Samplize Peel & Stick Paint Samples Real-Life Review
Do you have a painting project on your DIY home improvement list this year? But are you unsure what color of paint your want to use? Here is our real experience with peel-and-stick paint samples.
*Disclosure: I only recommend products I would use myself and all opinions expressed here are our own. This post may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission. Read our full privacy policy.
Our Next Painting Project
We have been thinking of repainting cabinets in our kitchen for a while now. Our white painted oak cabinets were done over 8 years ago. While our cabinet painting method has lasted pretty well, a fresh coat of paint was needed on the bottom cabinets and doors.
The kitchen island is the perfect place to experiment with a new color. Trying these peel-and-stick paint samples from Samplize was a no-brainer. It was a great idea for this project since we were not 100% sure of the color we wanted.
Why not just buy small jars of paint?
There was one major problem with testing paint samples in a traditional sense. When I went to buy a few small paint samples, Sherwin Williams didn’t have any. Because I needed to see the colors on a larger chip it was the perfect time to try a company that we were curious about.
Yes, we are an affiliate for them, but that is not why we wanted to try this product. We also love finding new things that can help out our readers. Here is our honest review of these peel-and-stick paint samples.
Before You Order
Have you gone to the paint store only to come home with so many free paint chips? Those little paint chips are a great starting point, but it is always hard to make a choice from such a small chip.
Narrow done a few favorites from the small chips before you go to order large ones. This is a great way to really make sure you like your paint color choice.
Know The Paint Brand You Want To Use
I am a Sherwin Williams girl (I am from Ohio and so is Sherwin Williams) and we knew we wanted to try their newer Emerald line of cabinet paint. We knew Samplize peel and stick samples are available in most Sherwin Williams paint colors.
What is Samplize? Is Samplize a legit company?
Samplize makes peel-and-stick paint samples made with real paint from brands like Sherwin Williams, Benjamin Moore, PPG and Farrow & Ball. According to their website, each 12” x 12” sample is handpainted with 2 coats of paint.
Samplize was founded by Taylor Thomas and Amber Thomas, interior designers from the Nashville area. She also owns a storefront called Providence Interiors.
Why Use Samplize?
- They can wrap around corners.
- The paint samples are handpainted with two coats.
- They are created using REAL paint and not dyed to look like paint.
- These paint samples have a texture like drywall for a more accurate color showing.
- If you don’t take the backing off, you can reuse them.
- Larger paint samples can be brought with you to make design decisions and try in different spots.
- No mess trying to make your paint sample boards.
- No leftover paint to deal with.
- In some ways, more eco-friendly as there is no leftover paint to dispose of.
Samplize was the perfect solution to test paint colors out, especially since some stores are having a difficult time keeping paint samples in stock.
Pros To Samples
As I stated in the beginning, I went to our local Sherwin Williams to grab a few paint samples of the colors I was considering.
Available Even When Stores Don’t Have Small Samples
Only to find out that Sherwin Williams didn’t have any paint samples available due to storms in the country a while back. This was actually a blessing to try a new way to see what colors you love.
Wrap Around Corners
You are also able to get a larger paint sample that can stick. Trying to use these around the corner of my cabinet was a good idea. The lighting on one side of my island is definitely different than the other. The wrap-around idea sounded like a good idea.
What about ordering larger paint samples from the actual store?
I could have ordered a larger paint sample from Sherwin Williams, but it would not have been sticky, still have cost money and I think I would have had to come back to the store to pick it up.
Update: Sherwin Williams must have realized that peel-and-stick samples are a great way to let people test samples. They now carry a few of the most popular colors in their stores.
Super Convenient
Depending on if you want leftover paint or not, this is a great way to avoid being wasteful. You can also order directly from your home or couch.
Not to mention, I love the idea that all the colors I wanted to see were going to come to my house in less than a week. If you are unsure of the brand you want to use, this is a great way to compare similar colors from different companies.
You can see the finished painted cabinets and more ways we used paint to update our kitchen.
Help With Your Design Choices
We plan on taking our large samples with us to the tile shop to help pick out a backsplash that we might want to use. This will be extremely helpful to see a larger sample of color next to items we are considering.
However, if you plan on doing this, you may just want to use painter’s tape when attaching the sample and not take it off of the backing.
Once you take the backing off, it is really hard to reapply. Just make sure you are 100% ready for that commitment. We ended up not needing to take these samples to the store because we didn’t end up replacing our kitchen backsplash. We painted the tile (and used samples to help find the best white paint for our space).
Samples Can Even Be Repainted
According to the Samplize website, you can even repaint these. That might be an option if you save the sample and want to test what another brand or color might look like over your current paint selection.
They Have Real Drywall Texture
We were intrigued and loved seeing that these paint samples tried to imitate the texture you might see on drywall. Samplize paint sample definitely seemed richer in color than a dyed small paint chip.
How long does it take for Samplize samples to arrive?
Some of the comments on Facebook groups or other reviews said that the samples were taking forever to arrive. So naturally, I was very curious about how this would go. I live in the midwest of the United States.
Obviously, my turnaround time may be different than in other locales. I can’t imagine it to be too different.
Delivered In 4 Days
I ordered my paint samples at 6 a.m. on a Friday and received them the following Tuesday morning (possibly Monday night). Therefore this was an awesome and timely way to check out some paint samples. We ordered these again when deciding on a bedroom paint color. They took 4 days as well to arrive.
