PS Here are some more pics from when my house looked a lot cleaner (pre toddler). The wall color in the photos is French Canvas. Which I like but also, could change. A change is as good as a rest, right?

robo, you might find this thread of interest... https://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/4134333/do-you-have-a-whole-house-color-scheme

I laid out the colors I used in painting our house and how, to tie rooms together that were open to each other, I took the ceiling paint in one room for the wall of the other so that the rooms are different yet coordinate...I think it makes it more interesting yet still cohesive. I gave myself freer rein though in the private spaces and smaller spaces as I do enjoy color.

IMO, I've never been a fan of all the grays as I find, unless they have warm undertones, they literally leave me cold. We like warm and cozy so went with that in most of our color choices.

Oooh I like the way Nantucket Dune looked in the open concept home. BTW you probably already know this but I am an INVETERATE swatcher so this process will probably involve like 40 little cans of paint.

I like the idea of slightly different schemes for different floors. Like if I did off whites on the main and blues/greens on the second or something.

Annie...still love that vibrant powder room!!

I do not think this is our forever home so that does weigh on my mind a little -- as I get older I'm a little more lazy about personalizing wall color, although I do love color, in favor of a neutral background and then colorful everything else.

A few friends had BM Grey Cashmere throughout their first floor and dang I loved that color. DEFINITELY a grey but very greenish/bluish/alive.

Tibbrex! Yes, when it came to colors, she was really good

Robo, try a sample of BM smokey taupe, it's the most calming neutral I have ever used and soooo pretty.

I'm a big fan of SW Accessible Beige and the only walls I've even considered changing are in the powder room (although I think I've about decided I don't want to do that). I like how the AB plays with our white trim, and provides just enough of a "color" so as not to feel stark, but definitely allows the art and architecture of the house to take center stage. In other words, I find it to be a lovely backdrop. Coming from our previous house that was once painted like the inside of a Crayola box, then went to most rooms being painted green, I am really loving having a light neutral on the walls now.

That Gray Cashmere is awfully nice. Not too gray at all. It’s sophisticated and warm, not cold.

All our paint is neutral. I love the soothing tones and our wood floors, antiques, art and accessories provide the colors (also plants). IMO instead of the walls standing out, other items do. We have a very light "cafe au lait" shade on all walls except a guest bath (right off the great room) and the kitchen and sunroom which are all a darker shade. I could actually go with the darker shade in all rooms, I really like it.

I’m not a huge grey fan but saw this blog post the other day, which shows two warm greys that are very pretty. Otherwise I lean a little beige myself, and love Ida's Accessible Beige as a whole house color. http://eyeforpretty.com/2016/03/possibly-the-prettiest-paint-color-ever/

When we moved into our house I was obsessive about the paint choices for every room, and I spent more than I care to admit on samples. Then I decided to repaint a few rooms, and I got help here at GW, but it was pretty overwhelming having so many people tell me their favorite color choices, not knowing anything about their styles, the light in their homes, etc. I made some good choices, but still spent tons on samples.

When it came time to repaint the rest of the house a few years ago, I decided to use a color consultant. I used Amy Woolf, who was a frequent GW poster at the time. Best use of time and money ever. I don't think I spent much more on her services than I did on all the samples the last times around, and the choices I ended up with were so much more cohesive, better, and very personalized. Since you are planning to do your whole home, it's something to think about.

I'll second the suggestion to use Amy Woolf. I was in decision overload when we were building and I called Amy. I knew I wanted one neutral to use throughout the house that could carry anything else I would do with the rooms. Plan was if nothing else it would buy me time to live in the house and make longer-term decisions. Turns out I love living with neutral walls that morph from room to room throughout the day. Amy helped me pick the perfect trim and ceiling color that offer crisp but softer transitions than standard ceiling white and bright white trim that relate to the wall color. this was all done with an eye towards working with cabinetry and tile choices I'd already made and transitioning from our brick and trim choices on the exterior. She also helped me nail down stain for the oak floors. I would call her again in a heartbeat.

I think it is a good opportunity --- you have a year --- to do things you really love instead of just going utilitarian.

I'd start by looking online at home color schemes you like and go from there. I do think it is highly preferable to have a scheme. Not matchy matchy but if you put all the colors together on the table, the mood/vibe/feel works.

https://www.heytherehome.com/how-to-create-a-whole-home-color-palette/

I have to laugh at even creating this thread because if only you could see how HORRIBLE my house looks! Right now it doesn't deserve new paint, it really needs a match and a dumpster.

I took a day off last week to set our family room up as Baby Land and reclaim our formal living, and instead I had a nap and then took baby to walk in clinic for pinkeye. I also have two hampers and three boxes of old-size clothing folded and ready to pack up for my sister, but still occupying like 1/4 of my master bedroom.

Thinking about paint and putting together a decorating board is the least stressful nesting activity right now, but possibly also least useful. I really would love a fresh slate, though.

