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Accent color for grey walls


20 Colors That Go With Gray

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Keep it neutral—or not.

By Emma Bazilian and Hadley Mendelsohn

Christian Harder

There's a right shade of gray for any room, from the palest silver to dark charcoal. Designers love the chameleon-like hue for its ability to lean warm, cool, or simply strike the perfect balance between the two. The best grays also change with the light throughout the day, adding depth and visual interest to your interior. Gray's neutral character also makes it the ideal partner for other colors. Whether you're looking to create a serene tone-on-tone environment or find a piece of furniture that'll really stand out, here are some of our favorite colors to pair with gray.

Francesco Lagnese

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Light Green

Philip Smith was in search of a table when “a friend of mine’s mother passed," he says, adding, "I adored her, and when my friend went through her things she said, ‘there’s a table here with your name on it! I was nearly in tears. ” The gray-blue patina looks beautiful next to the chrome chairs and green-gray wall paint.

Thijs de Leeuw/Space Content/Living Inside

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Bright Orange

Atelier ND transformed a stair landing into a special reading nook with vintage Ligne Roset chair (it was the only thing that would fit under the sloped ceiling!) and then color-blocked with electric orange and complementary gray-green paint color.

Bjorn Wallander

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Black and Greige

Light griege, black accents, and brass fixtures create a beautiful, polished mood in this living room designed by Ray Attanasio.

Frank Frances Studio

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Marigold

We're loving the pops of jewel tones in this living room designed by Courtney McLeod. Bold shades of marigold and magenta are softened by the warm gray walls.

Paul Raeside

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Sapphire

The gray, swirling clouds in Anne Hepfer's dining room—papered in a Cole & Son Fornasetti print—feel anything but bleak with the addition of punchy blues.

Christian Harder

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Light Pink and Brass

Gold and coral tones warm up the charcoal sofa and light gray painted walls in this living room designed by Alison Victoria.

Patrick Cline

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Orchid

With its vibrant purple rug and charcoal gray cabinets, this Nicole Fuller-designed office makes work feel like play.

KARYN R. MILLET

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Fern Green

Verdant, leafy green and trelliswork makes this pale gray office designed by Joe Lucas feel like an enchanted garden.

Bjorn Wallander

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Hot Pink and Orange

A dose of muted pewter grounds the bold pink and orange textiles in Molster's bedroom.

Paul Raeside

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Sky Blue

Pale-blue bedding and silk-wrapped walls make this bedroom designed by Michael Maher an utterly serene escape.

Paul Raeside

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Russet

Walls and ceiling in Benjamin Moore's Nightfall—an almost-black shade of charcoal—provide a moody backdrop for the russet red sofa in Andrew Flesher's 300-year-old Westchester colonial.

David A. Land

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Gold

In House Beautiful's 2019 Whole Home, design whiz Vern Yip showed how deep shades of golden yellow and brass can add glamour to layers of gray.

Björn Wallander

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Rose

Designer Janie Molster's Richmond, VA, home has a base of soft gray. The antique settee is covered in Schu­macher’s Gains­borough pink velvet. The armchair is Lee Industries, and the chandelier is antique.

Gieves Anderson

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Neutrals

David Frazier divided the main living room into two distinct zones, one for lounging and visiting, and one for dining and working. The large pendant light and antique pieces personalize the more generic bones of the building, and a super-light shade of gray paint makes for a more interesting impression than plain white.

Grey Crawford

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Taupe

Jeff Andrews used a spectrum of warm grays and taupes to keep his living room feeling cozy, not cold.

Victoria Pearson

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White

A neutral-toned bedroom by Frances Merrill of Reath Designs captures Ojai, California’s laid-back vibe. “This couple made it clear that they wanted a very calm bedroom,” she says. “It’s quiet, but with a focus on texture. It really does feel like such an escape.”

Thomas Loof

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Brass

Sheets of unlacquered brass warm up this Brooklyn kitchen designed by Asa Barak and Garrow Kedigian.

Thomas Loof

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Cerulean

Midcentury furniture with custom cerulean upholstery energize a quiet gray study designed by Wesley Moon.

