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ashley_blaire

grey walls turned blue

3 years ago

We painted our walls and wanted grey but it turned blue grey due to the floors and cabinets. We learned about the whole orange thing after the fact. We like them but are trying to figure out what else we can do to make sure things don’t clash. Here are our plans: 1) white wash the fireplace and paint the brass black; 2) we have dark grey couches coming in July (swatch attached): 3) eventually replace the granite counter tops. Here are my questions: 1) should we keep the fireplace just white washed or do a peel and stick over the surrounding area of the fireplace? We have two samples: a dark grey stone and a marble grey and white that matches our bathroom floors upstairs; 2) when we can afford to do the countertops, what color? Side note: repainting the walls and the cabinets is not an option and we won’t replace the floors either. Thank you for any tips. Also the initial plan was grey grey walls but we actually like the blue greys. And yes the color doesn’t show that well when I take pics.

Comments (19)

  • 3 years ago

    I would not do peel and stick with a working fireplace. Chip off those ceramic tiles and reapply new-modern ones with mortar— or see if a a pre-cut granite surround would work. Either way, those tiles need to go. Sorry, I have no clue on whitewashing tile and whether it would adhere to that surface.

  • 3 years ago
    last modified: 3 years ago

    The paint colors, floor, and cabinets are lovely. i agree that the fireplace surround needs an update. I like the idea of granite or marble, but thinking long term you would need to consider your plans for the kitchen countertops in the future. I wonder if the surround can be stuccoed or plastered. Hopefully someone with knowledge of fireplace options will comment!

  • 3 years ago

    Hi - can you share the name/brand of the paint colour of the walls?

  • PRO
    3 years ago

    Check out Klenk for painting the tile and what is your lighting that will have an effect on the paint color and IMO mixing grays even harder than whites to get right . You should have waited unti th enew sofa was in place Where is the carpet going?

  • 3 years ago

    The lighting is dark in this part of the house. We’re changing the lights to a soft light because right now it’s very yellow. Also I never mentioned anything about a carpet.

  • 3 years ago

    The colors are white water for the light grey and smoke grey for the darker. Both Benjamin moore

  • 3 years ago

    Information which would have been helpful to have, is that both those greys belong to the Purple-Blue Hue Family.


    Admittedly they are knocked-back, greyed-out colours, but colours none the less.

    The blueness you see is an inherent part of their colour DNA.


    There are no truly neutral greys available to us on the high street.


    If paint companies shared that information, there would be lots less surprises for people.

    But they don’t.




  • 3 years ago




  • 3 years ago

    P.s. If you take your carpet/sofa swatches to Benjamin Moore, they can measure it with a colour-measuring device.


    At the very least, they should be able to tell you which paint colours sit nearest to them and how close those matches are.


    That way you may have at least a better chance of finding out to which Hue Families they belong and how well they might all work alongside your walls.


    It’s very different than us all making guesses from photographs.


    🌈

  • 3 years ago

    Here are your givens: 8' ceiling; warm cherry color cabinets: coordinating warm granite countertops. White plantation shutters. Pinkish looking fireplace surround. Yet you not only went with cool gray but two shades of it, chose two gray sofas, in a room with low ceilings, which gives a cave-like effect. Repaint the walls a clean, light warm white that harmonizes with cabinets, countertops, floors. Don't replace countertops now or later, but work with them. No accent walls to break up the white. No stick-on tiles, but the white and gray might be nice since you're going to have two gray sofas. To sum up: embrace your cabinets, floors, and countertops. Change wall paint--a lot easier than new countertops. Change fireplace surround.

    Kitchen · More Info


    If you do white, then the gray sofa can be your gray. For contrast, introduce colors via art, pillows, rug that incorporate the wood color, off white, gray.