None of us can make a really great recommendation for your house unless we are standing in it. That has always been my opinion when people ask for color advice here. We can tell you our favorites, but you'll need to sample them in your own rooms. But you know that. Some of my favorite neutrals are (all BM) Natural Wicker, Smokey Taupe and its neighbors (Winds Breath, Cedar Key), Edgecomb Gray (more beige than gray, usually), Classic Gray (which is barely gray). I also like Everlasting, which is a sandy color.

I would pick the main neutral color first, then the other colors. One thing I sometimes do is cut up the paint chips and lay them out and play with different combinations. One combination I love is Edgecomb Gray with Healing Aloe. I have those colors in my master bedroom/bath in our beach cottage and it's just really pretty and peaceful. I have Edgecomb on the bedroom walls, Healing Aloe on the bedroom ceiling, and Quiet Moments in the bath.

This is not a great pic but it's Cedar Key on the walls and Smokey Taupe on the back wall of the bookshelves.

Natural Wicker is more of a creamy, almost yellowy but not really, neutral.

https://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/color-overview/find-your-color/color/950/natural-wicker?color=950

THe neutral paint colour we used for most of the rooms in the house is Benjamin Moore Florentine Plaster. After 8 years I still really like it.

No advice as I'm the worst at this kind of thing though I managed to finally pick out some colors for my house with help from Sherwin Williams and a lot of sample quarts. I'm definitely a warm beige person so never got on the gray bandwagon.

OT but I noticed two cats in the photos. How did I not know you had cats or did I forget? I thought you just had Penny.

I have one left, we used to have three! The white one passed away at about 18 (not exactly sure as I was at least his third owner and he had spent time at the Montreal pound).

Then we had a bossy black rescue kitty who sadly passed from stomach cancer at about 10 years of age. She had been a stray. My husband and I had met a lovely peaches and cream sedate beauty at an adoption event. He was visiting her at the pound when this tiny, half starved, black kitty missing half her fur and covered in scabs caught his eye...guess who came home with him. She had a severe allergy to fleas but wasn’t a problem as we keep indoor kitties.

The orange guy Eddie is the only one I’ve had from a kitten. He’s 12 and going strong! His claim to fame is he once jumped out (voluntarily) an insufficiently childproof sixth story condo window and fell right into a fresh flowerbed. Took him to the vet and not a scratch, didn’t even lose a nail. Took him back to the condo and he jumped up in the same window and tried to slide open the screen again! We promptly had dowels made to block the screens closed. He misses other cats but we have decided to be done with cats for awhile after he passes. Our dog is a little too interested in him (wants to play) and would need a very strong personality cat to keep her at bay-which fortunately he is. Plus the toddler ... he’s actually pretty happy to be around the toddler but that life isn’t for every cat!

Wow - what a miracle cat! One of his nine lives I guess.

Maddielee, I don't suppose you could post a pic of your small cottage painted in capital white? Apologies if this is verging on hijacking.

Robo, sort of going through this now having chosen new paint for most of our house. I wanted to go more neutral and it was hard. And I am. It good with this either. At the same time I also had to paint a bedroom and bath at our condo because of a ceiling leak. Went with Edgecomb Gray there for the bedroom and Revere Pewter for the bath. They are on the same paint chip. We had done a mini refresh of the bathroom and the colors worked out well for the bathroom. I love Edgecomb Gray, by the way, and am using it in our kitchen.

What helped me for the house was getting foam board and painting samples. Then you can set the boards around the house in different spots to see how the light affects the color. I didn’t buy but 2-3 samples at a time so that it wasn’t so confusing. I cut one piece of the board in half and could paint both sides.

I love the colors of your rugs/drapes/etc. in the two pics you included in your original post -don't be too hard on yourself about the state of your house. It's interesting that you say friends are all painting their walls white now because that's exactly what I've been seeing as I've been touring some open houses recently with a friend who is looking for a new place. Like you, I am a swatch tester. I don't think I've ever painted a room without testing at least ten colors, and in many cases it's exceeded twenty. You've received some good links and names of colors to start with here, but one thing I don't think has been discussed enough is light. I was determined to paint my son's old bedroom a shade of gray, and probably went through thirty swatches (painted on the walls), before deciding. And honestly, in the end, I was still not happy with the color we chose. I think it's because it is such a low light room (despite a large window), because it's a north-facing room., that any gray just looks dingy in there. One thing I learned on this board is to pay attention to the LRV number that is typically found on the back of any paint swatch. It stands for Light Reflective Value, and as the name implies, measures the amount of light that is reflected back into the room once it hits a wall of that color. Obviously light colors reflect more than dark, but once you get into the middle range, it is always obvious.

I too would like to see the Capital White. From research though I think it goes toward the yellow side.

Robo what white are your friends using? This will be helpful for me when I have to paint our Florida house.

Well, Northern Canada white probably reads a lot different than Florida white!! Simply White and Oxford White, I think, for the modern ones who don't want a lot of warmth.

