We’ve all been there. You bought a can of (possibly very expensive) paint, slapped it on the wall and within seconds of the first stroke of your paintbrush, you know that the colour you thought would be perfect is all wrong.
You keep going back to the room hoping that the colour is better than you remember it to be, even though you only saw it a couple of minutes ago. You hope that it’ll dry differently. You hope that somehow the colour will miraculously change and you try to convince yourself that it will work, even though you know in your heart that it really won’t. Sounds familiar?
Choosing the right colour for your space can be difficult and there are a surprising amount of things to take into consideration when choosing a paint colour. It’s not surprising that we all end up picking a colour that’s not the perfect shade we expect it to be sooner or later.
So, what can you do when you’ve chosen the wrong paint colour?
Your options are obviously limited but that’s no reason to despair just yet. There are a few things you can do to make the paintwork for you.
1. Stir it.
Before you completely discount the paint it’s a good idea to make sure that the colour is really as wrong as you think. It’s always important to give your paint a thorough stir before using it but it’s especially important if you’ve had your paint mixed in store as the colours sometimes settle and separate slightly.
Give it a really good stir – I’m talking a good 10 minutes or so – to make sure that all paint is thoroughly mixed. Then try painting another patch of the room to see if the colour has improved.
Also, don’t discount the colour after applying just one coat! Colours will change (sometimes dramatically) when you apply a second coat of paint!
2. Stick with it.
Obviously, the easiest choice is to just stick with the colour and suck it up. Just because the colour isn’t what you imagined doesn’t mean that it won’t still look good once you’ve finished painting.
And, you’ll probably get used to it over time, too.
Once you’ve added your furniture and accessories and have put the room back together again, it’ll probably look different and it might not be as bad as you think!
It’s still only paint, so there’s nothing stopping you from repainting it again in the future if you do decide that you still don’t like it.
3. Use it somewhere else.
Just because the colour doesn’t work in the room you’re about to paint, doesn’t mean that it won’t work somewhere else in your home.
Things like aspect, light conditions, features, flooring and even the texture of your walls can all make a big difference in the way that painted walls look.
Don’t completely discount the paint colour just yet – it may be the perfect colour for somewhere else in your home!
4. Change the colour of the paint.
It’s slightly risky, but if you really hate the colour that much, you probably don’t have much to lose by trying to adjust it slightly.
A bit of colour theory knowledge goes a long way here and knowing what colours you can add to balance out and slightly adjust the tone of your paint is really helpful.
Just be sure to add teeny tiny amounts of colour when you’re adjusting your paint colour. It’s amazing just how much a minuscule amount of paint can already change the colour of a whole large pot of paint!
5. Sell or donate it.
If you know that you’ll never use the paint you might as well get rid of it now.
Paint is something that you can easily sell or, even better, donate. There are paint donation places like Community Repaint that will happily take it off your hands and redistribute it at an affordable cost!
Just because you don’t love the colour doesn’t mean that someone else won’t and at least you’re helping someone through your mistake!
Now, there’s a reason that I’m telling you all of this. It’s because we bought a tonne of paint to finish our guest bedroom only to find that we hated the colour!
Given that we had more than our fair share of mishaps while giving this room a makeover, choosing the wrong colour really didn’t make me feel any more motivated to get this room finished.
If you follow us on Instagram (you totally should be, of course!), you’ll already know that we didn’t end up using the paint in the guest bedroom which is now so close to being completed that I could burst!
We’ll be sharing the finished guest bedroom in a week or so but if you pop back later this week you can see what we ended up doing with the 20l! of paint that we accidentally bought!
Do you find it difficult to choose the right paint colour? Have you ever chosen a paint colour that you ended up not liking? What’s your favourite colour to paint your walls?
Cristina says
I love Torquoise Blue. And I have two different shade in my small apt. 1 in bathroom the other in the living room but when it came time to paint my entryway, I just couldn’t get the right color. Tried 3 times. I wanted a color that had the same tone as the blues but in a white with a hint of blue color. We have yet to paint the room.
