choosing gray paint

[Elizabeth86]

My boys are wanting their room decorated with video game things and I haven't painted that room since I was pregnant with my first ds in 2011.  It's still baby room yellow.  lol Their sheets are shades of blue and gray video game controllers.  They don't want blue and so they both have settled on gray.  Oldest wants the room red and I'm like...no.  Second son wants it purple.  So, like I said, gray.  Help me choose a good shade.  The room gets morning sun, not totally east facing.  What do I need to consider with undertones and what not.  I HATE choosing paint. lol Also, if you have any pics to share, please do.

 

[Katy]

The most popular gray paint color has been Benjamin Moore's Revere Pewter for about ten years.

[Beth S]

I have zero experience with this, but I've actually heard of Sherwin Williams' Agreeable Gray.
It's supposed to be the go-to neutral gray color.

[lmrich]

Sherwin Williams does free color consulations over Zoom. Super easy

 

[ktgrok]

Get a few samples - you can get some from Sampilize and or some colors straight from Sherwin Williams or Benjamin Moore (cheaper) and put them on a white paper background and stick them up on the wall. Leave them there a few days, and look at them at different times of day. Also look at them agains the floor, etc. 

[ktgrok]

1 minute ago, lmrich said:

Sherwin Williams does free color consulations over Zoom. Super easy

 

Oh yes! Or you can just do it by email if you are an introvert with social anxiety, like me, lol. Just did one yesterday! You send photos and they look and give you color ideas. 

[Elizabeth86]

1 hour ago, ktgrok said:

Oh yes! Or you can just do it by email if you are an introvert with social anxiety, like me, lol. Just did one yesterday! You send photos and they look and give you color ideas. 

I literally am not sure they would have a clue what would match a floor covered with stuffed animals and lego, but maybe. 😂

[ktgrok]

3 minutes ago, Elizabeth86 said:

I literally am not sure they would have a clue what would match a floor covered with stuffed animals and lego, but maybe. 😂

LOL - maybe get a picture of a small area of uncovered floor?

[Junie]

We have Sherwin Williams Gray Matters (7066) in our master bath and I love it. :)

[Corraleno]

Ben Moore's Gray Owl is frequently recommended as a "clean" medium gray with minimal undertones. I would stay away from the warm grays (SW Agreeable Gray, BM Edgecomb Gray) & grieges (BM Revere Pewter), which tend to have green, purple, or taupe undertones that will be especially noticeable if there is a lot of blue in the room. Depending on the light they can also lean a lot more beige than gray. (I painted a room in BM Litchfield Gray and where it gets direct sun it's a pale neutralish gray, but in a dark corner it's pinkish beige — it's hard to believe its the exact same paint.) At the other end of the spectrum, grays with blue undertones tend to look much more "light blue" than people expect once all four walls are painted. My son's room is blue and gray and I painted the walls in Behr's Sterling, which is a nice, light, neutral gray without strong undertones.

[Katy]

7 minutes ago, Corraleno said:

Ben Moore's Gray Owl is frequently recommended as a "clean" medium gray with minimal undertones. I would stay away from the warm grays (SW Agreeable Gray, BM Edgecomb Gray) & grieges (BM Revere Pewter), which tend to have green, purple, or taupe undertones that will be especially noticeable if there is a lot of blue in the room. Depending on the light they can also lean a lot more beige than gray. (I painted a room in BM Litchfield Gray and where it gets direct sun it's a pale neutralish gray, but in a dark corner it's pinkish beige — it's hard to believe its the exact same paint.) At the other end of the spectrum, grays with blue undertones tend to look much more "light blue" than people expect once all four walls are painted. My son's room is blue and gray and I painted the walls in Behr's Sterling, which is a nice, light, neutral gray without strong undertones.

I disagree because griege is the trendy gray and I love Revere Pewter.  But I think you should get a swatch of all of these colors, hold them up on the wall and have each boy pick two.  Get sample pots for $6-8, paint them on the wall, and have them look at them for a few days.  Chances are someone will have a strong preference.

[Corraleno]

13 minutes ago, Katy said:

I disagree because griege is the trendy gray and I love Revere Pewter.  But I think you should get a swatch of all of these colors, hold them up on the wall and have each boy pick two.  Get sample pots for $6-8, paint them on the wall, and have them look at them for a few days.  Chances are someone will have a strong preference.

I like Revere Pewter, too, and grieges in general (I've used several in my house). If someone is specifically looking for a warm medium greige with green/taupe undertones, RP would be a great choice, but it's definitely not a typical gray-gray.

[katilac]

9 hours ago, Elizabeth86 said:

  I HATE choosing paint. lol  

 

Then let them choose it. It's their room, it's just gray paint, it doesn't have to be a thing. 

[Elizabeth86]

12 minutes ago, katilac said:

Then let them choose it. It's their room, it's just gray paint, it doesn't have to be a thing. 

Lol they wouldn't agree on a color, so I told them I'd choose.

[ikslo]

I’d go with dark grey, almost black. Then use lighter greys, white, red, purple as accents. Throw up some cool gaming lights. 
(DS’s room is black with white trim and white ceiling. He has black black-out curtains. It’s not gloomy at all. He loves it.)

[katilac]

26 minutes ago, Elizabeth86 said:

Lol they wouldn't agree on a color, so I told them I'd choose.

Then choose randomly. Revere Pewter it is! 

You're welcome. 

[plansrme]

2 hours ago, Corraleno said:

Ben Moore's Gray Owl is frequently recommended as a "clean" medium gray with minimal undertones. I would stay away from the warm grays (SW Agreeable Gray, BM Edgecomb Gray) & grieges (BM Revere Pewter), which tend to have green, purple, or taupe undertones that will be especially noticeable if there is a lot of blue in the room. Depending on the light they can also lean a lot more beige than gray. (I painted a room in BM Litchfield Gray and where it gets direct sun it's a pale neutralish gray, but in a dark corner it's pinkish beige — it's hard to believe its the exact same paint.) At the other end of the spectrum, grays with blue undertones tend to look much more "light blue" than people expect once all four walls are painted. My son's room is blue and gray and I painted the walls in Behr's Sterling, which is a nice, light, neutral gray without strong undertones.

We have lots of Gray Owl (color matched by SW) in our house, and we once painted a flip house entirely in Gray Owl. It is a fabulous color. You could always paint a horizontal stripe in their purple or whatever to jazz it up. 

[KSera]

2 hours ago, plansrme said:

We have lots of Gray Owl (color matched by SW) in our house, and we once painted a flip house entirely in Gray Owl. It is a fabulous color. You could always paint a horizontal stripe in their purple or whatever to jazz it up. 

I love Gray Owl as well. It did go light blue for us, which I didn't expect from the sample.  It's good to be aware it can do that, though. I'm thinking teen boys wanting a video game motif might find it too close to a baby blue depending on the lighting.

[easypeasy]

I've used Sherwin Williams' Agreeable Gray over and over and over again. LOVE it.

[Laura Corin]

We asked our painter-decorator. He has a lot of experience about which greys work in different lights. We have been  happy with his recommendations.