Yup, we went for it. We slapped up two paint colors that we love (and already had on hand) in our bedroom to see if darker walls (which is something John that has been campaigning for over the last few months) is the way to go.
Remember when we poorly photoshopped it a while back? Except picture it more brown-gray, like a putty color (instead of blue-gray), since there are plenty of colors in the rug and the bedding already. We tried one of our favorite smoky gray colors (Gray Horse by Benjamin Moore) which is under the chair rail in the office and also tried the darker and moodier color that’s more of a browny-gray that we used in our attached bathroom (Rockport Gray by BM). Let’s just say that we were definitely surprised by our swatches. See how dark Gray Horse looks in our office under the chair rail (especially on the left of the pic)? At least in person it feels pretty dark since it’s a few shades darker than the Moonshine color that’s above the rail.
Well, check out how much lighter/less obvious it reads in the bedroom (the one on the top)? Meanwhile Rockport Gray was awesome (the one on the bottom). It was love at first swipe. This picture doesn’t quite capture the putty-ness of it (it’s almost equal parts mocha and gray) but it really is an awesome color.
I painted some test swatches of each one in three places in the room (just to be sure we liked how it read on a bunch of different planes) like:
- the wall next to the bedroom door
- the wall next to the bathroom doorway
- the wall behind the bed (since we wanted something dark to help the headboard really pop)
See how you can barely see the Gray Horse swatch under the right half of the mirror, but the Rockport gray one further to the right makes the headboard look awesomesauce? At least in our imagination when we picture it on that whole wall…
Bingo. Rockport Gray it is. Especially since it’s already in our bathroom, so it makes sense to bring it out into the bedroom. Plenty of main bedrooms have the same color in the bathroom as the bedroom, and it totally lets the headboard be the star (while there are still some bright colors in the other bedding and the rug). So although it’s a neutral, it’s not a boring choice when you look at the room as a whole. We’re also thinking that we could add a very soft light blue tone to the ceiling to compliment the moody gray walls someday. Could be fun, right?
Rockport Gray is the darkest color we’ve used in this house except for the dark teal in the guest room and on the back of the dining room built-ins, but that’s kind of what’s nice about it (the whole house feels balanced with some pops of color, some lighter tones, and some darker colors all working together as one big master-palette if that makes sense). It’s fun to have a nice mix going on. Like the soft pink in Clara’s room…
… some greeny-yellow in the kitchen and laundry room…
… dark teal in the guest room…
…and on the back of the dining room built-ins…
… and light gray in the living room and dining room.
We’re learning that the rooms with more neutral walls (like gray) are usually the rooms that we have fun adding a lot more color with accessories (like a bright rug, headboard, pillows, art, etc). See how the bright art and accessories in the office (along with those happy chairs) layer over light neutral walls and give the room a vibrant feeling – even with soft and neutral walls?
Same deal with the living room (neutral walls + bright pops of color in the rug, art, and pillows = a nice balance). The dining room follows suit too (soft and neutral walls + colorful curtains + dark pops of color in the back of the built-ins + our new/old painted buffet).
In other words, rooms with more neutral wall colors seem to free us up to more color-possibilities, so we can layer in a lot of things “over” them if that makes sense.
So that’s where we are. We picked a color. Actually we’re here…
Be back tomorrow with the after pics (and a time lapse video) once it’s all dry and put back together! What have you been painting lately? Do you repaint rooms when the urge strikes? Thankfully repainting is one of the cheapest ways to change things up, and it usually only takes us around a day to complete. So you don’t have to live with a paint color that you don’t love since it’s usually one of the easiest & most inexpensive changes to make. In our first house we painted every single room twice to get it right except for our bedroom, so it’s hilarious to us that the first room that we’re repainting here is none other than our bedroom!
In other words: we’re definitely still just using the same method we relied on six years ago when we moved into our first house: trial and error. It sounds kinda risky, but it’s the best way that we’ve found to learn what we like and don’t like (and inch towards a house that feels even more like home). We’ve definitely learned that being frozen in indecision or trying to love something you just don’t (by forcing yourself to work with it) don’t work nearly as well as being brave, diving in, and making a change. So here’s hoping we can knock the rest of this out by the end of the day…
Psst- We took our favorite monthly picture of Clara ever. That girl has officially gone diva. Check out her moves over on Young House Life.
