It’s been awhile since I have done a Color Spotlight and today I wanted to talk about one of the all-time most popular paint colors out there- Sherwin Williams Sea Salt. I know most of you already know and love this color but I wanted to share more information and tips for using this color.
I wanted to talk in depth about this color because this is the color that I receive the most questions about from readers because while it’s a beautiful popular color, it is one of the most finicky colors as well. Sea Salt is also a fantastic example for me to use to show you a couple great tricks when it comes to choosing the perfect color and the impact lighting has on a color.
via Gretchen Black
Before I jump into the details, I wanted to show you the Sherwin Williams paint color strip that Sea Salt is on because it’s one of the more popular color strips out there. Notice that Comfort Gray is on it too!
Whenever I take a poll on the blog or my Facebook page with readers on their favorite paint color, Sherwin Williams Sea Salt is ALWAYS in the top three colors. One year, it was the #1 color readers picked. No surprise from me at all because it’s also one of the top colors that I recommend to my clients because it’s an absolutely beautiful green/gray/blue!
In case you’re curious about the other colors readers picked as their favorites, you can see them below:
For those of you not familiar with the color, it’s important to note that Sea Salt that it is a chameleon color. This color does change colors in certain lighting conditions and it can be a dramatic change.
via Braun Adams
Just to show you what I mean about the wide color swing, here is Sherwin Williams Sea Salt in a space with no natural light whatsoever. Notice how the color leans more green with very little blue coming through.
Next, here is Sea Salt in a “mixed” space with an increased amount of natural light than the last space, which I think is the ideal situation for using Sea Salt. Notice that the color in this light has a tad more blue to it.
Below is Sea Salt in my client’s space that is filled with tons of natural light. See how the color now leans more blue than green.
Here’s another all natural light look at Sea Salt. Again, you’ll notice more blue and the gray in the color.
via Starbuck Reality
While it’s important to always test paint colors in the space with the lighting you will use, it is especially important with finicky chameleon colors like Sea Salt. As you saw above, while all the changes in the color were beautiful, you will need to know what it will do in your space to see what the color will do in the lighting and if you like the results.
I recently worked with a client on choosing colors for her whole home and we sampled colors on all of her walls and compared with colors very similar to get the color we wanted for each room.
The colors on the wall are:
- Sea Salt Sherwin Williams
- Pale Smoke Benjamin Moore
- Beach Glass Benjamin Moore
Lighting plays such a huge role with colors and of course, sampling a color is important but also, it helps to know the following when choosing a color:
- An abundance of natural light will cause a color to lean blue and lighter.
2. A lack of natural light will cause a color to lean warmer (green/yellow) and darker.
3. A space that will have only artificial light (bathrooms, laundry rooms, etc.), color will lean significantly warmer with deeper color saturation. Also color will appear a tad darker.
If you can keep in mind those three points above as you zone in on your perfect color, that will save you a lot of time and frustration for sure!
From my experience working with clients, I have yet to see Sea Salt appear in a color that I didn’t like but whether green or blue/green or blue/gray, Sea Salt has never disappointed me!
Here’s Sea Salt in a client’s bathroom.
I know a lot of you have used Sea Salt in your home and I would LOVE for you to share your thoughts in the comment section for everyone to see. Did you love it? What were your lighting conditions?
If you’re looking for more color inspiration and past Color Spotlights, you can find them here.
Thanks so much for stopping by today!
Cheers!
Cyndy
Sharon Warren says
We recently chose Sea Salt for our master bedroom, and joining master bath. This color is amazing, restful, soothing, and like you said, a chameleon in its nature. That’s what I love about it! The light bulbs themselves have an impact on the color, as well. My bath leans more green than gray or blue, giving it a beachy, spa like feel, while the bedroom with more natural light, appears more gray with blue undertones. Crisp white trim in White Cotton is a great choice with Sea Salt.
Cyndy says
Your home sounds so beautiful Sharon with the changes in Sea Salt! I agree, I LOVE a beautiful crisp white trim like Decorator’s White with it! Just stunning! 🙂
Shelli Seeger says
I was just trying to decide if I was going to paint my master bedroom and adjoining master bath with sea salt and then I was trying to decide if I was going to use decorator white or SW Creamy., I think this post and your comments above has helped me make my decision!! One question I have and maybe I can start this in these rooms but I love the idea of painting just the doors a tricorn or some of the colors you have featured for dark doors while leaving trim white. Is it safe to introduce it back ina bedroom/hallway or more for open areas?
