Picture this: You’re standing in a store aisle, one kid tugging at your shirt complaining she’s starving, the other kid’s fiercely fighting the shopping cart buckle – screaming because you won’t hand over your iphone for him to play games. You just found a smokin’ deal on that thing you’ve been hunting for… but is it the right color?!

Do you know that color memory is actually one of the least reliable recalls we have?

Tired of buying home accessories only to end up returning them because they were slightly the wrong hue, I decided to put together a portable paint deck of all the colors I’ve used in our home. You can, too!

Buy large craft sticks – these can be found at Walmart, Hobby Lobby, Michaels, etc.

Using sturdy kitchen scissors, cut the sticks about 3.5″ long.

To ensure they are all the same length, use your first stick as a template to mark the rest.

Drill a hole 3/4″ down from the cut side. Even though mine are already painted, I’d recommend not painting them before drilling. That way, if one cracks, you haven’t wasted your time.

Again, use the first hole as a template to drill through the others. Drill holes in more sticks than you need. That way you can have “blanks” to easily paint new swatches as you continue adding color to rooms.

Gather your house colors and paint the stick ends on just one side. Do 2 coats for adequate coverage. Let dry.

Purchase metal binder rings. (found mine at Target)

Loop your painted sticks on and label the back sides for reference.

Smaller, regular-sized Popsicle sticks could work also. However, I found it more difficult to hand-write info on them.

You don’t have to be flustered by demanding kids to benefit from a personal portable paint deck! This baby stays tucked in my purse and has already saved me from a handful of wayward purchases.