TK

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Navy

The quiet gray palette of a San Francisco row house “allows for strong punches of color,” explains Benjamin Dhong, who used navy-and-white nautical accents in this bedroom.

Stephen Kent Johnson

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Brown

Boston designer Nina Farmer used rich tones of brown and sepia to warm up the Phlip Jeffries silk-and-abaca-clad bedroom of this historic Boston house.

Discover the Best Colors to Pair With Red at Home

Emma Bazilian Senior Features Editor Emma Bazilian is a writer and editor covering interior design, market trends and culture.

Hadley Mendelsohn Senior Editor Hadley Mendelsohn is House Beautiful's senior design editor and the co-host and executive producer of the podcast Dark House.

design experts' favorite color pairings |

Choosing accent colors for gray is an art form that is explained perfectly here. When decorating any room in your home, you might feel like there's something missing and that could well be an accent color. This technique of adding in an unexpected shade in small areas of the room is one of the quickest ways to add drama to a space, while creating a harmonious scheme.

Decorating with gray has been de rigueur in interior design for many years now. Undeniably the enduring neutral, this cool color adds a sophisticated edge, elegance and a refinement to a room, and is a go-to for anyone who wants an easy-to-live with tone that's easy to color scheme and redecorate around, but what are the accent colors for gray?

Getting accent color ideas spot on isn’t always simple. Here, design experts tell us their favorite no-fail, classic and brave accent colors for gray, plus color trends and room color ideas for the year ahead.

Accent colors for gray

We’ve asked a panel of industry experts for their views on what accent colors work well with gray for them – using a color wheel will help you get it right.

1. Pair gray with yellow in an entryway

(Image credit: Little Greene)

Paint ideas are the perfect way to transform a space quickly and easily, adding personality and character to create an inspired interior, says Ruth Mottershead, creative director of Little Greene .

'Natural wood and textures combine beautifully with more neutral interiors, tonal in color, they add an additional layer of depth and interest,' says Ruth Mottershead. 'Adding a sliver of a brighter shade such as ‘Marigold’, which looks fantastic as a thick stripe echoing the architectural line of the balustrade, will really lift the space and give a revitalizing color highlight. '

2. Team maroon with a pale gray to add depth

(Image credit: Kitesgrove)

'Decorating with gray is a versatile color to scheme with as it can carry cooler and warmer tones such green, blue and pinks which can successfully offset and balance other colors,' says Katie Lion, senior interior designer at Kitesgrove . 'Here we wanted to draw upon the warmer pink undertones on the gray fabric headboard and balance this with a rich maroon to add depth and interest in the space. This balance of gray and maroon work particularly well in a bedroom as it is warm and enveloping without overpowering the space.'

3. Choose caramel for an inviting feel

(Image credit: Lindye Galloway Studio + Shop/Chad Mellon)

'Caramel works well with almost everything,' says Lindye Galloway, founder and chief creative officer at Lindye Galloway Studio + Shop . 'I specifically love the way it works with gray but it can also be complementary to white, off-white, brown, blush, even yellow, teal, and orange. The color combination of gray and caramel makes a space feel very inviting in most settings, and works extremely well in Mid-century modern spaces with rich caramel wood furniture.'

4. Offset mid-grays with ivory in a contemporary space

(Image credit: Carpetright)

Although there has been a move towards bolder colors, beige and neutral flooring remain at the heart of most homes; providing a perfect base whilst allowing design enthusiasts to be adventurous and creative in the rest of their space. 

'Gray interiors have become increasingly popular over recent years, with gray flooring giving a scheme a base that can easily be brightened or toned down with furniture and accessories,' says Punam Chada, carpet buyer at Carpetright . 

5. For a smart contemporary edge, choose off-black

(Image credit: Neptune)

Daring and decadent, black bedroom ideas can be difficult to get right, but once mastered, they can add an elegant confidence to your space like no other color, especially when paired with gray.

'If you’re looking for something contemporary, black is a good way to go,' says George Miller, home designer at Neptune . 'Painted woodwork is a nice means of exploring this accent color – our off-black shade Charcoal really modernizes our classic Wardley four poster bed. We’ve also welcomed a new Warm Black paint to our collection, it's deep, enveloping and a little softer than other blacks.'