Quaye says
What color of white would u use with sea salt?
Lindy Sasser says
I want to paint my lake home sea salt. I want a true pop of color on the exterior door. I was thinking of something in the turquoise family. Need some help. Thanks,
Lindy
Judy Reed says
I have Sea Salt in my master bath, and Comfort Gray in the adjoining master bedroom. I love them both, but have had trouble finding many coordinating colors in bedding and towels other than darker grays.
Cyndy says
Traditional white looks beautiful with those colors and whenever I have trouble finding pretty coordinating colors, I always go to the darker version of the color I’m trying to compliment. For Sea Salt, dark gray/sages and even grays with slight green undertone would work. Thanks for your note Judy! 🙂
Caroline says
Plum, purples look fabulous with sea salt.
Caroline says
As does deep chocolate colors.
Sheth says
I use seaglass colors with sea salt!! Perfect backdrop for all those bottle greens and cobalt blues! Go for it!
Val says
Hi my living room is sea salt and kitchen open concept is being remodeled – white cabinets and gray tiles – should use sea salt or comfort gray ?or what would you suggest thanks sonmuchb
DD says
I am in the same boat as you. Thinking to give seasalt for living room with open kitchen and my cabinets are brown. Let me know if you used seasalt and how do you like it.
Janet says
I use BM Healing Aloe and Quiet Moments which are the lighter colors on the Beach Glass color strip. I live at the ocean and wanted something subtle that would enhance the view of the mid atlantic ocean and not detract from it. Color is so important and I think the Chameleon colors do us a favor! Sea Salt is very similar to Healing Aloe and Quiet Moments. Really an outstanding choice for most cool color schemes.
Cyndy says
Sounds perfect Janet! I agree, those colors on the Beach Glass color strip are absolutely dreamy. Thanks for your note! 🙂
Susan G says
We built a new lake home last year and I loved Sea Salt so much that I ended up using it in our master bedroom, downstairs guest bedroom and my entire quilting studio. Each of these rooms gets a lot of natural light, but from different directions (E/NE, N, W/NW) and it amazes (and delights!) me to see how different the color can look in each area and at different times of the day and depending on the color(s) of the accessories in the room. Other Sherwin Williams colors in my color scheme: Agreeable Grey, Rain and Meditative – all beautiful lake colors.
Cyndy says
Oh your color palette sounds so dreamy! Isn’t it funny how the same color can look so dramatically different in each room. I tell my clients that you could use a color like Sea Salt through your whole home and it would look like a different color in each space while beautifully complimenting! Thanks for you note! 🙂
Jayme S. says
I fell in love with sea salt a couple of years ago when I was redoing my livingroom but decided to try some other samples as well. After about 12 samples painted all over my walls…. I went back to my original sea salt and all I can say is I’ve never been happier. Sea salt is the best color out there for a girl who’s a little afraid of color but still wants some color.
Cyndy says
You’re so right Jayme! Sea Salt is the perfect color for those who want to dip their toes in wall color but not dive in. By the way, I am so glad that you sampled to find your dream color. So many people do not test and don’t realize the impact of lighting on color. Thanks so much for your note! 🙂
Carol Roberts says
I would like to use Sea Salt in my guest bathroom on the ceiling. There are no windows, we have shiplap on the walls and I’m planning on either BM Dove White or Simply White on the shiplap and trim. My vanity is painted BM Coventry Gray with a marble top, champagne gold fixtures, gold sconces on the wall and two recessed ceiling lights, white ceiling to floor shower curtain, I thought it might be fun to do the ceiling in a light grey/blue but I really love SW Sea Salt. What do you think of Sea Salt on the ceiling or should I just go with white?
Penny Leibold says
Carol, I just had to add a note to you because your color’s in the bathroom are exactly the same ones as mine, except I have no grey, just light oak vanity. Right now, it’s wallpaper. Horrible striped-floral, yuck.
