Date: 10/29/09 11:32 AM

I finally put on my big girl panties this summer, and painted our living room, something I have wanted to do for, oh, a decade. I really struggled with the color, partly because the room already had a light grey carpet, in good condition, so no incentive or budget to change it, and also darker grey tile around a fireplace and also on a solid valance above some vertical blinds, so whatever I chose had to go with this grey. I settled finally on a Behr color, Chai latte, which really looks great, so that was a success. Chai latte

My question is about applying the 60-30-10 rule to this room. The rule related to proportions of color, where 60 % is the dominate color, 30 a subordinate color, and 10 % accents (this can apply to clothing, btw, as well, I guess menswear is a good example of this). In addition to the grey, the room has floor to ceiling windows looking out at trees, so green is part of the room. I know you can't see this room, but for those of you skilled in these things and willing to take a leap, is the w-2-w grey carpet plus the grey trims the 30%? the green? Maybe even the new wall color?

or, does the grey become a neutral in the scheme, since it's on the floor, mostly?

Thx for considering this... you may be asking where the tie is to sewing, but I have been sewing some pillow covers to create these accents and want to find the best colors for these.

thx so much!

ps: I am using some burgundy in the room (pillows and a futon cover) and also some blue as an accent color.

Date: 10/29/09 11:50 AM

kkkkaty, I cannot open the chai latte color link but from your great description of the room, sounds like grey is the neutral.
I started with similar colors in my home, and found myself layering colors as time went on. I now have grey/white/taupe with dark blue/teal accents and splashes of...orange!

I would disregard the green of the trees.

Are you at a high elevation? Snow really affects the color balance of my living room and I find myself using throw rugs and blankets to warm it up even more.

Good luck with your project-pics are needed :-)

Got into your link...nice goldish color.
-- Edited on 10/29/09 11:51 AM --

Date: 10/29/09 1:07 PM

Get out your camera. It's easy to just measure the room surfaces and calculate their areas, but that will probably give you a very different result from what your eye will see. Take pictures from many angles. Look at what you see. All of the objects in the room will interrupt the visual flow. For color ideas, Behr has a nice website that will allow you to experiment with color schemes that work with your paint color.

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Cornelia"Love" is a verb.

Date: 10/29/09 2:51 PM

thank you both, that is very helpful. You are right about the snow, for half the year there is a lot right outside these windows, so that does affect the look in the winter. I'll try and fix that link to the chai latte....

Reply to kkkkaty
Date: 10/29/09 3:07 PM

Grey in my book always needs a warm color...like red or orange to play with..otherwise the room will feel icy, unfriendly and cold.

My sister did an apartment of hers all grey and white. It felt like an institution..and not in a good way. The grey New England winters and wan light made it deadly.

Play up the burgundy

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sarah in nyc
www.sewnewyork.blogspot.com

Reply to sarah in nyc
Date: 10/29/09 5:03 PM

ah, thx, burgundy it will be.

Not only were all the things I already mentioned deep grey, but the paint in the room was white with a touch of grey, so it did absolutely have a cold feel to it. Much better now.....

Reply to kkkkaty
Date: 10/29/09 6:01 PM

I understand you're planning to use blue as an accent color. If you haven't selected the exact shade yet, I think a deep blue-green would be an attactive option.

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The essence of life is statistical improbability on a colossal scale.
Richard Dawkins

Reply to nancy2001
Date: 10/29/09 6:31 PM

I will look at that option, thx! You've all been quite kind and helpful