I was sitting here tonight looking through my Style at Home magazines and had a revelation.
All along I have been looking for a colour for my Great Room when all the pictures in the magazine seem to be done in a neutrals.

My room is 29' x 26' and is the main functioning room of the house. Everyone gathers here and it is always a mess.

I would like some opinions on how this would work and what neutrals could pull it off.
My trim in my kitchen and foyer are Monterey White and the trim in my Great Room is Oak stained in a Fruitwood stain. Our TV unit and bar table are also Oak. I have wood blinds on the windows which match the woodwork (I think they are honey).

My kitchen cupboards are a medium Oak and the wall colour is Hampshire Grey.
Our layout is open concept with french style pocket doors separating the Kitchen and GR.

My kitchen has lots of direct light and my GR has an overhang above which makes the room not as bright.

Thanks for your help with this decision... it is driving me crazy.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Janice6,

The color to go with is the color you love. Are you a neutral person? Would you describe your favorite colors as "earth tones"? What do you wear? (though, if we went by that, all my rooms would be black )

The thing to do right now is to tear the pictures you love out of those magazine and start collecting them. You'll see a pattern emerge.

Your house already has a fair number of earthtones going on. Fruitwood is a neutral brown with no orange or red or yellow undertones, right? Hampshire Gray is a dark taupey color, right? Kitchens can have dark walls because the cabinets are really the dominant feature in the room.

What colors have you been considering for the great room? What color is your furniture? What style would your describe your great room as having? We know it has to be a comfortable gathering space for your family but is it contemporary? Comfortable traditional? How high are the ceilings? Are any of the ceilings high or vaulted?

All things to know when you really start to analyze the room.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: casey31652,

Hi Casey,

I would say I am a neutral person and my favourite colours are earth tones. I think I would like to bring the colours of nature into my home.

I have a fear of colour and tiring of it too quickly. I have made mistakes in the past and have had to live with them until I could afford to have the rooms repainted (I do not paint myself as that would be a disaster waiting to happen)
Although I do appreciate colour in other peoples homes.
I also wear alot of black mostly because it is easy.

Fruitwood has a hint of orange but not strong - I think more like a Gunstock.
Hampshire Grey is a warm green colour which we all love and looks great with the Cabinets. My appliances are black. The tile floor has a Tuscan feel to it in Neutrals/Carmels/& a colour which resembles Willow. I used Willow on my front door.
Comfortable traditional is probably the closest to my style.
The ceilings are 8 feet.

Does that help?

ps My favour TV designers are Sarah Richardson, Candace Olson and the new Designer Guys.

Hi Casey,

I have been thinking about your post today...
When I look outside I see green grass, blue water, bull rushes, blue skies and clouds.
We have weatherworn rock in our landscaping along with cedar mulch.
I think I am most drawn to the bull rushes with cat tails.

Also Sherwin Williams - are they available in Canada? I would like to pick up some paint chips that I have seen mentioned on this forum.
If not where is it sold in the US?

I BELIEVE Sherwin-Williams is available in Canada. I know BenMoore Canada is slightly different from BenMoore USA. Okay....yep it's definitely available in canada. If you go to the Sherwin-Williams website:

SW

There are all the Canadian provinces at the bottom of the State list.

I am about 1 1/2 hrs away from a SW dealer in Canada and about 1 hr away in the USA.
I think they are out of the question. I had better stick to BM.

What about Bennington Gray HC82. Do you think it would blend with my other colours okay.
Has anyone used this colour before?

Yes, Bennington Gray would work. I've heard it described as the perfect neutral. However, I'm kind of concerned about the fruitwood. In my experience, Gunstock is pretty orange-free. A nice medium-dark brown. Gunstock would work. Not sure orange-brown would. That's my only quibble. Test it against the fruitwood. Thankfully, the Historical Collection seems to be the same in Canada and the U.S.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: casey31652,

Our local BM dealer does not have tester pots or large sample boards.
I am going to the "city" this weekend and I will see if I can find a place to pick up some larger samples.
Do you have any other suggestions that might work well?
This morning the HC82 looks very gray.

I believe the Canadian website has the "Big Chip" feature like the U.S. does...sign up as a "professional" and you can get them to mail you 7x9" or 8x8" sample chips...for free. They're big enough to make a decision from. Takes about 2-3 days.

Most folks paint or stain trim throughout the house the same color for the sake of continuity and flow. Because you have used Monterey White on trim in the entry and kitchen, I would be tempted to go with the Monterey White.

I ended up bringing home Capilano Bridge, Wild Mushroom, and Great Plains. They looked great with the tile that runs through the foyer and Kitchen.

Twelvepole, the reason our trim is different in the F & K is those rooms are an addition and I convinced my husband to let me have painted trim in those two rooms. He wouldn't even consider painting the oak in the GR.
It Doesn't look too bad as it is broke up by two pocket French doors that are painted MW.

What do you think about the colour chips I picked up. Also if I painted the GR one of these colours what would I use in the Foyer (right now it is Turret).

