How Eastern Exposure Can Affect Paint Colors

I’ve received MANY questions from readers wondering which paint colors were best for their east and west-facing rooms. The main comment being ‘there seems to be a lot of info out there for north and south-facing rooms, but nothing for east and west-facing rooms!’

Do you want to know why? Because they are a total and complete bugger. I curse them and throw a quarter in the jar every time (the jar is now full).

So, I have strapped on my big girl panties and pulled ALL of my thoughts together for you (scary), combined them with my 17 years of color experience and finally made some sense of it all. However, it’s a lot of info, so, today we’re focusing on EAST facing rooms only (west will come later on a broomstick).

East Facing Light and How it Can Affect Paint Colors

EAST-FACING MORNING LIGHT

Rooms with an east-facing morning light get a nice soft, clean dose of warm sunshine in the morning (but not the same as the more intense golden warmth you’ll get in a west-facing afternoon), but as the sun rises you’ll also notice a lot of shadows.

The morning sunlight is bright, clear and slightly WARM so that it’s not cold or grayed-out like north-facing rooms.

As we move towards noon, the light will slowly get brighter and whiter and the chances of being judged for day-drinking (which you may be doing shortly) will be greatly reduced. This bright light can start to wash colors out and lighten the look of them.

For example, in the above photo, check out the walls facing you, they are a bit shadowed, but the wall with the TP holder is getting lighter and quite washed-out in comparison as it’s getting a direct hit of eastern light.

EAST-FACING LIGHT AROUND NOON

Once we hit noon, the room will be pretty bright without much warmth and will start the downward slide toward a more shaded, cooler look. And I don’t mean ‘shade’ as in shadows, but shade as in ‘gray’ and flat. Cool colors can do okay at this time of the day, but warm colors can offer some balance and warmth.

EAST-FACING AFTERNOON LIGHT

In the afternoon, an east-facing room will look progressively grayer and slightly cooler, with fewer shadows (all of the room is slightly shadowed as a whole) – I can hear the crickets chirping now, oh wait, that’s my phone with a message – which I’ll never check.

Cool colors in eastern afternoon light can feel a bit chilly and flat if they have too much gray in them. Warm colors can help to balance out the gray-flat light.

So, what is a girl (or guy) to do now? DRINK UP BUTTERCUP! That’s right, you might need to call in the reinforcements (Mr. Pinot and Ms. Merlot) when it comes to choosing the best paint color for your east-facing room. So, grab that sippy cup and let’s get started.

This is where the fun starts!

Above samples are just approximations

STEP 1: It’s all in the timing

Before you even LOOK at paint colors, you need to determine how much time you spend in this room.

• If you spend most of your time in the morning, you’ll want to pick the color that you like BEST in the morning light
• If you spend most of your time in this room in the afternoon, you will want to pick the color that you like best in the AFTERNOON light

Does this mean you completely ignore the other half of the day? No. You just don’t give it priority. And while you may LOVE a color in the morning light, but not the afternoon, as long as it’s ‘okay’ and doesn’t go against your religious beliefs then it might just be a good choice.

‘But what if I’m in the room in the morning AND the afternoon?’

Well, then we move on to STEP 2.

STEP 2: Lighting is your friend

For the time of day when your room is at it’s darkest and most shaded, use interior lighting as a supplement. This can put an ENTIRELY new face on your paint color and make it more liveable during the shaded hours. PLEASE take the time to improve the lighting in your room as this will make ALL of the difference in the world – read tips on how to do that here.

While they say that ‘daylight’ bulbs best mimic the natural daylight, I find that they really only mimic the sunlight at its peak – so at its whitest. This isn’t always a ‘liveable light’ for what we’re used to with our old-school bulbs. I would opt for a slightly warmer light over a daylight bulb in a shaded space.

So, those are the basics. Now, let’s talk about color.

When I’ve talked about the best paint colors for north and south-facing rooms, it’s been easy to peg down some good color options as the light is a bit more predictable throughout the day. However, with east-facing rooms having split-personalities, it isn’t so clear-cut and there IS no exact recipe. HOWEVER, there are some pretty good tips that I’ve come up with.

IF YOU USE YOUR ROOM MOSTLY IN THE MORNING

Bless your heart. If I could get up every day at noon, I would.

WARM PAINT COLORS

Can be slightly enhanced, but will look more or less like you’d expect. Warm colors can really suit a morning east-facing room.

COOL PAINT COLORS

Can feel refreshing in east-facing morning light.

NEUTRAL PAINT COLORS

Cool neutrals with cool undertones will be welcoming in the morning hours without casting icy cold. Warm neutrals with warm undertones will do what they do and just be warm.