6. Create contrast with barely black, slate gray and coral 

(Image credit: Little Greene)

As well as working well with whites that lift, neutral shades can also be easily combined with darker colors, and this is a great way to bring warmth and intimacy to any space. Darker colors work really well in small rooms with very little light to create a sense of coziness. 

'Here ‘Basalt’ seems almost black and balances beautifully with ‘French Grey Pale’, a fabulous alternative to white that is neither too warm nor too cold and therefore very flexible in lots of different lights and spaces, whilst 'Orange Aurora' brings a touch of coral to the painted stool, and is a welcome splash of contrasting color,' says Ruth Mottershead, creative director at Little Greene .  

7. Play with light and dark for a striking look 

(Image credit: Urbanology/Turnbow Photography)

Steel gray and stone are an excellent combination if you wish to create a contemporary feel. This rustic dining room has a mixture of classic and modern style furniture so painting the walls in two shades carries that design aspect through perfectly. Painting the darker color on the bottom half of the walls grounds the look and makes the room still feel spacious.

8. Warm a mid-gray bedroom with mustard

(Image credit: Neptune)

'Gray bedroom ideas have been a popular choice for interiors for some time as it pairs well with so many other colors, although settling on accents isn’t always easy, ochre shades, like our Mustard paint and Isla Finch velvet, will soften any cold undertones that your grey scheme may have,' says George Miller, home designer at Neptune .

9. Use a winning combination of blue and gray

(Image credit: Mylands/Middleton Kitchens)

Thanks to the tonal versatility of these universally loved colors, blue and gray pair beautifully together for your kitchen color ideas. 'For example, Mylands’ deep blue Bond Street™ No. 219, shown here in a striking space by Middleton Kitchens, is a bold and intense color and it pairs perfectly with neutral colors, particularly lighter shades of gray, which help to counter balance the visual impact of the deep blue,' says Dominic Mylands, CEO of Mylands . 

10. Try charcoal gray with a gentle green for a calming bathroom

(Image credit: Little Greene)

For a calm and relaxing gray bathroom idea, charcoal grays such as ‘Vulcan’ provide a cocooning sense of warmth. It contrasts perfectly with the white elements within this bathroom, creating a spa-like feel, keeping it fresh and elegant. 'At the other end of the spectrum, it also pairs very well with a muted green, such as ‘Livid’, shown here on the bath and window sill,' says Ruth Mottershead, creative director at Little Greene . 

What accent color goes with gray?

The best accent colors that go with gray are the ones that sing out. Surprisingly, you can go very wrong when decorating with grey. For example, a one-grey scheme will look flat and uninviting, so ensure you introduce other grays, neutrals and warmer shades with accent colors, layering and texture in interior design. Equally, decorating with gray and primary colors or pastel colors will look wrong – the best matches are earthy, natural shades that add an element of warmth to your scheme.

Dilute the gray: 10 successful accent colors for a gray interior

The video listed all the accent colors for a gray interior

1 Red

Shades of rich cold red are great for creating accents in a light gray interior. If the room has good lighting, red can be used in several elements. For example, in a rack, a pattern on sofa cushions, small decor on shelves, a coffee table. In this case, it is better not to focus the accents in one part of the room, but evenly distribute it over the entire area.

Instagram: @belwood_ru

Instagram: @belwood_ru

2 Emerald

Intense emerald will successfully complement the space, which has a lot of light gray surfaces. It will add life to the interior, but at the same time leave the color palette restrained and muted. Indoor plants will be the best addition. Choose large species and place them close to a colored wall or large furniture so that the green hues echo.

Instagram: @bhibuoriginal

Instagram: @bhibuoriginal

3 Terracotta

Terracotta is warm and will help soften a cold gray interior. Use it in the dining room, bedroom or living room. To enhance the feeling of coziness, introduce terracotta through textiles: sofa and armchair upholstery, curtains and bedding.

