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Choosing paint colors

vedazu
10 years ago

As I start painting my kitchen, I want to share an observation about choosing paint colors. In my effort to match a color from Ben Moore to SW, at the request of my painter--which I didn't do, by the way--I was able to see the formulas used by both firms as they mixed the paint. What I do now is to routinely ask to see the formulas for the paint chips that are "in the finals." If you can see how much gold, how much yellow, how much black, or green or whatever, is in the formula, you will get a better idea of what the cast of the color will be. For example, if you have two very similar blues, and one has a bit of black in it, it will be more greyed. Same with whites/creams--check a couple to see how much gold and how much yellow. You probably should go to a small store without a lot of traffic so that you are not taking up a lot of time in a busy place, but I've had only pleasant reactions to this request....I suppose they'd rather you got it right than bringing back paint. I have found this to be very helpful. Two reds can look almost alike on the chip, but if you look at the formulas, and one has a bit of orange in it, it will have a much more neon color on the wall, where true reds will not contain the gold/yellow tone. Saves a lot of tester pots, and quart containers lying around your house until you move the next time!

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