In Event Design App, you recolor a model by selecting exactly one model in a 3D plan, opening the Colors card in Properties, picking a tint for each material, and clicking Apply. Only models with editable materials show Colors; a Tiffany chair has two, a frame and a seat. If no Colors card appears, that model can't be recolored.
Scope: 3D plans only, one model at a time. Colors does not appear in 2D plans or when several objects are selected.
A client wants gold chair frames with white seats (a different color or finish on one part of an item). You can do that — but only on models that expose editable materials, and not every model does. This article shows how, and how to tell before you waste a click.
📺 Duplicate, Delete, Undo, and Redo Safely — recolor a Tiffany chair and a table linen, then save.
Not every model has editable materials. Some do; many don't. Older objects already in a scene may not have the configuration either.
You'll know in two seconds. Select one model and look at Properties (the settings panel) on the right:
A Colors card appears — it shows how many material colors the model has (for example, 2 material colors) and a row of color swatches. This model can be recolored.
No Colors card — this model doesn't support it. Pick a compatible alternative from the Catalog instead of hunting for a control that isn't there.
The Colors card is also hidden when you have more than one object selected, and in 2D plans.
⚠ No Colors card is not a bug and not something you can switch on. It means that model has no editable materials. Choose a different model.
[SCREENSHOT 1 — Properties panel for a Tiffany chair with the Colors card visible, "2 material colors" and two swatches]
You recolor a model (change its color) from the Colors window in Properties.
Switch to a 3D plan and select exactly one model — for example a Tiffany chair.
In Properties, open Colors.
The window, which says Choose a tint for each model material. Existing texture detail is preserved., lists each material by name, with a color swatch. A Tiffany chair has two: a frame and a seat.
Click a swatch and choose a color. Change one material at a time and check which surface it affects. For example, a warm gold for the frame, leaving the seat white.
The model previews your change immediately. Orbit around it to check.
Click Apply to keep it. The window closes and the color stays on the model.
Save the plan.
[SCREENSHOT 2 — the Colors window with two materials listed, one changed to gold, Reset all / Cancel / Apply buttons]
The Colors window has three buttons:
Button | What it does |
|---|---|
Apply | Keeps the colors you've chosen |
Cancel | Discards the preview and leaves the model as it was |
Reset all | Puts every material back to the model's default colors |
⚠ The preview isn't permanent until you click Apply. Close the window without applying and the model reverts.
A color here is a tint: it's applied per material and preserves the original texture detail, such as fabric weave or wood grain. You aren't painting a flat color over the model. Check the result in Perspective before you commit.
A table with linens changes its cloth (tablecloth) through Linens, a separate picker. In that picker you search by name ("blue"), pick a solid like Dark Blue, and click Apply. The cloth changes while the table's shape and position don't. Other models with variations use Options for the same thing.
Colors and Linens/Options are different controls. A model might have one, both or neither. See Use the Properties panel.
To confirm a color change stuck, work through these checks:
In Perspective, orbit around the model and look at every angle. Finishes should change appearance without moving, stretching or replacing the object.
Try Undo (Ctrl+Z on Windows, Cmd+Z on a Mac) to compare the original finish, then Redo to bring the color back.
Click Save and wait for Saving to finish. Autosave also runs about 60 seconds after your last change.
Go back to the project and reopen the plan. Confirm the colors are there before an export or handoff.
💡 Use a few checkpoint objects. For example: blue table, gold chair, white chairs nearby. When you reopen the plan, you can see at a glance whether everything survived.
Add a current Tiffany chair and select it. Confirm that Colors appears.
Change one material to gold, leave the other white, and Apply.
Select a model that has no Colors card and note what's different.
Select two chairs and notice the card disappear.
Open Colors on the gold chair, change something, and Cancel. Then open it again and use Reset all.
Save, reopen and check.
There's no Colors card. That model doesn't expose editable materials. Choose a compatible alternative. Also check that you have exactly one object selected, and you're in a 3D plan.
The Colors card disappeared when I selected two things. Colors works on one model at a time.
My color change vanished. You closed the window without Apply, or you didn't save. Reapply, then Save.
The color looks different from the swatch. The color is a tint applied over the model's existing texture, not a flat fill. Check it in Perspective.
I want the original color back. Open Colors and click Reset all, then Apply.
My table's color doesn't change. Tables with linens use Linens, not Colors.
That model doesn't expose editable materials, which is not a bug and not something you can switch on. Colors also hides when more than one object is selected or in 2D plans. Select one model in a 3D plan, or choose a compatible alternative from the Catalog.
Yes, on models that expose separate materials. A Tiffany chair has two: a frame and a seat. Open Colors, click the frame's swatch, choose a gold, leave the seat white, check the preview from several angles, then click Apply and save the plan.
You probably closed the Colors window without clicking Apply, because the preview isn't permanent until you apply it, or you didn't save the plan. Reapply the colors, click Apply, then Save and wait for the button to return from Saving.
Open Colors on the model, click Reset all to put every material back to the model's default colors, then click Apply. Cancel instead discards the preview and leaves the model as it was before you opened the window. Undo and Redo also let you compare finishes.
Tables with linens use Linens, not Colors. Select the table, open Linens, search by name such as blue, choose a solid like Dark Blue, and click Apply. The cloth changes while the table's shape and position stay put. Other models with variations use Options.
A color is applied as a tint over the model's existing texture, so fabric weave or wood grain detail is preserved rather than painted over with a flat fill. Check the result in Perspective and orbit around the model before you commit with Apply.