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Design

My Favorite Color In The River House – The Case For The Medium-Toned Green/Gray And Why It Works So Well

Every single time I walk into this room I say loudly or under my breath “Oh my gosh, I love this color“. It’s more of a compulsion than a commentary. It’s just so perfect. Which of course begs the question of what color is it? And furthermore, why is it “so perfect”? But first, you must know some facts that make a difference (and might affect this exact same color in your home).

Where Are WE? The Family/TV Room

This room is meant to be a cozy family/media room, but unlike ours, it’s flooded with natural light. So we didn’t want to go too dark, but the window frames are black in here so we wanted to help them feel a little less stark.

The Family/TV Room With Drywall (Pre-Paint)

As you can see, here it is with fresh primer after being drywalled.

The flooring is going to be Stuga in Shell (a light white oak) and there will be benches along that window wall.

Those doors face east so at night it gets blasted by the sun (when it’s sunny), although some of it is dappled by the trees.

But What Color???

While, of course, I’m heavily involved in designing this house, I was really focused on the rooms that had a lot of partnerships and mostly just helping Ken/Katie out in these rooms as their sister. So we didn’t have this super dialed-in design plan – no furniture had been picked out yet. We just knew that it would have a huge sectional, a cozy rug a table for crafting/homework, and a big old TV. But the color palette was totally up in the air.

While I hate choosing paint colors without knowing what else is happening in a room, in this case, we had to because they needed to paint soon. So the options are to keep white, then paint once they fully moved in and chosen all furniture, OR choose an awesome come and hope that it’s the right color for any future design plans.

Max and I went room by room and he really pushed us to not wait on the color – to just choose one and make it work. His confidence was high, so I was like, “ok let’s try it”.

What IS This Paint Color??

Well, it’s none other than Evergreen Fog by Sherwin-Williams (the color of the year in 2021). I’ve seen it used a million times but never experienced it myself, IRL. So I knew it was a great color or people wouldn’t love it so much, but it’s also one of those in-between colors that changes a lot depending on your space.

In this room, it’s just so stunning, soothing, and calm but full of pigment. Sometimes it’s green, sometimes gray, sometimes really warm. But because it’s an in-between color it is going to be nice and cozy at night to watch TV once the shades are pulled, and yet still light and happy during the day when flooded with natural light.

Ah see those benches?!

Choosing Window Treatments

This room is getting blackout shades and curtains via Decorview. We chose the fabric a long time ago – a really dark green that pulls the black from the doors/windows but also adds depth to this green tone.

Painting The Built-in Cabinetry

We recently designed and installed this built-in credenza under the TV for storage. So then we had to choose the color we were going to paint it. We are doing with a bit of a color drench vibe in here (the sofa is not green, so it’s not going to be totally tonal). So for the cabinets, we wanted a darker green but not an accent color.

We ended up choosing Foxhall Green by Sherwin-Williams, which is a really dark but not almost black green to balance out the window treatments and ground the TV wall.

I know it doesn’t look too exciting right now, but being in this room is wonderful and I’m so excited about the furniture and rugs we’ve selected. It’s already such a warm, happy, and yet soothing vibe. Would this color look as good in a room with less light? I don’t know. But if you have a lot of light as we do, then I think it’s a viable option for that perfect medium-toned color.

I hope to have finished but empty photos for you soon so you can see how it looks with the white oak bench and the flooring.

For now, we are loving how this room is turning out and I’m so happy to have another go-to color in my arsenal that I KNOW I love. Evergreen Fog and Foxhall Green FTW (both Sherwin-Williams). And yes, we partnered with Sherwin-Williams on this house but this post is not sponsored – my enthusiasm for this color was too great to keep inside. Enough with the river house gatekeeping. More to come very soon. 🙂

Architect: Annie Usher
Interior Designers: Emily Henderson and Max Humphrey
Contractor: JP Macy of Sierra Custom Construction

Pretty Photos by Kaitlin Green

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Colleen
8 months ago

Such a good color, especially with black accents. I used it for our pass-through laundry room and powder room in our current house and it works so well!

Jen
7 months ago

Sooooo great! And so excited to see more and more of this stunning home. Welcome back, looks like everyone had a great time in Mexico!

Kate
7 months ago

Do you mean the glass doors face West and gets blasted by the sun in the evening? It doesn’t make sense to me that if it faces East it would get sun at night.

