From Green to Grown-Up Gray

Over the last couple of weeks, I slaved away at painting over the horrid green that had long since given me mental design blinders in the main living areas of our home. When I first painted the green three and a half years ago, I felt it was cheerful and fresh. I wasn't (and still am not) afraid of color and I embraced it. However, I never could get the room to be quite "right". It just never felt cohesive or anything like what I had envisioned for it. And the room ALWAYS photographed a lot greener and neon than it really was. After much lamenting about the HUGE job it would be to paint that large of a space, I just bit the bullet and did it. (And thanks to my friend Ashton for helping me out one day!) It didn't hurt that I was to host a baby shower for one of my best friends this past weekend, so having a deadline put me into high gear to get it all done.

Let me tell you, it was soooo worth it! Once I got it finished, I could almost physically feel a weight lifted off my shoulders. It's like the green pressed down on me and kept me from being able to really progress as far as decorating goes. I was completely and totally stuck, to tell you the truth. The gray has lightened up the space and given me a fresh perspective on what all is possible in the space. I LOOOOOVE it!

I went with Gray Owl by Benjamin Moore. It was the one that didn't read too purple or too blue. It seemed to be just the right shade of neutral for our space. Picking out a paint color was hard, but once I saw the different shades in various areas of our home at different times of day, the choice was easy.

I really feel that my design tastes have matured a bit. I know myself and what I like a little better, and have a better sense of how to pull a room together. (I am by no means an expert. I still have LOTS of learning to do, but I feel like I have grown a lot.) Anywho, this feels like a much more grown-up space. It's almost like I have finally embraced that I am an adult. That concept is still really weird to me because it feels like I was 21 yesterday. But, nonetheless, I'm loving our new "grown-up" space. 

Just to give some perspective of the work we've done since moving into the home, I'm including some before, during, and now photos. I obviously have a pretty blank slate right now. My next step will be to add in some warm wood tones to warm up the space, lots of textures, and small pops of color. Here's the progress in our home:

Butler's Pantry:

Before: when we first moved in.

What it looked like the last three years. 

Now. This space is hard to photograph because there isn't any natural light right here. 

Kitchen:

Before

During

Now. I can't believe how much the gray paint lightens up the space!

Dining Room:

Looking into kitchen from dining room:

Before

During

And this same area after I added the Chevron Wall.

Now

Side Entry:

During

I'm still amazed at how different our spaces look now! I really, really, really love it! I can't wait to find some really pretty wood tones to add into the rooms and to see how seasonal decorating plays out with a neutral gray background. Stay tuned for my fall home tour! 

Linking up to:

Before and After Wednesday at The Dedicated House

Choosing a Gray Paint Color

First of all, let me just say that choosing a gray paint color is about as hard as deciding how to spell the color's namesake. (According to Grammarist, grey and gray are two spellings of one word. Both are correct, while gray is most common in American English. But, I see it interchangeably used all the time, which keeps me kind of off balance and wondering how in the world I should spell it. I think the UK and US should have a pow wow, decide on one way to spell gray or grey and stick to that. In my head, I've played it out how the US will argue for gray and the UK will argue for grey and no one will agree and it will spark this huge nation-wide debate, leading to a boycott of the UK and a general degeneration of international relations between the two countries. I think I have an overactive imagination.)

Anywho, back to the matter at hand. Gray. So many grays to choose from. Blue-grays and purple-grays and green-grays and beige-grays (or greige). How in the world is one supposed to muddle through all of the various shades of gray. (Haha. No pun intended on that one.) 

I tackled the seemingly impossible task of narrowing down the playing field to four. (A couple of these thanks to suggestions from Instagram friends.) 

1. Sherwin Williams Repose Gray
2. Sherwin Williams Mindful Gray
3. Benjamin Moore Gray Owl
4. Benjamin Moore Winter White

This color is going in our main living space and there is various amounts of light throughout the room, making the colors look totally different on one side of the room compared to the other side. So, I put up the swatches in five different areas so I could see the colors in all types of light. Some areas get lots of natural light while others get no natural light, but just some really bad overhead light. I think that when you're choosing any paint color, it's important to do this for you to get a true feel of the color in the different areas, and also to see how the color changes throughout the day as the light changes.

No natural light here. These colors look  totally different in this area than in an area with lots of natural light.

I also wanted to make sure that the gray I choose looks good beside my kitchen cabinets, so I put a swatch there. My cabinets are painted with Black Fox by Sherwin Williams. It's a really dark gray.

At this point, I'm leaning toward Gray Owl or Repose Gray. Mindful Gray read too purple in the room and Winter White was just too, well, white. Repose Gray did seem a little on the blue side at certain points in the day so I think right now Gray Owl is in the lead. Unless I change my mind. Which is entirely possible. I'm going to look at them for another couple of days before I decide. Do you have any favorite gray (or grey) paint colors? Leave me comment and let me know!