The Color and the Gray

I know that gray is a very popular color right now and many people are trying it on for size. For those of you who have, the realization that there are more than fifty shades of gray will become self-evident; when upon opening your door one day, you realize that the entire house and everything in it is a different shade of gray. Where did I go wrong, will be the question that nags at the back of your mind. How do I fix this will be the next. Gray should be treated like any other neutral color because for the most part it is neutral. Gray can be a warm and wonderful backdrop to a colorful and exciting space. Let’s take a peek at a Begonia Model in which color and gray play well together, somewhere in the heart of The Villages.

• Flooring Color-and-Gray-play-well-together
The homeowner wanted to replace the flooring. The original carpet was gray and they were looking to install engineered hardwood. We chose a French Oak with a tan base and gray wash. Solid grey wood can look flat but the character of the oak and the tan base creates warmth. This engineered hardwood was installed next to tile in the foyer with no thresholds. The transition from the tile entrance to the wood flooring is seamless and smooth.

• Wall Color
The wall paint color was chosen before I arrived on the scene and I liked it. We decided to keep it and add some punch to the space. The homeowner had an accent wall in the dining room that was coral. We decided to keep that wall and let it inspire us in the rest of the space. Since we had coral in the dining room we needed to deposit coral in the living room.

• Furniture placement
Often the furniture in this model is placed so the sofa is floating in front of the opposing wall with two windows. Also, the TV is usually placed on the wall between the windows. The room looks rather uninspired in the before picture and the TV just looks like a dark spot in the center of the room. Everything is gray, including the walls, sofas, and curtains.

• Same furniture different position
We opened the room up by moving the TV to the wall opposing the sliders. This allowed us to place the sofa on the wall between the windows. The loveseat stayed in the same position and we were able to add a separate recliner for the “King of the Castle” to the space. The printed occasional chair was angled inward to toward the room on the wall with the TV. The entire room feels twice the size that it did before. Now the living space is easy to enter and the flow of traffic is free to the dining room and lanai. This furniture placement opens up the wall between the windows to become a truly inspired focal point.

• Art
The canvas, “Sea of Dreams” was hung front and center to make the room come alive. On this canvas all the colors that represent Florida congeal into a perfect sunset and one that the homeowners wanted to look at every night. Usually, we highlight teal with this picture but today we will highlight the color coral.

• Rug
We infused the room with a powerful punch of coral. This rug actually has veins of cream colored coral branches running through it. We used an 8ft by 11ft rug to fill the space appropriately.

• Lamps
Lamps act as jewelry in the room and the two teal glass lamps perfectly anchor and reinforce color on each side of the sunset. We rounded out the space with one more lamp in green glass like the color of the water in the picture.

• Coffee Table
We added in a coffee table to fill the large amount of newly acquired space. We loved it because the glass top shows the wood on the bottom of the table. We displayed a large clam shell with blue, green, and clear floats to fill the center of the shell. We also added a large clear glass float to stand on its own and complete the look of the coffee table. We left lots of open territory on top for the cat to become a part of the display whenever she sees fit.

• Pillows
Two coral pillows button up the look on the focal wall. The pillows break up the gray of the sofa by adding a touch of color. The color of the pillows helps to visually bridge the coral color of the rug to the coral color of the picture.

• TV
The television did receive a new stand. We bought a console that complemented the side tables and coffee table. The TV will be mounted on the wall when the new flat screen arrives.

• Shutters
Shutters were added and the white frame pops against the gray walls.

P.S. –Attention, club presidents! I give free decorating programs! It is lots of fun and very informative. Call and schedule your club today or call Ruth your full service decorator at 352-804-2056.

Before and After Pics Below