Look at Balboa Mist

I am going to introduce you to a new friend.

EasyRGB.Com

Here is what you have told us and a quick look at Balboa Mist

I simply copied some information from Easy RGB and placed it in Excel - colored the cells based on the JAVA RGB colors

The other numbers I copied are the CIE LCH Code -

Edgecomb Gray has a L (light) value or 83.692, a C (Chroma) value of 7.918 (0 is perfectly neutral gray - numbers go up and the colors are more colorful, less gray), and a Hue of 90.232

18 is Red, 90 is Yellow, 162 is Green.

To understand what a color will look like based on these color codes is a balancing act of the three elements - grayer looks less yellow even if the hue is closer to yellow.

Easy RGB also has a compare page.

It shows the closest colors to a color that you select. You can select a certain brand or line of paint when you ask for matches.

Here are the closest colors to Canvas Tan from both Benjamin Moore and Sherwin Williams.

By clicking on a specific color you can select Convert and get all kinds of color information including the numbers I pulled out for my excel spreadsheet.

Some colors are listed twice and may have slightly different values because Easy RGB pulls the colors from the fan decks to get the measurements. If there are two fan decks with the same color one fan deck is not always exactly the same as the next fan deck.

This should give you enough information to gather additional samples and not get something that is further from your ideal than one you already tested.

Wow Jennifer. I appreciate you taking the time to do that! And yes, a margarita might help me better comprehend. or not... I have a tiny understanding of chroma, lrv, hue family from reading all the paint posts here but it’s a whole science that’s way above my head so I appreciate you mapping it out!

That is* a cool program. Thanks for sharing. I like how the main color stays in the background so you can see how the others are more green, gray, etc.

LCH is really easy when it comes to more saturated colors, but neutrals and whites can be very difficult. They all read some shade of yellow even if they look baby blue or lilac. I don't recommend using only the LCH to look at whites and neutrals, but you can use it to compare one color to another. It didn't take much to know that Balboa Mist would be grayer than the other colors that you already looked at. You want something with a higher chroma. My first thought when I read your post was SW Creamy, but then I read that you felt fossil was too bright and Creamy is quite light and not really what you seem to be looking for.

Lighting and other colors in your space can also really impact the perception of whites and neutrals much more than a saturated color.

Finding our perfect color can be expensive as we purchase can after can of sample paint or $5.00 pre painted samples. These tools can lower frustration and save us money.

Remember to always use large samples (at least 8 1/2 x 11). Look at the color on different walls and at different times of the day. Look at the other colors in your home when picking colors for a single room (I hate the white elephant rooms that have no relationship to the rest of the house). Look at the colors with a white background so you are not comparing them to your old paint color. If possible take your colors outside on a clear afternoon and look at the paint and counter and cabinet colors all together in natural sunlight. It really helps you see those pesky undertones. I like using water color paper (140 lb) rather than poster board for samples - stays flat, has a good texture, just works nicer and is not expensive.

Laura_04 - pat yourself on the back! You didn't pick a color, paint the walls and then come to houzz trying to find out how to make the wrong color look right without re-painting.

I like you!

I think I need to just close my eyes and pick one

IMO there is only one way to choose colors and that is a poster board with 2 coats of paint and moved around in the space at different times of the day and before narrow your choices to 2 or 3 max. The lighting in your kitchen will have big effect on color so maybe make sure all the bulbs are LEDs in 4000K before figuring out colors .

Good catch Patricia, I didn't mention lighting and you do want to make sure you have the lighting that you want in the room before selecting your colors because changing the lighting will change how colors appear.

Patricia always recommends 4000K. I am a bit more flexible, selected 5000K for my own home, 4000K for my Sister in law and I have a sister who liked the color and warmth of her old incandescent lighting and stuck with the 2700K lighting in her home.

My home is MCM with a lot of taupe and purple in my color palette. If you add yellow to taupe or purple it turns to mud.

My sister's home is a Tudor home with antique furnishings and a lot of industrial influences including multiple vintage lights that take Edison bulbs. Her decor is all greens and golds and deep orange reds. I know that 2700 k is not what most people want and it does throw a yellow cast, but it also was popular for 100 years or so before we decided other colors were better. Many of the doctors and scientists that I know like 5000K lighting. 6500K is common in surgical suites and laboratories so they are more accustom to whiter light. I have used 5000K in my home for a few decades, but years ago I had to order light bulbs from companies that made lighting for artists.

Ever notice that a fine restaurant has pink lighting - they recommend 2250K for fine dining, people sit longer and find the steaks look pinker and juicer and that makes you think it tastes better. You will be relaxed and enjoy a few extra cocktails. But they use a whiter light, usually 3000k over the salad bar, makes the colors of the fresh produce look richer. Jewelry cases use 6500k lighting, hotel guest rooms use 2700k lighting, Fast food restaurants use much brighter lighting - they don't want you to stick around - the money is in how fast they can get you in and out. There was one study where they recommended lighting think tanks at 17000K, but recommended 2700K-3000K for rooms where you wanted to gain clients trust. Lighting under 2000K increases melatonin levels and makes us tired.