I like all three colors...my only quibble is that there'll all very much like your oak trim. The oak trim is staying, right? Well, the walls will be very much in the same color range as the trim. No contrast. That would bother me. But maybe not you?

Then, they are not light colors. The lightest LRV is 40 which is a medium-dark mid-tone. And you say your room is already dark from the overhang. Plus you have wood blinds. This is going to be one brown room.

Have you looked at Cable Knit CC-306 (lrv of 69) or Thousand Islands CC-308 (lrv of 62)? They're in the same family but there will be some contrast with the trim and the room will not be such a cave.

Very good point Casey... I think you have just uncovered why I am unhappy with my GR.
It is currently painted HC86 Kingsport Gray which I matched to the darkest portion of my tile.
The kids love the colour and can't understand why I want to change it.

I only have the designer classic collection at home but have picked out CC338 Bluffs, CC306 Cable Knit, CC248 French Vanilla, CC230 Delaware Putty and CC120 Stonehouse. I also like HC92 Wheeling neutral and had brought this chip home before but thought it would be too light.
I think all would be okay to some degree. I am just afraid of going too light though as the room is very large.

What are your thoughts for these colours. I am not against painting my foyer/hallway either as this colour just doesn't way welcome to me.

Wheeling Neutral:

WN

which I think looks spectacular in this room.

Don't have a pic of Delaware Putty but do have a pic of Northampton Putty:

NP

Everyone here knows how much I love Flowering Herbs but here's why:

FH

It's green in some lights, tan in other, much like a putty or a khaki. And I LOVE khaki with oak.

Don't have pics of the other colors.

I think I have narrowed it down to CC120 Stonehouse for my GR and CC306 Cable Knit for my Hallway.
Do you think that these choices will give me the look I want.
Both chips read 2B but I didn't realize that LRV came into play also.
I may try the hall in stonehouse and if I think it is too dark I will try Cable Knit.
Do you think both these colours blend okay with the Hampshire Gray in the kitchen?

I will be sooo glad when this decision making process is over. My family thinks I am going bonkers with all the paint chips plastered on the wall.
Why am I the only one that cares???

2B is the base used. LRV is the Light Reflective Value which gives us a way to tell how much light is reflected. 100 is all light is reflected. 0 is none. 40 is fairly low. Colors in the 60-70 range are fairly light. Whites are around 85.

I personally love stonehouse and it has a bit of gray in the undertone which would be good with your Hampshire Gray.

Cuz that's how families are.

i think keep it neutrals is good, doesnt hurt to add some color, but dont go crazy.

What colour do you have in your GR designfrog?
It looks quite light but very neutral.

I have spent more time looking at paint chips on my wall...good thing I am not in a hurry

I am now deciding upon CC120 Stonehouse and HC44 Lenox Tan. To me Stonehouse looks like a lighter version of Lenox Tax.

Casey, do you think Lenox Tan would be a good choice and what is the LRV of both colours?

Any other comments/suggestions are welcome.

Thanks!

Stone House is 51. Lenox Tan is 43. Let's see if I can find a pic...(I know there are actually several pics of Lenox Tan at Gardenweb):

Taupes & Browns

About a third of the way down and then further down towards the bottom. I think Lenox Tan is a bit warmer than Stone House. We used to have pics of samples of a whole bunch of our favorites, but I didn't copy the pics and she closed her web album. sigh. Anyway, she had Stonehouse and it looked a bit grayer than Blanched Almond and a couple of the other go-to neutrals.

Thanks for the pics. I believe I have made my choice... Lennox Tan it is!

I think it is a little warmer and will blend better with the kitchen colour.
I only have a small chip of Lennox Tan - does it have an undertone?

Do you think it will blend well with any colour and be light enough for the room?

All colors have some kind of undertone -- but Lenox Tan is about as neutral as they come. It'll work with almost any color except golds & yellows. As for being light enough...it's a 43 which is a smack-in-the-middle midtone. Not the lightest color out there but not dark. It depends on how much natural light you get. You saw the pics, did you think it looked dark?

Good news as I am looking for a neutral. I am hoping to be able to change my furniture next year and don't want to have to repaint again. The only thing we are for sure keeping is our Navy Lazyboys.

I loved the colour in the pics but they were all with painted trim. I have the Oak trim which will probably darken it a bit but hopefully still be okay.

I know I am asking alot of you but what other colours would go nicely with Lennox Tan? Looking for a foyer/hallway, exercise/sewing room and accent colours.

I have always wanted to add a teracotta room to the house. What do you think of this colour in the exercise room (previously a bedroom now multi functional room). It can be seen from the foyer/hallway and only has 7' tall ceilings. Any suggestions for an easy to live with one.

Thanks for being so patient Casey.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Janice6,

Love the terracottas...BenM's Ansonia Peach HC-52 is a good one. And practically any color with the word "clay" in it.

Casey, Hope you don't mine if I ask you here what brand paint the Wheeling Neutral is? I really like it and think it would look great in my entry way. Thanks.

Deb