I agree; gray has become the fallback color choice, and I'm thoroughly sick of it. And WHAT gray, anyway--green-gray, brown-gray, blue-gray, warm gray, cool gray? Personally, I like a sage-green as a "neutral,"

Maybe I'm just pickier than most people, but I still can't seem to get comfortable with any of these grays; they have the peskiest undertones! For example, I currently have 3 samples of popular "greiges" on the white walls of my new build. 2 of them appear to be a dirty purple at the moment. The other one is a weird green. All three of them look very different when placed throughout the house, and when the sun goes down, they more or less resemble the same dull shade of my newly poured sidewalks (not exactly what I'd call cozy). When I google the names of these grays and compare photos online, they all look different in other people's houses, too, so I'm really suspecting a general lack of consistency here. I am strongly considering scrapping the whole gray thing for good, and trying something different. Who's with me?! :)

jamieleestein - the problem is when people grab onto a new trend and run with it without considering if it suits their home and climate or if they even like it. I like looking at new designs to get ideas but easily pass on that which is not for me. Too often people think they "should" do this or that - as if the design police may be waiting to give them the third degree. I much prefer to walk into different homes and see different styles - not the newest trend interpreted in three different ways over and over again. Reminds me of the Sneeches - from Dr. Sues.

Yes!!!!!

I like gray, but I'm afraid it would get boring for me after a while. Do what really makes YOU happy!

Oops..old post.

What’s the next color trend going to be ? 😃😃😃

Panettone picks color of the year every year. Now I think u can buy stick on squares to try out a color. Sounds like a great idea

Yes, I’ve been sick of it since this thread was started.

I was tired of gray on the day it became popular.

This whole thread is my feelings about grey over the period of those feelings... :-D

What is almost scary is this thread is 6 years old yet the gray just keeps on going! My SIL's big huge house in TX they built a few years ago has gray everywhere.Not happening in my new home!

Love it. Have always loved it. Our house is grey out and in. Kitchen is grey and white. People should do what they want and move on. You don’t like grey don’t do it. I like it and did it.

While I love grey for clothes, I have never liked it for homes. Perhaps part of the problem is that my two favorite colors are purple and green. While one goes well with purple, the other clashes. Let’s not even mention that grey can read as cold and uninviting.

In any event, I instinctively avoid trendy colors and decor styles as in my experience, the trendier the style, the faster it becomes old, stale, and outdated. Therefore, I listen to what makes me happy and what brings joy to my heart.

I posted on this thread three years ago, and at the time was considering gray for my home. I usually like gray so I thought it would work, but it turned out that on my walls I really can’t stand it. I‘m glad I didn’t go for it. It’s so true that you should always go for what you prefer despite the trends. I learned that lesson with my living room carpet, unfortunately. I had high end gray patterned carpets installed thinking it would help the house sell once we moved. Turned out we’re sticking around longer than I thought we would, and now I have to live with it. I personally dislike how it pairs with the hardwood in my adjoining hallway, though everyone else who sees it seems to think it’s ok. Because everyone else seems to like gray but me. Still.

Oh well. You live and you learn!

We don't have one spec of white or grey in our home. It's all bright colors and I am always happy. It's like being on vacation every day with sunny skies rather than being depressed with crappy weather. I hope this grey trend that has been around for way too long is gone soon. No one has an imagination any more and just copies Chip and Joanna Gains.

YES! I've been turned off by it from the beginning. Been waiting for it to go away.

I'm going to make myself sound like an old woman here, but I feel like the grey trend is out of my league style-wise. I'm a very creative and bubbly person so I like bright colours. I just feel like no matter where I go these days, everywhere has depressing grey rooms, or mustard. Imagine waking up on a cold rainy day to grey walls. Give me colourful rooms any day. I'm going to have cheerful colours in my flat. I don't want to have grey rooms. Each room in my flat is going to be a different colour. An inviting one at that. 🙂👍

Well, if there’s one thing that‘s nice about getting older, it’s that you no longer feel the need to put trends (which experience has taught you to quickly identify) above your own personal taste. To each her own, especially in her own house.

its 2021 and gray is color of the year along with mustard yellow. OH NO

My contractor is sort of pushing gray

Why would a contractor push a particular color unless he has a painting business on the side and over bought gray?

Caterfran - then push back at your contractor. It is your home and you will have to live with the color, not him.

I was over the gray thing when it started. Yuck.

What's a good alternative to gray that isn't '90s yellow or pinkish tan?

Every color can be overdone but gray does provide a nice backdrop for artwork, furniture, etc. It's a classic color that shouldn't be dismissed entirely because it is on trend now. There are plenty of other colors too though. It's a personal decision for each homeowner.

Colors?

Or, if you feel you must do neutral, a warm white. Something soft like Benjamin Moore Feather Down.

Soft tans are a good option:

https://www.kylieminteriors.ca/the-5-best-tan-neutral-paint-colours-sherwin-williams-and-benjamin-moore/?fbclid=IwAR2v6MWDboQTAhw0slbDvZYn4_V5f3l2OjQs-mC3ryK7cn1pZNv96qE1H04

Or, take a leaf from the Scandinavians and treat soft blues and greens as "neutral."

The first house DH and I built we used a sage green in the kitchen and living room, looked great with the white trim and natural hickory cabinets. I'm actually leaning towards a paler green this time, but won't know till cabinets, etc are up. Heck, still need interior walls. lol. A few months to go yet. Looking forward to color angst.

We recently painted our main living spaces Benjamin Moore Intense White. For a gray, it's not bad---much better than the purplish white that was on the walls when we moved in--but it's just not warm and inviting. I miss creamy off-whites, but I can't convince my husband.