Instagram: @rindes_studio

Instagram: @9.18buro

4 Turquoise

Gray tones are expressively combined with the blue-green shade of the sea wave. It is quite subdued and does not create visual noise. Therefore, it is suitable for interior decoration in loft or minimalist styles. But at the same time, turquoise makes the space brighter and deeper. Try to choose an unusual place for him so that even more attention is paid to him. For example, you can paint in a turquoise ceiling.

Instagram: @ancconcept

Instagram: @ancconcept

5 Grass Green

A soft green with a lot of yellow that seems to glow from within. And therefore, it will help to balance the interior in dark shades of gray that seem cold and gloomy. Enter it into the space through the upholstery of large upholstered furniture and complement it with golden accessories.

Instagram: @berdnikovadiz

Instagram: @berdnikovadiz

6 Peach

Peach shade will soften the gray interior well and add color to it. You can use it to visually change the space. For example, make two stripes at the top of a light gray wall: dark gray and peach. This technique will visually raise the ceilings.

Instagram: @ancconcept

Instagram: @ancconcept

7 Golden

Golden hues pleasantly echo light and dark gray tones, making the interior more elegant and expensive. Add them with furniture, such as a coffee table or chairs. And also through lamps, fittings and wall decor.

Instagram: @designer.lisa

сdesigner.lisa

8 Pink

Pink tones are very easy to combine with gray. Especially muted, for example, a shade of dusty rose. Use it for accent wall, furniture upholstery, accessories. This color pair looks best in the bedroom and bathroom, adding playfulness and lightness to them.

Instagram: @edytaandco

Instagram: @vvyombyshuchita

Instagram: @tsupikov.n

9 Blue

Blue adds depth to space and does not interrupt the main gray palette. Use rich shades of blue for textured surfaces: velvet chair upholstery or long pile carpet. To make the interior not seem gloomy, add blotches of cold white.

Instagram: @tatsiana_kaladzei

Instagram: @yodezeen_architects

10 Azure

Luminous blue attracts more attention than muted blue. Use it to make the main focus - to draw attention to the recreation area, for example.

Instagram: @yanasdecor

Instagram: @yanasdecor

Prepared by

Maria Revina

Grey colour

Warm gray color in the interior: combinations, shades, photos, tips

Choosing the right shade of gray for the interior is not so easy: in most stores you can find dozens, if not hundreds of options. At the same time, the color is very popular with designers and is now actively used in the interior

Photo: Shutterstock

Let's figure out together with the experts what are the pros and cons of warm gray in the interior, how it affects the perception and how to combine it with other shades .

The experts in this story:

adv.rbc.ru

Warm gray in the interior

Gray is one of the most popular colors in interior design (Photo: Davide Cantelli/Unsplash)

Gray is one of the most popular colors in interior design after white and beige. It is suitable for most apartments and rooms of various functional purposes. But it is important to consider that gray can be both cold and warm. The second option for residential spaces is more suitable.

Warm gray makes a seemingly neutral color soft, calm and pleasing to the eye, creating an atmosphere of stability, reliability and calmness. In addition, the color fits well with the modern trend for the use of natural materials. Gray is one of the natural shades (the color of stone, concrete), which will be relevant for both living space and office interiors. This color is well complemented by bright accents to visually make the room more interesting.

How color temperature affects interiors and people

What are the shades of gray

The variety of gray palette allows you to create interesting combinations, color transitions and moods (Photo: Shutterstock)

The variety of grays allows for interesting combinations, color transitions and moods. When mixing gray and beige, a warm gray is formed. In English, it is called greige, "greydzh" (from the words gray - "gray" and beige - "beige").

Here are some of the most popular shades of grey:

Warm gray and other colours: successful combinations

Lena Korshunova , architect, interior designer:

— Gray goes well with all colors, but there are outdated trends. For example, now, due to the large number of repetitions of the design technique, it is no longer relevant to combine the warm gray color of the walls with white baseboards and white doors in the rooms. Or combine gray concrete-look tiles in the bathroom with wood-look tiles. Roughly plastered gray walls with black metal pieces of furniture are also out of fashion and give way to more modern solutions. But, of course, if you really like some design technique, feel free to put it into practice.

