Please help me find a white or pale grey paint for my lounge

[wonderwoo]

I have spent a fortune on paint testers for my lounge/diner - and I cannot find something that works. Please help me!

I am looking for a fresh white or pale grey. I currently have Dulux Timeless but it has a grubby look (it is probably actually quite grubby, but also never looked fresh anyway). I also have Jasmine white elsewhere and also find that the same.

I don't understand how colours/lighting works at all but the problem I have is that colours that look lovely elsewhere in the house always get a pinkish/lilacy tinge to them in my lounge/diner - in both natural light and more so when I have the lights on. Colours like look pale elsewhere look far darker too. I don't know why this is or what to do about it. My lounge diner is north/south facing.

Can anyone teach me why this happens? Or recommend a white or very pale grey that is really fresh looking?

I cannot keep spending money on testers and my lounge is looking like a badly made patchwork quilt with so many testers everywhere.

Thank you.

I love farrow and ball strong white (it's a very pale grey).

We've got (though yet to put on the walls) a b&q own one called wedding. It looks like a white, but is actually a pale grey when on. It took me ages to find a grey pale enough.

Try Dulux porcelain doll. It is a very pale white grey. I used it when trying to match a similar colour from farrow and ball. Timeless is a very different colour from it...I find it to be a yellowish white and don't like it at all. I have porcelain doll in my hall and landing and it is nice against white woodwork. Been through tester hell. I had to get Homebase to make the colour up for me as not sure if available to buy in ready to use tin.

I'm using Helmsley paint from Homebase.
Its a pale grey called lovington flint.
The paint is a great texture.

Tried to find you some pics of the porcelain doll.

We had a crown paint called something like gentle rain. It is a grey rather than grey white, but a lovely colour

Dulux just walnut

Valspar moonshot, it's fab, we have it in our son's room, it's neither white nor grey... A lovely something in between

Wow you are all brilliant. Thank you! I shall go and buy some more testers tomorrow (and try to find some space on the wall to test them on). How can it be so hard to find the right kind of white!

Farrow and Ball Blackened or Ammonite.

B&Q will mix up for you - you just tell them the F&B name.

Grey is definitely THE hardest colour to choose (bitter experience, I had my entire house repainted after discovering my grey looked blue!)

Farrow and Ball Cornforth White

Timeless doesn't look grubby if you pair it with white white skirting and ceilings

We have just done our living room plus hall/stairs/landing in Little Greene's Pale French Grey - it looks beautiful.

The nicest greys I've found are Laura Ashley Pale Dove Grey and Crown Snowfall (looks more beigey on the tin but is a pale grey when on). Also try Crown Sail White for an off white with a grey / chalky tinge!

Iggity I love your hallway floor. I've been trying convince DP tiling our hall would be a good idea. Can I ask did you have the tiling done up to the skirting or did you have the skirting removed and new skirting fitted after tiling?

I have dulux polished pebble and really like it

Dulux polished pebble is a lovely pale gray.

Oops crossed posts!

Farrow and Ball cornforth white

Second vote for Farrow and Ball Ammonite. I bought literally scores of colours and settled on this very pale grey. I love it!

F and B Wevet. Have it in my kitchen / diner in basement. With units in F and B Blackened - the Wevet is a lovely pale grey / greyish white. The blackened is darker - much greyer.

Wevet

Blackened

Following with interest, I would love to see picture of the paint you have all used in your houses!

Popping in a place holder as I'm doing similar soon

I feel your pain! I've spent the past week buying hundreds of testers and still not there. I spoke to the decorator who will be doing the job and he recommended Grey Steel 4, it's a dulux mixer one. He said its very pale and will only just contrast with the white of the ceiling. I got a tester pot today and it does look quite white, but I'll do a second coat tomorrow. I've also tried dulux Goose Down which is nice but I'm using it in a large area and don't want to feel like I live in battleship so think I'll go for the grey steel which is lighter. The pic looks a little darker than I think it does on the wall. Good luck!