Paint colors for your home, inside and out
Art-to-room palette
This palette pairs a soft gray-beige and a creamy off-white with deep brown, ink navy, slate blue and a muted brick red. It suits a calm, grounded room such as a living room, a study or a bedroom where you want warmth without brightness.
Quick answer
Use the cream #EBDCC5 on the walls, the gray-beige #B8B2A0 on large furniture, rugs or a second wall, and the brown #6A5941 for wood and trim. Keep the navy #152032 for one accent, and the slate blue and brick red for small touches like pillows and 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.
Color values measured from the painting, with the role each one plays in a room.
| Painting color | HEX | LRV | Use it for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Soft Gray Beige | #B8B2A0 |
45 | Bed, sofa, curtains |
| Deep Walnut Brown | #6A5941 |
11 | Wood and frames |
| Ink Navy | #152032 |
1 | One bold piece |
| Slate Blue | #435C69 |
10 | Small accents, art, accessories |
| Warm Cream | #EBDCC5 |
73 | Main walls |
| Muted Brick Red | #7E4C3F |
10 | One small textile |
The wall color shifted for the light it will live in. Check the version closest to your room before buying a sample.
#CFC9BEThe cream wall #EBDCC5 has an LRV of 73, so it still reflects plenty of light, but north light is cool and may pull it toward a grayer, flatter look. Add warm wood and a few brick red accents to keep the room from feeling chilly.
#EFDEC4In strong south light the cream will read bright and clearly warm, and its yellow undertone will show most at midday. It works well here, and you may want the softer gray-beige #B8B2A0 if the cream feels too sunny.
#C7AF8EWarm bulbs will push the cream toward yellow and make it feel cozy. The deep brown and navy will absorb much of that light, so add a lamp or two near them so they do not disappear.
The palette applied to three rooms.
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.
The cream #EBDCC5 is the best wall color, with an LRV of 73 that keeps a room bright. The gray-beige #B8B2A0, at LRV 45, suits a second wall or a room with plenty of daylight.
You can, but the navy #152032 has an LRV of 1, so it reads almost black and absorbs most light. It suits a small room or a single wall with good lighting, and it is easier to live with as an accent on a door, a built-in or a piece of furniture.
Keep both to small areas. The brown #6A5941 (LRV 11) fits wood floors, trim and furniture, and the brick red #7E4C3F (LRV 10) works as a textile or a few accessories. The light cream walls will balance them.
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.
