Paint used to be my nemisis. It used to take me forever to choose a paint color. I would research colors on Pinterest, or on the intewebs for weeks. Then I would find the most beautiful room ever with walls that were the perfect shade of: blue, gray, green…fill in the blank. Then I would spend another few hours (or days) tracking down the specific name of the paint color used. When I finally found it…a moment of pure joy. YES!!! #lifecomplete

Cut to me driving to the paint store and being so confident in my choice that I skipped the whole- get a swatch part, and got a full sized can. I just knew it would work and that my room would look just like the one in the picture. Welp, I’m sure you can guess how this story turned out...womp, womp.

UGH….Where did I go wrong?! Of course I would say this to myself, because I could not even think of telling the huz (after he spent many hours painting) that I now hated the color that I was madly in love with just days earlier. So, I lived with it…for a few years actually….waking up everyday, and hating it. Silly me. If only I had taken a few easy steps to ensure that I would end up with a paint color that I loved.

So…because I want to save you from the same fate, I will offer you the following tips.

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Tip #1: Consider lighting

If you see a picture with a paint color you love, sure, research the name, but don’t take the answer too seriously. Paint color rarely looks the same in 2 different rooms, unless the lighting can be matched to a T. In other words, the room you are looking at on Pinterest is almost guaranteed to have different lighting than your room. Lighting can completely change the look of a paint color. A color that looks fresh, bright, and beautiful on Pinterest can look muted and dingy in a north facing bedroom, with 1 window. Get a paint chip of that special color, bring it home, and tape it on your wall, you’ll see what I mean!

Tip #2 Determine the undertone

If possible, find that Pinterest color (or a very similar one) on a graduated paint strip. You know what I mean, the ones with the lightest color at the top and the darkest at the bottom. Note: if you have a single chip from a store like Benjamin Moore/Sherwin Williams, you can easily find its family (graduated shades) on their website.

If you are looking at a gray color and you want to determine the undertone, look at the color at the very bottom of the strip (the darkest shade), that will give you a good indication of whether you are looking at a blue gray, or a green gray. Once you identify the undertone, you can use it to find similar colors (on neighboring strips). A neighboring strip might have an ideal color for your north facing bedroom with 1 window.

Why is undertone so important? Glad you asked. The undertone in your paint color either plays beautifully with your rug/carpet/furniture, or it fights viciously with your rug/carpet/furniture, and makes a mess of the room. In other words if your rug is beige with a pink undertone, and you paint the walls a beige with a green undertone…you will be very unhappy with your paint choice.

Tip #3: Embrace the “muddy” colors

If you want to have a beautifully soothing pale blue master bedroom, paint it gray. Gray with a blue undertone. Here’s why: color intensifies once it’s painted on a wall (versus what it looks like on a sample strip). If you go to the blue section of the paint strips, you’ll end up with a blue that looks like it belongs in a nursery. It seems counterintuitive but trust me, those grays work overtime. The gray with the blue undertone won’t look gray at all, it will look blue…and not just any blue, the perfect shade of blue. It works the same way with other colors. If you want a grown up, sophisticated, pink, don’t shop in the pink (kids) section. Instead find a cream (beige) color with a pink undertone.

Tip #4: Get sample cans (obvi):

Okay, this may sound obvious, but it’s worth emphasizing. Once you’ve narrowed it down to less than 5 choices (ideally 2 or 3) get mini sample cans. They usually sell them anywhere you buy paint, you just need to ask for them.

Some people are cool living with paint swatches on their walls until they decide on the perfect color. More power to ‘em. If you’re more of a neat freak, get some foam core poster board (available at most craft stores for around $5). Paint each sample color on its own poster board. The beauty of painting foam core boards, instead of wall swatches, is that you can move them around from one wall to the next, to help you see what the color will look like, in different lighting.

Hopefully this helps you pull out at least one less hair when you’re thinking about choosing a paint color. Cause after all, who doesn’t want a beautifully painted room and a full head of hair?!

Still want help choosing a paint color? I’ve got your back. Contact me at: Sara@sarasmithinteriors.com

Until next time friends,

-Sara