Finding the exact hue to touch up your walls or match the threads in your favorite throw can be a challenge. Fortunately, there are many ways to find the color that you’ve been searching for.
Winter is a great season to touch up your home’s interior. More times indoors can bring your attention to old nail holes or dings in the wall that could be spackled and repainted. It’s also an ideal time to put a fresh color on the walls. You don’t have to look through dozens and dozens of swatches to match your old wall color or color inspiration from Pinterest. Here are the top three color-matching hacks from professionals that you can use instead.
#1. Try a Paint Matching App
Take advantage of your smartphone by using a mobile app to find the right color for your walls. Well-known paint manufacturers, like Sherwin-Williams and Behr, have paint matching apps for iPhones and Androids. You may find one app more user-friendly than another, but they all work similarly. You’ll snap a photo of the color you want to match and upload it to the app. (For the best results, take a picture of the color inspiration in natural light). Then the app will suggest a color match that’s closest from that painting manufacturer. Most will even give you recommendations for accent colors and design tips.
#2. Get a Color Analyzer
If you want the most accurate color match, you can use a handheld color analyzer. These easy to use handheld devices will scan the color of your wall, fabric or thread to find the best match. The Color Muse, available on Amazon for about $60, is one of the most popular color analyzers. It will show you the best matches from multiple paint brands such as Sherwin-Williams, PPG, Benjamin Moore, Behr, and many more. Since it isn’t limited to one manufacturer, you’re more likely to find an exact match. It offers many other features too. Including the ability to create and share color palettes, discover inspiration and match the color to other products such as flooring and furniture.
#3. Take a Sample to an Expert
Don’t want to get so technical? If you don’t want to invest in your own color analyzer or mess with an app, you can take a sample to an expert. You can bring in a swatch of fabric, spool of thread, throw pillow or another item that you’d like them to match. They can also find a match based off of pictures on your phone (be sure it’s taken in natural light for the best results) or clippings from a magazine.
Most local paint stores and professional painting services have a spectrophotometer. This device analyzes the wavelengths of color in an object and reveals the exact pigments needed to create the shade you want. A color expert will use it to find the best paint color matches for you.
Bob Vila recommends bringing in a one-inch square swatch of paint from your wall if you are trying to find an exact match for an old paint color. You can spare your wall by calling on an expert to make a house call. Our color experts at Franklin Painting can find the best match to cover those chipped spots and freshen up the paint on your walls.
The paint on your walls can leave a lasting impression on your guests and impact your daily moods. Let us help you find the best match and expertly paint your walls!
If you have an interior or exterior painting project coming up and you’re more interested in a fabulous result than in doing the work yourself, Franklin Painting of Farmington, CT, is ready to help. We do all types of painting including dual-colored surfaces. Call us at (877) 646-7774.
Frank Campanelli, the esteemed founder of Franklin Painting LLC, has been leading the company since 1986. He takes immense pride in the stellar reputation his dedicated team has built by consistently delivering top-notch service to each customer.
