GRAY IS HERE TO STAY

A GRAYING POPULATION

The neutral tone has been a decorating basic for centuries.

Gray is totally hot now as the intense, crazy, super bright colors of the last ten years have exhausted many of us.

Gray feels balanced, sorta Zen with something very clean and simple about it which helps us relax and escape from our often overloaded lives. A peaceful color that's clean and simple and yet amazingly sophisticated.

THE ORIGINAL GRAYS

The French, Belgians, Danish and Swedish are best known for their chic use of gray over the past two centuries.

NOW, FRESHLY REINTERPRETED FOR THE 21st CENTURY

GRAY LIVING ROOMS

The beautiful, clean-lined dove gray walls and matching trim-work are warmed up with touches of taupe and white.

A Beaux-arts room is made younger with the monochromatic interiors. The natural wooden floors add warmth and maintain the old-world feeling of the space.

Country house gets its groove on! The pale gray walls, white trim and slightly deeper gray mantle make this colonial-period home feel fresh. Those two gray velvet sofa's are sexy too.

This beautiful room is soooo chic with the lovely French gray paint color. The pale gray linen upholstery, Lucite tables and blue accents are quite smart together.

Soft gray walls in this moderne London apartment provide the perfect background for the muted pastel accents.

An unexpected use of monochromatic grays in this French-country-style home instead of umber and Brittany blue is so authentic and timeless.

An amazing view, cement walls and gray cerused oak floors are all you need.... But this room is jacked up with the beautiful clean-lined upholstery and ethnic carpet.

A Victorian townhouse is made ultra chic with gray walls and white modern and antique upholstery… It's totally Zenchy (Zen + Schmancy).

Kickin' it!!! Slate floors, leather seating and Venetian plaster walls OMG!

Casually and inexpensively designed using tans and gray tones makes this totally restful and fresh looking.

The rich graphite velour sofas with dark woods creates a very sophisticated home.

The gray in this casual, transitional porch adds warmth and anchors all the white upholstery.

Deep monochromatic grays and blacks are pumped up with the plum carpet which introduces some levity. Sooo comfy looking, right?

GRAY DINING ROOMS

This Belgian dining room began with beautiful recycled cabinet doors and blue-limestone floors, so adding the gray-washed table and chairs were naturally a perfect fit.

This Victorian dining room uses a soft gray with a drop of beige which looks amazing with the dark and light colored woods.

Queens on fleek!

Cloud gray walls, steely gray silk curtains and teal velvet chairs…GTFO!

Country gray with simple period pieces - done!

LOVE the deeeep graphite walls with the chartreuse silk curtains.

I think I just pee'd a little in my pants...

The basic dining room formula with the newest color!

Love the variegated curtains of beige and gray silk and the plain sisal carpet keeping it real.

GRAY BEDROOMS

This is designer perfection! Light, bright and perfectly assembled.

This handsome, restful bedroom is snapped-up with the pony ottomans. The colorful images above the bed give it a little pop of color which is important in a monochromatic room.

Think gray rooms can only be modern? Think again…

Easy sexy bedroom:

1. Awesome deep gray walls.

2. Lose all the excess crap.

3. Make up an all white bed.

4. Find a hot lover...

Transitional rooms: A balance between traditional and contemporary is what most of us want now. I'm so diggin' that they didn't put something predictable (like a sunburst mirror) on the wall over the bed.

This boutique hotel in Paris uses an upholstered headboard with a simple panel as a canopy. The varied tones of gray in the room are soothing and chic.

A French-style wall mural is ramped up with the bright white bed hangings and covers. The warm-toned gilt chair and corona on the bed look so smart against the cool-toned grays.

What a precious nursery....these walls would also be killer in a dining room or foyer!

Tones of gray and taupe are harmoniously paired here in this moderne bedroom.

GRAY BATHROOMS

Old house bathroom + gray walls + black and white photography = low-budge cool.

Carrara marble is baaaaack...

(Source: World of Interiors)

Not all grays are created equal; this one has a couple of drops of green in it, giving it a completely alluring and unexpected tone.

LOVE the visual of a solid chunk-of-marble sink top!

Chrome, Lucite and white glass….mmmMMmm

Carrara reigns!

(But, I'm sooo tired of vessel sinks!)

So hot and so beautiful...

Love, the slate wall tile with the cement floor, tub and sinks. The ceiling mounted tub filler is just OTT!

GRAY KITCHENS

Can it get any simpler? No nickel hardware, no stone tops, no decorator shit hanging on the walls beside the cabinet…cheap and chic!

Large-scale terrazzo floors direct this space: Dove-gray leather chairs, white quartz-stone top and black trim - sexy!

Traditional kitchens get transitioned into cool kitchens with a coat of graphite paint.

Contemporary kitchens are never out of style in gray. The white island is perfect juxtaposed with the darker cabinets.

GRAY OUTDOOR AREAS

Tired of all the wild bright textiles for outside yet? You will be...

A cabin in the woods gets brought into the 21st century with the graphite upholstery creating a quiet restful vibe.

This gray upholstery outside blends in perfectly with the tones of the driftwood colored decking letting the views reign supreme.

This cozy porch with its light-gray checked upholstery, blue painted floor and gray painted trim looks bright and happy - especially with the blue and green accent pillows.

GRAYTE WEEKEND HOMES

Who wants those formulaic cutesy Williamsburg colors these days?...feh! These natural beige's and gray's are much more sophisticated.

Cheap and chic! Used barn wood fabricated into a headboard makes this room feel beachy.

Pale gray walls, black and white photos and a few gray accents creates a cozy, easy to maintain guest room.

Next to the beach the natural sand and driftwood colors are brought inside. The raffia chairs are upholstered in soft gray chenille which doesn't interfere with the view - it compliments it!

I know you gotta be tired of that tired linen and white stripe upholstery Donghia used for beach houses 30 years ago. Gray stripes offer crispness without the twee…

These upholstered pieces in charcoal chenille look great resting on the gray shag carpet in this Malibu Beach house.

This country house has gray cotton fabric on all the comfy English style upholstery in this gray living room. The lack of pattern and tsotchkes makes this transitional space feel more contemporary.