Does Samplize offer a discount?
They offer different discounts at various times. If you add an item to your cart you may see if they are running a discount.
Samplize Promo: Use this code “FIRSTFIVE” to get $5 off for a first-time customer.
What about the quality of Samplize paint samples?
The samples are said to be actually painted with the actual paint. Paint samples from the stores are dyed just to look like the color and therefore are sometimes not nearly as accurate.
We also noticed that the paint samples seem to have more of a similar texture that you won’t be able to achieve with the 2” sample.
Also, make sure if you are using these that you do not place them on freshly painted surfaces. We found that if masking tape would not damage our wall then we were good. Just be cautious as we read a few reviews that talked about taking the paint off the wall. My guess is that they were freshly painted.
Recently we repainted our primary bedroom and used Samplize paint samples to help us determine the best Sherwin Williams navy blue color. We ended up just using painter’s tape to keep the large samples up. There really wasn’t a need to peel them as we didn’t have corners or anything to wrap around.
See how accurate the dark navy blue paint color sample was compared to the finished painted wall at the end of this post.
How did our cabinets hold up when putting the sample around the corner?
You can see in my video in this post, that I lightly attached the Samplize paint sample to the corner of my kitchen island cabinet. I was able to easily pull off the sample and kind of stick it back on the backing.
People complain about not being able to save them once the backing is off. So it won’t be perfect, but you can put your Samplize paint sample kind of back on the paper. And I thought of just trimming the edges so that I could save the larger square in case I needed it.
Where to buy Samplize?
Home Depot recently started carrying Samplize samples as a variety of boxes of neutral gray or trendy colors to order. From what we can tell, you get 6 paint samples in a box. If these were the colors you plan on getting it may be cheaper to get the box.
Or consider just buying the peel-and-stick paint samples directly from their website.
If you are really confused and just don’t have time to go to a paint store, then you can always purchase the whole paint chip collection from Sherwin Williams.
Where to put your paint samples to help make your color decision?
Paint is one of those tricky (but most bang for your buck, if that makes sense) design choices to make. Paint and colors will all relate to each other. Here are a few places to consider placing your samples to make sure your color combination works in your space.
Tips For Paint Sample Placement
- Next to home decor and furniture items that you are keeping. If you love that new couch, then you really want to make sure that your new paint goes with it.
- Next to your trim colors. Is your trim white or wood, this will impact the appearance of your paint.
- Next to stone or tile in your space.
- On cabinets
- In different lighting situations: consider natural light, what does your home look like at night with just your lights on, with no lights on or any combination and different time of day
- Near windows as well. Did you know your landscaping outside can reflect or change the appearance of the color?
Cons To Using Samplize
- The biggest con that I personally have experienced is that one of the colors I wanted from Sherwin Williams wasn’t available. I honestly think I picked one of the newest Sherwin Williams colors to get a sample of.
- Once the backing is off you are committed to placing it in different places carefully. It is really hard to put it back on the backing board if you want to save it. But it can be done. Honestly, just trim the extra that is hanging off to save the larger square.
- One of our paint samples had little white specks on it probably from rubbing together in the envelope. It really didn’t impact our ability to make a color decision though.
- You can’t get these paint samples (or any paint samples really) in all finishes. This Spruce article may help you figure out what finish you want after you figure out your color.
How accurate are Samplize paint samples compared to the actual paint?
Pretty accurate we would say. Here is an image of Indigo Batik by Sherwin Willams after I painted the wall with the same color in a Satin finish. You can see that is pretty accurate in our opinion.
Will they be adding any new paint brands to their sample collection?
We were unable to find out if they plan on adding more paint lines in their samples. We will let you know what we find out. All in all, we were happy to have used Samplize paint samples. Not only did it save one more trip to the paint store, but we were easily able to browse colors at home.
What to see more about Samplize?
Check out this simple Youtube video (or click the image) we did and get behind-the-scenes info from us painting our bedroom and kitchen island.
Other Paint Sample FAQs
They are located in Chatanooga, Tenessee.
Sherwin Williams, Farrow & Ball, Benjamin Moore, Home Depot and PPG.
More Painting DIY Projects
- DIY Ombre Hexagon Wall: Still a fun way to use up those old paint samples if you do not use Samplize.
- 15 Home Paint Projects That Can Modernize Your Home
- How To Easily Paint Bathroom Cabinets
Follow us on Pinterest, Youtube or Facebook for more DIY inspiration!
Final Thoughts
We have ordered these paint samples for 3 more painting projects. The colors are very accurate and it is a great mess-free way to test out paint colors. We also love the convenience of being able to order from home.
I’m sure you were paid to promote Samplize, and I can’t argue that their product is the best paint sample on the market (for the brands that they carry), but their company is a joke. They shipped my samples 3 weeks after I ordered them, but only after I reminded them on social media that I had an order. Apparently they forgot to ship it. Great way to run a business. 🙄ðŸ˜
Hi Cynthia. I actually was not paid by Samplize (I do make a small commission if people do buy from them, but they did not pay for this review). I was just sharing my experience with the peel and stick paint samples. I am sorry that you had that experience. Hopefully, at least the paint samples helped you make your choices.