I have a lot of artwork, so I wanted a neutral background in the primary living areas/hallways. My friend used SW Amazing Gray in her house, and I loved it. I have some natural light issues in my house, so I went with one shade lighter - Worldy Gray.

As the name implies, it's gray, lol, but it's a warm gray and takes on really nice tones with the changing light.
Some pics:

Worldly Gray with painting that has some "goldfish" tones in it:
{{!gwi}}

Worldy Gray (picture I had on my laptop to show a friend my new drying rack. It happens to have a nice shot of the wall and shows how it lets artwork really stand out)
{{!gwi}}

Amazing Gray (one shade darker) used at my friend's house.
{{!gwi}}

Well, I just about emptied my sample can on the wall. This is my 37th!!!!!!!!!!! tester! I really do love the creaminess of the color, and it's sort of warm and cool at the same time. There's a taupe-y grey green hint to the color that makes it kind of different from blah beige, but it seems very livable. I tried and tried the grays and cool blues, but they just didn't "click" for me. My only disappointment is that I feel like I am giving up. After all those blues and greens I though I'd find a REAL color for the wall, not a neutral. Oh well, I'll still be using my blue-greens in other areas of the house, and I think "Ramie" goes well with those tones. By the way, does anyone know what "Ramie" means? I found out another one of the oddly named SW neutrals, "Netsuke" is the name of a type of porcelain or shell material used as a clasp in ancient Japanese clothing--quite interesting!

Of course, there's been about 3 times since this whole fiasco began 6 months ago! where I've decided on a color. I am forcing myself to buy at least a gallon tomorrow to commit!!!!

My next question, what is the best SW paint to produce a durable flat in the most luxurious finish?

LOL, I hear ya! I have hundreds of dollars worth of samples in my garage - probably at least 10 cans are some sort shade of beige! I wish SW would make the small samples like Ben Moore does.

Anyhoo, I've seen Ramie (it's one of the zillion samples I've tried before), and I think you'll be happy with it. Don't feel like you're giving up - if you like it, that's what's important. What's going to be special about that room is your mother's print, not the paint on the wall.

Ramie is an Asian fiber plant that from which "ramie" cloth is made. If you look at some of your clothing tags, you might find some ramie-cotton blends.

I can't offer much as far as which type of paint to use, but I do have Ramie in my house, and thought I'd post a few pictures for you. Colors don't always translate perfectly in pictures and on different monitors, but hopefully this is somewhat helpful.

I found this link and thought it might be helpful to you -both because it references Ramie, and also discusses gray as a great background for art. It gives recommendations for some tested and true colors too.

Here is a link that might be useful: Paint Colors

Well, I went and bought a gallon of "Ramie" is Cashmere Flat. I really am not ready to paint yet, but I couldn't resist painting at least one of the walls. Cashmere went on like a dream! No splatters or drips, went on so smooth and dried with no marks. Looks just about as good as the Aura in my kitchen, and easier to work with. I still love the color. In my lighting, the green undertone comes out pretty strongly, which I like. I almost actually like the color better when just the overhead light is on without all the lamps, etc. I really love blue-green and thought I could do it on the walls, but I just couldn't get it to work. Now with a neutral backdrop that has a green undertone, I can bring in pillows and accessories in blue-green and other colors and they'll really "pop". The creaminess and lightness of the color helps with the darkness in the room, and although I guess it is a warm color, it still seems to have a coolness to it due to the green undertones--I also find it slightly more grayed-out than other SW neutral tans.

Even though I had a terrible weekend with $500 in unexpected car repairs and other problems, it was almost worth it to finally end this seemingly futile search! Now I can go crazy and pick my greens and blues for the bedroom and bathroom!

jockewing, I am glad you chose a color for your walls. From the pictures crashboombang posted of Ramie on her walls, I love the color myself and will try it for my home office walls after my busy season ends. Please keep us updated.

We used SW's Cashmere Low-Lustre. It certainly is a very rich and luxurious paint and the base seems to give the color a bit more sophistication.

Did you find the Cashmere's formula to be different than the quart-to-go x 4?

Happy you like the Ramie, too.

Parma, I was really happy with the Cashmere. I got it at 30% off plus had a $10 off coupon for an order of $50 (I also got a gallon in Low Lustre matched in BM's Imperial Gray-a darker version of Silver Sage for the bathroom) so each gallon was about $30. I noticed no drop in quality from the Aura in my kitchen, except maybe where I cut in with a brush might not have been as thick as Aura. I rolled off the roller like melted butter, and there were NO drips or splatters (something I did get with Aura).

The color was pretty much exactly the same as the tester color--maybe a tad richer and creamier, and I notice the green undertone a bit more. The tester was made of black, umber and gold, the gallon is maroon, black and gold (how does it come out exactly the same with different tints?!) I put a drop of Imperial Gray on the BM strip and you can't tell it's there as the color is so spot-on.

Somehow I always end up using a SW color no matter how many times I try to find a BM color. The SW fandeck has alot fewer choices and is laid out much more intuitively so it is easier to pick colors, I think. BM's decks are laid out so haphazardly and there are just too many choices.

The formula is different because the base is different. I even had the people on the paint forum stumped on that, for a while.

I noticed the Blonde, in my kitchen, being a slightly cooler color than with the quarts-to-go. When I painted the two, side by side on a sample board, they were a teeny bit off of each other.

When I called my SW store, for clarification, they said it was because the Cashmere was a different base and they change the colorants as a result.

I don't know if SW is the only brand that does this. I've never heard of anyone else, but it's always a good idea for people to buy a gallon, of whatever paint (and base) they are considering, and test it on a large area.

If you like Ramie you'll like Benjamin moore's Crown Point Sand. I just painted my kitchen in this and I love it. Very close to Ramie. It is a great neutral with a hint of green.Not boring at all, I get a lot of compliments on it.

BM has small samples of it too.