Christine says
I love turquoise, too, Cristina! It can be so difficult to get the right colour sometimes, especially when you have something specific in mind! I find that entryways are particularly difficult to get right. I painted our front door 3 times until I found a colour that worked in the space. I’m sure you’ll get it right eventually!
Good luck finding the right colour!
Cx
Eva says
Hello,
I just purchased two gallons of paint in a Sherwin Williams Country Squire for my dining room. I thought it looked good when I painted a sample swatch on, but when I got home with the paint today, I painted a larger area and now I’m afraid it’s going to be too dark. Is there something I can do to lighten it up just a smidge?
Christine says
That sounds super annoying although I have to admit that I love the colour you’ve chosen, Eva. Do you think it will still look too dark once you’ve added things like furniture, curtains and art back into the room? Often a large empty surface can feel way too dark but when you’ve added back things to break it up it’ll feel more balanced. If you really want to change the colour I would recommend pouring a bit of paint into a separate container and mixing it with some white paint (or the lightest colour out of the range of greens you’re using). I’d definitely weigh the quantities so that while you are testing to see how much lighter paint you have to add to create a colour you like. By mixing a small amount of paint separately, you won’t accidentally mess up the whole amount of paint and you can easily replicate the lighter colour because you know the percentage of white you added.
Hope that helps!
Cx
Mary Kay Geiger says
I chose Sherwin Williams “Welcome White”.. It is too pinky beige. I wanted yellow undertones. What color accessories should I use to cancel out the pinky beige? HELP!!!
Christine says
Ahh, it’s always so annoying when a colour doesn’t turn out as you expect, Mary. I totally feel for you! I think adding touches of green should help tone down the pinkness. It obviously won’t completely change the colour of your wall but should help balance things out slightly. Have you ever seen a makeup artist use a green-tinted foundation on red skin? It has a way of neutralising any redness which is the same principle that it think could work for you, too. Maybe just adding some plants will help?
Hope that helps a bit!
Cx
Anastasia says
I went through a faze this summer and my dad let me redo my room. I chose the wrong color and obviously realized it a few days after we fully painted it and put everything back in. What should i do?
Christine says
We’ve all been there, Anastasia! What colour did you choose? If repainting the whole room isn’t an option, maybe you could paint just one wall in an accent colour or have some fun and add a painted mural on top of the colour you’ve painted the walls? There are hundreds of great examples on Pinterest. Generally, using complementary colours (the colours that are opposite in the colour circle like blue and orange) will tone down the colour you’ve used a bit so try to introduce a few complimentary items. Obviously, things like large art could help break up the surface, too.
Cx
Debra says
I just painted my office / craft room I am not happy with it. My husband likes it It would be ok if it was just a spare room but I will be spending a lot of time in that room.. I wanted a gold color and I got a sunny orange color. I am older so I hurt all over from painting and moving Thinking about painting it all over again just to much. I will just have to get use to it .
Christine says
It’s always so annoying when a colour isn’t what you imagined – we’ve been there plenty of times, too! Maybe you could just paint one wall an accent colour to soften the yellow colour? Or just add lots of large scale art to hide some the wall colour? Adding accessories often makes a huge difference, even if the colour isn’t exactly what you expected it to be. Ultimately, it’s your workspace and you have to feel happy in there so it’s probably worth trying to live with it for a while and you never know, the colour may grow on you!
Cx
Tracy says
Hi weve just painted our hall blue it was a b&q mixed paint we brought two and got one free and it was really expensive the problem is the colour’s horrible its to blue I thought it would be more nutruel and now were stuck with it ?
Christine says
Oh no! That’s so annoying! Blue is a really difficult colour to get right (I’ve had more than a few bad experiences) Do B&Q have a colour guarantee? I know that a lot of companies will give you a refund if you’re not happy with the colour.
Cx
Ali says
Thank you for this post! I just recently painted one wall in my bedroom a light blue, but the blue is much brighter than what I wanted (it’s too blue, looks a bit junior/kiddy), and was wondering if I can do anything to dull it? The whole wall is already painted and dried, and I don’t have anymore of that paint left! Anything I can do??