Those doors face east so at night it gets blasted by the sun (when it’s sunny), although some of it is dappled by the trees.

Lynsy
7 months ago
Reply to  Kate

Was wondering the same thing 🧐

Catherine
7 months ago

Love it! Curious though, with the doors east-facing, wouldn’t the room get blasted by sun in the morning as opposed to the evening?

Lynsy
7 months ago

Trying to figure out how the room gets evening sun if it faces east??? Regardless, lovely color.

Carol
7 months ago

Caitlin used this color in a makeover that I’ve seen all over my Pinterest! Wish you had included the shots here as it is interesting to see how the color works in different zones. Would have been helpful for us!
https://stylebyemilyhenderson.com/blog/long-dark-hallway-design-ideas is the link if anyone would like to see it in a windowless hallway.

Donna
7 months ago
Reply to  Carol

Thanks for posting that. Very helpful to see the color in a different space.

Julie
7 months ago

It’s really pretty! I bet this will be a room to relax in.

Gretchen
7 months ago

Love this rich green – and I really love all your gorgeous boots! Would love a shopping guide.

Rory
7 months ago
Reply to  Gretchen

Here’s some items:

  • The Track Bomber in Rolling Green by The Great
  • The Carina Platform Chelsea Boot in Cargo Green by Madewell
  • The Howdy Top in Mill Plaid by The Great
  • Shon Pant in Admiral Green by Nili Notan
  • Women’s Caribou x Boot Chelsea by Sorel in Black
  • Crinkled Button-Up Shirt in Toffee (stripe) by Madewell
  • Cresta Rib Beanie in Sand by Varley
  • Cropped French Military Pant in Camo by Nili Notan
  • Women’s Caribou x Boot Chelsea by Sorel in Black
  • Women’s Lodge Down Duffle Coat in Cadet by Eddie Bauer
  • Cresta Rib Beanie in Ash Melange by Varley
Christina
7 months ago

Love this color so much! And please know that this definition below is simply b/c I, myself, just learned how often ‘begs the question’ is used incorrectly- possibly 98% of the time unless by an author or editor. I’m still awaiting the opportunity to use it correctly in my own speech- I’m a slow learner. Without further ado,
“It begs the question” is a response to a logically circular argument. You can use “it begs the question” within a larger sentence, as in the one below: To say that someone is a good leader because she has good leadership skills begs the question. You don’t actually need to explain how or why it begs the question.

Rory
7 months ago
Reply to  Christina

raise the question (or invite, elicitprompt, etc.) is by far the most common meaning” from https://stancarey.wordpress.com/2015/12/09/raising-the-question-of-beg-the-question

Christina
7 months ago
Reply to  Rory

THanks, Rory. I will take my bil back on. He is an editor and was the one to correct me. 🙂

MKP
7 months ago

Love the greens in this room! Did you all consider painting the TV wall or the entire TV nook the darker green? Seems like that would work well and also help the TV to better disappear in the room.

Sarah F
7 months ago

I love how the River House’s style and colors are such perfect inspiration for designing our new build! Keep ‘em coming!

🥰 Rusty
7 months ago

Gosh…I love, love, love this colour! 🥰
Such a great backdrop for any furnishings.
Please, Emily, please get yourself a keep cup. Influence us, by being the way forward. No more disposable cups.
Be a shade of green, just like the amazing paint colour you chose.

Kate
7 months ago

I love that the color is on the ceiling, too. Looks incredible!

Rachel
7 months ago

Looks great! Do you mind sharing the link to the light fixture? Also curious if you know the ceiling height. Wanting to do a similar fixture in our living room but wondering if the ceiling is too low. Thanks!

Tana
7 months ago
Reply to  Rachel

Looks like the Brendle 3-Arm Semi-Flush Chandelier by Rejuvenation.

Rona Chai
7 months ago

I love this colour! I may have missed it but what is the colour of the office/music room?

Vany
7 months ago
Reply to  Rona Chai

I believe it’s SW9639 Rain Cloud by Sherwin Williams

Chris
7 months ago

could your link the curtains and shades and the fabric used. thanks so much! can’t wait to see more!

JeffreyC
7 months ago

Love the colors. I might have floated the cabinetry beneath the TV area as it looks a bit heavy to me, but maybe that is the intended look.

Leia
7 months ago

Is there a reason all the river house posts aren’t collected in a link under “Projects” on the site?