My husband says, keep it simple, stay with white. He always, always does bright white on the ceilings & it’s a classic look. Elegant & clean looking. I say, go for it. All the crisp clean white may wash out your bathroom. If you feel it’s lacking interest I would put the sea salt on your ceiling & paint a picture frame in it to add some contrast. Also, keep in mind the height of your room. If your bathroom has extended ceiling height, like mine our 9 feet, then go for it. Otherwise it might make the feeling of the ceiling coming down on you…I would keep it all white & do the ceiling in sea salt, it would be daring, bold & unexpected. It sounds beautiful. Good luck!
PS Wish I could see before & after pics, so it will give me inspiration while I remove the wallpaper…
Inez says
We look out onto the Atlantic Ocean and have put sea salt on our kitchen walls which has light from the east and south. We absolutely love it and would like to know what Iwe could put on the adjoining mud room walls which have north and east facing windows.
Thanks so much!
Annette says
We are in the process of updating our kitchen a bit. My walls are currently sea salt, which we love and will keep this color. The dilemma is what color to paint the cabinets. Our floors are a sort of coppery tone mexican tile. We will be doing a white subway backsplash with Luanda bay glass accents in pewter which looks like sea glass. I was thinking a gray shade for cabinets. We have quite a few cabinets. Any recommendations for my cabinets?
Cait says
We have sea salt walls in our kitchen and our upper cabinets are snowbound and lowers dovetail I love them all together 🙂
Karen says
I am in the process of painting my new addition to my home. I have a 20×12 room that has a North, South and West exposure. This room has a coat of plaster on it only, no paint. I love the way this room will change from warm to bright to warm again throughout the day. These are the reasons why I chose Sea Salt. The undertones are perfect for this room. My vaulted ceiling presents a challenge for me as I would like to keep the ceiling on the warm side during the brightest time of the day. Looking for a paint that has some of the undertones as the Sea Salt. I was thinking Alabaster or White Dove. Any suggestions?
Marla says
I’m seriously considering Sea Salt for my tiny master bath (about 20 sq. ft not including the 30″ shower stall). Because the bathroom is so small and really just a part of the master bedroom, I need the bathroom color to work extremely well with the bedroom color. I also want the wall color to be a neutral player since I like to change out bed coverings and accessories often. Do you have any recommendations? I won’t do white walls and the beiges I’ve looked at are too bland. I hesitate to jump on the gray bandwagon because I don’t want to date my decor too much.
Nikki says
Hi,
Can you suggest me what color i should use for accent wall if we plan to use sea salt in our family room and kitchen attached to it .we don’t get much sunlight . SW paint color code that will compliment sea sea.
Thanks so much
Nikki
Susan says
Hi, looking to make some changes in my kitchen. At least paint and a few other things…
I am inclined towards a soft silvery green. I’d like a gray cast, not yellow. I have oak cabinets/oak color hardwoods. I’m adding some stInless items to the kitchen and want to up the stainless tones and downplay the yellowy cabinets. The kitchen floods with afternoon sun and can get quite hot, hence the cooler tones. I like the SW sea salt but am concerned it’ll be too bluish in the bright sun.. all thoughts and suggestions greatly appreciated!
Thank you
Dina Thomas says
Hi, I see by everyone’s post, Sea Salt is a great interior color. I am in the process of painting the exterior of our home. We have a beach home and live on the water. Everyone typically picks fun colors for the exterior? I just don’t want to go to much fun, crazy or too bold, but still beachy look? How do you feel about Sea Salt on the exterior? We want 3 colors on the exterior, which means I need a trim color and an accent color? What are your recommendations? You had mentioned Sea salt with a lot of light would tend to go more to a blue hue, which is perfect for us? We really want to find a great looking darker blue if possible, as an accent to go with the sea salt, that’s if you would recommend sea salt would be accetable on exterior? My husband only request is nothing GRAY, so this may limit me? Also, if you have any other exterior 3 color combinations for a beach home, I would greatly appreciate your help! Look forward from hearing from you.
Thank you
Susie Tillotson says
Hi Dina. Did you end up painting your house with Sea Salt? I’m considering that and Comfort Grey and would love to know what you chose and how it worked for you. Thanks!
Tonya says
Hi Gina – also in your same exact dilemma! Would really love to know if you ended up with sea salt on your exterior and if you like it.
