Paint Color Trends for 2014

For over a year, I’ve been working with my friend, Holly Mathis, on updating my house. She’s been a dream to work with. She is full of ideas, but coaches me along, and lets me make my own decisions. Since we have been a on a very limited budget, I’ve resorted frequently to one of the most cost effective ways to update a house: paint.

Years ago, when I was studying design, I did an internship with Tulsa decorator Charles Faudree. The paint colors on trend at that time were warm yellows, browns, and reds, and the paint trends have shifted, literally, to the other end of the spectrum. I’ve been very inspired by the blue-gray-greens of Swedish design, and have worked on repainting the rooms in our house from the golden and red tones to grays and greens. I made the paint color board below to help me get an idea about the palettes going in our house, and thought it would be fun to share with you all.

Here is a little bit of insight onto each of these colors:

• Pratt & Lambert Contemplation – This is the color in our bedroom. It’s a rich blue-gray-green, and would be very dark in a closed space. Our bedroom has a big, bright window, and so it works in that space. I’ve also seen it used very successfully on exterior shutters for a great, brighter French blue.
• Pratt & Lambert Manchester – This is a cooler gray blue that we’ll be using in our kitchen when it needs it’s next coat of paint.
• Benjamin Moore Gray Owl – Gray Owl comes across very blue, to me. It’s a true gray, but it doesn’t have an ounce of tan in it. I tried it in a north-facing room one time, and it came off too blue for me. I have it in a south-facing room now, and it works well as a good neutral. Without any natural light on it, I feel like it turns blue.
• Sherwin Williams Agreeably Gray – We paint our brick exterior last year, and this is the color we went with. It’s pale enough to lean towards white, in the sunlight, but just warm enough to keep it from being sterile. It leans just a hair towards tan, but not too much.
• Benjamin Moore Pale Oak – I got this color suggestion from my friend, Shannon Ho. I love it. It’s almost the most perfect color ever.
• Benjamin Moore Horizon – We’ve been using this color for ceilings. It’s just a little bit blue, and not at all green, and I like the idea of blue ceilings, but don’t want them to look BLUE, so it’s perfect for that. Pairs brilliantly with Pale Oak.
• Benjamin Moore Stonington Gray – Holly suggested this for my boys’ room. Since there isn’t a lot of light in that room, it reads very “battleship gray”, which works for boys. We’ve also used it in their bathroom, and it’s very blue. Holly suggested that it looks great with red accents, and I completely agree, so I’ll be looking to add touches of red to their room with this.
• Restoration Hardware The Right White – Oh my goodness, do I love this color. I painted all the trim and cabinets in my first house this color, and when I moved to this house, I tried to make a move to something creamier, and hated it. I love how crisp and bright this white is. It’s almost a pure white. It’s not great with kids–I do find myself wiping down cabinets all the time, but I keep a can on hand for touch-ups.
• Pratt & Lambert Lambswool – This was a Charles Faudree color. I’ve seen it on walls, and it’s tan, with a nod towards gray. On trim and cabinets, it looks gray, with a nod towards tan. It’s really a true taupe. We don’t currently have this color anywhere in our house, but I added it into this batch because I think it would be a great color for kitchen cabinets.
• Pratt & Lambert Pearl White – This is a bluer version of Manchester. If you want a room that feels like a pale blue-gray, this would be a good options.
• Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter – This is a lighter version of Lambswool. It reads gray on walls, without blue.
• Pratt & Lamber Arrowroot – This is similar to the color we have in our entry, hallways, and our old guest bedroom. I’m a little bit tired of it, but it reads so neutral, and hides dirt, so it’s going to be hard to change.

If you’re on a paint search, I hope some of these suggestions help!