School of Decorating

Decorate with Confidence and Create a Home You Love

  • Free Class
  • Videos
  • Blog
    • How to Decorate
    • Simple DIY Projects
    • Life Tips
    • Success Stories
    • Our Home Tour
  • Classes
  • About
  • Contact

DIY Paint and Fabric Swatch Book

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. I may receive a small commission, at no cost to you, on purchases made after following an affiliate link. See my full disclosure here.

April 26, 2013 By Jackie

I can’t believe I have not made one of these until now. My new little fabric and paint swatch books lets me hold my house in my hands. When I am out shopping, I have all my swatches with me.

goeverywherepaintandfabricswatchbook

I was inspired to create a swatch book after seeing this DIY version. Before I had the chance to stitch together ziploc bags, I stumbled upon inexpensive photo albums at Target. For about $2 I had the foundation of my swatch book. I chose a style that had cover artwork I liked and could reuse for something else.

swatchbook9

To personalize my swatch book I removed the cover art it came with. I replaced it with swatches of one of my favorite fabrics of all time (Braemore Gazebo Cloud). I used the same fabric on the front and back covers.

Paint and Fabric Swatch Book

Inside I used 1-2 photo slots for each room in my house. For each room I inserted the paint chip for the wall color. My paint chips from the Martha Stewart line fit perfectly. In addition to the paint chip for each room, I added any relevant fabric swatches.

Paint & Fabric Swatch Book

swatchbook5

For the basement family room, I even stuck in a small sample of bamboo. It is not the same kind we used in our basement, this sample is a vinyl product, but the color is a good match.

Paint & Fabric Swatch Book

For rooms with less swatches, I just used one page.  My two boys rooms fit side by side.

swatchbook2

I have several empty pages at the back to add on new rooms. Since I never had a consolidated place to keep all my swatches before, I am still hunting down a few to add to the book.

swatchbook8

I used a super special process to label each of the rooms…washi tape and a permanent marker.  I know, I am so high tech!  I simply wrote the name of each room on the washi tape with a permanent marker.  I made sure to let it dry for a moment to avoid smearing.

Paint & Fabric Swatch Book

In other news, how cute is my new lucite tape dispenser by Russel+Hazel?  It and the two new roles of MT Washi Tape are from local shop of all things pretty, Mara Mi.

My paint and fabric swatch book has been so handy to throw in my purse and have with me when I am home shopping. No more risk of buying something that doesn’t go with the other items in my room. It is also great to have with when I need to pick out spray paint or other finishes for a room.

Sharing this post here:
Tatertots and Jello
Home Stories A2Z

Previous Post
3 Tips to Personalize Your Home with Color {Video}
Next Post
My Secret to Finding Inexpensive Pillow Forms

Comments

  1. Adrienne says

    April 26, 2013 at 10:37 am

    Hi, Jackie. Can I make a suggestion for your empty swatch book slots? Print the relevant dimensions of your rooms or major furniture pieces. These are helpful when shopping, too.

    • Jackie says

      April 26, 2013 at 12:21 pm

      Adrienne,

      That is genius!!! Adding measurements is an amazing idea. Thank you!

  2. Hilary Linderman says

    April 26, 2013 at 12:07 pm

    I love this idea! So smart! I’m definitely going to make one of these.
    Thanks for sharing!

  3. Amanda - Small Home Big Start says

    April 26, 2013 at 12:31 pm

    Brilliant idea! I’m always trying to guess if something matches or coordinates well, and I hate getting something home and it is just one shade off from working in with our decor. This would take all the guess work (and many returns) out of it!. Thanks for sharing!

  4. Angie says

    April 26, 2013 at 1:06 pm

    Genius! That’s such a great idea! I’m so doing this…thanks for the idea to make house shopping so much easier!

  5. Melissa says

    April 26, 2013 at 4:40 pm

    Fantastic idea!I’m going to do this. I think I’ll also add a photo of each room, and maybe measurements?

  6. [email protected] says

    April 26, 2013 at 7:20 pm

    Love it! If only I had fabric swatches for my furniture and decor items….I guess this could a ‘going forward’ type of project

  7. Anja says

    April 27, 2013 at 9:56 am

    What a nifty idea! =) How often have I stood in a store and wondered if that beautiful throw pillow would go with the wallpaper!

    • Jackie says

      April 27, 2013 at 6:25 pm

      Anja,
      Definitely add the wallpaper samples…great idea! I don’t currently have any wallpaper in my home, but I imagine it is just as hard to match as fabrics.

  8. Shar says

    April 27, 2013 at 5:42 pm

    This is great! Definitely pinning this for the future.

  9. Sam says

    April 29, 2013 at 9:18 am

    Love this idea. I would also add window dimensions for each room.

  10. Kristin @ Little Corbin Hill says

    May 15, 2013 at 2:41 pm

    What an awesome idea! Thanks for sharing =)

  11. Kaity says

    June 13, 2013 at 2:31 pm

    I love this idea. I finally got around to making my own and I love it! http://engineeringahome.wordpress.com/2013/06/12/custom-decor-swatch-book/

  12. Kaity says

    June 13, 2013 at 2:31 pm

    I love this idea. I finally got around to making my own and I love it! engineeringahome.wordpress.com/2013/06/12/custom-decor-swatch-book/

Hi, I'm Jackie. I believe you are the best person to decorate your home and I'm here to help.

I teach online decorating classes to help you create your dream home. Click on the images below to learn more about each class.

Take an Online Decorating Class

Best for beginners!

12 Class Bundle!

Get a free copy of my book
Free Decorating


Start reading now...

Follow Me Here

Categories

  • How to Decorate
  • Simple DIY Projects
  • Life Tips
  • Success Stories
  • Our Home Tour
I believe you are the best person to decorate your home. You just need a dash of courage and a dose of decorating know-how. That's why I created School of Decorating.

I know how frustrating it is to feel like failure at home. I also know how amazing it feels when decorating finally makes sense and your home reflects you. I want to share what I've learned so you can create a home you love without years of trial and error.

Get a free copy of my best-selling book Free Decorating

  • How to Decorate
  • Simple DIY Projects
  • Life Tips
  • Success Stories
  • Our Home Tour

© 2018 School of Decorating
 · Terms of Use 
· Privacy Policy
 · Disclaimer




This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.

Necessary Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.

Non-necessary

Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.