How to Sample Colors

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Choosing paint colors is the most difficult part of any painting project. Most customers come into the store in a panic: "My painter is coming tomorrow and I need to pick paint colors!".

So how do you do find the right paint color? Here are a few easy to follow steps that can help:

1) First figure out the colors that you like. You can start with items that exist in the room like a bedspread, countertop or carpeting,artwork or even just a favorite color.

This will give you a starting point.

2) Make a trip to the local paint store and pull the paper color swatches that look interesting to you.

3) Take them home and look at them in the room - this will give you a sense of how the paint color will look in the room it will be used (Many people think you need to take it outside and look at the colorin the sunlight - this only matters if the color will be painted outside). Narrow your choices down to 3-4 colors you like.

4) Buy little paint cans of the colors and paint  samples on foam boards or your walls. Colors take on a totally different character when you increase the area. So a little swatch can look very different from a whole wall of the color. Creating paint samples (e.g. 4' x 4' area) will give you a great idea of what the color will look like.

5) Just look at it - either you like it or you don't. If you do, you are done. If you don't like the color, figure out what you don't like and make adjustments from there - it's too green, too dark, too light.... Once you get to this point it should be relatively easy to find the color. Your local paint store should be able to help. Sample the final color choice once again to make sure it is right, and you are done.

6) Give the color to the painter and insist that they buy the paint from the store that helped  you pick the color. These paint stores expend a great dealof money and effort maintaining and staffing showroom, and unless they sell paint there is no compensation for this effort. And if they help you pick the color, they deserve to sell some paint

7) Enjoy!