Verlie Feeney
As for the hues you can expect to see, warm gray paint colours will have either violet or green undertones, whereas cool gray paint colours lean into BLUE, violet or green (often a blend). Now, if you’ve been reading up on the darker end of things, you might have come across my blog post on Sherwin Williams’s best DARK gray paint colours, as well as Benjamin Moore’s best DARK greige and taupe paint colours.
Greige and taupe paint colours are tough to hit as the undertones often come up more than you want, leaving you with more than just ‘neutral-looking’ walls.
But regardless of the undertone, compared to Sherwin William’s selection, Benjamin Moore kicks some serious badonkadonk, so let’s get started.
Chelsea Gray has an LRV of 22, making it a popular choice for cabinets, exteriors and even all of the walls in a room! You’ll get a similar look using Benjamin Moore Chantilly Lace with Chelsea Gray.
In this kitchen (below), Chelsea Gray looks simple and low in contrast with the black laminate countertops, letting the white subway tile and cabinets do the contrasting… FULL PAINT COLOUR REVIEW: Benjamin Moore Chelsea Gray Going in the OPPOSITE direction to Chelsea Gray (as it relates to undertones) is Steel Wool.
FULL Paint Colour Review of Benjamin Moore Steel Wool When it comes to this particular type of warm gray, I would love to show you something a bit darker, but if we bump down just ONE NOTCH to Squirrel Tail, we pick up a green that’s more distracting than a streaker at a football game (it wasn’t me, I swear). But compared to the slightly warmer greige end of things, Graystone holds itself AMAZINGLY well as it relates to undertones.
In the above photo, you’ll see Graystone with White Dove trim and a Cheating Heart door. Look at how much more GREEN shows up to the party in this next foyer with warm white trim and a GORGEOUS wood front door. Remember, your room’s EXPOSURE, interior lighting and surrounding finishes play a HUGE part in how a colour is perceived.
In the above photo, notice how the semi-gloss sheen of the paint bounces the light, making Gray look LIGHTER than you might expect.
In this next photo, while the wood bar DESPERATELY needs to be painted the same colour as the mantel, let’s focus on how Gray grabs the darker stone in the fireplace tile… Undoubtedly, you’ll be heading out in the near future to grab paint samples – stop right there!
With an LRV of 17, Amherst Gray has more meat on its bones without going as dark as Kendall Charcoal (also lovely). FULL Paint Colour Review of Benjamin Moore Amherst Gray Trout Gray has an LRV of almost 15, making it a WICKED gorgeous option for feature walls, built-ins, cabinets or ENTIRE ROOMS!
FULL Paint Colour Review of Benjamin Moore Trout Gray Well, they’re rarely used, and this is because the majority of interior finishes NEED gray paint colours with noticeable undertones! This makes it an interesting option for exteriors with roofing, stonework or brickwork that need a more passive approach.
With an LRV 13.47, Overcoat has a similar approach to Asphalt with a slightly stronger violet undertone and a bit more MEAT on its bones. Overcoat would be a beautiful exterior option, as well as for front doors and dramatic feature walls.
The risk with this colour is that if your finishes have a violet undertone, Dolphin could look flat or even slightly green just in comparison. Take a sample of Benjamin Moore Metropolis and place it next to Dolphin and watch the magic unfold before your eyes! However, it’s not like the other grays, as it has some interesting things going on – read all about it in Benjamin Moore Iron Mountain: Paint Colour Review.
