Tired of hearing about gray yet? Hope not. It’s getting more fabulous by the week and I’m here to show you how you can work these trendy colors into your home.
On my previous post I showed you gray furniture that had a little warmer feel to it. I also showed you some paint colors that go with gray. Here, I have furniture from CR Laine that is also gray but a little on the cooler side. See the turquoise accents? Another color trend that has popped up in 2010.
So today, I’ll show you how to marry these two hues in your home with an updated look starting with fabric. Thought I was going to say paint color right? Maybe in the next post but today, I’ll be taking about using trendy color in your window treatments, pillows and ottomans.
The great thing about gray is that it’s what I call a quiet color. Also in the previous post I described a quiet color as any hue that is just soft or neutral enough to really go unnoticed in the home. Turquoise for example, is definitely not a quiet color. You have to be super careful on how you use this happy hue in your home without getting slapped in the face with it when you come enter a room.
Since turquoise became color of the year in 2010, many brave people jumped right in and painted their walls some shade of turquoise. The problem with that is your are really locked into what you can do with the rest of your home when your wall color is so very specific. You may also tire of this color in a year or two which is way too soon to repaint.
Now if you choose to use turquoise in just your accessories, which many Designers suggest to do if you’re not quite sure of any bright hue, than you are good to go.
So today, color trend #1 which I’ll just label gray for now will be the main color choice in your home with color trend #2, turquoise, as the accent color in the room.
Staring off with a cool gray sofa like shown in the room scene above as the main theme for your room, add splashes of turquoise to liven it up and update your home in a flash.
CRLaine
This plaid is super cute! Here you have just enough turquoise to liven any room. Use this fabric in a tab top drapery panel for a more modern feel verses a very traditional style panel such as pinch pleat.
Designed by Donna Frasca
Be careful if you choose a fabric with heavy or busy pattern. It may get a bit dizzying on a larger scale but may be the perfect choice for a pillow or ottoman.
If you have small room and don’t want to add pattern, than solids work just fine! Throw in a nice spot of turquoise with this ottoman, put your feet up and enjoy your color!
Decorating by Donna • The Colorful Clairvoyant 
I was about to write a post on two colors that I find SO universal and beautiful for most homes. I know you said you don’t like gray and I don’t either but Villa Gray by Valspar 6005-1B is BEAUTIFUL! It has a nice warm undertone. To me, it’s more in the green-gray family. I have it in several rooms on my home.
Please help. I have a Chinese rug . Black with grey, beige, salmon and touches of blue. We have a new leather burgundy sectional . I can’t replace the rug. Too expensive. I have been told to.paint grey and I am not a grey fan. I think it will depress me. This a south east facing family room with lots of light.
We are in Chester county PA. Can you help.
I had an aqua sofa in my LR once and choosing wall color was a bear! For me, there were two options.
One was a light pink barely noticeable wall color to go with the aqua. It was ok for that room because it went really well with the cherry wood work in the room.
After a few years of that light color I wanted something more and went with a gold. It was actually Gold Buff from Behr. The only other choices were a beige or taupe and that would not work for me, I needed color.
Now you mentioned a mauve stroke in the dining room set. Not sure gold will works with the because yellow and pinks look horrible next to each other. Try looking at some soft, grayish light pinks.
I have a large L shaped combination living room/dining room with natural oak floors and a cathederal ceiling. The sectional sofa has gray fabric with hand painted lines of white, tourquoise, and pink running through it. At the other end of the room is a white lacquer dining room set that has mauve and gray brush strokes running through the white lacquer. The chairs are covered in gray fabric. I just stripped the gray wall paper that covered this large room including going up the stairs to the bedrooms and down the stairs to the foyer. I plan on purchasing soft white duette shades to cover the 5 individual panels of the bay window (windows that open out). My question is-What color to paint the walls? Pale tourquoise, pink? I am getting 2 area rugs-a pink oriental to go under the dining room table and a tourquoise and tan woven grasscloth for in front of the sectional sofa.
I never used to be a fan of gray until I see how beautifully new colors go with it. Gray is like a little black dress. You can dress it up or dress it down.
You are so right, Donna – love the way bright, fun colors work wonderfully with a gray neutral!
It’s a good bug to have Christine 🙂
Great post with some lovely eye candy! I am in the process of painting a desk set in a lovely aqua/turquoise color (Behr’s ‘Jamaica Bay’) and a bedroom set in a gray tone. I guess I have the the gray and turquoise bug, too!