There are at least 50 million shades of gray. Which one will look best on your house? We asked members of our Architect/Designer Directory to reveal their favorites. Here are the 10 exterior gray paints that they most often turn to: Deciding between gray and white? See 10 Easy Pieces: Architects’ White Exterior Paint Picks, also chosen by members of our Architect/Designer Directory. Swatch photographs by Katie Newburn for Gardenista. Above: Top row, left to right: Benjamin Moore Sag Harbor Gray; Benjamin Moore Bear Creek. Bottom row: Benjamin Moore Iron Mountain; Benjamin Moore Gravel Grey; Farrow & Ball Down Pipe; and Benjamin Moore Graystone. Above: Los Angeles-based SIMO Design painted this house in Dunn-Edwards Vulcan, a cool blue-gray. It’s the bluest of the shades in our top 10. Above: LA designers Nickey Kehoe Inc. had this house painted in Benjamin Moore Iron Mountain, a dark gray with a rich brown undertone. The same shade is also a favorite of Geremia Design and Klopf Architecture, both based in the San Francisco Bay Area. 

Photograph by Amy Neunsinger. Above: Chatham, NY-based architect James Dixon chose Benjamin Moore’s Sag Harbor Gray for this Hudson Valley farmhouse. A light green-gray, it’s part of Benjamin Moore’s Historic Color collection. Above: Ana Williamson Architect, based in Menlo Park, CA, used Benjamin Moore Graphite on the siding of this modern house. diy home decor apartmentThe color is a true dark gray with just a hint of blue. house decorating ideas usaFor the trim, Williamson chose Benjamin Moore Gunmetal; wedding decor diy blogthe stucco was integrally colored to match Benjamin Moore Timber Wolf.easy cheap diy christmas decorations

Above: SF Bay Area-based interior designer Kriste Michelini chose Benjamin Moore Bear Creek as her favorite gray. Rich in brown tones, it’s lighter than Iron Mountain but darker than Grey Hearth. Above: Both LA-based DISC Interiors and SF-based Nicole Hollis picked Farrow & Ball Down Pipe as their top exterior gray. ways to decorate your own roomThe popular color is a complex mix with hints of blue-green. fall decorating ideas on a budgetPhotograph via Farrow & Ball. Above: NYC-based architect Alex Scott Porter has used Benjamin Moore Gravel Gray on several projects, including this cabin on a Maine island. Gravel Gray is the darkest of the shades recommended here. Above: LA’s Kevin Oreck Architect painted this new house in ICI Grey Hearth.

Above: Interior designer Laura Clayton Baker of LA-based The Uplifters Inc. used Sherwin-Williams Peppercorn on this Washington, D.C., house. The truest gray of those listed here, Peppercorn pairs well with the other shades Clayton Baker used on this exterior: Sherwin-Williams Pure White and Tricorn Black for the trim, and Benjamin Moore Vermilion in a high-gloss finish for the door. Above: SF-based Klopf Architecture has used Benjamin Moore Graystone on several house exteriors; the shade is appealing in all kinds of light. Find lots more designer-approved outdoor paint picks for your house at Palette & Paints. Trying to get up the nerve to paint it black? Read 10 Modern Houses Gone to the Dark Side. This is an update of a post originally published September 16, 2013. ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,First impressions are key for buyers. Try these tips for selecting new color choices that'll help seal the deal, and get you to the closing table quickly. You may love a bold hue, but a buyer may not.

Find out what colors help sell homes. Since Goethe published Theory of Colours back in the early 1800s, color theorists have expounded on the psychological impact that certain hues have on us. And with good reason: study after study proves that we equate color with emotion. “Color evokes an emotional response in us all — whether we know it or not,” says Maria Killam, a color expert, decorator, and author of White is Complicated: A Decorators’ Guide to Choosing the Right White. “And the colors we choose for our homes are a public representation of how we see ourselves.” This can become problematic, however, when you want to sell your home and not every potential buyer loves that teal trim as much as you do. So what’s a seller to do — short of repainting every room beige? Try these tips for selecting new color choices that will have you headed toward a closing date in no time. While interiors are important, the exterior is the first thing buyers will see (especially if they’re just driving by your home).

“Be sure your front door, mailbox post, porch, or deck are freshly painted or stained — if the outside of your house looks weather-beaten or if there’s any sign of mold growing on the clapboards, paint the exterior too,” says Bessie Zevgaras, a broker sales associate for Coldwell Banker in Fort Lee, NJ. When choosing an exterior hue, use your neighborhood as your guide. If you live among a sea of gray and taupe facades, red probably isn’t your best bet. While it’s tempting to want to choose a color that will make your home stand out from the pack, it’s also important to consider how it will measure up against nearby properties. Stick to a single all-over neutral in your main rooms, but it’s OK to expand beyond cream or taupe. Try a warm gray like Sherwin-Williams 7029 “Agreeable Grey” or, if you have a lot of earth tones in your décor, Sherwin-Williams 6148 “Wool Skein,” says Killam. “It’s easier for buyers to visualize their furniture in your house if they are not influenced by a lot of busy, dark colors.”

Plus, light, neutral colors “look smashing in online photographs, which is the first place people check when searching for homes,” adds Zevgaras. Rely on white in the kitchen “White cabinets are the best and most timeless color for kitchens,” says Killam. “It’s much harder to know when a kitchen was installed if it’s white, which is great for resale.” Unsure which blanc to buy? Go for a classic: Benjamin Moore OC-117 “Simply White” is an excellent choice. Paint your bedroom blue “There’s something calming and relaxing about blue bedrooms, and they look great with white bedding if you don’t want to commit to a new duvet cover,” says Killam. If you’re ready to take the plunge, two winning shades are Sherwin-Williams 6204 “Sea Salt” or 6232 “Misty.” Keep your bathrooms bright If they’re white or cream, leave them, but if the bathrooms in your home are already a fun color, there’s no need to repaint — this is the one place that people expect (and forgive) a little personality.