skip to main content

Paint Home Decorating kids room

Please help pick a gray paint for neutral nursery

last year

Baby is due in April and we are not finding out the gender so we want to paint the room gray and then add accents later once baby arrives. Furniture will be mostly white (crib, dresser, changing table). The room is west facing.

So far i have researched a lot of gray colours and Benjamin Moore Stonington Gray was one, and Sherwin Williams Passive was another. My husband likes the BM but i find it too dark. I could always ask them to mix is 25% lighter. I personally like Passive but I'm open to any inputs people may have.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (13)

littlebug zone 5 Missouri
last year
last modified: last year
Gray is out and good riddance.

If you MUST have gray, choose the very pale warm gray. Not a bluish cold gray. With white trim.
HU-187528210
last year
Would you consider a beige?
Tan?

White?

Blue?
There are many ways to have a gender neutral space.
Related Discussions
Gray experts-Please help my desperate daughter with nursery
Q
Comments (31)
You guys are the best! She read your suggestions/comments/recommendations and I I am happy to announce that our little miss will be residing in a .........(drum roll please) Stonington Gray room!! DD did say it had a very slight blue undertone with the blind open but she is quite pleased with it. It is going to look even better when the furniture arrives this week and all the bedding and accesories are in. She is two hours away so all I have seen are cell phone pics, but I think it looks great. Kate and Jterrilynn - you are so right - the surrounding environment (light, trees, etc) definitely affect color. I will see if she can post a picture when she gets the room finished. She is much more tech savy that her mother :).
...See More
true/neutral gray paint...pls help!
Q
Comments (24)
Trust me I feel your pain. After 15 Samples of light gray from multiple brands and all throwing blue or blue/lavender I discovered: - if I paint over light beige I get these off results - if I prime/kilz first and then paint my gray I get entirely different color gray. So prime a wall white to compare your color. Even if you are painting with the paint/primer mixed paint. Also use samples first. I took my gallon of light gray paint, told the paint specialist my problem and she added her own formula which looks like green was added to it and it came out gray (no blue) when painted over white. But looks like mud if painted on beige. Formula is: BL 320 , CL 258, IL 15, RL 112 in 1 gallon. if you look at behr color book, on page 200, the color on the wall (over whie kilz2) is between color numbers 790c-3 dolphin fin and 790d-4 granite boulder. Good luck.
...See More
Need Help Choosing the best neutral gray paint color
Q
Comments (10)
There really is no substitution for testing the colors in your space and different light through the day. For a suppposedly neutral color, greys can be tricky. Fact of the matetr is that a greyy can be any color plus black or some canceling tones. Revere Pewter goes violet on me and Edgecomb grey a bit green in some rooms. I wound up going to Sherwin Williams and trying their colors. Agreeable Grey was the right tone for my living areas, but I am doing them at 150% to get a little deeper color. I am using Anew Grey in my entry and stairwell -- that hasn't been done yet. . More important to your question about going with cool and warm colors -- the Agreeable Grey in my FR had to work with red brick, cherry hutch and dark wood floors as well as blue, green and white in the upoho;stery, rug and kitchen cabinets and counters. Anything that tended green made the red brick fireplace more intense and anything too warm made it pinker/orangier. Agreeable Grey at 100% was too light -- was too close to my grout and looked chalky, so we just added more color and went to 150%. SInce it is a light color to begin with, it is still light, just richer. The result was amazing -- my red brick calmed down. No more orangey, purpley/brown red. And it is so soft and neutral with the blues,, green and white. We did the ceiling at a reduced value. It was the first time I had used SW paints and as much as I liked BM, I was just as pleased with this job (DIY).
...See More
Soft blue gray for gender neutral nursery
Q
Comments (2)
You might do a little research on what is best for babies. High contrast helps their eyes and their eye coordination develop. I used to work with a girl who did her whole Nursery in black and white, but I think that might have been going to a bit of an extreme LOL. I know that in the past people used to use soft pastels, but it seems like something with more darks and brights or darks and lights might be better.
...See More
Jennifer Svensson
last year
I think you can find a lovely grey for the nursery. Take into consideration what other colors you have (floors, rugs, furniture) when you select the wall color.
eld6161
last year
last modified: last year
I agree Jennifer.

