Paint colors for your home, inside and out
18th-century Italian painting · art-to-room palette
This palette is built from sage greens, deep browns and soft ochres, taken from Francesco Casanova's oil painting "Cavalier and Shepherd" at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. It suits rooms that want a calm, earthy base with a few warm, dark notes.
Quick answer
Use the main sage grey #AAB2A9 on the largest walls. Put the pale sage #D2DDCF on the ceiling or on a lighter adjoining wall. Use the very dark brown #5F3B25 as a single accent, such as a door or cabinet, and the walnut #895D34 on wood furniture or floors. Bring in the light honey #E9BE7D through cushions, curtains or throws.
Measured from the image and ordered by how much of the canvas they cover. LRV is how much light a color reflects, from 0 for black to 100 for white.
Left, every pixel of the canvas snapped to its nearest palette color. Right, the detail where each color is strongest.
The nearest color from each brand. “Near-identical” and “Very close” are hard to tell apart on a wall; with “Similar”, compare a sample with the painting. Brands with nothing close are left out.
| Painting color | Closest paints | LRV | Use it for |
|---|---|---|---|
Soft sage grey#AAB2A9 |
|
43 | Bed, sofa, curtains |
Deep umber brown#5F3B25 |
|
6 | One bold piece |
Pale sage mist#D2DDCF |
|
70 | Main walls |
Warm walnut brown#895D34 |
|
13 | Wood and frames |
Muted ochre tan#BE9762 |
|
34 | Small accents, art, accessories |
Light honey cream#E9BE7D |
|
56 | One small textile |
Paint names belong to their brands. Matches are measured from screen colors and are approximate; Light & Pigment is not affiliated with any paint brand.
The wall color shifted for the light it will live in. Check the version closest to your room before buying a sample.
#BEC9C5In north light, the main wall color #AAB2A9 reads cooler and greyer, so the green undertone becomes more noticeable. The pale #D2DDCF stays clear and holds its brightness, which helps a small or dim room feel open.
#DCDFCBStrong south light brings out the warmth in the sage grey and softens its green. The darker tones, including the umber #5F3B25 and walnut #895D34, read richer and more defined in bright sun.
#B9B094Under warm evening bulbs, the green undertones in the sage walls shift toward a softer olive grey. The ochre #BE9762 and honey #E9BE7D glow, so textiles and wood pieces look especially warm at night.
Pick which painting color goes on the walls, the big furniture and the bold piece. Floors, shadows and light follow your choices.
Wood takes Warm walnut brown and the rug border takes Light honey cream in every combination.
Details from the painting next to the colors and materials that carry them into a room.
A card with the painting, all 6 colors and a room scheme. Pin it, or take it to the paint store.
Use the sage grey #AAB2A9 on the largest wall or walls. It makes up the largest share of the painting's palette and works as a calm base for the rest of the room.
It is better as an accent. At LRV 6, the dark brown #5F3B25 reads almost black in most rooms, so a door, cabinet or built-in works well. Using it on one wall can make a small room feel closed in.
Balance the dark brown and walnut with the pale sage #D2DDCF and the light honey #E9BE7D. Put the lighter colors on the ceiling, trim or textiles so the room keeps its brightness.
Image: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Public domain (CC0). Palette, posterized image, details and room views generated by Light & Pigment from that image. Colors look different on screen than on a wall, so always test a sample.