I have been thinking of adding a low kelvin reading light to my bedroom. I like to read before I go to sleep and often fall asleep with the bedside lights still on. The 5000 k lights are probably not helping my insomnia.

Having fun with EasyRGB! Gettysburg Gray is the other color I’m using. BM suggests snow on the mountain which is a match to SWcreamy. So crossing my fingers that Creamy is what I’ve been looking for :)

I’m learning so much here! I’m a self taught photographer and wanted to learn more about color & lighting this winter. Never imagined I’d be learning it here :) Thanks for sharing that.

Warning - I started out looking for a wall color that worked with my very light taupe floor tiles. I now have 8 3 ring binders filled with 8 1/2 x 11 paint color samples. Estimate is between 400 and 500 painted samples.

You could also look at BM Natural Cream OC 14. It’s very similar to Edgecomb without the purple undertones.

which is a match to SW creamy.

Δ E is the first line of data.

It tells you how closely a color matches your target color.

Anything over 1.0 isn't that great of a match.

For example, at 1.2 I wouldn't bother pulling a chip of Creamy because I know it's not going to be close enough.

Δ E less than 1.0 and it's worth taking a look.

Δ E less than 0.5 and it's likely to be very close in hue family, value and chroma.

LCh works extremely well for whites and neutrals - it's an objective description of color under a controlled and balanced light source.

If a color appears different from it's LCh notation, that's a matter of subjective opinion, context and lighting.

It's not a matter of fact.

For every one person who perceives a color as looking different from its LCh notation in a specific context, under unspecified light sources, you'll find at least one more who perceives the color exactly as the LCh values indicate.

There's evidence of that all over this forum.

For example, Stonington Gray. Some think it's a blue-gray while others think that's absolutely nuts. Because in their house, in their context and lighting Stonington looks "true neutral gray" no hue bias at all, which is in alignment with it's Green-Yellow hue family notation.

And because we have an organized framework of color notations, we can put evidence of color appearance together and study the results.

For example, we know that low chroma colors from the Green-Yellow hue family, like Stonington Gray, can absolutely appear with no hue bias and look totally neutral - or - it can shift and look bluish in certain contexts and lighting conditions.

Because we're aware, we can sample colors smarter. We know what to look for. That's one of the main reasons it's useful to learn how to use color data values like you see on EasyRGB.

I like how the main color stays in the background so you can see how the others are more green, gray, etc.

Be careful with that.

What you're seeing is 100% about how your device is able to display color than actual and factual color appearance in real life. You can see this for yourself. For example, what you're seeing will look markedly different on your phone vs. your laptop.

Hi Lori, is there another color you’d suggest? I think Natural cream may be too gray for my kitchen. I’m thinking an lrv around 70 is what I’m wanting. Not too yellow, not too cool, neutral... I have barely beige in the room now. It’s ok but a little too yellow/ peach

Hi Lori, is there another color you’d suggest?

A color that's recently been popularly searched in The Colorography Lab is White Duck.

I don't know if it's been a topic online somewhere or what but it's gotten so much traffic, I pulled a chip. I've never noticed it or used it before. It's pretty. Might be worth a look.

Since you're an expert with color notations now, here's White Duck compared to Barely Beige. ;)

I’ll stick with white duck. It’s the color i had originally settled on and already have it in my living room. It’s a gorgeous tan in the darker corners but goes yellow green on the walls that get the most light but it’ll work. Thanks

Lori A. Sawaya, Jennifer Hogan

I find all of this color information fascinating! IF I was at the beginning of our project, I would be all in to study it. But we are (finally) getting close to the end of rehabbing a 3 story, 6K sq ft house, & I only need to pick one more wall color.

My questions are closely related to the information in this thread, so I'm not sure if I should ask here or start a new discussion. Please advise!

@Mary Elizabeth. Start your own new thread.

I would start a new discussion.

Since you have done most of the 6k Sq ft house you probably have a lot of colors already in your palette. Now it will be finding a color that coordinates well with the colors you see from that room or space and flows well with the rest of the colors in your space.

Listing wall colors you already have and other major colors (furnishings, flooring, cabinets), helping us envision the color flow really helps.

Thanks Lori A. Sawaya & Jennifer Hogan

Here's my dilemma:

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/5942743/wall-color-advice-for-a-large-open-room

If you haven't already chosen---we went through this in our kitchen and chose SW Aesthetic White https://www.sherwin-williams.com/architects-specifiers-designers/color/find-and-explore-colors/paint-colors-by-family/SW7035-aesthetic-white

It was the perfect creamy shade without going too yellow yet still is taupy enough to be a hit with the little bit of gray in the countertops.

Another thing I learned is that, if you love Edgecombe Gray, you can order it mixed at 50%, which means then put only 50% as much tint in. That may sound like it will be a TON lighter, but it won't. If you order at 25% (meaning they use 75% tint and it will be 25% lighter) you almost will barely notice it. At 50% you will notice, but it still won't be drastic. Take a look at this video by a designer - Kylie M - who has a ton of videos on youtube dealing with looking at different BM and SW colors. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwLLOvb7D7w

Good luck and post pics!