ALL of the above will start looking washed-out as you get closer to noon if you get good sunlight on your walls.

Tips and Ideas

• If you choose colors that have a wink more ‘color’ in them and less gray, you may find that the increased color helps fight off the shaded look of the afternoon light, while still looking beautiful in the morning hours
• You might find that blues with a touch of green in them feel a bit softer and more inviting
• Greens that have a wink of yellow vs a wink of blue can warm things up more again
• Purples that lean slightly to the pink side (taupe) rather than the blue (cool) side can help balance things off a bit if you’re worried about the gray afternoon light

This is just an approximation – it ain’t gospel…but it’s close (wink wink)

IF YOU USE YOUR ROOM MOSTLY IN THE AFTERNOON

The afternoon light can be DRASTICALLY different from morning light.

Warm paint colors

Warm colors can help balance out the more shaded, slightly cooler look of east-facing afternoon light.

Cool paint colors

Might be a bit more subdued and grayed out and can come across even cooler-toned than normal.

Neutral paint colors

Will all be shaded and toned down.

Tips and Ideas

• You may want to use colors that a) are a bit warmer and less neutral. It’s okay to have a beige base, but if you have some good ‘color’ mixed in, it will help to fight off the flatness of the afternoon light
• If you choose a cool color that has a bit more ‘color’ in it and less gray, you may find that it holds itself a bit better in the afternoon
• If you go for cool paint colors or gray neutrals, you may want to add warm accents and texture to your room to add balance and visual warmth.
• I’ve found that my clients are often able to live with paint colors that make a room feel a bit too warm vs paint colors that make a room feel a bit too cold, something to consider if you use your east-facing room in the afternoon

I know that’s a TON of info – it’s like verbal diarrhea on my end, so I can’t imagine how it’s being received on yours. So, you can take that all into consideration OR take a deep breath, totally ignore me (Tim has an uncanny knack for this) and just read the summary of things below, along with the best paint color options…

But before you do that, take a quick second to answer these two questions…

1. Do I use my room more in the morning or in the afternoon?
2. Am I more comfortable in warmer colors or cooler colors?

Warm paint color ideas for east-facing rooms (incl: NE and SE)

Clockwise from top left

Benjamin Moore Powell Buff HC-35

Powell Buff sits nicely in-between being a ‘color’ and a ‘neutral’. It has a beige base with a solid golden (orange-yellow) color that comes up. It will neutralize that bit more in the afternoon, but still, hold some warmth. Once in a BLUE moon, it flashes a wee wink o’ green, but don’t expect it.

Benjamin Moore Pale Avocado 2146-40

Okay, this IS a cool-ISH color as it’s a green, however, I added a lot of yellow to it, which makes Pale Avocado seem more like a warm color.

Sherwin Williams Vanillin SW-6371

Vanillin is a creamy color. Cream is a yellow base color and this one has just a touch more yellow than the average neutral cream, while still having a soft grounded base.

Benjamin Moore French Toast CC-244

French Toast is another golden type of color that has a good degree of yellow and orange mixed with a beige base. Powell Buff will seem considerably more neutral in comparison!

Benjamin Moore Hepplewhite Ivory HC-36

Hepplewhite Ivory is along the same lines as Vanillin, but with a bit more color/yellow in it.

Benjamin Moore Cinnamon 2174-20

Cinnamon is a gorgeous rust tone that has a nice orange backdrop which saves it from falling red-burgundy as some reddish colors can.

Read more: The 5 Best Warm Neutral Paint Colors

Click HERE or on the above image to see available packages and E-BOOKS!

Let’s take a quick break to talk about paint samples…

Undoubtedly, you’ll be heading out in the near future to grab paint samples – stop right there! I want you to check out SAMPLIZE. Samplize offers peel and stick paint samples that are more AFFORDABLE, EASIER and more ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY than traditional paint pots. Here are just a FEW reasons why I recommend Samplize to my clients…

• Samples arrive ON YOUR DOORSTEP in 1-3 business days, depending on location
• At $6.99, they’re more affordable than the samples pots/rollers/foam boards that are needing for traditional paint sampling
• If you keep the samples on their white paper, you can move them around the room

Visit the SAMPLIZE website HERE

Cool paint color ideas for east-facing rooms (incl. SE as well)

Clockwise starting in the top left

Sherwin Williams Rainwashed SW-6211

Rainwashed is a beautiful blue-green-gray blend. And while it will gray-blue itself out a bit in the afternoon, it will still be a beautiful color with the right interior lighting.

