Paint colors for your home, inside and out
Grey · Living room · colors from 3 paintings
These three greys were measured from public-domain paintings, and each leans slightly green or warm rather than flat gray. Two have an LRV of 51 and suit most living room walls. The third is a mid-tone for larger or brighter rooms.
Quick answer
Use the green-grey #B1C0BD on the walls, the warm greige #C8BAB2 for a sofa wall or upholstery, and the mid-tone #9F9F93 where you want more depth. Add the cream, clay and dark olive as trim, wood and accents.
A light wall color with an LRV of 51 and a green undertone, taken from Cezanne's "Auvers, Panoramic View". It brightens a room with steady daylight and stays calm beside warm wood.
From Auvers, Panoramic View, Paul Cezanne
Also LRV 51, but with a warm red-orange undertone that reads as soft taupe. Taken from Fra Carnevale's "The Birth of the Virgin", it suits a sofa wall, painted cabinetry or upholstery in a room with warm floors.
From The Birth of the Virgin, Fra Carnevale (Bartolomeo di Giovanni Corradini)
A mid-tone with an LRV of 34 and a green undertone, taken from Thomas Doughty's "Landscape with Dog". Use it on a feature wall or in a large room with plenty of window light.
From Landscape with Dog, Thomas Doughty
A very light cream with an LRV of 78 and a warm yellow undertone, taken from Cezanne's "Auvers, Panoramic View". It works on trim, ceilings or textiles, and bounces light back into the room.
From Auvers, Panoramic View, Paul Cezanne
A mid-tone with an LRV of 23 and a warm red-orange undertone, taken from Cezanne's "Auvers, Panoramic View". Use it as a wood or leather tone, or in a rug or cushions, against the cooler greys.
From Auvers, Panoramic View, Paul Cezanne
A very dark shade with an LRV of 3 and a warm yellow undertone, taken from Doughty's "Landscape with Dog". No close commercial paint match was found, so use it in small doses such as a lamp base, frames or one chair.
From Landscape with Dog, Thomas Doughty
The same paint reads differently in cool north light, warm south sun and under evening lamps. Find the column closest to your room.
| Color | Neutral daylight | North light | South light | Evening lamps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soft Green Grey | ||||
| Warm Greige | ||||
| Mid Olive Grey | ||||
| Pale Warm Cream | ||||
| Terra Cotta Clay |
Pick which color goes on the walls, the big furniture and the bold piece. Floors, shadows and trim follow your choice.
The framed picture on the wall is Auvers, Panoramic View.
Start with lightness, then look at undertone. The three greys here sit at different points on both.
The green-grey #B1C0BD has an LRV of 51. It reflects a fair amount of light and has a cool, slightly green cast. It suits main walls. The warm greige #C8BAB2 also has an LRV of 51, but its red-orange undertone makes it feel softer and closer to taupe. It works on a sofa wall, painted cabinetry or upholstery. The mid-tone #9F9F93 has an LRV of 34. It is the darkest of the three and reads as a quiet, earthy grey with a green undertone.
For a small living room, pick one of the two LRV 51 shades. For a large room or one with tall windows, the mid-tone can hold a wall without feeling heavy. If your sofa, rug or floor is already warm, lean toward the greige. If they are cool or neutral, lean toward the green-grey.
The very light cream #ECE4CB has an LRV of 78, so it bounces light and gives a soft edge against any of the three greys. On trim it looks gentle rather than crisp. On the ceiling it keeps the room bright. The closest matches measured are Sherwin-Williams SW 6413 Restoration Ivory, Behr 740C-2 Cozy Cottage and Farrow & Ball No. 2012 House White. If you want sharper trim, try a cooler white, but hold it next to the grey first.
For wood and floors, the clay #B27565 (LRV 23) is a useful guide. Its warm red-orange undertone sits well against the green greys, so look for wood furniture, leather or a rug in that range. Warm wood floors suit the greige especially well.
Use the very dark #37330D (LRV 3) sparingly, on a lamp base, picture frames or a single armchair. A little of it anchors the room without making the walls feel smaller.
Grey takes on the color of the light around it. North-facing rooms get cooler daylight, which can make the green-grey look flatter and colder. The greige is the safer choice there, because its warm undertone offsets the cool light. South-facing rooms get warmer, stronger light, where the green-grey stays fresh and the greige can lean pinker.
Evening matters too. Warm bulbs add yellow, which pulls out the green in #9F9F93 and the warm tones in #C8BAB2. Cool white bulbs make all three look cleaner and a bit colder. Use the same bulb color across the room before you judge a sample.
LRV helps predict how much light the wall returns. At 51, the two lighter greys will brighten a room moderately. At 34, #9F9F93 absorbs more light, so it will look deeper in a dim corner and may need an extra lamp.
Test on the wall itself, not on a small card in your hand. Paint a patch about two feet square on at least two walls, one that gets direct window light and one in shade. Large sheets of painted board that you can move around work well too.
Look at each patch in the morning, midday and evening, with lamps on. Leave it next to your sofa fabric, floor and trim color. Greys change most when they sit beside other colors, and a green or warm undertone often shows up only then.
The paint matches on this page are the closest measured to each hex value, not exact copies, so expect small differences even from near-identical ones. Buy sample pots of the closest matches and compare them with your own eyes. Wait until the patch is fully dry before judging it, and check a second coat as well.
For a bright, calm wall, try the green-grey #B1C0BD at LRV 51. Its closest measured matches are Sherwin-Williams SW 6219 Rain, Behr BXC-25 Colonnade Gray and Farrow & Ball No. 84 Green Blue. For a warmer grey, try the greige #C8BAB2.
Choose one of the two LRV 51 shades, #B1C0BD or #C8BAB2, since they reflect more light than the LRV 34 mid-tone. In a room with cool light, the warm greige is usually the easier choice.
The warm cream #ECE4CB, with an LRV of 78, is a soft choice for trim and ceilings with all three greys. Closest matches include Sherwin-Williams SW 6413 Restoration Ivory and Behr 740C-2 Cozy Cottage.
Yes. These three show a green undertone in #B1C0BD and #9F9F93, and a warm red-orange undertone in #C8BAB2. Compare samples side by side to see them.
Warm, reddish wood tones suit these greys well. The clay #B27565, at LRV 23, is a good reference for furniture, leather or a rug against the cooler green-greys.
A card with every color on this page, its LRV and the paintings it comes from. Pin it, or take it to the paint store.
Painting images: The Art Institute of Chicago, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, public domain (CC0). Colors measured by Light & Pigment. Paint names belong to their brands and matches are approximate. Colors look different on screen than on a wall, so always test a sample.
