diff --git a/src/App.svelte b/src/App.svelte
index d80452e0..12b76af1 100644
--- a/src/App.svelte
+++ b/src/App.svelte
@@ -137,7 +137,4 @@
   .main-content {
     min-width: 0;
   }
-  .top-bar {
-    min-height: 50px !important;
-  }
 </style>
diff --git a/src/controls/GetColorsFromString.svelte b/src/controls/GetColorsFromString.svelte
index 498ccbbd..dded94bb 100644
--- a/src/controls/GetColorsFromString.svelte
+++ b/src/controls/GetColorsFromString.svelte
@@ -2,33 +2,30 @@
   import { Color } from "../lib/Color";
   import type { ColorWrap } from "../types";
   import configStore from "../stores/config-store";
-  import { wrapInBlankSemantics } from "../lib/utils";
+  import { wrapInBlankSemantics, processBodyTextToColors } from "../lib/utils";
 
   let state: "idle" | "error" = "idle";
   export let onChange: (colors: ColorWrap<Color>[]) => void;
   export let colors: ColorWrap<Color>[];
   export let colorSpace: string;
+  let errorMsg = "";
 
   function processBodyInput(body: string) {
     try {
-      const newColors = body
-        .split(",")
-        .map((x) => x.replace(/"/g, "").trim())
-        // remove all parens and brackets
-        .map((x) => x.replace(/[\(\)\[\]]/g, ""))
-        .filter((x) => x.length > 0)
-        .map((x) => Color.colorFromString(x, colorSpace as any))
-        .map((x, idx) => {
+      const newColors = processBodyTextToColors(body, colorSpace).map(
+        (x, idx) => {
           if (colors[idx]) {
             return { ...colors[idx], color: x };
           } else {
             return wrapInBlankSemantics(x);
           }
-        });
+        }
+      );
       onChange(newColors);
       state = "idle";
     } catch (e) {
       console.error(e);
+      errorMsg = (e as any)?.message;
       state = "error";
       return;
     }
@@ -38,8 +35,21 @@
 
 <div class="w-full border-t-2 border-black my-2"></div>
 <div class="mt-2">
+  <div class="flex justify-between w-full text-sm">
+    <label for="current-colors">Current Colors</label>
+    <div class="flex items-center">
+      <label for="include-quotes" class="mr-2">Include quotes</label>
+      <input
+        type="checkbox"
+        id="include-quotes"
+        class="mr-2"
+        checked={includeQuotes}
+        on:change={() => configStore.setIncludeQuotes(!includeQuotes)}
+      />
+    </div>
+  </div>
   {#if state === "error"}
-    <div class="text-red-500">Error parsing colors</div>
+    <div class="text-red-500">Error parsing colors. {errorMsg}</div>
   {/if}
   <textarea
     id="current-colors"
@@ -57,19 +67,6 @@
     }}
     on:change={(e) => processBodyInput(e.currentTarget.value)}
   />
-  <div class="flex justify-between w-full text-sm">
-    <label for="current-colors">Current Colors</label>
-    <div class="flex items-center">
-      <label for="include-quotes" class="mr-2">Include quotes</label>
-      <input
-        type="checkbox"
-        id="include-quotes"
-        class="mr-2"
-        checked={includeQuotes}
-        on:change={() => configStore.setIncludeQuotes(!includeQuotes)}
-      />
-    </div>
-  </div>
 </div>
 
 <style>
diff --git a/src/controls/NewPal.svelte b/src/controls/NewPal.svelte
index 1f2e4279..aab027a8 100644
--- a/src/controls/NewPal.svelte
+++ b/src/controls/NewPal.svelte
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@
 
   import type { StringPalette, Palette } from "../types";
 
+  import { processBodyTextToColors } from "../lib/utils";
   import { buttonStyle, denseButtonStyle } from "../lib/styles";
   import Tooltip from "../components/Tooltip.svelte";
   import {
@@ -21,10 +22,12 @@
       const color = Color.colorFromString(x.color, colorSpace);
       return wrapInBlankSemantics(color);
     });
+    const background = Color.colorFromString(newPal.background, colorSpace);
+    console.log(background.toHex(), newPal.background);
     const pal = {
       ...newPal,
       colors,
-      background: Color.colorFromString(newPal.background, colorSpace),
+      background,
       colorSpace,
     } as Palette;
     colorStore.createNewPal(pal);
@@ -32,12 +35,11 @@
 