For a bright home, Chantilly Lace (VERY white). My friend did Paper white at 50% for her whole home, walls and ceilings. In her home, it read very cool and almost bluish. Then White Dove or Cloud white for a warm white. Those are the only ones I've seen in person!

We just did our whole house in Paper White (walls), Chantilly Lace trim and ceilings. I never ever thought I would have gray, but i love it!

In my home, in person, It looks just like your pic of gray cashmere.

I just painted our open living, dining, foyer, hallways, and kitchen all the same color and I love how peaceful it feels. It was 3 different colors. I used Sherwin Williams Light French Gray. It’s a true light gray and I don’t see any blue or green in it. A very nice neutral that all colors seem to work with. Love it! All trim is SW ProClassic white off the shelf. Very crisp against the light gray. Good luck - it’s a big job! I also ordered large stick on samples from Samplize. Those were great and a really easy to peel off and stick in different areas. I think I paid about $20 or so for 5 12” square hand painted samples.

Not my house but it seems to be a good representation of the color.

”I too would like to see the Capital White. From research though I think it goes toward the yellow side.”

I don’t see any yellow on my Capital White (Florida white) walls. Maybe a tad beige, but hardly a whisper.

A note to say...we have tentatively sold the cottage pending inspection (yeah) and the buyer does not want the furniture...so now I have to combine and sort through 2 houses' worth of furniture! But the stuff at the cottage is by and large nicer than our house stuff.

Yay on the sale, robo! I hope you can quickly find a home for most of the furnishings. I would find it hard if we found ourselves in the same situation.

I have read all of the linked threads. I'm a person who likes to shop around and ponder every last possibility before deciding everything. It's a curse. One thing I loved doing was getting the Farrow & Ball fan deck for about $35. It would be hard to go wrong with those colors. Worth it!!!!

Congratulations, Robo! When do you have to move the stuff out of the cottage?

The conditions are all supposed to be satisfied by April 26. If that happens we can be pretty sure the sale is going through and we will have to book movers sometime between then and closing on May 31. I talk to my husband and we put together a whole – house plan for the furniture. Yes most of it will come here and replace what we have, most of our stuff here is over 10 years old and pretty beaten up.

Wow. That's pretty exciting to get all new furniture in one fell swoop.

So my husband ended up in the hospital to get rehydrated after a bad virus which left me hastily digging out the septic caps today before buyers’ inspection tomorrow...the glam life. Oh and yes, it was raining. And I had to cancel my birthday party. Happy fortieth to me! (I can say this now that he’s been discharged, right?)

I’m lucky my parents drove up to take the baby for the day! They had lots of fun together, thank goodness.

Oh wow Robo, sorry about your husband. Hope his recovery continues.

I don’t know what a septic cap is, but it doesn’t sound like a fun job at all. Good luck with the inspection.

So sorry about DH. Glad he is being discharged. Happy Birthday to you.

Happy 40th, robo! Sorry about your DH, and hope he’s feeling better. The things we get to do when our hubs are ill! Maybe he will treat you to a belated birthday dinner out.

Happy Birthday, Robo. I am glad your husband is doing better. I hope you are planning your make-up birthday bash.

So glad about your husband being okay and home again! And happy birthday to you! I'm glad your parents were able to step in. I hope you just postponed your birthday party. No reason to not do it later.

My whole "open concept" house is builder's white. Once I start repainting it is going to be difficult to stop . . . so I'll probably save this thread. It needs painting badly, but since doing it is going to be such a large task, we keep putting it off.

Actually I booked a virtual reality game room for my birthday party and they rescheduled me to mid-may without charging a cancellation fee! I think that's pretty good service :) Husband had something a little more serious than a virus it seems, but is recovering well, but has a follow up appointment with the hospital to do more investigation. Fingers crossed it was just a one-off complication from the virus.

Happy belated birthday and keeping positive thoughts for your DH. Very good news that the game room was willing to reschedule.

No help on the whole house color scheme, I am going through the same decision, know more what I do not want than what I do.

Ugh...buyer walked!!! And I have pinkeye! So DONE with this week!

Bummer, robo. I hope you feel better soon and a better buyer comes along pronto.

Boy - you guys have had a rough week. I hope both you and Mr. Robo are feeling better soon and that Emmett doesn't wind up with pinkeye.

Hopefully the sun comes out soon and that it will cheer you up.

With the cottage furniture coming in might that affect your choice of paint colour?

((((((((robo and DH))))))))

Hope everything clears up and straightens out quickly. I have no doubt a better buyer will be by at any moment. :-).

Honestly I’m hoping a future buyer negotiates for the furniture so I don’t have to deal with it all...

Em is still my sunny guy! Although he well knows the word NO by now!!

Here’s hoping for a better week coming up. Sorry about your pinkeye and the sale falling through. Although if you are hoping for a better deal with the furniture, maybe it’s for the best. Emmett is his usual cute self.