Fifty shades of Grey ?

As we manufacture painted kitchens and furniture and offer an interior design service, we have noted that over the past few years, and certainly a colour trend for 2013 have been the many shades of grey available. Paint companies such as Farrow and Ball, or Little Greene have colour charts which offer a fantastic pallette for painted kitchens or painted furniture and interior design schemes. Inglish Design of Harrogate make Hand painted kitchens which are always finished using the very best paint. Bespoke kitchens in yorkshire and our Yorkshire bespoke furniture is often in a hand painted finish. Helping our clients select the right colour for thier handpainted kitchen or bedrooms furniture is something we enjoy. As part of our interior design service we can advise on the overall interior scheme, or if you know the colours to be used in the interior we can suggest colours for your bespoke furniture or kitchen. Often it is the colour which makes a plain shaker kitchen or furniture with shaker doors, so colour selection is very important. This blog discusses the grey colour pallette – at first glance you may think grey is the most boring colour in the world for your kitchen, furniture or interior – but read on and see how by careful selction you can create elegant modern interiors by using this colour.

Grey is a sophisticated colour which can  give a crisp clean, graphic look. It also has the ability as a colour to work well when in more muted tones to suit all types of properties from Georgian houses, to country cottages or even seaside retreats. As with any successful interior, the use of colour and how well it works depends on the depth of tone, the accompanying wall colours and the amount of light within the space.

Farrow and Ball Off-White No.3 is a versatile grey which takes on the properties of the colours around it. Shaded White No.201 is a more true grey and Elephant’s Breath No.229 has the most contemporary feel, with a purple undertone. Common selections from the Farrow and Ball charts for painted shaker kitchens are Blue Gray, Pigeon, Manor Houe Gray, Lamp Room Gray, and Pavillion Gray. These give a fantastic look when coupled with marble worktops or light coloured granite worktops. Kitchen Islands and kitchen worktables often feature bolder grays such as Downpipe. Cool greys such as Cornforth White No.228 and Blackened No.2011 are particularly good with stainless steel and can be used to great effect in kitchens. Darker shades of grey can be used exceptionally well on large statement pieces of furniture, such as bookcases, wardrobes or study furniture. Don’t forget that because you have selected a shade of grey for your furniture or kitchen, does not mean that you have to stick to a monochromatic interior scheme. Warm colours can be added via upholstery, accessories or even other furniture. Bold colours such as aubergine, and berry shades give a contemporary look, or adding a flash of a citrus shade such as lime green can zest up an interior scheme. Dark blues and charcoal shades can steer the overall look towards a more masculine look. While simply adding some elements in timbers such as oak 0r walnut can add warmth and depth, and soften the overall feeling. Little Greene paint company have similar options in shades of grey with their Lead, Gauze,and Welcome colours.

Within the pallette of Grey and what would be expected to be termed the colder shades, there is also a growing trend to what we would term warm greys. These paint colours work very well on all painted furniture and kitchens, and when combined with nuetral and muted wall colours give a classical and timeless look to an interior. Farrow and Ball Hardwick White, Dovetail,Elephants Breath, and Shaded White fall into this category which is best described as Greige! – its neither biege nor grey – but a classical mixture of both providing a little warmth to an otherwise cool tone in a delicate way.

If you are interested in our interior design services, a painted kitchen or painted furniture why not call us and we can arrange a meeting to discuss things further. All of our bespoke kitchens and bespoke furniture is made in Yorkshire.