# Musket in a traditional room

Musket, from the Mullican Williamsburg Plank 4" Hickory line, is a mid dark hickory hardwood with an amber undertone (measured from its own picture: LRV 14). Here it is with Stonington Gray walls, Swiss Coffee trim and Palladian Blue on the cabinets, chosen by the numbers.

A vision board by Powell Flooring, 1811 Union Valley Rd, West Milford, NJ 07480, 973-728-9717. AI assisted: the rooms are AI generated, simulated photos; the floor, the paint colors and every number are real.
Page: https://www.powellflooring.com/vision-boards/musket-traditional

## The floor
- Musket, Mullican Williamsburg Plank 4" Hickory: Solid hickory hardwood · Hickory · 4 in (SKU 22869)
- Every color and detail: https://www.powellflooring.com/floors/mullican/williamsburg-plank-4-hickory/musket

## Measured from its own picture
- LRV (light reflectance value, 0 black to 100 white): 14
- CIELAB (D65): L* 43.8, a* 7.8, b* 15.5, chroma 17.4, hue 63.2 degrees
- Undertone: an amber undertone, warm and a little orange
- The grain and color of Musket move from board to board (a spread of 3.6 in L*), which helps hide everyday wear.

## Paint
- Walls: Stonington Gray (Benjamin Moore HC-170, LRV 59.4, +45.7 from the floor). Its undertone leans green (hue 117°), which quiets the orange in Musket (hue 63°) instead of echoing it. Source: https://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-colors/color/hc-170/stonington-gray
- Or walls: Sea Salt (Sherwin-Williams SW 6204, LRV 63.2, +49.5 from the floor). Its undertone leans green (hue 133°), which quiets the orange in Musket (hue 63°) instead of echoing it. Source: https://www.sherwin-williams.com/en-us/color/color-family/green-paint-colors/sw6204-sea-salt/
- Trim and ceilings: Swiss Coffee (Benjamin Moore OC-45, LRV 81.9). 68 points over Musket in LRV and warm enough (chroma 5.7) to read white, not blue, beside its amber undertone. Source: https://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-colors/color/oc-45/swiss-coffee
- Cabinets: Palladian Blue (Benjamin Moore HC-144, LRV 60.4). A light color with some life in it, so cabinets float off Musket (a 47 point step in LRV). Source: https://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-colors/color/hc-144/palladian-blue
- Cabinets in Palladian Blue or Swiss Coffee: a dark floor needs light cabinets to float above it.

## Wood, rugs and metals
- Wood a step darker: a charcoal wood, like our Ebony stain sample. About 15 points darker than Musket in L* (29 against 44), far enough to read as a choice.
- Wood a step lighter: a light natural wood, like our Silvered Gray stain sample. About 17 points lighter than Musket in L* (61 against 44).
- Rug or fabric, tone on tone: putty (#bcada3). 8 in chroma, half the warmth of Musket (17), and 28 points lighter in L*.
- Rug or fabric, across the wheel: mist blue (#a3b9c5). Hue 243°, straight across the color wheel from the 63° of Musket, softened to balance it.
- Rug or fabric, grounding: espresso (#372f29). A deep note at L* 20, 24 points from the 44 of Musket, so a rug keeps its edge.
- Metal: unlacquered brass. A warm metal that agrees with the amber undertone of Musket (hue 63°).
- Metal: aged brass. A second warm metal in a worn finish, so the brass beside Stonington Gray walls never looks new and loud.
- Metal: matte black. Black works with every undertone; beside Musket at LRV 14 it gives the room its outline.

## Room by room
- Living room: Stonington Gray walls, Swiss Coffee trim and crown, a patterned rug in mist blue and espresso on Musket, furniture in a charcoal wood, unlacquered brass lamps.
- Kitchen: Cabinets in Palladian Blue so they float off Musket, Swiss Coffee walls and trim, aged brass pulls.
- Dining room: Sea Salt walls, a table in a charcoal wood, chairs in putty, an unlacquered brass chandelier.
- Bedroom: Stonington Gray walls, putty bedding, a mist blue throw, nightstands in a light natural wood.

## What to avoid
- Walls at the lightness of Musket: Rosemary (Sherwin-Williams SW 6187, LRV 13.6) sits within a point of its LRV of 14, so wall and floor would blur into one.
- Wood that almost matches Musket: a tone like our Nutmeg sample, 4.3 apart (CIEDE2000), reads as a near miss. Go clearly darker or lighter.
- Pink or peach beige walls: they pull more orange out of the amber undertone of Musket (hue 63°).

## The room it suits
- At LRV 14, Musket is mid dark: it is at its best in a big room with good light and warm lamps, and it shows dust, pet hair and fine scratches more than a mid tone.
- At 4 inches a board, Musket lays about 36 boards across a 12 foot room.
- Solid hardwood: living spaces and bedrooms above grade, kept out of baths and basements.
- Hardness: Hickory: Janka 1,820 lbf (the force to press a steel ball halfway into the wood; a higher number dents less under heels and chair legs)
- Construction: Solid hickory hardwood (one piece of wood top to bottom, sanded and refinished for decades)
- Finish: Aluminum Oxide Finish

## Sources
- Paint names, codes, hex and LRV as Sherwin-Williams and Benjamin Moore publish them (each color links to its page).
- BS 8300-2:2018 asks for a difference of at least 30 LRV points between adjacent surfaces, such as a floor and a wall, so the surfaces read apart.
- The floor measured from its own picture in CIELAB (D65); the wood tones from our own photographs of 37 stains on oak.
- Janka hardness from the National Wood Flooring Association species guide, Technical Publication A200 (2004), its relative hardness chart.