Sherwin Williams Dorian Gray (7017): Undertones, LRV, & Where It Works Best
Sherwin Williams Dorian Gray is a medium-depth, warm gray paint color. It works well for cabinets, accent walls, and some exterior applications.
Like many warm gray paint colors, Dorian Gray can shift in appearance throughout the day. Surrounding finishes, exposure, and interior lighting all play a role in how it looks.
For these reasons (and more), when looking for your best warm gray paint color, doing your research and sampling is so important – I’m glad you’re here.
WHAT TYPE OF NEUTRAL COLOR IS DORIAN GRAY?
As its name suggests, Dorian Gray is gray, but if you’re looking for a typically cool shade, this ain’t it. This is because Dorian Gray is a warm gray paint color.
What makes it warm?
Dorian Gray has some brown mixed in, along with some sneaky undertones, which we’ll get to shortly. But first…
If you have a south-facing light, it can lean warmer and almost look a bit greige or taupe. However, if you have a north-facing light (image below), you may find it leaning more into its gray base while still holding a passive warmth (so it won’t look icy cold – more stormy than anything).
North, East, South, West – Which Paint Color is the Best?
As for east- and west-facing rooms, be careful as the eastern afternoon and western morning lights can be flat and drab, and you’ll need a lot of them for Dorian Gray to come to life.
WHAT’S DORIAN GRAY’S LRV?
Dorian Gray has an LRV of 39, which makes it a soft, medium-toned paint color. Whereas some medium-depth paint colors carry a lot of visual weight, Dorian Gray sits closer to the light-medium range, giving it a nice softness.
Not sure what LRV is? It could save your paint-lovin’ life – read all about it HERE.
However, Dorian Gray does its best work in a room with moderate to reasonably bright light. If your room is dark, it could look a bit dingy.
WHAT ARE DORIAN GRAY’S UNDERTONES?
Every gray paint color has undertones, and Dorian Gray is no exception. However, it can be a bit tricky. Unlike the slightly lighter version, Mindful Gray, Dorian Gray is a bit less likely to grab green and more likely to grab purple, but it’s vague at best. This said, it can politely wink at either with encouragement (especially on an exterior). Sample carefully and compare it to your finishes.
Here’s your Peel & Stick sample of Dorian Gray…
WHAT’S ITS BEST WHITE TRIM COLOR?
Whether you’re painting white trim or cabinets, Dorian Gray suits several great shades of white…
- Sherwin Williams White Snow
- Sherwin Williams Pure White for a slightly softer approach
- Benjamin Moore White Dove for a bit more warmth
The 4 Best White Paint Colors from Sherwin Williams
IS DORIAN GRAY A GOOD EXTERIOR PAINT COLOR?
Dorian Gray can be an awesome color for a home’s exterior, working with many popular stone and brick colors, including the roof!
However, on the exterior, it doesn’t always grab the purple you may need. You have to consider all of these things (and more) when choosing the best color for the outside of your home. If your roof has more of a purple undertone, Dorian Gray could SEEM too green in comparison, in fact, it’s slightly more lightly to lean this way just on the exterior.
5 Tips for Choosing an Exterior Paint Color
Look at how Dorian Gray appears above the potted plant on this next exterior; it’s almost a touch greige…
DOES DORIAN GRAY GO WITH CREAM CABINETS OR TRIM?
This is a tough question. Generally speaking, it’s a bit too cool for most cream cabinets and trims. However, it can be hard to find colors that really work, and if you have a more muted cream and are okay with things not being 100% (as cream trims and cabinets are a real bugger), you could try it.
While this next trim isn’t overly cream, it definitely has a subtle, soft warmth that sits well with Dorian Gray (and notice how DG is looking a touch green)…
Yet here it is, looking a touch purple in this next room…Dorian Gray is unpredictable!
DOES DORIAN GRAY GO WITH WOOD TRIMS & CABINETS?
Maaaaaybe. Dorian Gray is okay with some woods, for sure, especially those with modest undertones. However, be cautious if your wood has a stronger pink stain (common with red oak), as Dorian Gray can look murky against it.