Wendy says
Can’t wait for the reveal photos tomorrow! Thanks to you guys, I now have a Rockport Grey bathroom (with ceiling and painted ceiling fan cover) and the same quatrefoil mirror in my bathroom (waiting to decide what color it should end up). I love it all! I keep thinking I’m going to have to send you some photos of my house to point out all the things that are a direct result of your blog in my house!
YoungHouseLove says
Ooh I’d love to see pics! Sounds awesome!
xo,
s
Tracey says
Hi – just wondering, do you ever pull out the napkin that you used to use a lot to help you with colour choices, or has it been retired?
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes, not only do we pull her out, she also lives on the sofa as cushions, so Im leaning on her right now, actually. She has a nice deep mocha tone that’s sort of similar to this gray-mocha color (a bit less gray, but totally in the family). Basically a color doesn’t have to be “in” Sue, I just lay the swatch on top of Sue the Pillow (or Sue the Napkin) to see how it goes. So far, a ton of things go! Sue is versatile!
xo,
s
Marie Kovarik says
I’m so proud of you guys for just “going for it” with your paint. I bought a house 4 months ago. I have 8 paint colors on my kitchen/dining room walls. I painted the living room a tan that I am now realizing is way too yellow. It’s called Almond Paste by Olympic. Even the name sounds yucky. I have, however, painted a closet Upward by Sherwin Williams with one of the test quarts that I purchased. It’s my favorite place in the house.
Kalin says
ADORE the grey walls. We painted our bedroom a dark browny grey in March (Behr paint and primer in Suede Grey) and couldn’t be happier!
Bethany says
ok, I am so glad you say awesomesauce! I keep telling danno that is what all the cool kids are saying now. We are so hip, Sherry!
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, oh yes, we are hip to the lingo.
xo,
s
Kel says
Liking the change. It’s going to make your bedroom look more mature and luxurious. Bring on the reveal tomorrow!
Erika says
The Rockport Grey looks awesome! Can’t wait to see the finished product!
Speaking of painting, we have this awesome light greyish blue we want to do in our living room. Should I worry about it being so hot (too hot?)and wait until fall to paint when it (hopefully) cools down, or just go for it any old time?
YoungHouseLove says
As long as your house isn’t 90+ degrees it should be fine (keeping it under 80 is recommended for most paint, but most homes don’t get that hot inside). Hope it helps!
xo,
s
kat says
I have a mostly unrelated question for you guys (although I am thinking about painting the blech purple trim in my room bright white! Just have to figure out if it will look odd with the cream colored ceiling). Here it is: do you guys ever worry about the masculinity or femininity of patterns? You have a really bold floral pattern in your guest room, and a less bold but still pretty soft and delicate pattern on your headboard. (although both fabrics are more like accents, which might make a difference.) I’m dying to get a bright, poppy multicolored duvet cover and solids and geometrics aren’t really my thing- so floral seems to be the only option. I’m thinking something with a green background and a ton of bright colored flowers. But my boyfriend isn’t super into the idea of sleeping under a girly flower garden. Thoughts?
YoungHouseLove says
I think as long as there’s balance John is ok. Ex: one girly textile in a room with a bunch of gender neutral choices and some wood tones and masculine accents is cool with him. And perhaps nothing too big and overwhelming works for us as well (ex: no giant comforters full of girlie prints, but a few feet in the shams on the headboard is ok, especially if something is leafy or modern as opposed to super traditional and frilly). I think there might be something about crisp “new” textiles with nature on them (leaves, trees, flowers, etc) that feels less ultra feminine than something more traditional and flourish-y.
xo,
s
Jenn Leigh says
I love the new color – Can’t wait to see the contrast with your dresser and rug!
Fortunately (& unfortunately) we will be repainting our entire second floor due to water damage from a leaky roof. I actually just picked out our new colors last night and can’t wait to see them once all the repair work has been done!
Thanks again for your input in shingle color!
Joanna says
The Rockport Gray looks fabulous with the headboard. I’m not sure if you are aware, but I believe the name is referring to the coastal town of Rockport, MA. It’s very picturesque, artsy, and relaxing.
This past weekend I painted our front door Ben Moore’s Rose Quartz in Aura exterior semi gloss. It was out first item to paint in our new house. I did not like using the Aura semi-gloss. I thought it dried too quickly and the sheen was uneven. If there was a drip, it dried faster than I could fix it. The last time I painted, it was with Ben Moore’s Regal line and it seemed a lot easier (this was like 10 years ago, before Aura existed.) Anyway, now that I’ve done 4 coats and it has dried a day, it looks great. However, I’m not sure I would spend the money on Aura again.
