The great grey takeover

But, I bet you any money, the appeal of the colour grey can go on for much, much longer than the man himself.

Indeed, this is a shade that can be dressed up or pared down, and a moody grey palette can reinvent your favourite room and cast simple, contemporary pieces in a different light, or showcase more traditional furnishings to dramatic effect, with flourishes of velvet or a decorative piece that’s wildly beautiful.

Sophisticated and timeless, this versatile shade can veer from feminine and delicate to dark and handsome.

Easy on the eye, grey sits beautifully against other accent colours and can speak the language of love when it’s dressed in silk and satin; or be a tough talker when positioned against steel accessories and industrial living schemes.

“There are indeed 50 shades of grey, ranging from those with a warm undertone of pink, to the pure cold greys that look so wonderful with silver,” says Alison Cork, founder of Alison at Home.

“Understand the undertone and you can pick exactly the right colour to accompany your grey base, and bring the room to life.”

From taffeta grey to platinum, and slate to battleship, the spectrum is an open invitation to enjoy a dalliance with some colour charts and accessorize those grey areas.

But if you usually shy from smoky hues, try using grey as the base for your chosen colour scheme.

“Far from being bland, grey is stylish, versatile and appeals to lots of different tastes, depending on how you style it,” says Kate Hassard, marketing manager at Sofa.com. “ Use bright accessories in bold colours for a playful, contemporary look; layer textured neutrals and other shades of grey for Scandinavian-inspired sophistication; or give it a masculine edge with dark accents and monochrome.”