How Color Collections are Arranged
We frequently get asked how to find related colors on MyPerfectColor. Usually, paint companies arrange related colors on sample color brochures and within color collections, but if you don't have one of the original brochures, how do you find related monochromatic colors? Monochromatic means the colors have the same hue, and only differ in chromacity (level of saturation) and lightness (light to dark). The clue for finding related colors usually resides in the color numbering system. Not always, but often, paint companies will arrange colors by hue in ascending or descending order of lightness/chromacity. So you can mess around with the search functionality of MyPerfectColor to find what you need.
Figuring Out Color Number Patterns
For example, Benjamin Moore has several different color collections, each with its own numbering system. The classic color numbers range from 001 to 1680, and the preview color collection ranges from 2000-10 through 2175-70. Figuring out the Preview Collection is very easy. The first four digits "2000" equal the hue, and the second two digits represent the lightness/chromacity ranging from 10 (darkest) to 70 (lightest) in increments of 10.
Using MyPerfectColor Search Tools
For illustration, let's take Benjamin Moore's color 2120-20 Black Iron. If you search for "2120-" on MyPerfectColor, you will receive all colors across many different brands that include "2100". There is a filter at the top of the search results for the brand. You can select 'Benjamin Moore' to only show Benjamin Moore colors, and you are left with 7 colors.
Example Paint Color Search Results
Extending This To Other Paint Collection Number Schemes
The Benjamin Moore classic colors can also be figured out but it isn't quite as intuitive. The numbers are arranged by hue in ascending order, but you'll have to figure out where one hue ends and the next one begins. Almost all color collections across all paint brands have some sort of logical pattern to follow for color numbers, so with a little creative problem solving you and using the MyPerfectColor search filters, you can often figure out the related colors to the color you have.
For additional help, visit the MyPerfectColor Color and Design Consultation Services page.