One of the main reasons I wanted to go to Maria Killam’s True Color Expert Training was to learn how to distinguish and ‘see’ the undertones of color.
I wanted to understand the difference between the various beiges and how they all work together. After taking Maria’s class, I can now ‘see’ the pink, yellow and green undertones in both paint color and furnishing and how they relate/respond to each other when they are together in a room.
Yellow Undertones Pink Undertones
Green Undertones
I had on online color consultation yesterday that I was able to use my newly acquired ‘expert’ training. She had written to me asking for help because she just could not figure out what the problem in the room was, just something was not working. She is keeping the carpet. Here are a few pictures she sent to me:
Do you see the wall color compared to the carpet? I see a lot of pink in the wall beige color. Can you see that? And what undertone do you see in the carpet?
Green undertones! My first suggestion I told her was to take a sample of Huntington Beige HC 21 and lay it down on the carpet and see how that worked together.
Huntington Beige HC-21
“Perfect!” she said. I did have her look at other color samples but she said that the first choice was best. Yay!
Even her beautiful artwork will look better with the greeny Huntington Beige behind it on the wall. I told her the art works well with the rug, it is the wall color throwing off the room. Are you recognizing the undertones when I am pointing them out? It is hard I know.
Pinky Beige Sandy Brown
BM 1046
Yellow Beige
The best advice I can give you when trying to determine an undertone of a color is to compare them together. Put your beige samples right up next to each other to help you see the differences between them. Try laying a couple different samples out on your bathroom tile. Which color sample looks best? Same with your kitchen granite, which undertone is obvious when you sample other beiges next to it? It takes practice. If you want to learn to be an expert on undertones, take Maria’s color training. You will be an expert like me! 
Comments? Questions?
If you need help choosing the right colors for your home, contact me today!
Other related topics:
Benjamin Moore’s New Color Gallery
More Pottery Barn’s Spring 2011 Colors
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Kelly Bernier Designs
I love your site. I recently purchased a new sofa, which is very light khaki colored. My walls are painted SW killum beige and I have a reddish oriental rug. My decorating style tends to be traditional. However, I cannot seem to pull the room together since buying the soda, it seems to just fade into the wall. Can you help me with a paint color? I was looking at BM Huntington Beige, as I feel that I need more of a contrast between the sofa and the walks. Thank you!
Hi I just visited your website and was looking to repaint my family room with a beige color. Currently have sage green with dark chocolate brown couches and a light beige rug. I was looking at adobe beige or even huntington beige. Any suggestions? Also I already use shaker beige in my hallways. I’m trying to brighten this room up! Thanks
Thanks Jenn!
I really enjoyed your blog too! It made me LOL because it sounds like me on a rant!
Kelly, thank you so much for this post. I recently purchased a new home and immediately painted the walls the same color as the model before my furniture came in. Now that it’s here, after reading your post, I realize that my kitchen flooring, cabinets, counters, and my sofas all have a pinkish tint to them, while my wall paint is gold to green at the right time of day. Oyyy, no fun to repaint, and I don’t know how I feel about pink tones on my walls, but I am going to give this a go on one wall and see if it flows a little better. Thanks again!
Kelly, how would you analyze the color on the walls in your beautiful photo above? It apears to be a mix of pink undertone on walls and of course yellow on drapes? BM on walls?
Hi Maureen,
Rich Cream has a lot of yellow undertones. To work with your flooring, try sundial 1100, which has orange undertones and brandy cream 1030 which has red undertones. Test samples next to floor and see which you think is working best. Let me know how you make out!
I have vanilla walls(beige with yellow undertone, I think)but A coffee table, brown and beige(green undertone) and 2 green chairs(dirty green).Looking for a 3seater sofa?
Do green and yellow undertone go together?Which colour sofa can I have choose.I have a rusty/copper accent wall.
Love your blog and maria’s also.
THANKS
MICHELE
My laminate flooring is flame sycamore, don’t know what I was thinking
and can’t be changed. It is like it sounds, orange, but I think it has a pink undertone.
Should I be looking at a peach or pink undertoned neutral to soften it? Because the BM Rich Cream isn’t working…Any suggestions? Thanks Maureen
Thanks so much Ann! I just visited your website- so beautiful!! I love your white kitchen and the way you used color in the galley. That oak(?) table in the kitchen is to die for!!
You are the bomb. Thanks for sharing this. You make it soooo
easy. Our guru Maria would be very proud of you.
Ann