Paint writ large

Think of it as a paint chip on steroids: Hirshfield's has introduced the "Big Swatch," shown below, an 11-inch square several times the size of most paint chips.

The heavy card stock squares are painted, rather than inked, and are available in the store's 168-color "Color is ..." collection. Each sample costs $2.49, or $1.99 to members of the Color Club (Hirshfield's free service that archives your paint selections and sends advance sales notices, among other features).

The painted cards are neither returnable nor recyclable, alas, but their life cycle is likely not over in the hands of clever crafters.

Pottery Barn pops Pottery Barn loyalists who plopped onto their beige sofas to enjoy the retailer's latest catalog got a shock: What are these red and orange poppy print duvets and bright yellow lamps splashed all over the pages of its neutral lifestyle?

Pottery Barn, a division of Williams-Sonoma, has struggled in this weak consumer market, especially with the housing and credit crunch, according to Joseph Feldman, senior research analyst at Telsey Advisory Group, a New York retail consulting firm. "Williams-Sonoma has embarked on an aggressive plan to turn around the core Pottery Barn business. They feel it might have gone a bit too upscale, and it has been copied so much that they had to do something," Feldman said.

The "something" appears to be a jolt of color and a more urban, hip look, though the cottage-y coffee tables and turned-leg dining chairs still can be found in the back of the catalog.

Pottery Barn spokeswoman Leigh Oshirak said the new products reflect what consumers want. "Currently, color is still a big trend," she said in an e-mail. "People respond in an emotional way to color. You are seeing so much color out in the marketplace in appliances, cars, technology. Why not give customers what they want, which is bold, bright color that makes them feel happy?"

WASHINGTON POST