Take that sample board and hold it up to the showroom fireplace ... then take that same sample board and hold it up to the stone on that house.
If the house isn't yours, ring the doorbell and ask if you can place your sample board next to it. I've never had a homeowner refuse to help with something like that.
Also if a stone has been installed outside for many years, you will get staining from dirt and irrigation water and maybe fading from the sun.
That's a different issue than the stone actually being a different color than the display. Or the issue of the stone color possibly looking different because the mortar color is different than the display. Or the stone looking different because of the natural versus artificial lighting.
You can't compare the color like that!
Take that sample board and hold it up to the showroom fireplace ... then take that same sample board and hold it up to the stone on that house.
If the house isn't yours, ring the doorbell and ask if you can place your sample board next to it. I've never had a homeowner refuse to help with something like that.
Also if a stone has been installed outside for many years, you will get staining from dirt and irrigation water and maybe fading from the sun.
Can you post a close-up photo of the smudges?
That's a different issue than the stone actually being a different color than the display. Or the issue of the stone color possibly looking different because the mortar color is different than the display. Or the stone looking different because of the natural versus artificial lighting.