One of the most common questions we get in our email inbox and Instagram DM's is, "What paint color is in that room you just posted?" I hesitate to share that information, first and foremost out of respect for our clients who have invested in custom design work for their home, but also because there are a number of factors that go into whether or not a paint color will work for your home! Just because it looks great in that photo on Pinterest doesn't mean it's going to work for your space. Scroll through for some tips about paint undertones and what to look out for when you're feeling the urge to refresh the walls, trim or cabinetry in your home.
Every paint color is itself a mix of colors. So, that said, think of a paint color itself as the dominant color, while the subtle nuances “underneath” that color are the undertones, or a color as seen through another color. If you’ve ever painted a room green and on a cloudy or even a bright sunny day you might have thought to yourself is that even the same color? It looks blue today? Well...that my friend is the undertone shining through.
It’s hard to see undertones in pure deep colors but definitely more obvious in whites and neutrals like grays and beiges...at least to a trained eye.#truecolorexpert When I meet with clients for one on one paint color consultations, most of the time I can walk in a room and know the perfect color in a hot Texas minute. But I always take the time to go through several options, and if the client is interested, I'll show them those options in comparison to the wrong colors so they can understand why they can't have the blue gray their sister painted her brand new, modern transitional house when she lives in a thirty year old Mediterranean with Spanish Saltillo tile floors and Baltic brown granite countertops.
It’s all about the undertones, both of the paint itself and the hard finishes of the house (the things you can’t move or remove without great effort i.e. a remodel, like the backsplash, countertop, tile, flooring, carpet) followed by the furniture and soft goods in the space. All that should be taken into consideration, which is why paint consults are a very popular service offering for us!
If you're staring down a wall of paint samples trying to decide on the right white paint color for walls, ceiling or trim, for example, you can open any fan deck and find a plethora of whites. The trick to see the difference in undertones is in comparison - take a true white that forms the basis of all paint mixtures, and then compare that to the whites you're considering. You'll start to see how much blue, yellow, green, orange, pink or combinations thereof are in the undertone of the "white" paint you like! The same goes for other colors like gray, beiges, taupes, it's all about the undertones!
One last tip: Don't ever think it's a good idea to just slap paint on the wall, or worse slap multiple "squares" of paint colors on a wall to make your selection. The existing paint color on your wall will skew the other colors as well as the existing paint color on your walls ...all...day...long. I always tell clients to sample or have their painter sample before buying large quantities of paint but by that, I mean a whole wall...not the whole room, but a whole wall.
Don't feel up to doing that? The next best thing are sample boards. Get a big piece of poster board from a hobby shop like Michaels and paint it, then let it dry completely. Hang or lean on different walls and up against hard finishes or furnishings within a room on consecutive days and see how light hits it throughout the day to ensure you'll like the color in all of the various lighting situations your home experiences.
Designer Tip: You can also order larger printed color samples from vendors like Sherwin Williams or BM paint through Samplize.
Remember: pay attention to how you position the painted boards or color samples. You'll want to hold them in the same orientation or plane of view that's being painted and near hard finishes or furnishings that are staying. For instance, hold the sample down by the flooring, just underneath your countertop or on top of it next to the backsplash, or just behind the back of the sofa.
Last tip: be wary of paint matching between brands. I've seen it fail more times than I've seen it done correctly.
If you're interested in setting up a paint consult for your home here in Houston, feel free to reach out here and let's chat.
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