as much in a bright room, but it looks awful in mine.

Also, just a general reminder that the right lightbulbs really help. Look for ones that create a warm glow... stay away from anything with a blue cast. Cree makes some great ones: Cree bulbs

I have a small bedroom north facing
I want to paint a costal paint colour light enough colour to go with light blues mints and white decor

Oh and the costal colour I would really like a warm colour other the. Grey or white

I love Benjamin Moore paint
Also very light light baby blue or very light light mint

Just can’t pick out the paint colour
Help

Heather I have Cake Stand Blue in my bedroom and have loved it for years (Martha Stewart Paint). I don’t know if you can still get it, but may be worth a look.

And is this Heather Schmidt from Texas???

your occasion is nature. so are the colors of nature or the colors of scenery in the end will be used for the north facing room. understanding the interpretation of all the colors on the color wheel and nature combined. knowing the base color undertones in paint which which happen to be your colors that don't work and knowing how the colors that don't work and why wrong colors don't achieve establish the best color and color outcomes of actual color. negative colors which and are used to create base colors for wall color to work as actual paint. knowing the rooms worst color is the hidden undertone within paint and later creates the perfect colors for the the north facing room. the north facing room enemy is violet, violet is entering as light appearing in the windows and darkening the rooms effect and it's glow is hiding the room's unknown beauty. so blues and greens disobey on walls but play an important role or part in art and color. these odd paint colors of blues and greens as wall paint that clash on walls later are the blue and green in nature and are the color keys to search for in color hiding in paints that said puts whites at they're best. these negative flat colors as keys for searching paints and paint colors that contain them and are useful and are the base colors in beautiful paint or beautiful rooms. using these horrid bases as color alone ruins the room but understanding how they work the way these bad colors work within colors are key to success for a north facing room. these horrid wrong blues grays and violets actually are the base colors that later on the walls become the perfect color for the north facing room. artists use theses horrid colors, colors that don't work as paint colors as your answer for the base color not a wall color but, base color only, which hide in paint and nature and worked together as paint. numerous colors of natures colors combined together form the perfect color for a north facing room. when these horrid wall colors are blended with combinations of color the color becomes the perfect color outcome or unknown color for the north facing room. love winter scenery ? vintage memories ? or winter art? these horrid stand alone colors for wall paint that annoy intensify the violets and don't work yet end up as base colors and hidden within paint are the true color within the color. later these hidden gem colors or base colors color bases work as color to blend decorating and paint together. by surprise like me, you'll find yourself pinning paintings and understudying paint galore;finally you'll be pinning colors like crazy unable to choose the perfect color because you'll find so many. like off whites and beautiful greens and grays. understanding outdoor nature color and base colors are the essential key. key to color works and creates the perfect room that color will encompass your home with warmth and connect your house cleanly while surrounding your house with art and home.. this and understanding violets being the issue and the violet the dominant invisible color of the north facing room. violet a key undertone in every and any form of color we see in nature an enemy and friend the violet light. happy, you'll love your north facing room.