Sharp, modern and minimal, these edgy grey interiors are filled with shadowy drama. Green plant accents enliven the look, ranging from small spikes to entire walls of lush leaves. Grey is the modern go to for a smart neutral palette but how much greenery is needed so that it doesn’t fall flat? These three home tours explore different variations on the theme, as well as how to use shading, texture and layering to keep a grey interior design popping. You’ll also find a cool bespoke desk/dining table design, slatted walls, chic lighting, an unexpected pink accent bathroom design and some stylish zoning techniques for smaller spaces.
Our first grey living room design is created by layering light and dark shades. A white marble coffee table sits in front of the sofa, whilst a white marble kitchen volume stands behind it. Dark cushions support lighter counterparts on the sofa. A dark pouf rounds out the lounge.
Under cabinet lighting glows atmospherically along the charcoal kitchen wall, supplying task lighting to the worktop below it. A floor lamp brightens one end of the duotone sofa. A dining room pendant lights peeks through a slatted room divider.
The open plan living room also includes a home workspace over by the window.
A modern grey media unit is set beneath the wall mounted tv. Sprigs of greenery breathe a little life into the scene.
A much larger indoor plant grows by a small side table in the lounge. A green centrepiece dresses a high table surrounded by bar stools.
At the workspace, the desk is pieced around a structural support column to make best use of the area. The other end of the tabletop accommodates four dining chairs, providing an alternative and more formal dining experience to the bar area at the other side of the kitchen.
The high table that’s situated below the dining room pendant light is more of a casual coffee bar area, or a spot to wolf down a quick breakfast.
cabinets span the width of the room between the two tables.
Inside the master bedroom, a dark grey bed and matching pouf sit at the centre of a grey area rug. A vanity shelf fills up the space remaining at one side of the bed, and another pouf provides the seating. The window side of the bed is home to a mature indoor plant, its bright green leaves standing out against the dark elongated headboard design.
Pink accents interrupt a grey bathroom scheme. A pink bathroom sink, pink vanity and pink accent wall fill a little niche in the shadows, lit by a unique vanity light.
A pink toilet is held in its own volume inside the bathroom, separated by a slightly raised floor level and shower screen. A pink showerhead, pink valves and a pink shower drain finish off the rosy room.
Our next tour starts in a grey living room with a unique tv console unit, which is held in a metal frame that outlines the tv wall and wall mounted screen. A tall cactus breaks its line.
A blue fabric modern sofa is matched by a blue area rug; the single colour works to separate the lounge area from the dining spot in close quarters. Cool industrial decor comes in the form of a raw concrete feature wall behind the sofa, which contrasts greatly with the smooth finish of the tv wall opposite.
A mesh screen props against the raw concrete wall, next to a metal framework of shelving.
Glass divides the kitchen from the dining area, and keeps cooking noise and smells out of the adjacent lounge.
A linear suspension light illuminates the dining table.
Beyond the glass doors, the kitchen continues in industrial aesthetic. A run of grey kitchen cabinets tone with the grey concrete wall. A black kitchen peninsula runs up against black window frames.
Modern pendant lights hang low over the peninsula, and two bar stools perch at one side.
Inside the bedroom, small floor lamps stand either side of the bed. A desk runs the length of the window wall with a cactus adding greenery at each end of it.
In contrast to the bare concrete wall behind the headboard, the beige wall at the foot of the bed carries a neat slatted design.
The bathroom has a concrete and wood decor scheme, which creates a satisfying contrast of cool and warm elements.
Solid black accents cut through the textured backdrop.
Located in Chisinau, Moldova, our third and last tour is a living room with an indoor-outdoor feel, in an apartment with an area of 101.3 square metres. An entire wall of glass allows a narrow garden space to connect seamlessly with the living room. Structural support columns seem to fade away as part of the furniture, since the sofa and poufs stand in the same cool concrete colour. In the middle of the lounge arrangement, two nesting coffee tables sit upon a striped area rug that brings all the shades of the grey living room together.
A projected image animates on a concrete wall at the front of the living room.
Irregular concrete grey blocks line up along the base of the projection wall to be used as console tables, or seating.
A round wall mirror reflects greenery into the lobby.
The corridor of outdoor space incorporates a bar with bench seats.
The kitchen island runs right up against the glass to blur the boundary.
Minimalist cabinets and a metal framed crockery shelf gives the galley kitchen a utilitarian feel.
Metal legs are exposed beneath the units and the oven housing to give the kitchen a freestanding aesthetic.
The garden bar area leads directly off the kitchen.
More indoor plants march behind the headboard in the master suite.
A rustic stone accent wall adds to the indoor-outdoor feel of the grey bedroom.
Although the plants are separated from the bedroom by a glass screen, they stand open to the touch inside the walk-in closet.
The whitewashed stone feature wall is repeated inside the bathroom.
More plants tower behind the tub.