Have you considered the sage green that is in the leaf of your accent fabric? I'm not seeing the gray as I don't see it anywhere else in the color palette.

The gray is throwing me off a bit. An off white of some variation would be nice : )

Take a look at BM smokey taupe, it is a cross between grey and tan and just beautiful. It would work well with your decor.

Thanks for the ideas! I initially wanted to go with a sage green color, but DH hates all the greens I find. I need something that has enough contrast with the white mantel and trim that it doesn't look like I goofed. I will definitely check out that BM color when I get home!

yayagal's suggestion of BM smokey taupe definitely might work, given your sofa and chair. I've linked a page with it on the ceiling. Thanks for that yayagirl-I like it too and missed it.

AnnieDeighnaugh mentions the leaf color and I think of BM Glacial Stream (C2-461). It's a blue green which changes color during the day as lighting changes. Very lovely. Always love your work and suggestions Annie.

Here is a link that might be useful: BM Smokey Taupe

I couple of C2 colors come to mind. I just did a room with a bank of three south facing windows and one east in Pod, which reads in this space like a pretty muted greenish-tan. It's a non sage green neutral.

Ferrous might also work.

Here is a link that might be useful: c2

Ok, just sorted through a bunch of colors based on the great suggestions here. I'm really leaning toward PPG Swirling Smoke, which to my eye is just a touch grayer than Smokey Taupe.

Before I commit, any thoughts? It's such a large amount of wall, I'd feel more confident with feedback from those with a better eye for this stuff!

I'm with Annie. I'd stay away from the gray and lean to the sage green in your pillow fabric.

I don't see where you're going with the gray. I'd go with a creamy white (like the color of the background of your pillows). The gray doesn't really do anything for your art.

I would agree with the previous posters and go with a creamy white or taupe. I don't think the gray complements your furniture and art as well. Good luck!

Gray is going to read cold next to the deep saturated colors you have chosen. I have the same colors in my LR and gray was too drab even with a southwest exposure and lots of natural light. I went with a timeless taupe and it works but now feel it may be too fleshy or bandaid colored after reading comments on this board.
Maybe you could find a grayed sage (tell your husband it is gray) and spend a few bucks on sample paint to be able to paint a big swatch on a main wall and look at it for a few days in different light. I bet he likes it.

Hmm, I was going for a muted linen color here. I might have to wait for the pillows to arrive in a few weeks.

It actually looks much warmer IRL, here it is next to some grays.

I have smokey taupe in practically every room in my house because we purchased the house new and I just wanted neutral throughout until I decided on 'colors'. Well, 12 years later, it's still smokey taupe. I love it. HOWEVER, it can throw off pink, gray or neutral undertones depending on the light in the room and the furnishings reflecting off of it. It's definitely not a creamy color. I also think it could read a little dark with your furnishings and art.

Well, DH is dead set against any green, I have tried several times to sneak in a gray-green that reads gray and he calls me on it every time!

If I can't figure this out, I'll go toward the creamy white colors. I hesitate to go there because the fireplace and trim will be white, so it runs the risk of looking like I tried to match and missed.

I'm going to check out Ostritch Feather this week. It's closest matches in BM are Revere Pewter and Smokey Taupe, it seems to fall in between those. With the hickory floor, I want to avoid anything to close or I'll just recreate the sand dune monochrome look I'm leaving behind!

Have you looked at BM Edgecomb Gray? It's the color above Revere Pewter. I've been moving a large sample around to various rooms (foyer, LR, hall) and it stays light and appealing. Nice contrast to white trim too.

Edgecomb Gray
A go-to gray that's timeless with a modern edge, this earthy, organic neutral is soft and stylish, creating a setting that feels distinctly personal.

LRV : 64.45

Here is a link that might be useful: BM Edgecomb gray

It seems to me that at least the paintings on the left read more red/blue/purple, i.e. cooler tones while your wall color is more beige/brown warm. I'd go with a cooler gray or an off white (which could read warmer, though, like linen, chinese white, etc). Edgecomb Gray may be a great compromise depending on how it reads in your light.

I have to say that I don't really love any of the grays so far, especially with that lovely chair.

May I suggest that you look in a different direction (unless, of course, your heart is set on a gray); You have some tans in your fabric and art that could be a starting point for a wall color, in a muted, lower intensity version. A grayed tan with just a hint of green? Maybe your husband wouldn't notice a slight green in a complex pale tan!

I feel like the vivid blues and violets in the artwork need a hint of green, or yellow, in the wall.

You could get a sample of one of the green-grays that you like and just put it up on the wall, put the art next to it, and see if hubby is won over because it is just so right.

