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The Perfect Grey Paint

by - Saturday, April 02, 2011

I'll warn you that the photos accompanying this post are not much to look at... but if you're in search of the perfect grey paint, then read on!

In looking for paint for the new living room, I was on the hunt for something that would tie in the brown tones of the dining room and the grey in the hallway. One early front runner was Edgecomb Grey by Benjamin Moore. You can see some of the test patches we painted in this post

While I liked the colour, some of the patches seemed a bit off. In the comments, Roandy mentioned that it was hard to colour match this colour and it could appear a bit purple. That was exactly what I was seeing... we had the paint colour matched using Martha Stewart paint and it did appear a bit pinky-purple! I could go and just get the Benjamin Moore paint but I thought I'd look into other options.

Peel and Stick Paint Samples:

Picking just the right paint can be tricky so before you embark on this project - or any paint project - I highly suggest that you invest in peel and stick paint samples. These are really a revolutionary and useful product! The exact paint is applied to an adhesive backing so you get a true, 100% sample of your paint colour.

Samplize (US company, carries Farrow and Ball, Benjamin Moore, Sherwin Williams, and PPG brands) and Hello Paint (Canadian company, carries Benjamin Moore and Sherwin Williams) are two sites that sell large format peel and stick paint samples. These samples are reusable and repositionable and you can save them for your next paint project. See HERE for a quick video on how I used them in my office project.

Since I was looking for the perfect neutral, I looked to the designer who does neutrals so well - Sarah Richardson. Sarah introduced a designer palette of 75 colours in partnership with PARA Paints last year. The paints are available in Lowe's Canada stores and select retail outlets (sorry my American friends!). I've been wanting to try her paints and this was the perfect opportunity.

I ended up going with Cashmere. Sarah hooked me with her description of the colour:


"I prefer greyed neutrals over brown shades and find this the most compatible everywhere shade. If the ultimate grey is what you’re looking for, Cashmere is it!"


She is right (of course) - it is the ultimate grey! It transforms itself based on the light, at times warmer and more subtle, at others cooler and more solid, but always the perfect grey. The paint itself went on like a dream. Usually, I cut in with the paint around the ceiling, corners, doors etc. and HandyMan follows painting the rest of the wall. Since I was painting the room by myself, it was taking a bit longer so I was happy to see that the PARA paint didn't thicken and dry too quickly. It went on smoothly, easily, and had great coverage. I did two coats and it turned out looking great.

A few sneak peeks of the living room walls (ignore the sun spots and shadows in some of the photos):


*****

Its the last day to enter my giveaway of a Sarah Richardson Designer Palette by PARA Paints fan deck signed by Sarah Richardson and Tommy Smythe! Leave a comment here for your chance to win.

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