My Favorite Places to Order Material Samples.
The Best Way to See the Whole Picture? Gather Samples and Probably Too Many!
I order a mildly unreasonable number of samples. It’s very hard to judge color, texture, scale, or finish from a screen, and I’d much rather spend a few dollars on samples than discover I hate something after 80 square feet of it has been installed. These are the places I use when I want the real thing in my hands without making the process unnecessarily difficult.
A quick note: Some links in this post are affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you make a purchase through them, at no additional cost to you. I only share products and sources I genuinely recommend. Affiliate marketing has not funded my early retirement yet. For now, it’s mostly walking-around money and an excuse to order more samples.
DesignShop
A great starting point when you want to see a range of materials in one place without bouncing between a dozen websites.
Wallpaper Direct
One of my favorite places to browse wallpaper because the selection is huge and you can order samples before committing to covering an entire room.
Wallpaper samples.
Bedrosians
An easy way to sample tile without buying a full box just to find out it looks completely different in your house.
A bathroom remodel design board.
Samplize
My go-to for paint samples because seeing a large swatch on the actual wall is infinitely more useful than choosing from a tiny paint chip.
Paint swatches.
