Brown paint I’m sampling…
Brown paint has been making a muddy splash lately in interiors and while it’s considered classic and for some, they never strayed, I certainly will admit to have not used it much over the last decade. I will say Mike and I painted our primary bedroom dark brown while we were living in our Hoboken NJ Brownstone circa 2012.
In early 2022 I opted to use a dark rich farrow & ball brown paint, again in Hoboken NJ, but this time for a client I was working with. It reignited my love for brown paint all over again.
Rikki Snyder Photography, from the Rejuvenated Brownstone Primary Suite
Fast forward to last week as I finally began my family basement room project, but that’s another blog for another day, I knew I wanted it dark and cozy.
I sampled the following 5 brown paint colors:
1) Farrow & Ball London stone, I absolutely love this color but it fell too flat for this basement project. I could see this paint tone in an office or bathroom with lots of natural light and I would revisit this paint for trim. It is the perfect tone for anyone moving away from gray at this time.
2) Benjamin Moore Tartly Brown, This one felt dramatically dark brown and since my basement won’t be that dramatic I had to immediately pass. I would love this on bookshelves, wainscoting, mudrooms, powder rooms, or even a bold primary bedroom.
3) Farrow & Ball Broccoli Brown, This is part of Farrow and Ball’s archive collection so not easily sampled anymore but worth a quart if you’re looking for the most perfect green-brown that ever existed. I could see this used in a guest room, family room, or dining room, but I would love it paired with the perfect floral wallpaper and only used as the trim color. It’s too flat on its own for me.
4) Farrow & Ball London Clay, The winner of our basement makeover. This color checked all the boxes for me; moody, funky, youthful, traditional, fun, warm, and bonus I liked it with my old west elm very gray sectional that will be in this space. (Insert crying face for my design soul and happy face for less worried mom since I could care less about that old sofa.)
5) Benjamin Moore Bucktrout Brown, WOW- this one is being saved and stored for either myself or a client! I loved it and it easily came in 2nd place but was a bit too funky/ bold for what the basement room is set to become. I’d love to repaint my kitchen cabinets in this color, but I should mention that purple is my favorite color and this shade has a funky plum, brown vibe. Someone make me a bucktrout brown boot already wontcha!