Gray color will be appropriate in most interior styles - from classic and minimalism to creative loft. Hue can serve as a base color, but you should not make it the only one. In this case, you get a boring and dull, literally "gray" space. But the gray color is good as a background for other accents - from pastel to bright and saturated.

Basic gray in the interior goes well with:

1. White

There may be several gray tones in the room in combination with white (Photo: Shutterstock)

Versatile, neutral white, usually used as the base color. But if a warm gray shade has taken on this role, you can dilute it with white details without restrictions. It is interesting to play not on contrast, but on smooth transitions of shades of the same color, so the room may contain several gray tones in combination with white. The latter is almost always present in most modern apartments: owners often choose white window frames and a ceiling.

2. Blue

Light shades of the sky in combination with gray walls make the room visually more spacious and airy (Photo: Vinicius "amnx" Amano/Unsplash)

Light sky colors combined with gray walls make the room visually spacious and airy. They bring a feeling of coolness, so they are ideal for warm apartments with east and south windows, from which the sun can add color temperature. Gray and blue is a popular combination for living rooms and children's rooms (mostly for boys), while more saturated colors are suitable for the office.

3. Violet

The combination of violet and gray will appeal to creative people and lovers of non-standard solutions (Photo: Max Vakhtbovych/Pexels)

A noble duet of gray and purple can be chosen for the bedroom or hallway. Lavender hues, including Very Perry (Color of the Year 2022), are enhanced by pairing with warm grey. This is an inspiring duet of shades that will appeal to creative people and lovers of non-standard solutions.

4. Pink

Gray and pink complement each other perfectly, creating an elegant transition from restraint to romance (Photo: Shutterstock)

Gray and pink complement each other perfectly, creating an elegant transition from understatement to romance. This combination is often used by stylists, and interior designers consider it one of the most suitable for girls' rooms and cozy bedrooms.

5. Yellow

Yellow and gray - one of the most successful color combinations (Photo: Сottonbro/Pexels)

In 2021, the Pantone Color Institute chose two main shades at once: flawless gray and illuminating (to put it simply, gray and yellow). From the point of view of an interior designer, this is one of the most successful color combinations. Bright yellow sets the accents, filling the room with light. Gray - muffles and neutralizes the excessive activity of the solar hue, creating harmony. It turns out an optimistic, but not flashy design that is suitable for a spacious living room or kitchen.

6. Green

Green shades look good with gray - dark, muted, ashy (Photo: Max Vakhtbovych/Pexels)

A calm, gentle and relaxing duet is the basis of many eco-style interiors. Green shades look good with gray - dark, muted, ashy. They are often chosen for country houses, but in a city apartment this combination would be appropriate. Especially if you complement it with furniture and accessories with natural textures of stone and wood.

7. Beige

Use a combination of gray and nude to create a neutral background, but complete with accent details (Photo: Mark West/Unsplash)

Warm gray plus shades of ivory, eggshell or almond are also good combinations. In such a duet, the colors reinforce each other, the solution is suitable for a room of any functionality and area. The combination of gray and nude works well for creating a neutral background, but it should be complemented with accent details.

Lena Korshunova , architect, interior designer:

- Glossy gray and matte gray - different colors due to different degrees of reflection. And there are different degrees of dullness. There are also different textures - from absolutely smooth to very voluminous. So even within a warm gray there can be a huge amount of variation. Therefore, with a different type of surface, the same additional color can either perfectly match or not be combined at all. Decide what you need - contrast or harmony. If there is contrast, feel free to choose bright colors. When you don’t need to highlight anything, give preference to any color that you like, but in a pastel shade.

Warm gray color in the interior of the apartment

Depending on the chosen tone and its combination with other elements, you can create an interesting design (Photo: Shutterstock)

Depending on the chosen tone and its combination with other elements, you can create interesting designs - from discreet and concise to bright and original. Warm gray is versatile.

Lena Korshunova , interior designer:

— Gray color will suit any room. Not only walls can be gray, but also the ceiling or floor. You should not get carried away with this color if little sunlight enters the room and the windows are facing north - in winter the room will look dull.

