What Is Greige? How to Use This Versatile Neutral Color (2024)

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You might think that neutrals would be easy colors to choose and coordinate when painting and decorating rooms, but it's quite the opposite. For most people, "beige" is a catch-all color that is the answer to not knowing what color to choose. At its best, beige is relaxing and uncomplicated, which is why it is universally popular.But the idea that any room will be fine when painted or decorated in beige often turns out to be the start of a long and complicated process of finding the right beige color. What seems to be a simple choice of a "neutral color" becomes a fight with undertones and color temperature.

This is when greige comes into play. Somewhere in between gray and beige, this color combination is popular for its versatility and timelessness. It can be warm or cool depending on the shade and tone, and it looks beautiful in nearly every space in the home.

The Truth About Gray

Gray is another neutral with a reputation for being difficult to work with. Gray paint and decor can be gorgeous and stylish, but it can also be cold or tepid. Once again, the undertones that are used to create some gray colors can make it surprisingly difficult to match in a color scheme. Gray is more than just black and white added together—it can have a strong blue or even green cast to it. When you do get the gray right, the results can be quite sophisticated. And the lighter shades of gray can be luminous.But it is not easy to find the gray that is perfect.

Greige: The Best of Both Worlds

What if you could take the best of beige and gray and create a neutral that avoids the worst qualities of each? Greige has been wildly popular for several years because it does exactly that—brings the best of both beige and gray to life as a truly useful and versatile neutral color.

The ratio of beige to gray in your greige determines whether it is a cool or warm neutral. Though it sounds confusing, it's very simple. A greige with a stronger gray influence can be considered a cool neutral. When you have a greige with more emphasis on beige, it can be used as a warm neutral.

How to Use Greige In Your Home

Because of greige's versatility, it can be used in almost any room in the home. Whether it's featured on walls, a sofa, or even kitchen cabinets. there's likely somewhere you can use greige in your own space.

Go Greige in the Kitchen

Greige cabinetry is a great alternative to stark white in the kitchen. It can appear warm, welcoming, and inviting, which is exactly the mood most people want to evoke in the heart of the home. It also looks gorgeous with sage green or blue accents.

Create a Monochromatic Greige Bedroom

Serene, monochromatic spaces are perfect for a bedroom where you want to create the most calming space possible. Layer sumptuous fabrics in various shades of greige for a relaxing retreat.

Use Greige as a Neutral in the Bathroom

If you don't want to choose white, beige, or gray as the dominant neutral in your bathroom, try greige. Particularly in low light rooms, greige can make a space feel more interesting than a single color neutral. Try it with white subway tile for a contrast.

Design a Sophisticated Greige Dining Room

Imagine an effortlessly elegant dining room with a crisp white chair rail and white molding, with greige paint in between. The contrast between the white and the greige keeps the room interesting but also lets the furniture take center stage.

Build a Greige-on-Greige Cozy Living Room

Layers of greige throw blankets and accent pillows on a cozy greige sofa make for the most comfortable place to sit back and relax. Vary the tones, ranging from dark to light, to make the space feel alive and vibrant despite its monochromatic color palette.

Mistakes to Avoid

Despite greige's versatility, it's also possible for the color to fall flat. Without enough depth or variation in a greige room, it can appear boring, or it can even come across as the wrong tone altogether. Here are a few mistakes that can happen and how to avoid them.

Choosing the Wrong Tone of Greige

Just like its beige and gray counterparts, greige can read as warm or cool. Choosing the wrong tone can throw off a room completely. Typically, in lower light spaces, you'll look for a warmer greige to help make the room feel more inviting. Meanwhile, in space with abundant natural light, a cooler greige can keep the space feeling bright and airy.

Forgetting to Layer Greige

You want your greige space to feel sophisticated rather than sad, so lean into those layers! Choose a boucle greige chair, a dark greige accent pillow, and a light greige chunky knit throw. Keep the tones and textures varied to keep the eye moving and create a space that invites you to sit and stay a while.

Opting Only for White or Silver Accents

Often people think of gray and they immediately go to white or silver accents, and that continues into decorating with greige. But there is so much more possibility with greige! A warm greige looks fabulous with a rich wood dresser or a brass chandelier. It can be used as a rich neutral that's dressed up with mixed metals and varied furniture finishes.

Avoiding Accent Colors

While layered, monochromatic greige spaces are gorgeous, so are greige rooms with accent colors. Try a deep peaco*ck blue, mysterious, cottage-inspired sage, or a deep cobalt. Don't be afraid of using color when decorating with greige. Even mustard or bright orange can work with the right tone of greige.

When Greige Is Better Than Beige or Gray

Greige can run circles around beige when it comes to versatility. A traditional beige shows a strong yellow undertone, which makes it hard to coordinate with cooler colors. The addition of gray to beige creates a neutral that has the ability to work with cooler colors, thereby solving the dreaded undertone issues. This can make it much easier to create a neutral color scheme.

If you love the idea of gray but worry about the coldness of most gray colors, greige could be the answer. Greige is gray that has been warmed with beige's warm undertones. You get the elegance of gray, without the cold blue undertones.

Top Greige Paints

Greige can be used in lieu of beige or gray in most spaces. The level of warmth or coolness in a particular greige will determine which shade is right for the room. Greige that leans toward gray is gorgeous with blue, white, and cool colors. A warmer greige (leaning toward beige) can be used anywhere you would use beige. Naturally, you'll want to sample any greige you're considering to get the right balance.

Some great greige paint colors to consider:

Sherwin-Williams Agreeable Gray

Agreeable Gray is Sherwin-Williams' best-selling paint — and for good reason. It's just as agreeable as its name would suggest. It's a versatile, easygoing neutral that's beloved for its ability to work with almost any other color and in any space.

Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter

Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter is a neutral greige from their Historic Collection. It's somewhere in between cool and warm, and it works beautifully in almost any room and level of natural light.

Behr Granite Boulder

If you're looking for a warmer greige with a subtle green undertone, then try out Behr Granite Boulder. This color is stunning in spaces that call for a darker, more dramatic greige.