    Machine Woven Peachtree Rectangle Area Rug PCH-1010, 2'x3' · More Info


    72x36 IN Golden Original white brown minimal art textured Wall Art Decor · More Info



    Medora Pillow 18x18x4, Polyester Fill · More Info


  • 3 years ago
    last modified: 3 years ago

    Sorry, I didn't realize you said repainting isn't an option. Not sure why since it involves the least expense and hassle. Better chosen paint job will offer the best chance of enhancing your cabinets, countertops, and floors from the gray everything including couches in a space with 8' ceilings.

    This is a sunken cost Design Dilemma--tendency to stick to a decision since time, money, and hassle were already spent even though an alternative would work better, i.e. you're considering replacing all the countertops rather than a few gallons of paint. You identified the cabinets and countertops as the problem causing the gray-blue when the actual problem is the paint color clashes with cabinets, countertops and floors.

  • 3 years ago

    We have plans to change the countertops in the future because it’s not our taste. We’re just trying to make this house more us and less the previous owners. We are waiting on the couches to determine whether we will paint again. It’s just difficult because the couches don’t come until July and painting was the quickest thing we could do. I have a baby so just getting these painted took over 6 months to find the time and money.

  • 3 years ago

    You posed the question as wanting elements not to clash. They clash because of the paint color not the other way around. That's why so many commentors suggested that a different paint would help you achieve your goal not to have colors clash. The couches will add even more gray to a low-ceilinged space--things will look bluer. Even if you change countertops, you're still dealing with warm wood cabinets and floors, which look great by the way--those three "givens" all go together. Maybe just change the fireplace for now. Live with things and see how things look when the gray couches come.

  • 3 years ago

    Yes that’s the plan. Change the fireplace and once the couches come in, revisit the paint options and probably change the countertops at the same time to make sure all go together.

  • PRO
    3 years ago

    I love Smoke Gray. So pretty, it has just the perfect pitch of color/neutralness IMO. I agree get some stuff! Stuff with the similar colors. Because you have the beginnings of a lovely color palette.


    When you layer in different tones in the same hue families as the wall color and floor and layers of texture, it has the potential to come together really well. First thing I'd shop for is a rug. You have a swatch of the sofa fabric - you have key pieces of the puzzle and a lovely envelope of floors/walls to start. A rug might be the thing to pull it all together.

  • 3 years ago
    last modified: 3 years ago

    I agree with Lori! As I said earlier, your cabinets, floors, and paint colors are lovely. Add in the rug as Lori suggested, and when you decorate your eyes will go to your decor, not the countertop or the fireplace tiles. Maria Killam has some great posts on her blog about what to do when finishes don’t match, and also what to do when you have to hold off replacing a hard finish until you have the time or money to do so. With a baby and a lovely home, enjoy where you are now! it will all come together in time.

  • 3 years ago

    Yes my husband reminds me that we can’t do it all at once. I’m just inpatient.

    Thank you all for the comments :)

  • 3 years ago

    @LP: Thank you for directing the OP to Maria Killam. Here's a link to one of her blog posting on how to be very thoughtful about adding new elements and finishes so they harmonize well with old finishes. Her posting is about matching flooring, but the principles are the same. She cautions against bringing in one-off elements that will only make the old features look worse and the new element look out of place. (She has no love for gray/driftwood flooring, which she says is already dated. With flooring, she advises classic hardwood finishes.) Anyway, she's pretty brilliant on the subject of mixing new with old:

    https://mariakillam.com/magic-questions-decorator-should-know/ 

  • 3 years ago

    @housegal200: Thank you! I’m a big fan of Maria’s. She gives such sensible advice, and recognizes that most of us just can’t change everything at once. I like her advice to just ignore the things that have been put on the back burner until budget or time allows, and move forward with what can be done. it does help to have a vision so the end result is cohesive. The other thing I like about her as a designer is even though when she posts about a client’s couch or furniture that might not be to her taste, she works with it and isn’t critical. Not everyone can afford to go purchase all new items, and function and comfort have to be taken into account.