Thanks for all of your input. I received the gray velvet
I'm most definitely not feeling the love for the gray. So it's down to black, purple, red (in order of my preference). Black feels the classiest, followed by red, with purple, while being the most "fun" somehow, IMHO, is a little too loud and takes away from the beauty of the guitar itself. Called Musician's Friend where I'd bought it and they'll be sending me a black replacement straight away. They suggested I keep the grey (cost too much for them to ship it back, re-stock, etc.). What great customer service they have.
I will say that the quality of the LM crushed velvet strap is really really good. Nicely padded, 3" wide, soft, supple and distributes the weight of the guitar nicely. Feels good on the neck. Thumbs up on that.
Who'd have thought deciding on a strap would occupy so much time! Must be my OCD kicking in!