Gray Paint Experts - Help needed

8 years ago

So, I am painting my teenage daughter's sitting room which adjoins her BR. . She wants it painted a light or medium gray. The room faces west and with only one window it gets only a small to moderate amount of light. The upholstered furniture in the room is charcoal gray, Her selection, not mine. Her desk chair is orange which I love.

I need a warm gray. I know that's a contradiction in terms. But does anyone have any suggestions for a SW or BM paint color with yellow or orange undertones?

I have tried Alpaca (SW7022) and Agreeable Gray (SW7029) and Pale Oak (BM). They are all a bit too dark. I think Simple White (SW 7023) or American White (BM-2112-70) would be better.

But if there are any other light warm gray candidates out there, I would really appreciate the input. Thanks.

Featured Answer

Najeebah

8 years ago

Warm grey is not a contradiction in terms. And orange and grey can work well.
What's the flooring, window covering, artificial lighting? Is there art? Other furniture?
Show us a picture.
Paint should come last.

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Comments (8)

PRO
Michael Design
8 years ago
Without seeing pictures I would start by suggesting:

BM - Collingwood OC-28

BM - Classic Gray OC-23 (our office staple greige)

and from the BM Affinity series:

Metropolitan AF-690

Thunder AF685 (a real greige)
John thanked Michael Design
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Beth H. :
8 years ago
Pale Oak too dark?? huh?

this is pale oak. maybe you want white. you can't get a much lighter gray tone than this and still have it look gray! maybe lighten it by 50%?

try Lacey Pearl
John
Original Author
8 years ago
Thanks, Beth. This is very helpful. I am going to give it a try.
John
Original Author
8 years ago
Also, thanks Michael for taking the time to respond. I am going to buy some paint samples from SW and BM today.
Marcia Doughty
8 years ago
I have Behr Marquee French Silver PPU18-05 and Dark Pewter PPU18-04

Love the colors. I tried every many grays from many companies. Love these.
TJW
8 years ago
We needed a light color in the gray but warmer not-too-grey and definitely not Beige family and settled on Sherwin Williams ‘Crushed Ice’ after some of the light BM and SW greys were just too dark. We love it! In some rooms it is totally neutral, in others it has a hint of greige, and in some light the palest grey. We found the lightness with needed with the definite touch of color we wanted
m_gabriel
8 years ago
SW First Star is pretty. It looks particularly nice in a dark room. I have it in laundry room, powder room and bright den. It looks a little too light in the den except in the evening but is just what I wanted in laundry and powder room. We also tried a sample of Alpaca and it was way too dark. We also used a lot of SW Fleur de Sel in master bath and bedroom but I think First Star is warmer. I may have sampled almost every SW gray over the last few years! The last couple of colors we've used have come from Glidden chips (at Home Depot). I still like to use SW paint and I've found the color match to be pretty exact. The chip I'm carrying around now is Glidden Polished Limestone. It's a lot like my First Star but darker and I might repaint the den. On the same card is Light Silver Sage which looks very pretty next to black. I think some light grays look too stark next to black. Good luck! It would be fun to see pics when you are finished!