Cool and Calm - The New Earth Tones
Earth Tones. We’ve been talking about them since the 70s. Warm tan, orange, gold, and even red. In the last decade, they’ve been rebranded as Tuscan colors. Lately, my clients are decidedly moving away from these so-called “earthy” colors. Nature creates the perfect color palettes, so why not consider the earth tones’ cool cousins? I’ve created beautiful color designs inspired by the colors of slate. Look for colors with cool undertones to them.
These cool colors are contemporary, sophisticated and unexpected. Use gray Jogging Path SW7638 as your base color or get adventurous with the more golden Rustic City SW7699. See how Grapy SW7629 looks in the powder room. It’s dramatic and interesting, especially with brushed nickel or rubbed bronze hardware. Imagine how rich your kitchen cabinets would look with Green Earth SW7748. Or a Master Bedroom in Dockside SW7601. The color palette is virtually interchangable. Experiment with these new earth tones to find the perfect combination for you.
I just finished remodeling my kitchen and apparantly I am color challenged! I have cranberry maple cabinets, new venetian gold granite, sierra oak floors and stainless steel appliances. My living room opens into my dining room and kitchen kind of like one big square seperated by a wall. When you enter from the front door you can see into the dining room but not the kitchen. The far living room wall extends the full lenght of the dining room and the meets the wall that extends into the kitchen. Can you suggest some colors that would go with my kitchen and match with SW Row House Tan (that is on the wall that extends from the living room, it is the main neutral running through my hall ways living room and partial dining room. I want some color in my kitchen, tried a East Lake Gold by SW and it was beautiful until the floors got re-laid and then everything took on the red tone and looked orange kind of like pumkin or squash, hated it. Any assistance would be greatly appriciated.
Hi Colleen!
Thanks for your question. I see 2 things going on here. One is that you thought Eastlake Gold was beautiful at one point. Secondly, you don’t like orange-ish tones. When the new floors were installed, a phenomenon called shifting happened. Eastlake Gold has an orange undertone to it, and your new flooring made the wall color shift orange. So, you’re not color challenged–you just changed the conditions in the room. Color can shift when any major element in a room is changed.
My suggestion to you would be to choose a gold that has more or a brown or gray cool undertone to it. This will counter the orange factor. Golden Gate is more golden, as the name suggests, with a bit more brown than orange. Gold Coast would be another option. I would even look at Lanyard, which is little deeper and a bit more sophisticated than gold.
Let me know your thoughts. You can also send photos to me at maryfrances@mycolordesigner.com so I can take a look.