Christine says
That’s a really difficult thing to change now that the walls are dry. Blue is a tough colour to get right (we’ve had a similar problem in the past). I’d recommend accessorising with complementary colours like oranges and yellows which will optically complement the blue and make it stand out less. Maybe it’ll also look fine once you’ve added some art and accessories to break up the blue surface?
Hope that helps a bit!
Cx
Laura Cioffi says
I wanted a gray pain with a slight blue undertone and the color I picked Sherwin Williams noryn Star is blue with a gray undertone hoe can I make the second coat darker
Christine says
That’s a really difficult thing to answer, Laura! Getting the right colour is so difficult but what I’d suggest is getting a small pot of the darkest colour in the colour range (in your case something like Outerspace depending on how dark you want it) and mixing it with the lighter colour to create an in between colour. I’m honestly not sure it’ll work 100% to create the colour you’re looking for but it should help tone down the blue.
Hope that helps!
Cx
Tara says
Any suggestions on dulling a colour? I’m painting my front porch floor a beautiful light blue colour. But when the sun hits it’s blinding bright!
Christine says
That’s a tough one, Tara. I’d be tempted to add a bit of grey paint to dull it slightly but you may end up changing the colour too much… Maybe try living with it for a while (through more seasons) to see if it’s only a problem for a couple of weeks of the year.
Cx
Jennifer says
The issue I’m having is the light blue paint colour I chose for my bedroom seems too junior…. Like something you might put in a toddlers room :/ not sure if I’m going to stick with it or try changing it up a bit. …. Any suggestions appreciated!
Christine says
Choosing grey and blue paint colours is so difficult, isn’t it, Jennifer!? I’d probably suggest living with it for a while and seeing if the colour grows on you. Adding lots of accessories like pictures, cushions and softer textures may soften the colour slightly and make the whole room come together in the way you imagined it. It’s always a good idea to use complementary colours, too. In your case, adding colours like oranges and warm yellows.
Sorry, I can’t be more help!
Cx
Rohith says
Hey! So, I am writing in from India and I am breaking my head over this dark blue shade I chose for my room. It’s a small space to begin with, however I chose blue because my decor was majorly cream/off white and some greys as well. The paint job is half way done and it looks pretty meh…I mean it’s almost terrible. The rooms too dark, although I have two 4×4 windows. Would you suggest any remedy to bring down the dark gaudiness of the blue and to make it more classy may be? I mean I was thinking of leaning towards adding some grey, but then again I am no expert whatsoever. https://www.asianpaints.com/search-results.html?q=Colonial%20Blue that’s the link to the color I chose. May be it could help. Would really appreciate some help! :)
Christine says
Opting for a bold colour often comes with a few difficulties but I absolutely love the dark blue you’ve chosen, Rohith! It’s such a bold colour that I don’t think there’s much you could do to lighten it enough to make much of a difference. Have you already applied a second coat of paint? I remember painting our hallway a grey colour and hated it after the first coat but then loved it after the second. Have you already put all of your cream coloured furniture back? Think about maybe adding a light rug? Don’t also forget that you’ll probably be adding art and pictures on the walls which will help to break up the large dark blue area. I always think that artwork looks great on a dark background as it really stands out.
As you’ve already painted so much, I’d probably suggest finishing the room, adding all of your furniture, art, etc. and then seeing if you still hate it. It’s definitely a difficult choice but ultimately it’s about what will make you happy!
Cx
Rachel Sunter says
I just painted my music room dark blue and am upset because it’s not dark ENOUGH. Haha.
It’s easy to brighten up a blue that’s too dark; keep one wall white as an accent, or put up a lot of white-background artwork, in white frames! Good luck.
Christine says
Haha, love it, Rachel! Choosing colours can be so difficult, can’t it?! Thanks for sharing the tip about having a neutral accent wall, too! People often avoid dark colours because they think it’ll make the room seem too dark but I totally agree that hanging art and added accents completely changes the look!
Cx
cherrie says
Looks great! Your website is so inspirational! Great tips and advice, another top class job…
Christine says
That’s so kind of you, Cherrie! Thank you for taking the time to comment!
Cx