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Furniture Home Decorating Design Dilemma

Will fabric read lighter or darker than the sample swatch?

2 years ago

I’m selecting a navy fabric for a large sectional. When it is applied to the sofa will it appear lighter or darker than the small 3” x3 card? I know lighting, paint, carpet, time of day all affect it - but assuming all things considered are equal - will it look darker or lighter once all upholstered? I’m struggling that crate and barrel doesn’t let you bring big samples into the house like other stores do.
I’ve put photos of the large swatch in the store and a picture of the whole large sectionals.

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Comments (3)

kandrewspa
2 years ago
It shouldn't appear much lighter or darker, but the shade of blue will probably look different at home. I hope you have at least a small sample of the fabric that you can look at at home. Our perception of color depends a lot on the lighting.

If you're afraid a navy sofa will be too much blue, look at pictures on Houzz that feature navy sofas. It's a pretty popular color. Whether it looks good or not also depends on what else is in the room.
apple_pie_order
2 years ago
Show rooms are usually much brighter lit than homes. It will probably appear dark and not so blue at home. If you take your tiny sample to a fabric store, you can buy a yard of inexpensive navy fabric that matches it closely. Then use that to drape around at home as a pretty good indicator of how the real fabric will look at home. There will be differences, of course, because the fabric store fabric will not be the real thing.
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R M
Original Author
2 years ago
Thanks yes I have three 3x3 squares against the carpet and floor and wall and try to put them together to get an idea.
Good idea to find something similar at a fabric store If I can find comparable

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