:::::::sigh:::::::::

Grey will stay - it’s neutral. I wish white would go away myself - but it’s neutral too.

Gray has always reminded me of concrete...cold and uninviting. Must admit, though, after seeing countless pictures of rooms done in various shades of gray, they’re pretty, but my taste is much more colorful, which is more cheerful to me!

Gray is a classic❣️I got my inspiration for my gray kitchen cabinets from a tour at Williamsburg. I also like soft teals and creams. Color us a personal choice❣️

I like grey and think it is a great neutral. I would take it over beige any day.

A new neighborhood went up near me, & they painted every single house brown & grey. It's already worn out it's welcome. Oh, & our property management company decided to paint our house without consulting us on color; a brownish grey with brown trim. Yuck.

Yes. I’ve been cursing the Property Brothers for years who seemed to do nothing but grey and white interiors doe a while there. I wish the trend would die. Just bought a new house with .. you guessed it.. two tone grey walls. I just hired the painter to get rid of every one of them.

I am trying to repaint my 15 year old paint color Ralph Lauren Deep Cream in my Master Bedroom a more soothing color so I picked out so many Samlize paint colors with a little gray to tone down the lemon yellow but I am finding out that I like to wear gray and like it in other people's homes but not in my home. I have been trying to find a warm color for my walls that will not clash with my white pleated curtains that have a touch of cream in them and my off-white furniture. I am learning towards BM Feather Down or BM Down White. When time I will post pictures. I am just scared to have a gray room. So glad that despite gray being so in style still, beiges are coming back in style and greige colors.

It's August, 2022, and I plugged in the rather jaded comment, "Buying a new home. Am sick and tired of gray houses and interiors." It is abundantly clear from commentary on this site that folks have been "sick and tired of gray... "EVERYWHERE and EVERYTHING--omnipresent--for quite some time. The thing for me is not that I find the grays unattractive: they are indeed fresh, crisp, clean and come in a richly diverse range of hue. My huge, personal issue with gray interiors is that irrespective as to the degree of true neutrality, in the vast majority of situations, gray can drastically drab down other colors. So, if a person has color scheme preferences for decor and accents that are not in the gray family (or a natural complement of gray), all those gray interiors are ruinous to those color scheme preferences. Envision what gray does to ambers and mustards, for instance: gray can have a dirtying effect. Also, and very importantly, I disdain having my color scheme preferences established for me. This seems somewhat...fascist? And THAT more than anything turns me off completely.

I love that my thread is almost a decade old and the grey trend endures! : ) I have to confess, I did succumb and have a combination of grays with the beautiful Stratton Blue in my dining room. I am doing a kitchen reno, opening walls and so painting again. I still have the same feelings as in 2013 but also still want mostly neutral colors. We will be repainting the exterior Philadelphia Cream. But the interior is still mostly Revere Pewter and Edgecomb Gray (I find this latter color especially light and boring). I am thinking of Sag Harbor Gray for my kitchen, which is mostly white cabinets and trim (Marble White, a warm off-white I love!). I have done this combo before in the kitchen and love it. I am learning that I like colors that don’t read as any one obvious color and can read as many colors: grey, green, blue, beige etc. But I am not sure whether a more open kitchen and dining room with Sag Harbor Gray and Stratton Blue will work—there is a large opening that creates a bit of separation but you look from one into the other. The opening between the dining and living room is the same. So do I do one cohesive color to unify or different colors to divide the spaces?

So tired of gray .....................

I get it - but still so tired................ lol!

I have no gray in my house.

Has anyone found a good alternative neutral? Definitely don't want yellow (dated) or beige (usually tends yellow or pink). I guess a subtle green is the only other alternative.

I like gray a lot just not the entire house. Same goes for white. When I was house hunting, I recall one house where everything was white or gray. It reminded me of a Hollywood movie scene attempting to show what heaven is like. I wondered if anyone actually lived in it.

Part of the problem too might be the huge open spaces connecting formerly separate rooms. If the kitchen, dining room, great room open concept along with multiple bathrooms and bedrooms are all white/off white/gray, I'd certainly get tired of it as well. Or bored. A red throw over here and a blue basket placed over there doesn't cut it.

Our whole house is grey. I love it. It’s a nice light grey owl. We have tons of colour in other ways

So many alternatives to grey or gray.... I could never live in the same palette for a decade. I think it (color) is a generational thing. It also is influenced by available good such as linens , furniture, and accessories. While it is hard to fight trends because of available goods it is my choice to dance to the beat of my own drum. My house, my color and style choices regardless of trends. I have a soft green that changes with the seasons and time of day in my main areas. Other areas are a chameleon color which changes from off white to gray to cream, occasionally having a peachy pink tone, depending on environmental changes. So many things can influence color such as orientation of the house, landscaping and light bulbs to start. Be careful to consider your own best choice, regardless of what the trend is. I have a background in home improvement including major paint brands (including SW and BM) I can tell you beige or non gray neutrals have been around since the 70's how many decades is that? My suggestion...make your home a representation of what you love!

Your last statement is important, “make your home a representation of what you love” and nowhere is it written grey can’t be the background or palette that starts that. The grey haters fail to ever see many successfully use grey as a start to make their homes exactly what they want them to be. So if one wants that all the power to them. And if one wants something different same answer.

Our hallway is grey, the rest of the public spaces are a light celery green. The house I grew up in had green as a neutral everywhere, and while I’ll never recreate the opulence (or want to live in it - think silk walls and lots of molding) I’ll always love the color scheme.

No grey and white for me!