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The Cutting Table · a question, worked through

Can you match an exact paint color, CMYK code or another brand's fabric?

Nobody can promise that and mean it. Color changes with the light the way the sea changes with the sky. Here's what the workshop does instead.

Answered by

The Weather Man of Casco Bay ·

Pinned by Callum

The quick answer

No exact match to a paint color, CMYK value or another brand's fabric can be guaranteed, because screens and lighting shift every color. The workshop names the closest codes from its own charts, sends close-up photos to compare, and strongly recommends ordering fabric samples to check side by side at home before a large or furniture-matched order.

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Key facts

  • Exact matches to a CMYK value or paint reference cannot be guaranteed.
  • The workshop does not stock other brands' fabrics.
  • It suggests its nearest chart codes and sends close-up photos.
  • Codes 936 and 937 were suggested for a deep brick red and a pinkish red.
  • Brick, code COR-205, is a rust-tone corduroy.
  • Fabric samples are strongly recommended before large or furniture-matched orders.
  • Physical swatches are roughly palm-sized, about 4 x 4 to 6 x 6 in (10 x 10 to 15 x 15 cm), large enough to hold against a paint chip.
  • The outdoor fabric range alone runs to about 150 to 200 colors across several charts.
  • The striped fabrics are 100% cotton with woven-in stripes, so custom stripe color combinations can't be made.

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Tell them where it lives. Porch, deck or boat: the weather picks the fabric and the foam before anyone else does. — Callum

Leave your details and the workshop will call you to confirm measurements, fabric, foam and piping. No prices, dates or payment on this page: it is a request, not an order.

Fabric · Foam · Pipingwhat the workshop will confirm with you

Fabric
The workshop does not stock other brands' fabrics.
Foam
The core: its density and thickness set the feel.
Piping
The corded seam edge: matching, contrast or none.
Only for this request: no marketing calls or texts. Outside the US, add the country code.
In inches: length × depth × thickness, plus any angles or cut corners.

* Required. A member of the workshop team will call you to talk it through; nothing is charged and nothing is made until you have agreed on every detail with them.

We use these details only to answer this request and make your cushion: your name and contact details, the cushion details and photos you send, the page you came from and the ad or link that brought you, if any. The workshop that makes the cushions receives them. We don't sell them or share them for advertising, and we delete requests after 24 months. Privacy notice for requests.

Nothing is made or charged until you approve the details.

Want to pick the shape and add photos? Use the full quote form

"Can you hit this exact paint chip?"

No. A paint chip, a CMYK code and a screenshot are three different animals, and none of them is woven cloth. Fabric has texture, and texture catches light. The same code reads one way at noon on a patio and another under a lamp at night.

So the workshop won't promise an exact match to a printed or digital reference. It also doesn't stock other brands' fabrics. What it will do is name its nearest codes and show you close-ups of the real cloth.

"Then how does a match get made?"

  1. Send the reference

    A paint name, a CMYK value, a screenshot, or a photo of the fabric or couch you're matching, taken in daylight.

  2. Get the closest codes

    The workshop picks from its charts. For a deep brick red and a pinkish red it named 936 and 937; for a rust corduroy, Brick, code COR-205.

  3. Ask for close-ups

    Close-up photos of each suggested code come free. Ask for them side by side, or with your piping.

  4. Order samples for big jobs

    For large pieces or matching existing furniture, hold the fabric swatches against the real thing at home.

  5. Order with the code confirmed

    Write the chosen code on the order so nothing is left to memory.

"Why can't a photo settle it?"

Because a photo is weather, friend. Phone cameras warm some tones and cool others, and your screen adds its own opinion. The close-ups are honest phone photos, but tones can still shift a little. The screen versus daylight Pattern shows how far.

Fabric type moves color too. The same color name looks different in corduroy, velvet and linen. When a buyer in the US asked about a warm rust and tan designer fabric, the pointer was the workshop's rust and mustard corduroy, with swatches to compare side by side.

What are you matching: a wall, a sofa, or a rug?

A paint chip, a CMYK code and a woven fabric never read the same; order a sample and judge the match in your own daylight.

Callum
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Buyer questions

  1. A common question

    My designer gave me a CMYK value. Can you hit it exactly?

    The workshop's answer

    Not exactly; a printed or digital color reference can't be matched with certainty. The shop picks the closest codes from its charts, as it did with 936 and 937 for a deep brick red and a pinkish red, and sends close-up photos. You can also browse the charts and ask for close-ups of any code.

  2. A common question

    All I have is a screenshot of another brand's color. Can you match it?

    The workshop's answer

    The shop names its closest code, for example Brick, COR-205, for a rust corduroy, and sends close-ups. Screens and lighting change how colors look, so for large pieces or matching existing furniture it strongly recommends ordering samples to compare at home.

  3. A common question

    Do you carry a particular designer fabric, or something close to it?

    The workshop's answer

    Other brands' fabrics aren't stocked, but the closest tones are suggested. For a warm rust and tan designer fabric, the shop pointed to its rust and mustard corduroy, with swatches available to compare side by side.

  4. A common question

    Will you send close-up photos of the codes I'm deciding between?

    The workshop's answer

    Yes. Name the codes and the workshop sends free close-up photos of the real fabric, side by side or with your piping. They're phone photos, so tones can shift slightly; physical samples are the surest check.

Questions buyers ask next

Why does one fabric code look different on my phone and in my living room?

Screens and room lighting both shift color, and a woven texture changes how light lands on it. A close-up photo is still a phone photo, so a physical sample in your own daylight is the surest check before a large order.

What should I send when I ask for a color match?

A clear daylight photo of the thing you're matching, plus any paint name or code you have. The workshop replies with its nearest chart codes and close-ups, and you can then order samples of the likeliest ones.

Which red codes come closest to a deep brick red?

For a deep brick red and a pinkish red, the workshop suggested codes 936 and 937. For a rust tone in corduroy, Brick, code COR-205, is the usual pointer. Ask for close-ups of each before choosing.