What do you usually use for paint?
Are you using the Green Frog tape in that photo, do you like it better than the 3M Blue tape?
Looking forward to your input,
Joanna
YoungHouseLove says
We used Ben Moore’s Natura this time and only needed one coat! In a word: amazing!
xo,
s
Christine Witt (Brush Dance) says
Our living room is a lighter gray – and the TV room darker. We haven’t regretted going gray in either place. We actually just have one painting regret and that’s our master bedroom – such a pretty blue, but way too light. I should just go for it and slap up some swatches!
Kristi says
I like the gray. Unrelated to this Katie Bower is having a boy! Yay! HAHA I waited all weekend to find out!
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yeah, I weaseled it out of her on Thursday by invoking my BFF priveledges. SOOOOO excited for her! And funny enough, Clara actually put her hand on her belly and called it when we were all together for Haven. So far she’s five for five! Clara = baby clairvoyant. Haha.
xo,
s
Kate says
John & Sherry, I may need you both to personally email my husband and repeat your words that repainting is an easy change to make. I have a horrible record with my first paint choice and I think I committed another error this weekend. I’ve been slow to paint in our new house since I made some unforgettable and legendary mistakes in our last house. So a year and half in, we finally painted the fifth room in this house (yeah, lots of vanilla walls here) and our first bathroom. And while Valspar’s Sea Tickle looked awesome on the swatch, it’s looking like a bit much on all the walls even though it’s a small room. I’ve been put on a 2 year minimum before any room gets repainted by my hubby (because he’s the painter in our family) so I better learn to love it. I think if I can find the perfect sunny yellow rug it’ll work but so far no luck and I’m starting to regret going bold with my choice.
YoungHouseLove says
Aw, I think once you get furniture in there and some art on the walls (and don’t forget curtains or blinds/roman shades to further break things up) you’ll hopefully love it!
xo,
s
Kate says
Ooh, already have an update. A lemony wonderful rug has been found on Shades of Light (yay YHL 10% discount) and while it was a tad steep for a 2×3 rug, my husband said go ahead and buy it (it’s better than repainting!).
Now I need a suggestion on what accessories can go on white floating shelves in the bathroom. Any suggestions? Off to stalk your and Katie Bower’s bathrooms for ideas.
YoungHouseLove says
Yay- so excited! I love their rugs! Good luck with everything! And as for accessories on white floating shelves- anything goes! A pretty dish or jar full of bathroom stuff is always cute!
xo,
s
Megan says
Love it!! If I could do my bedroom over again, gray may be what I want… however, it took forever to paint my current room (it’s huge with lots of angles) so it won’t be painted any time soon. Maybe the next room that’ll be redone…
Ann says
I have to laugh. We’ve spent a lot of time, energy (and money) toward transforming ALL grey walls to NO grey walls. It was so depressing having grey in every room that my house hunting notes have “GREY MUST GO” written in large unfriendly letters. But maybe it’s overkill to remove it everywhere . . . that would save some more time, energy, and money :)
Carrie says
I was just painting in my bedroom the other day and thinking of you. As I taped (and taped and taped) I had serious envy of your edging skills!
Ashley Pena says
Ah, don’t you love the way a fresh coat of paint changes the whole vibe of the room? I painted our master bedroom gray last week so it’s funny y’all are doing yours now. I absolutely love it and if those preview pictures are any indication I love it in your room too! It feels so calm and grown up.
PennySmith says
Hmmmm… I kinda think you have just as much “color popping” in the teal room as the light room… And it works beautifully in both! We have gray walls in our current master-and did the same now that we are moving-though went a shade darker in the bath this time… Though it’s just yellow popping in the bedroom (with black and white) now. I SOOOO want t to find the right fabric to do a headboard like yours! We also let you influence our backsplash-we got the little hex mosiacs in moss! :) they’re pretty gray too.
PennySmith says
-weathered tin. That was our gray! We also haves done a taupy/gray too. Baby elephant. Have you ever let a name influence you??
leslismore says
you know the red on that bathroom reno? so yeah…that’s what color our living room is…or was-is-soon-to-not-be.
we had some leftover “hushed rain” by behr (light grey) from our bedroom repainting (we did it first!) and we’d been toying with repainting for a while so i just hauled off and painted an entire wall. i mean, why not? we’re going to repaint it anyway so what better way to get a real idea than to go for it?
so, it’s WAY brighter-like almost white-in the living room vs. our lower-level bedroom. uh, duh. i should’ve guessed that one with all the natural light from our huge living room window. so we might go a shade darker. it’s fun to see it different after it being red for the 7 years i’ve known my husband, but christmas won’t be the same without our festive red walls! not.
sara says
what a timely post. I just finished painting the entire upstairs of our house yesterday. It is one big (HUGE) dormer room that my daughters share. It involved 2 shades of purple and chalboard paint on the end walls. As with most projects, I’m glad I didn’t know what I was getting into! I am much better to jump in with both feet and not plan too much.
