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Paint Design Dilemma home office

Help choosing blue-gray paint for home office

5 years ago

last modified: 5 years ago

We are building a new house and the office space is on the main floor, size: 13' x 10'. It has NO windows so zero natural light. The only lighting comes from 4 overhead potlights and whatever lamp we end up putting in there. The trim will be Benjamin Moore Super White semi-gloss.

It will be my office so I wanted something calming but still feminine. All four walls will be that color, not just an accent wall. Our builder uses Benjamin Moore paints so we are choosing from that brand. The entire house is going to be Super White (the house is pretty modern in style) and the floors are a greyish hardwood throughout.

After many hours, I finally decided on Van Deusen Blue but am now having second thoughts as it just seems so dark, especially since there isn't any light in that room. I'm thinking now that I want a crisp blue-gray instead (as opposed to a "muddy" blue gray). I can still change it before the end of today so would appreciate any advice/tips on the following colors:

- November Skies

- Van Courtland Blue

- Amsterdam (which basically looks like Van Courtland Blue to me? I can't tell what the difference is)

Thank you!

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Comments (5)

mark_rachel
5 years ago
Do you want to go lighter? The Van Deusen Blue is very very dark! I would look at Gray Owl, Smokestack Gray, Edgewood Gray, Blue Springs. Don't rush into a paint decision though.
Jamie Ludwig
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
Warning: (learning from just painting Grey in my living room that has loads of windows and light) Most Grey colors turn out much darker looking once you paint them on all the walls. We spent $2,000 to change the grey in our livingroom to a lighter grey because the first one turned out too dark and that was a grey that was much lighter than any you have choosen. I had even gotten a sample and painted one wall to test the color but when the walls all reflect off each other it gets way darker! I would test Beacon Grey or Breath of Fresh Air.

We ended up using SW 7071 Grey Screen You can see in this photo how much darker it can get depending on the shadows and lighting.

Here it is in the day light:

During the day it is almost baby blue but at night it is VERY grey.
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Hang on. What are you doing for backsplash and where IS the wall space in the straight-on kitchen picture, which you want to paint? I'm picturing all backsplash, and it looks like the kitchen is off in a corner, which changes the question a little (and takes the kitchen picture out of the equation). Lovely kitchen and home! You have the dark island, counter tops and floors which ground the space. Go light, definitely with your backsplash. Key question to me is, what will be seen, from where? If kitchen is off separate, then it will matter less what color you select in adjacent room(s). We used BM Aura Vancouver Day in the pantry and breakfast area (a grey blue). This did not work with our creamy white cabinets/Torquay quartz/Cherry islands (too blue and the wrong one). BM Aura Shimmer blends nicely. (A white with presence, do like it). Good luck and I'll look forward to seeing progress pictures.
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Just to update for those who tried to help but didn't see my photos posted on another thread....... I finally pulled out my stash of large Farrow & Ball chips and took Pigeon to be colormatched at my local Ace Hardware store. Turns out, they actually had the formula for it in their computer for Benjamin Moore paint, so I bought Ben Moore colormatched to Pigeon. We absolutely love it! It provides just the right amount of color, looks blue at some times, more gray green at others. We bought an old desk off Craigslist for $40 and spent another $40 spray-painting it black. I reused his leather desk chair and my DD's bookshelves. We put back the old persian rug and will consider wood flooring later down the road. I need to hem the Lowes canvas dropcloths I have hung as drapes, and then, I'll be done. In the first picture on the link I show, it looks more blue than in reality, but the other two shots are pretty true. All 3 pix were taken within a few minutes of each other one afternoon this week. Red Here is a link that might be useful: This photo and next 2 are Pigeon in the study
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Hi. I am in this same spot today. Did you decide upon either one of these two colors?
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I think your idea would be great, but being miss practicality I am concerned about how much it will show dirt. I think it would be lovely (in the right hues- not the example you posted which is too gold at least on my screen- but will definitely take a different direction than your original inspiration photo. So much more serene, but stunning.
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PRO
Sina Sadeddin Architectural Design
5 years ago
In a room that gets limited light sometimes it's best to embrace that and go with a dark color. Offices can handle darker more dramatic colors than more public living spaces. Don't rely on the paint to bring light to the room.

If you do want to go lighter though you can always cut the paint color with some white. Also look into BM Silver Grey, BM Smoke and BM Silver Mist.
Alice
Original Author
5 years ago
Thank you all! Jaime - that is a massive difference between night and day. Craziness. Thank you for sharing though as it is very helpful.

mark - smokestack gray is gorgeous. It's even darker than Van Courtland blue but similar.
PRO
JudyG Designs
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
I am going to steer you away from blue to more of a a green undertone and suggest B.M. Horizon. Paired with lots of white it will be perfect for an interior room.

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