Olivia says
I have recently had our master bath painted Sea Salt. I am not 100% in love with it yet, honestly. Our countertops are dark brown, and our tile is tan. I think that is why. I wish I could change our cabinetry and counters to a white and marble combination, but I can’t. 🙁 Do you have any recommendations as to what accents to add to make our bathroom look more spa like even with the brown?
Making Room Design says
I’m wondering if you would consider doing one of those DIY painted stone-look applications tp your countertops. For about $200 you could refinish the dark brown into a light, clean white stone top. I think that would help, especially if you dislike the current counters.
Michelle says
I’m using sea salt in my soon to be remodel bathroom. I’m using Sherwin Williams Dover white on my trim. I’m also having a farmhouse style mirror made. I’m debating if I should use the Dover white on the mirror with a chocolate glaze or maybe more of a taupe. My counter tops are going to be Cambria Kelvingrove which has a darker shade of Sea Salt blended with creams and taupes.
Gail Neylan says
You have great tips and color theory.
Thanks so much.
Gail Neylan
Sarah says
While I LOVE the color, and LOVE Comfort Gray, I painted Sea Salt in my kitchen/eat-in dining area and was not at all happy with it in that space. My recently purchased home has an abundance of warm colors in my wood (cherry cabinets, red oak hardwood floors and oak trim in the adjoining family room). The color’s appearance changed hourly and appeared very blue most often – the most I’ve seen it on any picture – and looked like a baby blue nursery. My husband thinks I’m crazy now that I said I picked a green/gray color and it looked completely blue on our walls. The eat-in area has a large sliding door with no window covering so that area gets ample natural light. And the blues really “pop-ed” the warm wood colors and drew attention to the them rather than slightly muting them. Think it’d be beautiful with white cabinets, but did not like the result with my warm tones. I ended up repainting the area SW Grasslands the next week and am so happy with that choice.
Sue Pitts says
I have just had my kitchen and breakfast room painted in Sea Salt and was shocked at how blue it came out. I even paid to have the painters repaint it with another batch of Sea Salt because the first wasn’t dead on. The second time around it is still waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay blue. Not the look I was wanting. I have white cabinets and trim painted in Alabaster. At night it takes on a slightly more green color but still not what I wanted. I don’t understand all the praise this color gets. I had planned on having my LR and DR painted in the same color but now I am rethinking the entire thing!
Cyndy says
Oh no! Yes, Sea Salt can turn blue in a space with an abundance of natural light. Painting poster boards with a sample color first is the best way to make sure the color will work in your space.
KATHERINE ALEXANDER says
I’m looking to use Sea Salt in my laundry room which is small with no natural light. Thoughts? Suggestions?
Cyndy says
It should be beautiful! I would sample it on a poster board to just to make sure it’s exactly what you envision. It will probably lean a tad more green than blue, which would be perfect! Keep me posted.
Lori says
I used Sea Salt in my kitchen and master bath. Time to repaint and I would like something similar but a tiny bit lighter and a bit less green. There is very little natural light. Any suggestions?
Susie Tillotson says
All the comments and replies are so helpful! Like Dina Thomas above, I’m considering Sea Salt for my exterior. We have bright white trim and a brown roof. The samples I’ve painted on several sides of the house look great but I’m having trouble imagining it on the whole house. It looks fresh and light, which I love, and less gray than Comfort Grey, one of our other choices. Can you give me any guidance on this? Thanks!
Heidi says
I used sea salt in the main bath of our home, and I LOVE it! That room does not get much natural light, so most of the day it tends to show more of the green, but the blue and grey still show through a little. It’s just beautiful! We are in the process of remodeling our master bath and the adjoining laundry room. The master bath will have plenty of natural light, and the laundry area, not as much. I plan on using sea salt in both rooms. I would love to use it in my master bedroom, but it gets little natural light for most of the day, and I want something similar to sea salt, but with more blue. Any suggestions?
Andrew says
What kind of interior wall paint would I use for Sea Salt if I’m doing my master? There’s so many styles of Sherwin Williams paint to choose from.
cynthia says
I like flat paint the best. I did my sun room and laundry in seal salt a few years back and still love it.
Linda Cole says
Would love to use sea salt in masterbath…countertops are white with faint swirls of gold with bronze towel holders , faucets are shiny silver. Do you think this would work? Tons of natural light. Thank you for any advice.
