Tan vs. Gray Rooms

Kitchen and Dining Room

• The kitchen and dining room are active areas. These are rooms where you cook, eat and socialize. Shades of tan are better suited to these types of rooms. Use darker shades of tan for a very large kitchen or dining room if a smaller, more cozy atmosphere is preferred. Lighter shades of tan will make a small kitchen or dining room seem roomier. Of course, there is no need to use only one shade of tan. In a rectangular-shaped room, a darker shade of tan or light coffee color can be used on the large walls with a lighter shade on the smaller walls.

Living and Family Rooms

• The living room and family room are not always quite so easily defined. Whether gray or tan would be better depends on how the rooms are normally used. In situations where there is a formal living room that is used primarily for entertaining, tan would be the more suitable color. Shades of tan tend to stimulate conversation. A family room that is used for winding down and relaxation or watching television is more suited to gray. If there is no formal living room and the main room is used for socializing and relaxing, then it comes down to personal preference. Grayish-beige or tan-gray can also be used. There are so many color combinations, the sky is the limit.

Bedrooms

• Gray is best for bedrooms. It promotes quiet relaxation which is more conducive to sleep. Bedrooms that are also used for working present a slightly different situation. In a child’s room with a desk for doing homework, consider painting the wall the desk is on a tan color with a slight gray cast and coordinate the other three walls with a more gray color. That way the wall the child is facing while working will be more conducive to activity while the other walls provide a more restful atmosphere. Coordinate the carpet with the tan wall color and bedding with the gray.

Bathroom

• The bathroom is generally more suited to tan, especially in a busy household. A more active atmosphere is better for busy families who need to get ready for work and school quickly in the morning. Although, when one or more members of the family enjoy long, relaxing baths, gray may be a more suitable color. Bathrooms can also be handled similar to bedrooms. The walls around the bathtub can be gray with a slight tan tint, with tan on the rest of the walls. Flooring, towels and accessories can be used to bring other colors, such as blues, greens or burgundies, into the color scheme. Tan floor tile with a blue pattern and gray-blue towels can be used to coordinate the different wall colors.