Building Your Custom Color

When you have a unique vision, you see it in color. At Sherwin-Williams Coil Coatings, we are passionate about color because we understand its powerful ability to achieve aesthetic dreams. To kick-start inspiration, we have developed a library of more than 50,000 colors that will spark your creativity. We offer support throughout the design, training and application processes to help bring your plans to life.

How custom colors are used

Custom colors are frequently used to achieve brand alignment or exclusive designs. For example, the Crocs flagship store in New York City used a custom color match to achieve the brand’s trademark green. Likewise, designers for the Science of Spirituality International Meditation Center pursued a custom gold exterior coating that fit the building’s aesthetic and could shine both during the day’s sunlight and evening’s illumination.

Special effects also contribute to the custom color process. The Exploration Tower at Port Canaveral chose a pearlescent Kameleon color shift to give the dynamic building the appearance of movement.

How do I create a custom color?

There are three main questions we ask at the start of the custom color development process:

1. What is your color target?

• The color target is the inspiration and intention for a custom color. This could stem from an existing building or a swatch on a color card. The color target could also be more specific, such as a brand color or an object like a leaf or flower. We prefer targets provided in Natural Color System (NCS) codes, as this is a scientific system that translates well to lab processes for color matching.

2. What finish effects are you interested in?

• We offer a variety of special effects to add dimension to finishes, including dazzling sheens and gloss, glittering mica/metallics, intense sparkle, color-shifting pigments, and prints and textures that mimic real-world materials.

3. What coatings technology do you require?

• The right coatings formulation depends on its end use. Technologies such as Fluropon^® 70% PVDF and Illumipon™ FEVE in our coil and extrusion coatings offer diverse performance and appearance solutions for a variety of projects.

Individualized color services from Sherwin-Williams

Since every building project has a distinct vision, our custom color process adapts to each customer. We work closely with architects, manufacturers and building owners to understand their requests and inspiration. 

Based on the color target and technology, we then explore existing resources to build custom color. Our vast color library and color cards contain thousands of colors and effects to choose from. This streamlines the custom color process, as our lab can modify existing formulas to reach the intended finish without starting from scratch.

Sherwin-Williams color experts are constantly expanding our offering to support color-focused customers. Our lab and design teams analyze the movements of color within the industry to produce color forecasts that inform and inspire designers. Additionally, technologies and effects differentiate our solutions, allowing customers to elevate color with customizable gloss, sheen and special effects.

Are you in need of custom color solutions? Contact a Sherwin-Williams color expert to start building today.