SL says
Has anyone used Sea salt for the walls in a staircase? We have a window in our staircase and I’m wondering if this would be a nice colour to tie the house together?
Jigesh Shah says
I am doing Sea Salt color in my Family room. I am thinking to do accent wall color on my TV wall. But not sure which color will match for accent wall with Sea Salt color in room.
Can you please provide your suggestion? What could be other option for accent wall? What about 3D brick/moral/decal etc?
Holly Sauls says
I love this color!!! Do you think it could work in an open floor plan? My kitchen cabinets are parchment , a cream color. They look like.french vanilla ice cream at at certain times of the day. ( Yellow) The countertops are laneshaw from Cambria and the floors are very shiny and golden. Lots of natural southern and western light come in.
I guess my.goal is to balance all the warm fixtures. In like balance when it comes.to color. My hubby on the other hand wants a warm color, edgecomb to be exact. ( He is such a brownie!!!) But man, I live in South Florida, It’s hot! . I need to see visual coolness. Any tid bits of guidance and opinions are appreciated. Thank you!
Kindness,
Holly
Carrie says
I had the majority of home painted in sea salt (living room, stairs, foyer, hall). I love the color but can’t decide on what color sofas/ chairs I should go with. My first choice would be in the white family, but with two young boys I know they’ll be destroyed quickly. I’m in desperate need of advice.
Heather Lawson says
I have decided to use Sea Salt for my kitchen, living room, den, hallway, and bathrooms. I want to do the bedroom in a different color, will Concord Buff, which is a yellow color work? The rooms will be separated by a door, but you can see into the room if I leave the doors open.
Ann Waldrop says
I’m looking for a color to go on the walls of my powder room. The flooring is a black marble with streaks of green. I’m perplexed about what color to put on the wall. My pedestal sink is an ivory color. Do you think sea salt would be a good choice. There is no window in my powder room only the light over the pedestal sink provides light in there. Any help on color would be appreciated.
Lucie says
Just had nasty cream 1990s tile removed to expose the gorgeous terrazzo floor from when my home was built (mid 1950s). The terrazzo is: mid-gray concrete with lots of dark gray, georgia white and soft green stone chips throughout. I thought maybe Sea Salt or another greenish grey – Gray Owl? Metropolitan? – might work but I’m not sure how to choose a paint colour. Every time I see terrazzo floors in magazines, they’re paired with a very sleek, severe, modern aesthetic and that’s not what I want, at all. Not sure how to move forward.
Erica Lambden says
I used Sea Salt in my master bedroom and love it! The colour is very calming and restful and looks great any time of day – in the mornings when the sun is coming in it looks more pale blue/ gray and in the afternoons when there is no sun coming in it’s a calm green/ blue/ gray). It also reflects the aqua colour from our pool at certain times of the day. I recently renovated the ensuite with white subway tiles, a charcoal grey subway tile feature wall in the shower and an artisan floor tile which is charcoal, silver. I thought I was going to have to paint the bedroom silver grey, but thankfully found Sea Salt (husband did not want grey!). It looks wonderful with crisp white trims and shutters, and surprisingly goes with many colours in some of the bed linens and towels I have (eg. silver grays, muted pastels, greens like sea foam, olives and teals). I have dark mahogany furniture and it looks beautiful with this too. Living in a warm temperate sub tropical climate it is a very refreshing colour.
Christine says
I am also considering Sea Salt for the exterior of our 1950’s bungalow. I am thinking of white and black trim and the front door a bold accent color. How has Sea Salt worked for others on exteriors??? Thank you!
Kathy Wilkerson says
I am getting ready to paint my living room. My windows face the east and west. I have honey oak trim that I really want to keep. My furniture is light to medium gray. I have a navy blue area rug and pillows. I want a neutral color that will match and I’d like some blue/green undertones that will also go with the navy accents. Any advice? Thank you!
Kristy says
I’m getting ready to repaint our sunroom. It’s a west facing room. I thought Sea Salt would be a great option. I really would like to see the more green understones show through. I even contemplated painting it a pretty white. We have a view of our pool from the sunroom windows. Any advice would be great!
