How to warm up grey lounge

[Twiglet2353]

Moved into a new house which has a relatively new darker grey carpet. We have brought our two light-mid grey sofas with us. We can't afford to replace floor or sofas at the moment, so looking for tips to warm the room up a little bit, and make it a little less grey and drab?

It is a L shape (with an extension coming off it). The extension has an emerald green feature wall. The rest of the walls are freshly painted warm white (think Dulux Timeless). The extension has a lot of natural light but the other end of the L only has a small window (we can't afford to extend the window size/replace with patio door at the moment).

Thanks

White and so much grey will always be cold and hard. I’d add some warm Coloured cushions, some big plants, a big rug and try to do something with it.

the mad craze for grey has resulted in this, folks with drab grey homes they can’t afford to do anything about.

I think grey and yellow look amazing together. Also as previous poster says lots of plants.

Cream and deep rose chintz or something like that? Cushions, curtains, rug etc.

Repaint the walls in peach, apricot or a warm yellow.

Neutral but warm curtains or blinds.

Get some colourful rugs and scatter cushions.

Large colourful abstract/expressionist paintings or prints, e.g. Kandinsky or similar.

A large plant and a few small ones.

Avoid the hackneyed ways people try and warm up grey (yellow/mustard and blush pink) and try something brighter and bolder if you want to break away from dated looks. A decent rug and throws will cover the grey and add some colour. Plants really help too.

So much grey and people are suddenly realising their homes feel cold and drab. Sadly, when it's kitchens and uPVC windows and doors, it's hard to escape but sounds like you can warm it up for now until it's time to replace the sofas and carpet.

Agree, painting your lounge yellow peach or apricot is a shocker, it would be cold and with bad taste. 😂

We went for burnt orange with teal accents to liven up our grey room.

I’d go with the emerald green and get some nice throws and cushions to compliment, maybe a nice rug and decor items in the green, pops of white too. If not paint the green and pick another colour you love, plenty go with grey

Personally I love my grey home, I’ve always been a silver tones lover at heart. Depends on your preference. Plenty of people also add some oak tones into their rooms too but I think you’d have to get rid of the green for tjat

I think people are beginning to realise that unlike the south of France, we don't have golden sun to make the grey seem soft and warm, we have skies the same tones of grey as the ENTIRE HOUSE apparently. Grey outside, grey inside. Chilly and miserable.

Never did succumb to the grey...thought it was an appalling idea in overcast Britain. If I moved into a grey house I'd paint the walls and add a large cheerful rug without hesitation.

A rug like this would possibly tie in your greys? Match in the dark red with cushions & curtains. That will add warmth & you can keep the walls as they are.

As suggested add in some nice house plants to emphasize & tie in the green wall. A nice mirror placed to reflect light should brighten up the darker end of the L.

I think a deep pink/magenta can offset grey and green well.

Cushions, throws, wall art, a big mirror, soft,l rug, plants and good lighting. I'd stick with the emerald green as an accent colour and possibly some paler green tones too.

Also go back to natural woody tones with accessories and furniture.

Take a walk round home shops and get some inspiration, Next is good for this. Also look at right move at similar sized houses and see what you like.

I don’t know if you’re set on adding a more definite colour but I think adding neutrals, wood, different textures and gorgeous plants always lift a room. Also painting the walls a warmer white. A couple of examples.

I think green plants and bold artwork will help. Maybe bronze lamps? A gold framed mirror? Light window coverings. I'm sorry but don't agree with the pp and the rug picture, I think that would make it look officey. I'd go for a Persian style rug with warm reds, oranges, pinks etc instead

Wow thank you all for the quick responses! Definitely some great ideas to take on board.

Never really thought about adding a rug on top of a carpet, but that might really help break up the floor space.

I should add half the room is used as a play space, so lots of beech-toned ikea kids storage bits to contend with

These are very pale warm greys. The op has dark and mid grey.

dark and mid grey are very cold and hard, so lots of throws, a big rug, lots of cushions, big plants, to try and hide it is the way, agree.

so many folks did grey in these cold dark blue toned and now can’t afford to fix it.

Ignore the wording, I had to grab it off my saved Instagram!
This is mine, I don't think it's cold but I find grey really calming. Texture, plants, candles, blankets, cushions, photos/paintings...

Love the neutral tones, and I've never been one to experiment with colour, not really had the style confidence to be honest, so feel much more comfortable with neutral tones. But as pp says, the carpet is more mid-dark silver, so not sure how to go about it

Yes the previous owners were definite fans of grey - we've just painted over F&B Ammonite in there, which they'd even done the coving and woodwork in, and in a room which is in part incredibly dark it made it feel so small and uninviting.

Our plan will be to replace the floor with oak LVT in the future, but with things the way they are that'll be a good while yet

I know the sofas in the pics are a bit lighter but you can still find neutrals to fit. Definitely texture, throws, and natural furniture would tone down the coldness. I must admit I’m so thankful I didn’t fall into the grey decor trend!

A lovely deep baby or emerald green.

Realistically when could you afford to change the carpet? That'll be the big thing that's dragging everything down. If it's not too far away - say a year - then I'd wait until then before chaging anything else. Please also don't put a grey rug over a grey carpet 😂

yeah, I cannot understand this fad for grey, its awful, just moved into a house that the previous tenant has done mostly in grey, it really hard trying to paint over it. Who wants their house to be like an overcast rainy sky? I am doing it in peach, yellow, magnolia, pink! As long as I love it, that's all that matters.

Came across this monstrosity :😂
3 bedroom house for sale in Vulcan Street, Nelson, BB9 (rightmove.co.uk)

The grey fad is no better or worse than the magnolia fad before it. Both are now despised because they've made their way down the social classes and now grey is on it's way out, when grey first came in about 20 years ago it felt very fresh. But you were never suppose to have only grey, when it was introduced it was just grey walls or just a grey sofa which was used as a backdrop to your more colourful possessions.

All the young instagrammers are posting their houses full of cottage core or granny chic which we all chucked out in the 90s. Everything goes in cycles.