The Griege Movement

There is a lot of information on this here interweb about how to choose paint colors.  Here’s my little take on how I choose our new colors.

I actually needed to choose a color very quickly.  I had two days to paint before my kids got out of school.  Luckily, my trim was already done in SW Dover white.  I am loving the grey trend on walls right now and wanted to jump on board.  The colors that were on my wall were too much.  They darkened the space and I couldn’t match accessories.  I had browns and reds in the last house and I wanted a change.  I am feeling grays and blues right now.

Before.

The Griege Movement - Uncookiecutter.com

 

I decided to do a quick search on paint colors.  I wanted to find a room I liked and just go with whatever grey they used.  The problem was, most of the grey/white rooms have white couches. I can’t even pretend for one moment that I can have a white couch right now.  Three dogs and two kids that all basically live outside in the mud, there is no way.  So, my couches are brown.   When I built the furniture for this room, I intentionally left browns and grays show through because I knew I wanted the walls grey and I wanted it to blend.

So, how to blend brown and grey?  Enter the greige movement.  I had never heard that word until I read THIS article by  Tiny Sidekick.  What great tips she has!  She really did her research, which really paid off!  Especially for me :).

The Griege Movement - Uncookiecutter.com

So, in a desperate attempt to get this done before summer, I ran to Lowe’s and found the color, SW Requisite Grey, that she used.  There is actually a whole section of SW paints titled “Griege”. I stood there for awhile.  It doesn’t look grey in the store, it looked more tan.  I almost didn’t buy it.  Even when I got home and stirred it and poured it into the tray, still looked brown.  But, I stuck with it.   In her pics, it looked grey and she said over and over again that it goes with the blues in  her house.

 

And I love it!  It does exactly what she said!  Turns out, when you do your research it works!  The browns and blues and grays somehow all work. I also painted the exterior doors black (I had some leftover from the outside paint job).  The room is so much brighter and open-feeling.  Even Matt said I was right – he kept saying he didn’t mind the yellow and red.

Before

The Griege Movement - Uncookiecutter.com

 

After

The Griege Movement - Uncookiecutter.com

Yes, I realize grey may be a trend.   BUT, it took me two days and $100.  If I change it  in a few years, totally worth it.  Right now I’m in love.

Before

The Griege Movement - Uncookiecutter.com

 

After

The Griege Movement - Uncookiecutter.com

Up next – I can finally get some stuff on those walls!

Links to other projects in this post…

DIY Faux Industrial Shelves (TV surround)

Industrial Coffee Table Build

DIY Crate End Table

 

The Griege Movement - Uncookiecutter.com

Thanks for stopping by!

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44 Comments

  1. Hello! I was so excited to see this post! The color is perfect in your space. Grey with just the right amount of warmth. I love it, and if you don’t mind I’d love to highlight this post in an upcoming Reader’s Spotlight post that I’m working on!

  2. We are trying to decide on a grey to use in our home right now also. We have browns and blues and I love how yours turned out. You may have found the perfect color for us also. Thanks. Cathy

  3. April! What a fantastic job you did. Great color choice and it totally changed the room!!!! I never realized how much gray and brown went together until I was in a class about a year ago. The color, French Linen, by Annie Sloan CP was described to me as a color that works with Browns and grays and it totally changed my perception!!! Our living room is going gray too… I call it the “new brown.” Can’t wait to see what you put on the walls!!! You’re moving right along in your new home.

    1. Thank you Sara! It have a whole bunch of wall stuff laying all over the floor in the “guest room”, ha! There is a whole section of SW “greige” at Lowes. So happy to be able to mix the browns and grays!

  4. I love this! I’ve been thinking about repainting our living room! I love this idea! THANKS!! Your room looks awesome by the way!

  5. Your greige looks fantastic! I tried it when I redid my kitchen but didn’t like it so I went with a more beige. Painting is such a great way to change things up, and except for the time involved isn’t THAT expensive. Sometimes we just need something new.

  6. You just saved my husband a lot of money because I’ve been pining over a few greige’s from Restoration Hardware and Farrow & Ball that are ummm…not exactly in our price-point. But the color is exactly this, grey! Love it.

    Your room looks cool and calm in the new color. Does it feel different?

    1. It does, we love it! I didn’t even use Sherwin Williams, Lowe’s will match SW colors in their paints. I used Valspar Reserve and love it! It covers well and goes on very easily. Good luck!

  7. WHOA! The grey really opens the room up. Holy smokes! It looks very modern and sophisticated. So weird how it looked tan when you were pouring it out…Paint can certainly be weird like that. Such a beautiful color. <3

    1. Thanks Heather! The color is so funny, I almost didn’t use it! So glad I did, it feels so much more open and “light”!

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