It seems like few are happy with paint store colorists or free consults.

There are a bunch of recs in this thread, which is one of many on this topic.
http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/415908.page#5920545

Edgecomb gray is another great greige that's more tan than gray.

I'm in the same boat. My current house is very colorful and in our new house I want to do something more neutral in the living spaces.

I saved this photo as inspiration:

http://www.houzz.com/photos/663792/Cathedral-Living-Room-traditional-living-room-boston

Go neutral on the walls, furniture and add some interest with a particular color in your accessories, window coverings, etc.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:^^ PP again. I did a new house about five years ago in Benjamin Moore Feather Gray. It was a great color in that it went with everything (browns, earth tones, and grays). However, I didn't love living in the house with it.

In my current house, I went with more "griege" tones and I am much, much happier.

Check out the Farrow and Ball colors -- they are really nice. Then have the paint store make those colors using a cheaper paint (Behr or Benjamin Moore).

OP here. Thanks all for the comments. PP, what do you mean by "griege?" Assuming that is some combination of grey and beige? I think that's what I'm thinking about. Can you give an example of a paint color? Is it sort of a light taupe?

Not pp but I just did accessible gray in my family room. Great greige!! It has "gray" in the name, but it's more white/taupe. Lots of compliments.

Yes, you need to pick one primary family- beige or gray. Then you can kind of incorporate other tones into it- which is what the "greige"(revere pewter) is.

The key to decorating with neutrals is texture in your furnishings, window treatments and carpets.- Go with thick linens, woven blinds, textured carpets, etc. Add some nice wood tones, and then some creamy white paint trim, some nice accent pieces, etc. You need to have visual interest- patterns(in one shade) in order to pull off a neutral decor. Lastly- place a plant or two in the rooms so you have that subtle pop of a natural color.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:^^ PP again. I did a new house about five years ago in Benjamin Moore Feather Gray. It was a great color in that it went with everything (browns, earth tones, and grays). However, I didn't love living in the house with it.

In my current house, I went with more "griege" tones and I am much, much happier.

Check out the Farrow and Ball colors -- they are really nice. Then have the paint store make those colors using a cheaper paint (Behr or Benjamin Moore).

OP here. Thanks all for the comments. PP, what do you mean by "griege?" Assuming that is some combination of grey and beige? I think that's what I'm thinking about. Can you give an example of a paint color? Is it sort of a light taupe?

Not the PP, but google images for Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter and Edgecomb Gray (lighter)

Anonymous wrote:^^ PP again. I did a new house about five years ago in Benjamin Moore Feather Gray. It was a great color in that it went with everything (browns, earth tones, and grays). However, I didn't love living in the house with it.

In my current house, I went with more "griege" tones and I am much, much happier.

Check out the Farrow and Ball colors -- they are really nice. Then have the paint store make those colors using a cheaper paint (Behr or Benjamin Moore).

OP here. Thanks all for the comments. PP, what do you mean by "griege?" Assuming that is some combination of grey and beige? I think that's what I'm thinking about. Can you give an example of a paint color? Is it sort of a light taupe?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We're about to start a major redo/ addition and need to get a color scheme going. I've always had a lot of color on the walls but at this point want to do something completely different and keep neutrals -- creams/ taupes/ greys, etc -- all over the house. But how do you do that and still have interest? Do you pick one of those (brown tones, say, or grey tones) and keep everything in that family? How do you weave it together from room to room?

I hope this question makes sense and thanks for any guidance! House was built in 1904 and outside has a lot of stone, if that matters.

I have always hired a "colorist"/interior designer from a local paint store (Potomac Paint, but I'm sure other places have them too) to pick the colors for me. It is very inexpensive ($100-200) and worth every penny. They are wonderful at picking the right colors and making everything work together in the space and with your furnishings.

Not so good for me (same store)! Came in with Revere Pewter at the outset for their recommendation when our natural lighting was low enough that even I new that would not work. So $100 out for nothing. Colorist stuck on gray.

really? I have used 2 different colorists from two different locations and had wonderful luck. We get compliments all the time and everyone is always asking for the name of our colors.

^^ PP again. I did a new house about five years ago in Benjamin Moore Feather Gray. It was a great color in that it went with everything (browns, earth tones, and grays). However, I didn't love living in the house with it.

In my current house, I went with more "griege" tones and I am much, much happier.

Check out the Farrow and Ball colors -- they are really nice. Then have the paint store make those colors using a cheaper paint (Behr or Benjamin Moore).

Going with neutrals on the walls is a great idea (very on trend at the moment), but don't expect to find much "interest" that way. Normally with the neutrals, you use accessories in the room to bring interest. The focal point is on the furniture rather than the walls.

One thing my designer did was to use a slightly darker version of the main color to paint the walls of the book cases. It's not real noticeable, but it makes a difference and looks lovely.

Be careful of the grays as they can be a little depressing without the right lighting.

I love the sherwin williams color palletes. They're gorgeous. I've received many compliments on how my rooms flow together very well, even when they aren't connected.
http://www.sherwin-williams.com/homeowners/hgtv-home-by-sherwin-williams/color-palettes/liveable-luxe/

Go to the store and look at their color palettes.

Oh and never just buy paint. ALWAYS buy the sample. I see people just buying paint off of paint chips and I cringe. Maybe I'm too picky, but I've bought lots of paint samples that I thought looked great on the paint chip and they didn't work in my house.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We're about to start a major redo/ addition and need to get a color scheme going. I've always had a lot of color on the walls but at this point want to do something completely different and keep neutrals -- creams/ taupes/ greys, etc -- all over the house. But how do you do that and still have interest? Do you pick one of those (brown tones, say, or grey tones) and keep everything in that family? How do you weave it together from room to room?

I hope this question makes sense and thanks for any guidance! House was built in 1904 and outside has a lot of stone, if that matters.

I have always hired a "colorist"/interior designer from a local paint store (Potomac Paint, but I'm sure other places have them too) to pick the colors for me. It is very inexpensive ($100-200) and worth every penny. They are wonderful at picking the right colors and making everything work together in the space and with your furnishings.

Not so good for me (same store)! Came in with Revere Pewter at the outset for their recommendation when our natural lighting was low enough that even I new that would not work. So $100 out for nothing. Colorist stuck on gray.

Anonymous wrote:We're about to start a major redo/ addition and need to get a color scheme going. I've always had a lot of color on the walls but at this point want to do something completely different and keep neutrals -- creams/ taupes/ greys, etc -- all over the house. But how do you do that and still have interest? Do you pick one of those (brown tones, say, or grey tones) and keep everything in that family? How do you weave it together from room to room?

I hope this question makes sense and thanks for any guidance! House was built in 1904 and outside has a lot of stone, if that matters.

I have always hired a "colorist"/interior designer from a local paint store (Potomac Paint, but I'm sure other places have them too) to pick the colors for me. It is very inexpensive ($100-200) and worth every penny. They are wonderful at picking the right colors and making everything work together in the space and with your furnishings.

Sorry; I meant to put this in home decorating forum. I would appreciate it if post could be moved!

We're about to start a major redo/ addition and need to get a color scheme going. I've always had a lot of color on the walls but at this point want to do something completely different and keep neutrals -- creams/ taupes/ greys, etc -- all over the house. But how do you do that and still have interest? Do you pick one of those (brown tones, say, or grey tones) and keep everything in that family? How do you weave it together from room to room?

I hope this question makes sense and thanks for any guidance! House was built in 1904 and outside has a lot of stone, if that matters.