Shades of Gray Redeemed
February 20, 2015
In the past, I think the color gray may have been the victim of bad press. Gray hair is meant to be colored. Gray skies portent rainy days. Gray is the signature color of the much-maligned field mouse.
Then, something happened – is happening.
Gray got a reprieve. Gray is, indeed, having its day.
From a decorator’s point of view, gray is the perfect playmate. Obviously, it’s not one hue. Gray can delve deep and brush up against charcoal or soar with the doves, dove-gray, that is. Metallic grays span from cool icy silver to pewter, warm and burnished. Cool-warm, light-dark, gray goes everywhere – and with everything.
Pair gray wood furniture with saturated upholstery jewel tones like ruby, emerald and sapphire. Can’t you see it? No problem dialing it back. Think pink, mint and powder blue in step with gray. It all works. Such is the versatile nature of gray.
Some of Robb & Stucky’s favorite furniture designers are taking gray in all-new directions. Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams is a great example. These design wizards are not content to merely pair gray with a diverse palette of colors. They are actually recoloring gray to create new hues. Pastels are a favorite. There’s a new MB+BW color I can only describe as sprucegreen-gray. It’s stunning.
Kudos to fine furniture maker Chaddock for their colorful romance with gray as well. Robb & Stucky just introduced Chaddock’s Regent Dining Room to our Fort Myers showroom in a finish called Greige. I love the hue, but it’s really the sheen that turns my head. While I loved the weathered, driftwood-inspired grays, Chaddock has upped the sheen, the polish and the appeal in this collection. Well done!
In the world of interior design – and especially at Robb & Stucky – gray is not just a straightforward wood and metal story. There’s a softer side – the world of fabric – and gray offers enormous appeal. Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams’s stunning Dumont sofa is just one example as shown on D1. Now the whole room is really an ode to gray, but the pair of facing sofas is extraordinary. The Dumonts are shown in a metallic gray velvet called Taupe (go figure!). The rich, textural velvet adds even more appeal to my new favorite color: gray.
So to the cast and crew of “Fifty Shades of Grey,” I say, “what, only 50?” At Robb & Stucky, that’s just a warmup. Consider this a personal invitation to shop Robb & Stucky’s Fort Myers store and succumb to the countless shades of gray on display.
— Mark Stuart, a Florida transplant from Indiana, famous for its gray winter skies, is the creative mastermind at Robb & Stucky. He is responsible for the floor plan and visual display of all Robb & Stucky stores. In his spare time, he also shops the world for accessories and engages with the buying team on wood and upholstery selections.
