Paint Colors That Make Your Home Look Dirty

Housekeeping is hard enough—you don’t need your paint to make your room look dirty or dingy. Picking the right paint (with the right undertone) is your best strategy for success. Here are five color pitfalls, and how to avoid them.

Warm White

Any white with a warm undertone can look dingy, especially in the wrong light.

Consider Benjamin Moore’s Decorator’s White or Farrow & Ball’s All White, both of which are crisp without being clinical.

Yellow

It’s tough to pick the right yellow. Too bright and you’ll feel punched in the face. Too pale and it goes dingy, like discolored linen. Many of the soothing, soul-brightening yellows you love actually look creamy-white in the can or on a swatch. Benjamin Moore’s Windham Cream or Mannequin Cream impart a flattering sunny glow without the muddiness.

Builder’s Beige

The neutrals that can help sell a home can also give off a dirty cast. Avoid yellowy or greenish beige or khaki, which don’t cast anyone in a flattering light.

If you want a nice neutral, consider something like Sherwin Williams’ Agreeable Gray, which deftly toes the line between taupe and gray.

Green

Again, those sneaky yellow undertones. Pale greens can sometimes feel like sickrooms, or cast a pallor upon your favorite faces. Instead of worrying about the relative minty-ness or sage-like qualities of light greens, consider cashing in on one of the latest trends, which looks flattering in both modern and historic homes: hunter green. Shy away from the browner undertones (such as Benjamin Moore’s Green Grove or Forest Hills) and opt for something like the deep, bold Chrome Green or the bluish Narragansett Green. Before getting started, see what 5 pros say about where and how to test your paint samples.

Pink

Pink can be a struggle. Too light and it feels sickly-sweet. Too muddy, and you guessed it—dirty. But the current pink trend has turned into using pink as a neutral, so choosing the right one may be in your future. Farrow & Ball’s Sulking Room Pink is sophisticated, muted and it has good depth. This is also an appropriate substitute for any terra-cotta tones you’re considering. Find out why pink is considered one of the best paint colors according to science.

Last, consider that the dinginess you’re seeing might not be your current paint color’s fault. Finding the best wall paint colors for your interior walls can be overwhelming. You might be haunted by paint colors of the past. If you repaint, make sure to use a quality white or gray primer, depending on the color, and/or use enough coats to get a true, fresh shade.

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