Dorian Gray is pretty happy with this trim’s modest depth and stain. While there’s a touch of pink, it reads more or less as ‘brown’…
Dorian Gray | Accessible Beige | Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter
Dorian Gray is a beautiful color for these wood cabinets’ dark espresso (purple undertone)…
The Best Paint Colors with Dark Wood Trims & Cabinets
WHAT COLORS ARE SIMILAR TO IT?
Dorian Gray is a color unto itself – as is every color, but some have similar intentions…
- Benjamin Moore Cape May Cobblestone
- Sherwin Williams Mindful Gray is great if you want a slightly softer approach while still having a decent depth.
- Sherwin Williams Pussywillow is a great comparison if you want a tiny tweak in undertones.
Cape May Cobblestone
Mindful Gray is on the far right.
WHAT COLORS GO WITH DORIAN GRAY?
With its added depth, I find Dorian Gray pretty darn flexible about the colors it likes to be partnered with, such as…
- Lighter gray paint colors that have a similar subtle warmth
- Some grays that are slightly darker with blue or blue-green undertones
- Darker, richer neutral paint colors like Sherwin Williams Gauntlet Gray and Grizzle Gray
- While not all colors can go in the same room as Dorian Gray, the odd, flexible warm off-white can pull it off.
READ MORE
The Best Stone-Inspired, Medium-Depth Gray, Greige, & Beige Colors
Sherwin Williams Dovetail Paint Color Review
Need help?
Check out my Online Paint Color Consulting – I’d love to help!
KYLIE M INTERIORS E-DESIGN AND ONLINE VIRTUAL PAINT COLOR EXPERT, SPECIALIZING IN BENJAMIN MOORE AND SHERWIN WILLIAMS PAINT COLORS DIY DECORATING AND DESIGN ADVICE BLOGGER
ORIGINALLY WRITTEN IN 2020, UPDATED IN 2025
My Husband an I stayed in a beach house last month and the majority of the interior was painted SW Dorian Gray. I know because I went searching and found the paint can in a closet haa. The house faced North and South (almost all windows faced south towards the beach with a covered deck so although bright there was no direct sunlight coming in). It was a beautiful color all throughout the day and evening. A little bit of a chameleon, more subtle green most of the day with bright white porch and white sand reflecting in. It was a flat sheen. I Loved this Color! Very relaxing, neutral and light considering an LRV of 39! Wish I could paint my West facing, dark, heavily wooded green trees reflecting in, room in this color. But probably not.
Thanks for all your information! Your Awesome!
Thank you Kylie and also Patty Britt for your comments on Dorian Gray! -This post was SO helpful to us, as we were down to the wire these past few days picking a paint & we could not decide on a wall color as we are redoing our entryway & living room. We have American Cherry floors with insets of green and mauve marble. We know these floors are very dated, but they are gorgeous! We have an area rug with black, greens, creams & pinks for the living area. The same marble is inset around the fireplace. There are also a few other cream color marble accents in the rooms along with a Stained Glass window going up the staircase. The rooms were previously wallpapered with a dark green paper and the walls have just been finished with drywall to cover for painting. My husband and myself could not a agree on a color, but after looking at many many of your videos we learned so much, but there was never a video we found of Dorian Gray. We sent some pics to the Sherwin Williams chat help online because my husband loved Agreeable Gray & I liked it (not love!). I wanted something a bit darker and we had other medium Gray samplize from the store but not Dorian Gray. Sherwin Williams recommended Dorian Gray to pick up the green since it has some green undertones like you shared above. Once we picked up the samplize of Dorian Gray we fell in love! Our rooms get alot of light so we decided on Dorian Gray after the SW recommendation and considering all we have learned from your videos of the other grays! We tried to find a video of yours reviewing Dorian Gray, but we could not find one. Is there one available for us to watch? Maybe we just didn’t search correctly. This post surely helps but would love to see one of your videos on your take of Dorian Gray in 2022. Like you said, the trend is lighter grays, but for us, this works perfectly. Thanks for all & LOVE your channel we now subscribe and will recommend your channel to others!
I’m looking at Dorian and repose but having trouble picturing it on my traditional home. I don’t want to go too taupe or browns. I currently have dark charcoal tile with extra white trim which I love. I want to paint my garage door with espresso to match my new front door. Dorian seems too dark but not sure about that color or if I should go more with a sort of light greys. My house is south facing. Any tips?