Paint colors for your home, inside and out
19th-century painting · art-to-room palette
This palette comes from Thomas Cole's 1830 oil painting "Distant View of Niagara Falls," held by The Art Institute of Chicago. It is a warm, earthy scheme of cream, olive-khaki, rust and near-black browns, and it suits dens, libraries, dining rooms and entryways where you want a settled, enclosed feel.
Quick answer
Use the pale cream #E8DCC0 on the walls and the olive-khaki #847B5A as the main color on a feature wall, cabinets or large upholstery. Keep the dark brown #4B2B10 for wood furniture and trim, and save the deep red #892509 and burnt orange #B15C12 for an accent chair, pillows or a rug.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
Deep Umber Black#2D2311 |
|
2 | Small accents, art, accessories |
Muted Olive Khaki#847B5A |
|
20 | Bed, sofa, curtains |
Dark Walnut Brown#4B2B10 |
|
3 | Wood and frames |
Soft Parchment Cream#E8DCC0 |
|
72 | Main walls |
Brick Red Accent#892509 |
|
7 | One bold piece |
Burnt Amber Orange#B15C12 |
|
17 | 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.
#CDC9BBSoft Parchment Cream (LRV 72) reflects plenty of light, so it keeps a north-facing room from feeling gloomy. Its warm yellow undertone offsets the cool, gray daylight, though it may look slightly flatter and less yellow than it does in other rooms.
#EDDEC0In strong south light, the cream will glow and read as a warm ivory. If that feels too bright, pair it with the olive-khaki on an adjacent wall, which at LRV 20 absorbs much of the glare.
#C5AF8BUnder warm evening bulbs, the cream's yellow undertone deepens toward butter, and the olive, brown and red accents turn richer and cozier. Choose bulbs with a soft white tone so the cream does not drift too yellow.
Pick which painting color goes on the walls, the big furniture and the bold piece. Floors, shadows and light follow your choices.
Wood takes Dark Walnut Brown and the rug border takes Burnt Amber Orange 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.
Yes, if you keep the proportions uneven. Let the cream cover most wall space, use olive-khaki for one large element, and keep the dark brown, red and orange to small or low pieces.
At LRV 2, #2D2311 is nearly black and absorbs almost all light. It works best on a small area such as a door, built-in shelving or a ceiling in a well-lit room, rather than on every wall.
For a bright, open room, use the cream #E8DCC0 at LRV 72. For a moodier room, use the olive-khaki #847B5A at LRV 20 on one wall and keep the other walls cream so the space still feels balanced.
Image: The Art Institute of Chicago, 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.
