When it comes to choosing colors for your paint project, I cannot stress enough how important it is to apply paint samples first before choosing the final colors. Personally, I find it hard to choose colors from sample swatches as they are just far too small to get an idea of how the color will work.
Once a sample is applied, it’s ideal to see how it looks during the daylight hours and at night; on cloudy days and sunny days; and how the color looks with your artificial light sources. It truly makes a world of difference and is invaluable to helping you make a final decision.
In the photos below, even though it’s an exterior, the same principles apply. The middle light blueish color is the original door paint. The owners have decided to leave the main house colors the same, we are just freshening it up.
Here are the two door colors we are contemplating: on the right is Benjamin Moore’s Chartreuse (2024-10), and on the left is Farrow and Ball’s Charlotte’s Locks. You’ll notice that I did a pretty large swatch of both colors because it gives you a better idea of how the color works with the main body color and the trim.
One thing I would like to point out here is that if you look at the photo above, it can be a little overwhelming as there is a lot going on; when looking at the two colors together, it can be distracting. The way to solve this problem is to take one of the colors out of the equation. You’ll notice in the photos below, that I have removed one of the colors from each picture so I get a better sense of how the color looks on its own with the body and trim colors.
To do this without having to take photos, look at the door from a distance, then take your hand, put it next to your face, and, using your hand, block out either the yellow or the orange so you cannot see the other color.
Keep in mind that when you apply a sample color over your existing color and look at them together, the colors will affect each other. Let’s assume you have a blue room and you are thinking about changing it to a light gray. The blue will affect the light gray when you look at them together, so you should use your hand to block out the blue color so it’s not influencing the look of the light gray. This is one reason I like to apply larger samples so I can get a better sense of how it will look overall without be distracted by the older color.
When you are applying samples in a room, make sure you apply the sample in different areas: on the wall that receives the least amount of light; on a wall that receives the most light, and always apply the sample next to the trim so you get an idea of how it will look next to the trim color.
Applying samples is an inexpensive way to get a great idea of how a new color will ultimately look.
