Color Q & A with LFB Color: Can I mix grays and tans?
Friends and color aficionados worldwide:
Hello and thank you as always for your readership. Today I’m talking mixing grays and tans (or any warm neutral) in decor, fashion, cosmetics and accessories.
Especially in home decor, this can be tricky, as lots of folks are transitioning from a very earthy color scheme to a gray/greige palette. They aren’t able to make that full transition all at once, so the question is how can cool grays and warm beiges and tans coexist.
Benjamin Moore grays and beiges from their AURA Color Stories collecton of paints
So, how do we mix gray and tan? Can they be mixed? Why, yes, they can! The key is to keep the vibrancy, or chroma, of the colors uniform.
Bright colors pair with brights, and muted (toned down) colors pair with other muted colors. We can all agree that gray and tan are relatively muted, but some are slightly more vibrant than others. Note in the gallery below that the color pairing in the home exterior (featured upper left) features neutrals that have more saturation, or vibrancy, to them. The other color combinations in the photo gallery are considerably more muted.
How about mixing and matching gray and tan in wardrobe, accessories and makeup? Yes, it CAN be done.
It is an incredibly freeing experience for ladies (and gentlemen) who have always been told they are either “cool” or “warm” of coloration to be able to wear almost any hue, fine tuned to their coloration.
In personal color analysis, which I offer as a certified ebues color consultant, I develop customized color palettes for people based on their skin undertone. Instead of being placed into one color “season” or category, we now develop a palette that is unique to you, your coloring, lifestyle, and personal preferences.
That being said, some folks do both prefer and look better in gray than they do in tan. In that case, I recommend that you wear gray as your primary “neutral,” then add in your best tone of tan as an accent such as a scarf or handbag.
With the ebues full spectrum system, I look at each color group to find YOUR ideal neutrals such as gray, brown, tan, beige, and white, along with your best colors in each of the hues around the rainbow.
Another way to experiment with grays and tans is through nail color and cosmetics. This is an inexpensive and fun way to learn about which grays and tans do work for your skin tone. I must put in a little plug here for the color theory cosmetics by Elea Blake (part of ebhues), which I select for clients following a personal color analysis, as well. Makeup is the most cost effective way to update, rejuvenate and freshen your whole look.
Have fun experimenting with this neutral color combination, and remember to keep the vibrancy of the chosen colors the same. The most washed out, muted or toned down grays pair best with equally washed out, toned down tans.
Needing help finding your best decor colors or interested in knowing what colors work best on you? Please do reach out to me via EMAIL LFB COLOR or PHONE CHAT WITH LAUREN. I would love to work with you!
