Paint Chips are Useless
I don't deviate (far) from technology very often, but I need to indulge a rant. Paint chips suck. You know what I'm talking about. Those 1" square blobs of color placed on longer 1" strips containing other 1" square blobs of color that similar in color. Yeah. Those paint chips. They suck.
I just had the second floor of my house painted and, of the four colors I chose from looking at said paint chips, I like exactly one of them. That's 25%, people. To make matters worse, one of the colors is an adjustment for my first bad choice that was so bad I couldn't even stand to look at it. So really, one in five. 20%.
Is it actually possible to look at a 1" paint chip and come close to forming an accurate picture of how it will look on the wall? Not in my experience. This might be my worst average at the end of a paint job, but I don't think I've ever seen a chip, applied it to the wall and said, "Yeah, that's exactly what I thought it was gonna look like."
Now I need pick colors for the first floor. Ugh.
Some paint lines will provide you with larger squares, but 2 inches is only marginally better than one. A lot of places will provide you with a small sample (either for free or a couple bucks) so you can take the paint home and paint a swath on the wall you intend to paint. This lets you see how the color behaves in various lighting conditions, as well as how it looks when it's actually on the wall. If you can't get a sample, you might want to purchase a quart. It might cost you $10, but that's surely better than buying several gallons, painting a room, then discovering you really don't like the color!
I know exactly how you feel about paint chips, though. My wife is an interior designer, and the way the paint looks on the chip never is how it looks on a full wall.
I need at least one full wall painted, I think, to make a competent evaluation.
Any chance you live near Baltimore? I could really use your wife's services. :-)
I hear ya. I'm color blind, so until a whole wall is done, I don't really "see" it either.
We used to live near Philly, but we're living in Phoenix these days.
You might consider finding a local designer for a "color consultation". I'm not sure how much that will help your particular situation, but sometimes sitting for a few hours with someone who deals with color for a living can do wonders.
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