terry_hayes18•8d agoMost Upvoted

Stopped matching paint swatches to fabric and got better results...

I spent years trying to match my wall colors directly to throw pillows and couch fabric. Nothing ever looked right until I accidentally grabbed a paint chip that was 2 shades lighter than the fabric I was holding. Turned out fabric absorbs light way different than paint on a wall. Now I always go lighter on the wall than the fabric and it matches perfectly every time. Does anyone else struggle with paint vs fabric matching or is it just me?

2 comments

2 Comments

logansullivan7d ago

My friend Sarah tried matching her navy blue couch to wall paint for weeks. She finally gave up and just painted the walls a soft cream color, and somehow the couch popped way more than it ever did against a blue wall. She said fabric and paint are like two different languages and we just need to let them do their own thing.

the_ray7d ago

Man I gotta admit I used to be the exact opposite. I spent a whole weekend trying to match a dark gray couch to a gray wall and it just looked like a sad blob. Finally painted the wall a light oatmeal color and suddenly the couch had depth and texture I never noticed before. Sarah's right about fabric and paint being different languages. Sometimes you just gotta let fabrics be the star instead of trying to force them to blend in.