Cool Tool: Color of Inspiration

Awhile back, I blogged a color-palette generator that let you upload a photo, which it then scanned before spitting out a collection of colors used to make up the image.

It was a nifty little tool for translating rooms that appealed or even a piece of art you were inspired by into a set of colors with which you could then use for decorating projects of your own. But it had one major drawback: The colors the tool spat out were web-based color codes that you then had to match at the paint store -- and not actual paint hues.

Now there's an online tool from paint manufacturer Sherwin-Williams that does essentially the same thing, with one significant improvement: The end result is a palette of specific paint colors.

The Color of Inspiration site is simple and fun to use: Just upload a photo, click on the color in the photo you're trying to match, and let the tool do its work. Within a few seconds, you'll have your paint color -- including the name and number -- as well as two coordinating shades. (My only complaint is that you can match only one color at a time. It would be great if you could select, say, two or three areas in the photo and get those colors all at once. But it's a small quibble.) When you're done, print the page and take it with you to the paint store.

Of course, Sherwin-Williams is hoping you'll go straight to the Sherwin-Williams paint store, but any good paint shop can match shades from other companies.

Give it a spin and let me know what you think.