I happen to like gray. It is still being used. All one has to do is go to the real estate section, look at multi million dollar new builds. Tell me what you see!

That said, we are talking about a nursery, one room.
Jennifer
last year
last modified: last year
BM Pale Oak or Revere Pewter are 2 top "go-to" neutral grays.
eld6161
last year
While lovely, I think both Pale Oak and Revere Pewter are more griege than gray.
Jennifer Svensson
last year
FWIW we had our whole house painted passive until a few years ago. It’s a nice grey. In our house it was on the cooler (but not blueish) side and we loved it. I also really like Zurich White which I guess is maybe more of an off white but that can look like a very very light grey/griege depending on the light. BM classic gray is another in that same area that might be worth a look.
K R
last year
I second classic gray (BM). It’s a perfect warm gray that does not feel sterile.
Debbie Downer
last year
Gray for a nursery - really, why? Babies prefer color and colorful things are good for their development. Newborns in first few mo. like high contrast and black & white. Spoze grays/neutrals could be a backdrop though for adding in color accents.
cawaps
last year
I did some imaging for you with some of Benjamin Moore's stock photos.

This is Stonington Gray in a pink/lavender bedroom and in a blue/yellow kids room. I don't feel like it's a winner in either color combo.

Classic gray is better:
cawaps
last year
If it were me, I would just commit to a color that works for either a boys or girl's room and work from that. Green and yellow, obviously, but blue can work beautifully in a girl's room (my daughter's room was blue).
amykath
last year
Here is houzz link to gray nursery walls. Not all are great but some are lovely,

Houzz Gray Nursery Walls
Alexa Brianna
last year
Crushed ice! You won't be disappointed. We painted our entire upstairs this color and couldn't be happier. It's absolutely beautiful!

Related Stories

GRAY Choosing Paint: How To Pick the Right Gray

By Kelly Porter

Which Version of Today's 'It' Neutral Is For You?

COLOR Pick-a-Paint Help: How to Quit Procrastinating on Color Choice

By Laura Gaskill

If you're up to your ears in paint chips but no further to pinning down a hue, our new 3-part series is for you

COLOR Pick-a-Paint Help: How to Create a Whole-House Color Palette

By Laura Gaskill

Don't be daunted. With these strategies, building a cohesive palette for your entire home is less difficult than it seems

COLOR Paint-Picking Help and Secrets From a Color Expert

By Tiffany Carboni

Advice for wall and trim colors, what to always do before committing and the one paint feature you should completely ignore

COLOR More Top Paint Picks for 2014: New Greens, Blues and Neutrals

By Jennifer Ott Design

Valspar’s new colors aim to lift spirits and express creativity. Here’s how to use 9 of them in lively ways

COLOR Pick-a-Paint Help: 11 Ways to Mine Your World for Colors

By Laura Gaskill

Color, color everywhere. Discover the paint palettes that are there for the taking in nature, shops and anywhere else you roam

Guest Picks: A Gender-Neutral Nursery

This nursery design looks natural, relaxing — and perfect for a boy or girl

GRAY Designers Share Their Favorite Light Gray Paints

By Becky Harris

These versatile neutrals can help create a range of moods in any room

EXTERIOR COLOR When to Paint Your Home Gray

By Bud Dietrich, AIA

This perfectly neutral and highly versatile color can create subtle distinctions among exterior architectural elements or stand on its own

PRODUCT PICKS Guest Picks: Go Gray for Modern Elegance

By Beth Connolly Interiors

Done up in chinoiserie, Greek key patterns and sculptural accessories, gray has all the sophistication with none of the somber

Sponsored

Elegant Kitchen and Bath

11 Reviews

VA & DC's Finest General Contractor

More Discussions

Sherman Williams Snowbound looks pink, help!!

17

Which siding color?

16

painting the front door

5

Please suggest house and trim & door colors for stucco house!

2

sage green for bedroom

3