Benjamin Moore Wythe Blue HC-143

Wythe Blue is another blue-green-gray blend, but it’s more in the light-medium range with more depth than Rainwashed. This means that it could fight off the gray afternoon light a bit better.

Read more: The 8 Best Blue/Green Paint Colors.

Benjamin Moore Gray Wisp 1570

Gray Wisp is on the border of ‘color and neutral’ when it comes to east-facing rooms. In the morning the green-blue of it will be soft and soothing. In the afternoon the gray in it will come up a bit more but can be shifted with the right interior lighting plan.

Benjamin Moore Fernwood Green 2145-40

Fernwood Green is just a PRETTY green with a country vibe. It has a subtle warmth that holds itself well in the afternoon light.

See Fernwood Green here: A More Colorful Country Farmhouse Paint Palette 

Benjamin Moore Caribbean Teal 2123-20

I am a BIG fan of Caribbean Teal. It’s a medium-toned mix of blue-green with a touch of gray to calm it down. It adds richness and warmth to a room just via its depth.

Sherwin Williams Grassland SW-6163

Grassland is a soft, slightly warm green with its greige base (gray-beige).

The above ideas cover the slightly more colorful end of things – without going too far one way or another. Now, for those of you who are so inclined…

The Best Neutral Paint Colors for an East-Facing Room

Not everyone wants color, and I find that MOST of my E-Design clients want neutrals on their walls – regardless of their exposures. Which brings me to another question that I’m often asked…

‘Do I HAVE to paint my east or west-facing room a color? Can’t I paint it gray, beige or gray?’

Of course you can, you can do whatever the heck ya want! Just keep in mind, the more neutral your paint color is (the less ‘color’ it has in it and the more beige-gray it looks) the drabber it might look at the ‘shaded’ time of day.

I recommend looking for neutrals that have at least a WEEEE willy wink (super technical term) of color in them to off-set those shadows a bit. You’ll also want to make sure that your interior lighting is sufficient to help balance those gray shades off a bit.

Clockwise starting at the top left

Sherwin Williams Light French Gray SW 0055

Light French Gray is a soft, slightly fresh gray with a very vague purple undertone. As far as grays go, I like it for east-facing rooms as it doesn’t go as muddy as some other gray and greige paint colors can.

Sherwin Williams Techno Gray SW 6170

Techno Gray is a nice greige base color with a reasonably warm green undertone.

Benjamin Moore Gentle Cream OC-96

I’ve always been a Gentle Cream fan. It’s a soft creamy color (which means there’s yellow in it) but there’s also a bit of orange, all wrapped up in a calm warm beige base. Read the color review HERE.

Benjamin Moore Paris Rain 1501

Paris Rain is along the same lines as the EVER popular Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter. The main difference is that it has CONSIDERABLY more green in it.

Sherwin Williams Creamy SW 7012

Creamy is one of the only off-whites that I would turn to for an east-facing room…and it’s borderline. Creamy is a light cream color (so there’s yellow in it) that is balanced with a neutral base to calm it right down. It will neutralize considerably in the afternoon. Read the color review HERE.

Sherwin Williams Macadamia SW 6142

Macadamia is similar to Benjamin Moore Lenox Tan (which was in the running as well). These are more golden, light-medium beige colors. They have a decent orange undertone with a wink of yellow in there as well. (Don’t let those words scare you, if it’s a warm color, it will have yellow, orange or red in it – it’s a matter of finding the blend you like!)

Benjamin Moore Collingwood OC-28

Collingwood is a gorgeous warm gray paint color with a soft purple undertone. You will need good interior lighting to bring it to life in the afternoon! Paint color review HERE.

Read more: Benjamin Moore’s Best Beige and Tan Paint Colors

Do you have a southeast, east-west or northeast facing room? 

While it might seem confusing, having dual exposures isn’t that bad when you’re armed with the right info! Check out this blog post on how to pick paint colors when you have 2 exposures.

Interior furnishings and OTHER considerations

Oh, you don’t get off that easy – there’s a whole ‘NOTHER side to choosing the best color for your room – your interior finishings.

The interior of your room adds a whole DIFFERENT set of rules, but there is only SO much I can do with a blog post! If you don’t know which paint color is best with your exposure, countertops, flooring, furniture, personal tastes, etc… you might want to check out my E-Design.

Need Help?

E-Design and Online Color Consulting – 4000+ happy clients can’t be wrong! 

Chat soon,

READ MORE:

The Best Paint Colors for a West Facing Room

The Best Colors for a North Facing Room

The Best Colors for a South Facing Room

The 8 Best Blue and Green Paint Colors

Written in 2017, updated in 2019