   let inputString = "";
   function processBodyInput(body: string) {
+    if (body.length === 0) {
+      return;
+    }
     try {
-      const newColors = body
-        .split(",")
-        .map((x) => x.replace(/"/g, "").trim())
-        .filter((x) => x.length > 0)
-        .map((x) => Color.colorFromString(x, colorSpace as any));
+      const newColors = processBodyTextToColors(body, colorSpace as any);
       newPal(createPalFromHexes(newColors.map((x) => x.toHex())));
     } catch (e) {
       console.error(e);
@@ -103,12 +105,12 @@
       on:keydown={(e) => {
         if (e.key === "Enter") {
           e.preventDefault();
-          processBodyInput(e.currentTarget.value);
           e.currentTarget.blur();
         }
       }}
-      on:change={(e) => {
+      on:blur={(e) => {
         processBodyInput(e.currentTarget.value);
+        inputString = "";
       }}
     />
     <div class="mt-5 border-t-2 border-black"></div>
diff --git a/src/example/ExampleAlaCarte.svelte b/src/example/ExampleAlaCarte.svelte
index 4f9ffa52..ecb58433 100644
--- a/src/example/ExampleAlaCarte.svelte
+++ b/src/example/ExampleAlaCarte.svelte
@@ -57,7 +57,6 @@
       {paletteIdx}
       hideHeader={true}
       allowInteraction={allowModification}
-      bg={bgColor}
     />
   {:else}
     {#if example.svg}
diff --git a/src/example/Examples.svelte b/src/example/Examples.svelte
index 073684fa..a94fc657 100644
--- a/src/example/Examples.svelte
+++ b/src/example/Examples.svelte
@@ -170,10 +170,7 @@
   style={`height: calc(100% - 100px)`}
 >
   {#if $configStore.exampleRoute === "swatches"}
-    <Swatches
-      paletteIdx={$colorStore.currentPal}
-      bg={currentPal.background.toString()}
-    />
+    <Swatches paletteIdx={$colorStore.currentPal} />
   {/if}
   {#each examples as example, idx}
     {#if exampleShowMap[idx]}
diff --git a/src/example/Swatches.svelte b/src/example/Swatches.svelte
index 4cea4f25..a3d14c3e 100644
--- a/src/example/Swatches.svelte
+++ b/src/example/Swatches.svelte
@@ -11,7 +11,6 @@
   export let paletteIdx: number;
   export let allowInteraction: boolean = true;
   export let hideHeader: boolean = false;
-  export let bg: string;
 
   $: currentPal = $colorStore.palettes[paletteIdx];
   $: colors = currentPal?.colors || [];
diff --git a/src/lib/Color.ts b/src/lib/Color.ts
index 1f3f849f..7617baeb 100644
--- a/src/lib/Color.ts
+++ b/src/lib/Color.ts
@@ -29,6 +29,7 @@ export class Color {
     if (hexCache.has(str)) {
       return hexCache.get(str) as string;
     }
+
     const newHex = this.toColorIO().to("srgb").toString({ format: "hex" });
     hexCache.set(str, newHex);
     return newHex;
@@ -73,21 +74,6 @@ export class Color {
     const result = this.toColorIO().inGamut("srgb");
     this.cachedInGamut = result;
     return result;
-
-    // // return new ColorIO(this.spaceName, this.toChannels()).inGamut();
-    // let clr = this.toColorIO().to("srgb", { inGamut: false });
-    // let cssColor = clr.display();
-    // // cssColor.color.inGamut();
-    // return cssColor.color.inGamut();
-
-    // const x = this.toHex();
-    // const y = this.toColorIO().to("srgb").toString({ format: "hex" });
-    // if (x !== y) {
-    //   console.log("x", x, "y", y);
-    // }
-    // const result = x === y;
-    // this.cachedInGamut = result;
-    // return result;
   }
   toColorIO(): ColorIO {
     if (this.cachedColorIO) {
@@ -103,9 +89,10 @@ export class Color {
     }
   }
 