(That happened to me, a can that I just thought wasn't going to work but put up anyway I totally love)

I'm really think green would go well with the gold, with the art and with the floor color....sorry the SW color visualizer is messy, but you get the idea.

This is SW Inland

You can go with a softer green too, though it makes the artwork less dramatic. SW Easy Green

This post was edited by AnnieDeighnaugh on Tue, Jun 17, 14 at 14:22

Wow, so many pretty colors! Thanks SO much for all the suggestions! I have spent many hours already looking at each one, then linking to similar colors, then going back for more paint chips, rinse, repeat...

I even had a paint bracket going last night (like sports, I pick the better of 2, which then competes with another winner, etc). Yes, that's what happens when a second glass of wine sounds like a good idea. (*spoiler* it isn't a good idea! too much running around the room for different lighting/perspectives may cause dizziness)

So I picked a winner. Then got yet more chips when I returned a few samples today.

And I think True Khaki -may- be a winner! I think I'm going to move it around the room and stare a bit every day until the couch finally comes. Then I have a pillow to take with me if I decide it's still not quite right.

Does this look any better?

Sorry...I missed that green was not acceptable. Too bad as it solves all the problems.

I think then you need to find a color for the wall that will be somewhere else in the room, not just a bit in the art. So I suggest pulling a brown from the flooring to put on the wall instead...something with a little body to stand up to the strong colors in the art. This is SW antiquarian brown. Part of the problem is you are trying to mix warm colors with cool colors, so you need to have enough of each to have it make sense in the room.

Rather than introduce another color that doesn't appear anywhere in the room, I'd go with the pillow background color or the lighter color of your floor. I don't think you need to make a statement with your wall color as you have enough going on with your art.

Still working on this...couch and chair are coming Saturday!! I'm hoping once it is here and I see how the blue looks, and I have the pillows in hand, I'll be able to pick from the colors I gathered a lot easier.

DH now states if the color isn't gray he'll be disappointed. Well, not sure about that, but I am leaning toward a greige type color at the moment. I'm off to SW today for more chips :-)

Just wanted to post what SW suggested when I uploaded a pic of my floor, I find this tool is pretty handy.

Wow, I love pretty much any one of these colors. Maybe Big Chill?

That's a very cool tool. I just tried it and realized that you need a fairly accurate rendition of the color you're chipping. I think I'll try a collage of room elements and see what it comes up with. williamsem's floor chips are amazing.

I think you and I are competing for the most trips to SW. :-)

I finally bought the fan deck. It only has the 6000-series paints. I saw yesterday at another SW store that they had a smaller deck avail too for the 7000 ones. I resisted.

I am obviously not a help re: color, I just wanted you to know you're not alone.

Well, those chips look different IRL, but I'm hoping when the sun comes back tomorrow I'll fall in love with one :-)

I thought about buying a fan deck, but I'm already about 1/3 there. At least I keep the chips for future reference on other projects, so I don't feel bad about collecting them. Just for this room I need 8 gallons, so I'm sure that makes up for it. I have 2 bedrooms and 2 rooms in the basement after this...thankfully with a lot fewer restrictions!

** UPDATE ** UPDATE **

So my couch came Saturday, here pictured with 2 pillows in the right fabric (it comes with 4, we got 4 in the wrong fabric plus two in the right fabric but no welt, so 4 right fabric with welt are on the way).

And after 4 more trips to the paint store, and many more hours online and running in circles holding chips up, I think I have a winner!

PPG Moth Gray, 515-4

I have some samples painted on the wall dryng as I type! It looks very beige on the screen, but it is a little cooler in person and seems to show as greige or gray depending on the light and angle like I've seen people describe Revere Pewter.

I can't wait to see what it looks like with just lamps later! I really hope DH likes it too, he really wants a gray and this is cheating that quite a bit :-)

Many, many thanks to all who took time to post to help me, it is -very- much appreciated. As soon as the couch was put in place, I could tell the gray would not work and wanted to go more beige, and knowing that was in line with general consensus here made me feel so much better.

I think you found the perfect paint in the moth gray, in fact I'm going to use it to redo a room. Thanks for finding it lol.

Looks good so far and DH is on board, so barring any horrific findings in the AM I'll be able to buy my paint Monday (which happens to be the last day of a great rebate PPG is offering, so very happy about that!).

Please be sure to post pics of the finished room, I am looking forward to seeing it. Moth grey is a lot like what I was trying to imagine.

The sofa is beautiful, I love the chair, really want to see how it all looks together!

Raee (who is procrastinating from her own painting today...)