I can give you universal advice for any room: do not tint the paint according to the RAL or NCS color fan yourself. Take the finished palette. For example, Farrow and ball or Little Greene. All successful warm gray colors for living are already found for you by professionals. You just have to figure out which one you like best.

How to complement the warm gray color in the interior

If gray is chosen as the main color for walls or floors, you should take care of "diluting" the base with additional shades. This can be done in several ways by adding:

Textiles

The easiest and most inexpensive option is to vary the bright accents with bedding, curtains, tablecloths, blankets, bedspreads, carpets and pillows (Photo: Shutterstock)

The easiest and most inexpensive option is to vary the bright accents with bedding, curtains, tablecloths, blankets, bedspreads, carpets and pillows. Most lightweight textiles can be replaced at any time, so it is convenient to evaluate combinations of warm gray and other shades on it. Suitable as pastel milky shades, and, for example, bright green and red, relevant during the winter holidays.

Furniture

Cabinets, tables, sofas and armchairs in most colors look great against a gray background (Photo: Max Vakhtbovych/Pexels)

Cabinets, tables, sofas and armchairs in most colors look great against a gray background. Combinations are selected depending on personal preferences. Someone will like the shades of gray wenge and Pasadena pine, someone will be able to fit the built-in wardrobes of ash shimo color into a completely gray room. The rule remains the same: if gray prevails, dilute it with other details.

Wallpaper

Wallpaper with lush tropical leaves will draw attention to itself and make the room brighter (Photo: Shutterstock)

They are available in different shades of grey, with or without graphics. If there is too much gray in the interior, you can use a popular design life hack: highlight the accent wall with wallpaper in rich colors with an interesting pattern. It can be juicy tropical leaves or an abstract print that will draw attention to itself and make the room brighter.

Accessories

Paintings, posters, figurines and other additions to the decor can be both gray and bright on a neutral background. Accent walls decorated with decorative concrete-like plaster, massive vases and flower pots in gray shades are now popular. It is important to strike a balance in the harmonious combination of shades so that the room does not look like one gray spot with a bright stroke of paint in the middle of the room.

Expert's comment

Daria Skorobogatova , head of the educational project Tikkurila Academy in Russia:

— A gray color is called warm if it contains shades of a warm chromatic range: orange, red, yellow. For example, in grayscale X487 Mortar, h587 Pumice, K497 Atlas there is a yellow tone.

In achromatic colors there is a very fine line where the hue appears from gray/white/black. For example, when the color becomes not gray with a yellowish tint, but beige, or not gray with a pinkish tint, but dusty pink.

Tikkurila has 94 shades of grey. For the convenience of choosing the right option, there is a separate collection of Tikkurila Deco Gray. The whole range is combined into three categories: 72 opaque, 15 translucent and seven gray colors.

I recommend to choose the color according to the paper catalog or paint. The color in gadgets is a luminous screen, while the color on a real painted surface is reflected and realistic. On the screen, it always depends on the specific device and can vary greatly: the lighter the shade, the stronger the color distortion (this is especially noticeable with white shades). The perception of hue on a real object depends on the lighting and color environment. At the same time, the color itself from the paper catalog or color remains unchanged. For a more accurate assessment, Tikkurila color studios have special color tables where you can see the shades under different lighting conditions. If you have a color catalog (fan or map), then you can choose a color by attaching it to a wall or other object for painting.

For self-painting on the walls, it is desirable to have the skill or at least practice in places that will then not be visible. For example, inside a built-in wardrobe or behind furniture. For beginners, it is best to start with deep matt paints such as Tikkurila Euro Matt 3. Newly filled walls should be pre-primed with Tikkurila Euro Primer diluted 1:3 with water with a long pile roller. Previously painted walls, if they are in good condition, can be immediately covered with new paint. You will need a roller with a long thick pile for water-based paints and an extension handle to it, a bath, an artificial bristle brush and a small roller for painting corners.

For each paint, the approximate consumption indicated on the label is based on one coat of coating on a relatively smooth and slightly absorbent surface.

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