Pearsalls Color Chart

Moderators: William Anderson, letumgo

Greenwell
Posts: 346
Joined: Fri Apr 08, 2011 9:05 pm

Pearsalls Color Chart

Post by Greenwell » Sat Dec 01, 2018 2:17 pm

I scanned a Pearsalls Silk Color Chart and thought I would share it with you.  These charts used to sell for just a few dollars but are now almost impossible to find.  I make no claims as to how close the colors are to the original but it should be useful as a guideline.
I scanned a Pearsalls Silk Color Chart and thought I would share it with you. These charts used to sell for just a few dollars but are now almost impossible to find. I make no claims as to how close the colors are to the original but it should be useful as a guideline.
Pearsalls Chart.jpg (219.11 KiB) Viewed 104359 times
Greenwell
Posts: 346
Joined: Fri Apr 08, 2011 9:05 pm

Re: Pearsalls Color Chart

Post by Greenwell » Sat Dec 01, 2018 2:20 pm

And here are the number/color references from a Veniards catalog.
And here are the number/color references from a Veniards catalog.
Silk Numbers.jpg (71.66 KiB) Viewed 104358 times
User avatar
hankaye
Posts: 6582
Joined: Tue Jun 08, 2010 4:59 pm
Location: Arrey, N.M. aka 32°52'37.63"N, 107°18'54.18"W

Re: Pearsalls Color Chart

Post by hankaye » Sun Dec 02, 2018 9:57 am

WiFlyfisher, Howdy;

I reckon the answer would be, "we are just supposed to know". that applies
only if we had several spools of each color.

The same question could be asked about women and new born children,...
we are just supposed to know ... :roll:

hank
Striving for a less complicated life since 1949...
"Every day I beat my own previous record for number
of consecutive days I've stayed alive." George Carlin
User avatar
tie2fish
Posts: 5072
Joined: Sun Feb 22, 2009 9:11 am
Location: Harford County, MD

Re: Pearsalls Color Chart

Post by tie2fish » Sun Dec 02, 2018 10:57 am

Very nice find, John. Two spools of purple and is that a spool of ash in there?
Some of the same morons who throw their trash around in National parks also vote. That alone would explain the state of American politics. ~ John Gierach, "Still Life with Brook Trout"
User avatar
letumgo
Site Admin
Posts: 13345
Joined: Sat Feb 21, 2009 7:55 pm
Location: Buffalo, New York
Contact:

Re: Pearsalls Color Chart

Post by letumgo » Sun Dec 02, 2018 11:21 am

Thanks John.

When we had our first flymph gathering (June 2012), we took pictures of Pete Hidy's color chart, on which he had written the names for each of the colors of silk.

Image

Image

I remember seeing that he had also written the color & number on each of his wooden spools of silk.

Image

Image
Ray (letumgo)----<°))))))><
http://www.flytyingforum.com/index.php? ... er=letumgo

"The world is perfect. Appreciate the details." - Dean
Greenwell
Posts: 346
Joined: Fri Apr 08, 2011 9:05 pm

Re: Pearsalls Color Chart

Post by Greenwell » Sun Dec 02, 2018 11:53 am

Very nice! I think that your camera caught the colors better than my scanner.
When the spools were wooden, I would always write the color number on them. The plastic spools were much less satisfying then the wooden spools in many ways.
User avatar
letumgo
Site Admin
Posts: 13345
Joined: Sat Feb 21, 2009 7:55 pm
Location: Buffalo, New York
Contact:

Re: Pearsalls Color Chart

Post by letumgo » Sun Dec 02, 2018 11:59 am

Agreed. I've tried writing on the plastic spools with Sharpie markers, but unfortunately the writing tends to wear off after a while.
Ray (letumgo)----<°))))))><
http://www.flytyingforum.com/index.php? ... er=letumgo

"The world is perfect. Appreciate the details." - Dean
Greenwell
Posts: 346
Joined: Fri Apr 08, 2011 9:05 pm

Re: Pearsalls Color Chart

Post by Greenwell » Sun Dec 02, 2018 12:08 pm

The Pete Hidy color references are useful in correlating his terminology to the Pearsalls names/numbers. I just transcribed them to a color list.
daringduffer
Posts: 2195
Joined: Sun Feb 22, 2009 5:11 am

Re: Pearsalls Color Chart

Post by daringduffer » Sun Dec 02, 2018 2:34 pm

I keep that collection of 24 wooden spools, that Mikael Modig photographed for me, in a clear acrylic box for reference together with a Pearsalls reference chart just like the one John Shaner showed. Number 15 maroon is a much more interesting shade than comes through in the photos. It is very difficult to photograph all colours at the same time because they need different lighting to show their best. In the photo of my spools, the first four look washed out compared to how they look in real life.

I'm down to no more than about sixty spools by now, maybe even less...

dd
User avatar
Theroe
Posts: 1450
Joined: Sat Feb 25, 2017 11:42 pm
Location: New York City

Re: Pearsalls Color Chart

Post by Theroe » Mon Dec 03, 2018 7:16 am

Great, great photo- thank you John. I love the footnote on the left card : “larger spools may be wound to order”....... Who would’ve known ?????
Soft and wet - the only way....
Post Reply