Colors,  D's Room,  our house,  Projects

My favorite shades of gray

Christmas was great, the break was even better, and this week the kids have only gone to school for two days. It has been hard getting back into our schedules around here. It has been so cold and snowy. The kids have had two snow days this week because of the temperature.  I guess -20 is too cold to let the kids go to school. So to keep busy, I have decided to paint my daughter’s room. She was ten when we moved into this house, and wanted hot pink and Paris back then.

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Super cute for a ten year old, but not so much for a fifteen year old freshman. I asked her what she wanted and she said something calm and bright. She wanted me to paint the room gray. So I did what I always do, I picked out a couple of gray colors, and bought two sample bottles from Lowes.  They are only three dollars, so it isn’t a huge investment. I paint a large swatch on the walls and let them sit there for a couple of days. I see how the color changes with the lighting in the room and I decide if it is the color I am going for. When I decide the color I will buy the real paint for the walls.

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I was a little nervous about how many coats it would take to cover all that hot pink, but the color went on nicely and it only took two coats. By the way, I always paint the ceiling the wall color, or if the wall color is too dark, a lighter color. I do this so the white crown molding against the top of the wall will pop.

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I used two different shades of gray in her room. The wall against the window is a few shades darker than the wall. Also, she has a chair rail along two walls, so I painted the darker color on the bottom of that.

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I always choose an eggshell finish for the walls, and the trim is done in satin. I don’t love glossy walls. The finish seems to show all of the imperfections on the wall, and the sheen hurts my eyes. This is just mat enough to hide any imperfections, and it gives the walls a nice finish.

Gray can be so hard to pick. There are so many different shades of gray. You could have a gray color on the brown side, green side, blue side, and purple side. That is why I test the colors so carefully when picking a gray.

I love the gray I painted in my daughter’s room. It leans more toward the blue side, but overall it has a more concrete look to it. I think it is my favorite gray I have picked to date.

The colors I used for her room are

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Valspar polar star

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Valspar polished silver

Some other grays I have used in my home are

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Valspar Notre Dame which is what I used throughout my house. It has a very soft calm look about it and it goes with almost every color. It isn’t much different than the polar star I picked for my daughter’s room, it just has a touch more green in it.

 

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A darker gray that we used in our theater room and that I love to use on my furniture is Valspar man cave.

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This color is just dark gray. I love that it doesn’t have a lot of under tones. It just is what it is. It is the perfect theater room color, I love how the white pops off it, and it is an awesome color for furniture.

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I have used it on my kitchen table, hutch, and master bathroom vanity. It goes on great, and looks pretty and classic.

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I used a much more green gray when I painted my room and bathroom. I chose a color from restoration hardware, and had the people at Lowes match it up.

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This color is so so very calming, but it is quite green. I love it with the brown I used in my bedspread and a touch of turquoise to accessorize. It also looks airy and clean for a bathroom.

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So these are my favorite gray colors I have used in my home. I love using gray because it is a neutral color, it showcase the molding so nicely, and it is very calming. I love adding fun pops of color with it. Every room can look unique and different with the accessories you use.

 

 

 

 

 

I'm Erin, a busy mom of three, chauffeur, cook, housekeeper, and wanna be decorator. I love old movies, good books, and a daily trip to Lowes. We have recently bought a new home...one we are fixing up and changing everything. This blog is to record our renovating journey. This is not the first house we have done. Actually, it is our third. My husband and I love a project. Any project. We both love working on our home, have the same taste, (which is great), and love working and re purposing things on our budget. We can show you how to put together a high end and creative look without breaking the bank. Taking something old and recreating it into something new and exciting for any room is my passion. Hope you enjoy this decorating journey with us!