-  fromString(colorString: string): Color {
-    if (stringChannelsCache.has(colorString)) {
-      return this.fromChannels(stringChannelsCache.get(colorString)!);
+  fromString(colorString: string, allowError?: boolean): Color {
+    let key = `${colorString}-${this.spaceName}`;
+    if (stringChannelsCache.has(key)) {
+      return this.fromChannels(stringChannelsCache.get(key)!);
     }
     // const isTargetSpace = colorString.startsWith(`${this.spaceName}(`);
     // const isHex = colorString.startsWith("#");
@@ -120,11 +107,13 @@ export class Color {
       try {
         channels = new ColorIO(`#${colorString}`).to(this.spaceName).coords;
       } catch (e) {
-        console.log("error", e, colorString);
+        if (allowError) {
+          throw new Error("Invalid color string: " + colorString);
+        }
         channels = [0, 0, 0];
       }
     }
-    stringChannelsCache.set(colorString, channels);
+    stringChannelsCache.set(key, channels.map((x) => Number(x)) as Channels);
     return this.fromChannels(channels);
   }
   fromChannels(channels: Channels): Color {
@@ -445,9 +434,13 @@ class CAM16 extends Color {
 
 function colorFromString(
   colorString: string,
-  colorSpace: keyof typeof colorDirectory = "lab"
+  colorSpace: keyof typeof colorDirectory = "lab",
+  allowError?: boolean
 ): Color {
-  const result = new colorDirectory[colorSpace]().fromString(colorString);
+  const result = new colorDirectory[colorSpace]().fromString(
+    colorString,
+    allowError
+  );
   return result;
 }
 
diff --git a/src/lib/Utils.test.ts b/src/lib/Utils.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..940092e9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/lib/Utils.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,95 @@
+import { expect, test } from "vitest";
+import { processBodyTextToColors } from "./utils";
+
+const reactVisColors = `
+   '#19CDD7',
+  '#DDB27C',
+  '#88572C',
+  '#FF991F',
+  '#F15C17',
+  '#223F9A',
+  '#DA70BF',
+  '#125C77',
+  '#4DC19C',
+  '#776E57',
+  '#12939A',
+  '#17B8BE',
+  '#F6D18A',
+  '#B7885E',
+  '#FFCB99',
+  '#F89570',
+  '#829AE3',
+  '#E79FD5',
+  '#1E96BE',
+  '#89DAC1',
+  '#B3AD9E'
+`;
+const resultColors = [
+  "#19CDD7",
+  "#DDB27C",
+  "#88572C",
+  "#FF991F",
+  "#F15C17",
+  "#223F9A",
+  "#DA70BF",
+  "#125C77",
+  "#4DC19C",
+  "#776E57",
+  "#12939A",
+  "#17B8BE",
+  "#F6D18A",
+  "#B7885E",
+  "#FFCB99",
+  "#F89570",
+  "#829AE3",
+  "#E79FD5",
+  "#1E96BE",
+  "#89DAC1",
+  "#B3AD9E",
+];
+const rvColorsShort = `
+[
+  '#12939A',
+  '#79C7E3',
+  '#1A3177',
+  '#FF9833',
+  '#EF5D28'
+]
+`;
+// color spaces
+const spaces = [
+  "lab",
+  "hsl",
+  //
+  "lch",
+  "hsv",
+];
+test("processBodyTextToColors", async () => {
+  spaces.forEach((space) => {
+    console.log(space);
+    const result1 = processBodyTextToColors(reactVisColors, space);
+    expect(
+      result1.map((x) => x.toHex().toUpperCase()),
+      `Large rv colors in ${space} space should match`
+    ).toEqual(resultColors);
+
+    const result2 = processBodyTextToColors(rvColorsShort, space);
+    expect(
+      result2.map((x) => x.toHex().toUpperCase()),
+      `Short rv colors in ${space} space should match`
+    ).toEqual(["#12939A", "#79C7E3", "#1A3177", "#FF9833", "#EF5D28"]);
+  });
+});
+
+test("processBodyTextToColors: zoom in", async () => {
+  spaces.forEach((space) => {
+    resultColors.forEach((color) => {
+      expect(
+        processBodyTextToColors(`   '${color}'`, space).map((x) =>
+          x.toHex().toUpperCase()
+        ),
+        `Single color (${color}) in ${space} space should match`
+      ).toEqual([color]);
+    });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/src/lib/utils.ts b/src/lib/utils.ts
index fcd15778..6050d3bb 100644
--- a/src/lib/utils.ts
+++ b/src/lib/utils.ts
@@ -759,3 +759,19 @@ export function splitMessageIntoTextAndColors(message: string): ParseBlock[] {
 
   return output;
 }
+
+export function processBodyTextToColors(body: string, colorSpace: string) {
+  return body
+    .split(",")
+    .map((x) =>
+      x
+        // remove all quotes
+        .replace(/"/g, "")
+        .replace(/'/g, "")
+        // remove all parens and brackets
+        .replace(/[\(\)\[\]]/g, "")
+        .trim()
+    )
+    .filter((x) => x.length > 0)
+    .map((x) => Color.colorFromString(x, colorSpace as any, true));
+}