Neutral colors in the home are so attractive to look at. Just as an outfit in neutral colors can make someone look polished, neutral colors make an elegant statement. They create living spaces that look sophisticated and refined.
There’s a bias that these colors are chosen more by boomers. Yet, it can’t be denied that other demographics love neutrals too. Why else would there be a #teamputi, #teamkahoy, or #teamindustrial for new young homeowners?
Neutral Colors
There are four neutral colors—brown, white, gray, and black. These are considered neutral because they cannot be found in a traditional color wheel.
Brown
Brown and beige are also often known as earth tones. Variations like beige, biscuit, sand, taupe, cream, or ivory are often used as a dominant color because of their warm tones that give a comfortable and relaxing ambience to a room.
For 2025, Pantone chose Mocha Mousse as its color of the year. Pantone describes Mocha Mousse as “an evocative soft brown that transports our senses into pleasure and deliciousness it inspires.” It further says, “This sophisticated brown offers an everyday escape, a well-deserved treat.” Remembering how the year has unfolded and now that we are in the middle of it, we are certainly in need of “an everyday escape” from the bombardment of volatile changes in the world today.
White
For many decades now, the most beloved Boysen color is still Tulle White. However, this is not the only white hue in Boysen’s offerings. There are more than 30 delicate whites that you can choose from.
White is a neutral color that is famous for its versatility. It can work well as the base color or as a highlight. When using it as a dominant color in a room, you really have the perfect blank canvas to work with. Finding colors to match it would be a breeze.
However, if you want to keep your space just white, that can work very well too. To keep the decor interesting, choose different textures for the other surfaces, home accessories, and furniture.
White is a color that catches and reflects the most light, so it’s perfect for rooms that don’t get much natural light. It also gives the illusion of spaciousness in a room, therefore, this can be your go-to color for small rooms.
Gray
Gray was the color of choice for homeowners in the 1990s, and it reached its peak around 2015. That period also saw the clean, modern, minimalist look much beloved by the homeowners of the time. Gray walls, gray rugs, gray furniture, gray floors, gray exteriors, gray whatever. This hue was the ultimate of cool for home design.
There was a shift to the warmer tones of gray after 2015, when taupe (combination of gray and brown) and greige (combination of gray and beige) gained traction.
Explore Boysen’s Konstrukt Lunar Series for that modern industrial vibe so popular with young homeowners.
Black
Black—that unrelenting color that absorbs everything. It’s a powerful, intense achromatic hue that creates intimate living spaces full of drama and sophistication. If used well, it could even make a space feel cozy and intimate.
When using black, decide what kind of mood or atmosphere you’d like to achieve in a room. It works well for large rooms but may not be so ideal for small ones because you may get claustrophobic. If you really want to paint a small room with black, think about light sources, both natural and artificial.
Black can work too in architectural details and in home furnishings. Objects in black can be your focal points in a room with mostly light neutrals. Black can anchor light-colored furniture, and gives a feeling of stability to a space.
The Attraction of Neutral Colors
Pick any of these neutral colors. They can make your home look sophisticated, classy, and elegant. Another advantage is that these colors—white, brown, gray, or black—are timeless. They are not trendy. Instead, they provide you with a stunning background that is easy to work with should you feel the need to get home accessories and furnishings in colors that are in vogue.
For more tips on colors that can be found in a traditional color wheel, read
Contrasting Colors in Home Interiors
Cool Colors vs. Warm Colors
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