In Ceilings, Drywall, How To, Interior House Painting, Paint Colours, Painters Advice, Painting FAQ's, Painting Tips

Giving your home a fresh new look with paint colours is a great way to update the look, and an inexpensive upgrade compared to other home renovations and improvements.  The dilemma is in choosing the right paint colours to create the perfect balance in your home decor.  Paint colour samples are available at every home improvement store or local paint stores.

house painting paint colour samples used by painters
Try on paint colours from sherwin williams is a great way to explore what your colour choices may look like in your home before you buy any paint.  You can use their website or download their app to use.  Benjamin moore paints also offers a way to see what paint colours will look like before painting them on the walls and it is called the personal colour viewer.

Samples Of Paint Colours

Painting with a new colour can be exciting, and can also cause stress if the feelings of are unsurity.  Every paint manufacturing company has a vast array of selections in colours, from light to dark, they are almost endless.  Using paint swatches or fan decks or paint chips aren’t always the best way on how to choose paint colours and avoiding the mistakes not make when choosing paint colours can save you time, effort, and money.

Some will say to buy the 1 quart cans of paint and paint a sample on the wall.  Sometimes that is not the best advice because painting the new colour on an existing colour will affect how the new colour is perceived.  The pre-existing colour overrides the new one and will prevent you from fully viewing the new colour undertones and diminish its intensity.

When choosing the right paint colour for your home try to use the current home decor colours as a base.  Unless you plan on painting and redecorating all at the same time, adding a pop of colour with an accent wall could be sufficient.  When you paint a few different samples of colours on the walls, each one will influence the one next to it and will most likely make it hard to get a real sense of the depth of the true colour that you are trying to choose and decide on for your painting project.

The paint finish and sheens also affect the way samples of colour appear when painted on the walls as well, the lighting affects the reflection of the colour  and will be lighter or darker dependent on the time of day you look at those samples painted on the walls.

TIPS On Paint Colour Samples

It typically takes at minimum two to three coats of paint to see the true colour of a paint sample that is painted onto a wall.  That many coats of a few different colours will be expensive because not only will you be being several little cans of paint colours to use as samples, but it will create more work when you make the final decision on a colour.

You will have paint build up on the test areas where the sample colours were applied.  This creates a visible difference in the way the final colour shows.  The sample colours may appear as dull or shiny blotch area underneath because they have darker undertones, or a paint primer was not used before your final colour.

Tips on how to paint the interior of a house can be helpful and used as a guide to avoid these types of situations.  The following are a few more tips on what you can do for paint colour samples that will not cause much nuissance and not cost you too much.

Tip 1. Go through the many paper or online magazines for ideas. You can create a scrapbook of paint colours you think you might want for your interior decor.  If you have a favourite colour that jumps out at you from a pillow, a blanket, or accessory around the house.  Simply snap a photo of it, or take the entire pillow, or fabric swatch, a tile or countertop sample to any paint store where they will assist you in matching that colour for you.
living area or space used for ideas on paint colours for interior house painting
Tip 2. Buy a quart of paint in each of the colours you would like to see on your walls.  Take note that if you are selecting more than 3 colours this alternative can be a little expensive. A quart of paint will cost you on average between $20.00 to $25.00, while a pint can of paint colour sample will cost between $7.00 to $10.00.

can of paint colour sample

Tip 3. Paint a sample of the colour with a paint brush or paint roller onto the walls.  We recommend painting at least two coats to make sure the existing colour is covered.  Apply a third coat if the existing paint is still visible.  Paint a big enough area such as at least a 4′ x 4′ area of the wall, leave at least a space of approximately 3 to 4 feet in between each sample.  Be reminded that buying a few quarts of paint in several different colours can become expensive.

If you have crown or cove moulding, baseboards, wood trim like wainscotting or chair-rail try painting the colour sample as close to these features as you can.  This will give you a better idea of what the colour will look like up against the woodwork which is typically painted in whites or creams.

crown moulding wood work painted white by painters ottawa PG PAINT

Tip 4.   This is the cheapest and easiest way we think to sample any paint colour.  To avoid the extra work to paint samples of colour on to the walls we would suggest heading over to a local dollar store and buying foam boards.

You can buy as many as you like at only $1.00 a piece and foam boards are usually about 36″ x 36″ so you can get a really good idea as to what the colour will look like up on the walls.

Simply paint 2 to 3 coats the sample paint colours directly onto each foam board using the a good paint brush or roller.  These foam boards also give you the opportunity to move the paint colour samples around every room  in the house so you can see how it looks in every area.  Using these larger than the standard paint sample chips makes the decision so much easier.

Here is great video that explains perfectly “how to use large paint samples”

In this video Maria Killam  (colour expert) demonstrates and explains how the undertones and hues of paint colours vary and helps provide a better understanding of how you can choose the right paint colour

After the decision is made on the final paint colours you will be using, you may want to dive in and do your own painting.  If your energy is already exhausted from the decision making of choosing colours, look for painting companies near you.  The professional services provided from painters will give you the peace of mind of getting it done sooner and affordably.

 

this article was originally published on Jul 23, 2017 at 07:00 and edited and updated Feb 09, 2020 at 19:00