Shades of Grey: Decorating with the Most Elegant of Neutrals

by Kate Watson-Smyth

Crammed with fascinating facts, expert advice, plenty of wit and humor, and a wealth of essential information, Shades of Grey will guide you through the minefield that is choosing exactly the right shade of gray paint.Â

There's no doubt about it, grey is the shade of the moment. Restaurants, stores, and homes are covered in it. There's not a home improvement show that doesn't use it. And forget 50 shades...in fact the human eye can detect more than 500. As can the average paint color chart.

“Everyone wants to paint their houses grey at the moment,†says Karen Haller, a color expert who advises clients on branding and color psychology. “But it's one of the most difficult colours to get right.† Get it wrong and a room will be cold and dark, possibly even energy-sapping. Get it right, however, and your home will look fresh, sophisticated, and modern. So how do we go about choosing the perfect hue? In 'Shades of Grey' Kate Watson-Smyth will help you find exactly the right shade for your space. Full of expert advice and essential information and spiced with a generous dash of humor, this book will guide you through the minefield that is choosing the perfect shade of gray paint.

Genres: Interior Design, Nonfiction

176 pages, Hardcover

Published February 11, 2016

Reviews

[Pat]

I liked this book quite a lot. There are many books about colour in decorating and this seems to be just a bit better than the rest. Is seems to straddle the line between historical and modern in a useful way. The photos are not typical and yet the rooms seem comfortable and familiar in an appealing way. It just seems to fit with my current outlook while casting a slightly broader net and discussing why and where that might be so.

[Nicola]

Interior decorating is not my strong suit; I have too much stuff in too small a place to really do anything other than pray for cheaper storage options or a lottery win. Now, should said lottery win eventuate, then I'll build my dream home. And grey will be the colour of choice. I've always loved grey and after reading this book, I'm even more convinced about its elegance, warming and cooling properties, capacity to be a statement or a foil, and general serenity. If you are looking for these qualities within your home environment, I recommend this book as (so far for me) the definitive set of lessons in using the muted, serene palette emerging magically from the marriage of black and white.

[Marius]

How many shades of grey do you know! Elegant book, but you can feel a bit confising after read it. As I’m! Especially when you’ve just started a reconstruction works in your flat 😁