Your 'Millennial Gray' Walls Aren't Boring (You Are!)

Confession: I am a Millennial, and I love a gray wall. The once viral Millennial gray decor color has gotten a bad rap, thanks to a rash of renovations and new builds in the 2010s that were fashioned with head-to-toe gray: gray concrete exteriors, gray faux wood laminate flooring, greige quartzite countertops, stainless steel appliances, and yes, gray walls. But here's the real reason gray seems so depressing: we stopped decorating homes with personality. When it comes to Millennial gray, it's not the walls, it's your boring Hobby Lobby home decor that's ruining the vibe.

Let me bring you back, for a moment, to the year 2019. My husband and I were moving from our New York City apartment to a larger condo in the suburbs. As we toured the space, the real estate agent assured us it would be painted before we moved in, so I looked past the existing garish orange walls. I'm talking safety vest orange — traffic cone orange.

When we arrived on move-in day, I was expecting to see the landlord special of all-white-everything, and was instead greeted, to my horror, by the orange walls. After a small meltdown and lots of complaining to our new landlord, she agreed to have the place repainted. The upshot? We got to pick the colors, so we opted for a soft gray with warm undertones. I loved it. The hue offered a calming vibe (unlike the fight-or-flight-inducing orange), and it was the perfect neutral backdrop for our purple woven rug, collection of antique toleware, plants lining the windows in Talavera pottery, cubes full of records, and an oversized framed "Rocky Horror Picture Show" poster. Even with the gray-drenched walls, our home is far from dull and boring.

Gray is known for its mass appeal, but it isn't just a tool for home flippers. Millennials gravitated toward this hue as a reaction to our orange-walled predecessors, and to our parent's overcrowded curio cabinets of Precious Moments porcelain angels and cluttered, knick-knack filled bookshelves. The problem is — we overcorrected. In searching Marie Kondo–fueled minimalism, we sucked all of the joy out of our homes. To breathe life into gray walls, stop buying and start collecting: a shelf full of jadeite dishes, vintage oil paintings, copper cookware, VHS tapes, collegiate pennants — whatever calls to you.

To cancel any hint of decor bore, create a gallery of unique items that aren't from the Magnolia Home aisle at Target. Throw out your dated generic farmhouse sign and visit your local thrift store or antique market to find an array of oil paintings, prints, framed posters, vintage pennants, and cross stitch artwork. Salvage a vintage tin sign for an industrial vibe. Thrift an array of mismatched frames to create a rustic gallery wall of family photos. Or, style a mix of all of the above and let your personality shine through. No visits to Hobby Lobby necessary. Then the Millennial gray won't seem devoid of life, but you'll instead notice how the soft hue helps ground the story your surrounding decor tells.

The other way you're failing your Millennial gray walls is styling them with monochromatic hues. A home with gray walls, gray flooring, and gray furniture might be primed to flip, but not to live in. To avoid this dentist-office aesthetic, throw in complementary colors and consider these trendy alternatives to your dated gray furniture. Embrace dopamine decor with a plush pink scalloped chair, bright red sofa, or an of-the-moment cerulean wing back chair. If these colors feel too bold for your taste, turn toward the "new neutrals" designers are loving: burgundy, olive green, rich brown, or mustard. And, the old-school decor your grandma loved is making a comeback. Think skirted pieces and floral settees. You can also add color and texture with window treatments and trims, layered rugs, and patterned pillows and throws.

Lighting is another great way to inject bold design, and it's affordable and renter-friendly. For an easy upgrade, a flush-mount converter kit allows you to easily replace an unappealing "boob light" for a chic shade without changing the bulbs or rewiring the electric. Companies like Urban Outfitters sell these in colorful styles for unexpected whimsy. 

To inject color into my Millennial gray apartment, I painted my kitchen cabinets a chalky blue (with landlord permission). I also sewed new throw pillow covers in mauve and periwinkle, and we painted an accent wall in the living room a complementary mauve. A large, rectangular canvas print of a waterfront sunset tied all the hues of blue, pink, and purple together. 

Homeowners can also err in selecting the wrong gray. Make sure to pick a hue with warm undertones, and opt for warm bulbs for your light fixtures to avoid giving the paint a cool, harsh tone. You can also consider adding warmth and texture with Roman clay. Made by companies like Portola Paints, this eco-friendly plaster finish gives smooth interior walls a hand-hewn texture that adds instant interest. It is applied with a putty knife to give a textured effect akin to marble, stone, or stucco.

Another high-texture option is gray wallpaper in grasscloth or sisal. For renters, there are even an array of textured peel-and-stick wallpapers, which are easy to install and completely removable. Wrap your space in a textured gray, or opt for a patterned accent wall on a gray ground. Or, add a dash of pattern as a trim, accent, or full wall with a wall stencil (another nod to grandmacore that is having a moment). So plain gray walls with gray, cookie-cutter decor? Boring. A textured Millennial gray wall layered with an eclectic array of collected artwork, a richly hued sofa, and a vintage Kilim rug? Anything but.