7 Can't-Miss Paint Colors

The go-to, goof-proof, by-the-gallon way to freshen up every room in the house, from home-decorating expert and Today show contributor Elizabeth Mayhew.

From Reader's Digest

• Million Dollar Red (#2003-10): Good for dining rooms and family rooms.
  


• Potpourri Green (#2029-50): "Earthy and pale," a neutral for kitchens and bathrooms.
  


• Wood Grain Brown (#2109-30): Less red and more gray than Hershey's Kiss brown, this is the color Mayhew used in her own dining room.
  


• Hawthorne Yellow (#HC-4): Good for rooms and hallways without much light.
  


• Gray Owl (#2137-60): Works in bedrooms or throughout the house.
  


• Birds Egg (#2051-60): A blue with a "clean gray tint," another all-purpose color for Mayhew.
  


• Early Morning Mist (#1528): "Somewhere between gray and beige" is this versatile neutral "greige."

--Source: Flip! For Decorating: A Page-by-Page, Piece-by-Piece, Room-by-Room Guide to Transforming Your Home by Elizabeth Mayhew (Ballantine, $24)