15/11/2020
Fifty Shades of Grey
Well not quite. But there are certainly some ‘grey’ areas.
Over the last decade we have seen a lot of ‘grey’ appearing in our homes which is very much in defiance of the neutral beige (think Magnolia for instance) hues that marked the end of the twentieth century.
But why grey? Well, as with beige, it is neutral insofar that you can use it in combination with a wide spectrum of colours, bold or otherwise. It is however, even more flexible as a pure grey containing no colour which means the rules of colour don’t apply.
Although grey is perceived as a modern, contemporary ‘colour’ we only need to wander along a typically suburban street anywhere in the country and we will see ‘grey’ inserting itself into windows, doors, driveways, cladding and all the way into the most popular choice for modern cars.
If you start paying particular attention to the exact tone of greys in use you will conclude that there is in fact a particular shade of dark grey that remains prevalent. This tone is ‘Anthracite Grey’, which has in fact got a slightly blue bias.
In the UK, we currently use the German colour coding system – RAL, of which Anthracite Grey is denoted as RAL7016 and you will often see this code when referring to this fashionable 21st Century colour.
Anthracite Grey has been driven by many of the home improvement/lifestyle TV shows and magazines which have cropped up in recent times whilst architects and developers love the softer contrast it offers a properties façade compared to high-contrast white or black.
However, the popularity of Anthracite has motivated the market to find suitable alternatives for those who like the neutrality of grey but want something a little different. Some paler greys and warmer greys have become increasingly popular for those who’re keen to retain a contemporary aesthetic but with some added individuality.
Agate Grey RAL7038 is a paler, warmer grey and Silver Grey RAL7155 is it’s cooler equivalent. Slate Grey RAL7015 is a tone lighter than Anthracite whilst Basalt Grey RAL7012 a tone lighter than that.
Despite the fashionable nature of these shades of grey, they don’t look too contemporary on period properties especially as examples of grey windows and doors can be found on numerous historical properties dating back over the last two centuries.
To conclude, five shades of grey provide a range of ‘colours’ suited to most modern and period homes and offer varying amounts of contrast with timber, bricked or rendered finishes.
