Paint colors for your home, inside and out
18th-century Dutch painting · art-to-room palette
This palette is built from warm taupes, stone, and cream, with deep browns and a few rust tones in the wood and textiles. It suits rooms that want a calm, earthy base with warm, muted contrast.
Quick answer
Use the pale cream #EAE1C6 on the walls and the light stone #C5BEA9 for large surfaces such as a second wall or built-ins. Use the deep umber #83715D for one accent wall, cabinet, or door. Let the brown wood #8C5941 and rust textile #AE5D3F come in through furniture, frames, and soft goods.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
Mid Warm Taupe#AAA394 |
|
37 | Small accents, art, accessories |
Light Warm Stone#C5BEA9 |
|
52 | Bed, sofa, curtains |
Pale Warm Cream#EAE1C6 |
|
75 | Main walls |
Deep Umber Taupe#83715D |
|
17 | One bold piece |
Burnt Sienna Brown#8C5941 |
|
13 | Wood and frames |
Rust Clay Red#AE5D3F |
|
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.
#CECCBFThe cream wall at #EAE1C6 has an LRV of 75, so it bounces light well even in cooler north light. Its warm yellow undertone can look a little flatter here, so pair it with warm wood tones to keep the room inviting.
#EFE2C4In strong south light the cream wall reads brighter and warmer, and the yellow undertone becomes more noticeable. Check it against the stone #C5BEA9 at midday, since the contrast between the two will feel softer than in shade.
#C6B28FUnder warm evening bulbs the cream and stone tones take on a golden glow, and the umber #83715D turns richer and cozier. The rust and brown accents will look especially warm, so this is a good palette for lamp-lit evenings.
Pick which painting color goes on the walls, the big furniture and the bold piece. Floors, shadows and light follow your choices.
Wood takes Burnt Sienna Brown and the rug border takes Rust Clay Red 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.
The deep umber #83715D has an LRV of 17, so it reads very dark. Use it on one wall, a cabinet, or a door rather than the whole room, so the space still feels open.
The brown wood #8C5941 pairs well with the pale cream #EAE1C6 and the light stone #C5BEA9. Both keep the warm undertones in balance and let the wood stand out without competing.
Use the rust textile #AE5D3F in small amounts, such as a throw, a cushion, or a rug border. It makes up a very small share of the original painting, so a few accents will match its proportion.
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.
