Please tell me you sang that title to the tune of the Brady Bunch. If not, take a moment — it makes everything better.

With that out of the way, I wanted to share the inspiration that has become our unofficial command center for the new house: a single napkin we found on clearance at Crate & Barrel. That little square of fabric has been surprisingly influential in shaping our color decisions throughout the house.

Honestly, that napkin is like the cheeky captain of Casa Petersik when it comes to choosing colors and narrowing down an overall whole-house palette. It’s bold, bossy, and unapologetically fun. Thankfully, it doesn’t come with a bullhorn — Burger would have none of that.

When it came time to pick the paint for the back of the built-in bookcases, the napkin served as our starting point. The same applies to the blue-green-gray we selected for the bedroom walls and the artichoke-green tone we’re considering for the kitchen. Our process is simple: we pull paint swatches, place them on the wall in each room, see which colors read best in that specific light, choose a favorite, and then check that it sits nicely next to the napkin before purchasing paint. We aren’t obsessively matching every color to the napkin — we pick what looks best in each room and then make sure it harmonizes with our little muse.

Not every swatch looks exactly as it does in photos — lighting and context change everything — so always test paint samples in your own space before committing. For reference, the top swatch we considered is the blue-green-gray used in our bedroom, which reads relatively calm and neutral beside the napkin’s lively pattern. The next swatch down is the shade we used on the back of the bookcases, a moody green that can look darker depending on light and camera settings. Another swatch is a soft agave green we’re contemplating for the kitchen, something that reads fresh and botanical. There’s also a deep aubergine-plum color with chocolate undertones that we’d love to work into the house somewhere once we’re feeling particularly brave. Finally, one of the samples is a richly layered teal that looks even deeper in person than any photo can capture — a color I’m slowly convincing myself would be amazing in the hall bathroom.

What is it about that napkin that speaks to us? We don’t have a grand explanation. We simply like the way the colors interact and the energy they create together. If a palette can sing on a small square of fabric, we figure it can sing across rooms, too. It might sound whimsical — and maybe it is — but it’s a practical tool as well. I can slip the napkin into my bag while we’re out shopping and use it as a quick reference for anything that might work in our home. If something looks good next to the napkin, it probably will look good in our space.

Where will all of this lead us in the end? That remains to be seen. We’re taking things one room at a time and intentionally leaning into bolder color choices and more playful patterns than we did in our first house. With a little one in the mix, our aesthetic has shifted away from the beachy, airy neutrals we favored before and toward a more confident use of color. It’s an experiment in personality, and so far it’s been fun — sometimes surprising, sometimes challenging, but always a little more lively. We’re excited to keep exploring and to see how these colors and patterns come together as the house evolves.