Beverly Baker says
I want to paint my kitchen. It has very high ceilings and not much natural light at all. I was leaning towards sea salt because I wanted a hint of green, however, my counter tops are a blend of quite dark brown by Wilsonart. Would these colors go well together with Sea Salt being a cool color and my counter tops being warm? I presently have yellow on top and a very dark gold on the bottom from the previous owner. (I hate it) I could even put the sea salt above the chair rail and a little darker on the bottom. (?). Help.
Tina Sofio says
We just painted our living room Behr blueprint and are having a TOUGH time finding a complementary color for the adjoining dining room. Currently considering Valspar Malted but are wondering about Sea salt. We have sampled Sherwin Williams Windowpane in the dining room but it is definitely green on one side of the wall, blue, on the other. We would like to stay away from greys and browns. It is a small space and since the Blueprint is such a strong, yet beautiful color, we need to complement and lighten the dining room at the same time. Any suggestions.
Kendra says
Would you ever use sea salt in a kitchen (has 3 windows)? I seem to only see Sea Salt mostly used in bathrooms and bedrooms, I’m assuming bc of the calm vibe it gives. Would it look weird in a kitchen space, in your opinion?
Jen says
Hi! Are those peel and stick paint samples?
Christine says
Would you ever use Sea Salt on walls and trim in same space? Or should trim be white?
Cyndy says
I don’t think using Sea Salt on trim and walls would look bad at all but I love the look of Sea Salt on the walls next to crisp white trim because you can really see the beauty of the color better. I hope that helps!
Teresa says
I came across sea salt when I refinished a piece of furniture. In a bright room it almost looks white but when the room darkens it gives off blue and green tones. My newest project is an addition and I’ll be painting shiplap in a bright room. Excited to see the outcome.
Juliana says
I myself have use Sea Salt for my guess bathroom , no natural lighting but disappointed because it looks blue and I really wanted more of a Patel green, it does have a hint of green but more blue…. 😩 not happy!
Mrs. DJE says
We were thinking of doing our kitchen walls Sea Salt but the cabinets in Retrea (with matte black hardware) … has anyone done this before? I’m worried it won’t tie together because Sea Salt changes so much despite the fact that it appears on the same color strip…
Elizabeth Larkin says
We are remodeling our master bathroom. We have decided on SW Sea Salt. We want to put up white bead board on all the walls. I have no idea on what color to do the double vanity in? Thinking of doing light/medium wood tile for the floor.
JD says
We are painting our master bath and bedroom walls in Sea Salt, and I’m stumped on ceiling, trim, built ins, and bathroom vanity. The bathroom has bright white marble with gray veins, plenty of natural light, and I’d like a bright white vanity and ceiling to keep it crisp. The bedroom has medium warm brown wood flooring and some plain built ins on either side of the bed, and a north-facing window.. I was thinking Alabaster on the trim, built ins, and ceiling, because I don’t want the block-y to feel too stark. However, I’m thinking High Reflective White in the bathroom on the vanity, trim, and ceiling. Would the switch from Alabaster to High Reflective White be too noticeable? And do you have any thoughts on the built ins? If there’s a coordinating darker blue/green that would look good on the trim and built ins in the bedroom, I’m all ears!
kendall2 says
After reading all of the rave reviews of Sea Salt, I decided to paint my large east-facing master bathroom in this color. I always test colors before using them but this time I made the stupid mistake of skipping that step. (I was in a hurry to finish painting before our anniversary as a surprise for my husband.) Sea Salt looked horrible in our space. We have a bluish gray jacuzzi tub and some trim tile in the same color. Our vaulted ceilings are painted Hale Navy. Sea Salt looked like a disgusting green next to these colors. Even my hubby didn’t like it (and he usually thinks just about anything looks great.) Within two weeks, I repainted the bathroom Benjamin Moore White Dove. It looks so much cleaner.
I usually test colors by painting them on poster board and moving them around the room. That is a good way to narrow down the choices but I found that it is also very important to paint large patches of the colors onto several walls and observe them during different times of day before making a final selection. When you think you have the right color, paint at least a 5 foot square of that color on the wall to make sure it is what you want. Framing it in white rather than the current wall color is also helpful.
Amy says
Using Sw sea salt in living room, looks great
Stuck on flooring , because of dogs choosing carpet
Not sure weather to go Grey/blue or green.Any suggestions