COLOR OF THE MONTH | Saying goodbye to 2020 with Warm Grey – part 1

Be inspired by the WARM GREY COLOR TREND 2021 in interiors and design

For the last month of the most uncertain year of present times, we decided to select the most neutral and uncertain color we may have – warm grey. We hold onto a bit of the brown from last month by selecting a warm shade of pale grey, which will take us in the new year with softness and warmth.

Take the timeless appeal of grey and combine with the warmth of a cosy neutral for our new pick of the month.

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GREY COLOR TREND

PSYCOLOGY & FACTS

The colour grey is subdued, quiet and reserved. Grey is an unemotional colour – it is detached and neutral. From a colour psychology perspective, grey is the colour of compromise – being neither black nor white it is impartial.

“The greys represent solid strength and longevity, an association stemming from the colour of granite and gravel, stone, slate and rock; of ancient monuments, pillars and temples that have withstood the ravages of time and technology.” Leatrice Eiseman, Colours for Your Every Mood.

Grey is also the color of intellect and of compromise. It’s a diplomatic color, negotiating all the distance between black and white. In Europe and the United States, surveys show that grey is the color most commonly associated with neutrality, conformity, boredom, uncertainty, old age, indifference, and modesty. Only one percent chose it as their favorite color.

Did you know that grey became a highly fashionable color in the 18th century, both for women’s dresses and for men’s waistcoats and coats? At that time, women’s fashion in the 19th century was dominated by Paris, while men’s fashion was set by London. The famous grey business suit appeared in the mid-19th century exactly in London, and it was light grey in summer, dark grey in winter, replacing the more colorful palette of men’s clothing early in the century. Also, the clothing of women working in the factories and workshops of Paris in the 19th century was usually grey. This gave them the name of grisettes. “Gris” or grey also meant drunk, and the name “grisette” was also given to the lower class of Parisian prostitutes.

“Sometimes we need the fog to remind ourselves that all life is not black and white.” Jonathan Lockwood Huie

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GREY COLOR TREND

IN INTERIORS

A true neutral grey is a mixture of black and white, but rarely do we see a perfect mix of black and white – it often has elements of other colours such as blue, green, pink, mauve, yellow – which can lift and energise it.

What we see are infinite shades of warm and cool greys. Warm greys have yellow or brown undertones whereas cool greys have a blue undertone. The ubiquitous (grey and beige hybrid) “greige” is a warm grey that can look almost beige. Light grey is thought to be soothing and calming. The closer grey gets to silver or white, the more illuminating and lively it becomes. Light greys can carry some of the attributes of the colour white, whereas dark, charcoal grey communicates some of the strength and mystery of black.