What does beige have in common with a Band-Aid? A lot! And that’s not a good thing for the inside of your home.
designed by Donna Frasca
Ah yes! My friend Beige. It’s really a love-hate relationship but like anything else, Beige is needed in the home for balance. After all, you can’t have black with out white, light without dark and color without beige. It’s all about balance.
But there’s one other element about beige that is super-duper important and that’s its undertone. I’ve mentioned before how crucial undertones are in nailing the perfect color palette for your home and I’m sure you’ve read other Designers talk about it as well. It’s really the base of all things important about color.
So, today I’m going to really try to simplify the nuts and bolts about undertones when it comes to beige.
Look at each of the Color Stories neutrals I have here. Compare them to the color of the kitchen panels I’ve paired up with them. Can you see how they match? That’s because they share the same undertone and don’t fight each other or clash.
Try: Bare Essence, Barely Beige 1066
Color Stores by Benjamin Moore
Traditional Coffee
Try: Tuscan Winds 1024, Dusty Trail 1157
Color Stores by Benjamin Moore
Rich Macchiato
Try Painted Sands 1142, Strand of Pearls
Color Stores by Benjamin Moore
Coffee Glaze
The rule of undertones of course pertains to any and all colors but when working with beige, nothing is worse than your home looking like one big Band-Aid.
Many people think that they’ll just paint their home beige because it’ll go with everything and it’s safe. Well, in my opinion, you’re better off choosing a blue or a green. Beige is one tricky hue!
Decorating by Donna • Intuitive Color Expert 
I always think ‘flesh tone’ when I see any version of beige, which you point out clearly with your band-aid reference.
Another reason I don’t like beige – even just a little – it looks like skin on a wall. Ever since one of my clients said that, that’s all I see when I look at beige. I rarely use it which is fine because my clients are trying to get rid of it not replace it with a “better” beige. We’re beige haters! OMG! 🙂
I’ve actually grown fond of beige. I hate when all walls are beige with a flat finish and it has that builder’s beige look, particularly when the trim is painted the same color Unless the beige is a backdrop for bold colors and artwork. But there are a lot of richer colors out there. Benjamin Moore’s Philadelphia Cream, Lambskin, and my favorite Monroe Bisque all look great when paired with a crisp white trim. It highlights architectural details. I totally agree, it is a deceptively tricky hue!
Those are all great beige’s Iris. The only time I’ll use a beige is in a two story foyer or a common area in an open concept home but really don’t stay too neutral. Beige has it’s place but that place is just getting smaller. Thanks for commenting. I hope you like my blog and come back 🙂
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Ok now you REALLY have me running from beige. I have the dol-ganged two story family room and entry so I was thinking they’d be last to go gray. But now I’m wondering if I’ll just talk hubby into helping me to do them FIRST! SKIN ON THE WALL. Good golly.
But the question begs: beige has been “in” for years and years–or had been. Why do you think that was? (I always have to wonder “why” I guess!)
Because beige is just so safe just like the people who don’t want to bother about fashion so they just wear black and white. No thinking involved and still looks ok. However, choose the wrong beige and your home is headed for disaster, just like some people who look horrible in black such as myself. Just call in an Expert if you need help with your color choices Jodi ☺️