I love the grey you chose! My bedroom is grey also it is called “Mountain Pass”, and I love it.
Amy says
I love your new color!
I always make the mistake of going too bold with BOTH wall color and furniture/accessories, which always ends up looking too chaotic. But you have convinced me that I need to lighten up the walls in my living room, since my red couches are already bringing enough color onto the scene. I’ve been living with a paint color I don’t adore for nearly 2 years now….why? I could change it all in a day. You’ve really convinced me to take the plunge…..:)
kath @ Tuiles En Bois says
I like the dark teal in the guest room paint and I wonder if you mix the blue paint with a darker shade?
YoungHouseLove says
Update: we painted our room. You can check it out here: https://www.younghouselove.com/2012/07/getting-moody-in-the-bedroom/
xo,
s
Loft Conversions in London says
The headboard is great.
Congrats!
Ann says
Oh wow, it is gorgeous! I am right there with you that shades of gray on the walls affords color flexibility within the room. I’ve done this as well and loving it!
Heidi @ Decor & More says
Love your color choice! I’ve been in my house for 13 years now and room-by-room I’m updating color saturated walls for great neutrals. Love how it’s all beginning to flow and opening up new avenues for creativity in accessorizing! Can’t wait to see your after pics. :)
Katrina says
About a month ago we updated our guest bath and went with the grey combo…light upper and dark below. Couldn’t be happier with the outcome. Here a photo if you’d like to see. Not the best quality with instagram.
http://ink361.com/#/photos/214593527355861295_1877361
Katrina
YoungHouseLove says
Looks great. Love the shower curtain too.
xo,
s
Betsy says
I am in love with all of your colors in the new house (and the old one, too). I get a lot of flack about having each room in our house a different color, and it’s something I always seem to be changing, but my favorite designer Sarah Richardson once said that she likes each room to have it’s own “color story,” and I so agree! Keeps things more interesting, for sure. :)
quirkstreet says
Ahhh paint. My FAVORITE thing. So easy, so quick and such a big difference. I love that you chose the Rockport Gray for your bedroom. Can wait to see the final results!
Amy says
we love rockport gray! We did our last living room that color and plan on using it again in our new home. It’s such a great base! Your bedroom is going to look awesome!
Amanda says
It looks Awesome! I think it brings out the colors in your headboard too! We also did a grey in our master bedroom! It turned out to be a it darker than we expected but we love the way it looks with our white furniture!
Jasanna says
I like the grays too! I don’t know that I would have picked that color off the bat, but I really like it!! :)
http://munchtalk.blogspot.com/
SHERMI says
Gray Horse waa one of the samples I swatched on my bedroom walls too, but it was way too light. I ended with something super dark, Kendall Charcoal but I love it
Mary says
Hi John and Sherry! I love your new wall color! I was wanting to paint our bedroom the previous color however and can’t seem to find the name of it on your blog! Could you point me in the right direction? Thank you!
Mary says
I found it! Of course, as soon as I commented! Carolina Inn Club Aqua? Hooray! I have gone back and forth between a grey and blue wall color, but I think I’ve decided to do grey in our living room and blue in the bedroom. It’s our first house so I’m super-duper beyond excited!
YoungHouseLove says
Yup, that’s the one!
xo,
s
YoungHouseLove says
It’s Carolina Inn Club Aqua by Valspar. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Liz england says
I love the choice of bedroom color. I was curious what color you used in the living room pic ? I am trying to find a color that looks great with real and yellow accents. Thanks love your bight accents and site:)
YoungHouseLove says
That’s Moonshine by Benjamin Moore. Hope it helps!
xo
s
christelle harris says
may I ask you where you got the fabric for the headboard the name of it/maker???? I love your room and I am ready to plunge with the same color:)
YoungHouseLove says
We made the headboard with fabric from a local fabric outlet called U-Fab here in Richmond, but I think it’s called U-Bud by Braemore. Good luck!
xo
s