Oh. Are you done with gray now? You know, now that Marsala is the hot new decorating color? (At least so says the people at Pantone.)
Of course you’re not! We don’t jump from trend to trend that easily. Do we? Nope. And even though a rich bordeaux might have been easier to swallow than “Marsala”, gray is always a good thing.
When gray is paired with a warm wood tone, the wood becomes the color in the room. And that’s enough.
You don’t need 3 or 4 more colors thrown in, because the beauty of the wood stands out and turns that gray into a richer, crisper version of itself. It’s just the perfect yin to gray’s yang.
Recently...
I saw this project (right) in a Dwell on Design home tour a few years ago. I think that warm wood tone makes the gray marble feel richer and more luxurious.
Beautiful, right?
Gray marble bathroom with warm wood contemporary cabinetry. Seen on Dwell on Design home tour.
I’ve just finished a job with a homeowner’s gorgeous antiques (some in a caramel wood tone), and the light gray we put on this chair and the walls (right) really makes that wood sing.
Bergere style chair; combination of warm orange toned wood and gray color scheme | Carla Aston
This bathroom, below, had a dark gray slate floor and gray Calacatta marble. The wood tone louvered door added warmth and richness to this bathroom.
Wood tone louvered door adds richness to slate and Carrara marble bathroom. Carla Aston, Designer
I saw this orange toned wood console at High Point Market in my reent trip and it looked really smart against the gray wall.
Also...
I’m working on a guest bedroom — one where the existing four poster bed in an orange wood tone must stay.
How do you think we’ll make that bed look like it belongs in a house where the homeowner wants to go gray? Like this (right):
And you know what... We’ll even take that wood tone color a step further to cement it as the color in the room by doing a beautiful pillow in a fabric of the same color.
Design concept / plan; wood and gray color scheme | interior designer, Carla Aston
I don’t know about you, but...
I’m going to love the combination of wood and gray for a looooong time. ;-)