So, let's be honest. The oxblood wall you boldly envisioned is starting to look a little too cherry, right? Don't panic. It's actually completely normal to get painter's fatigue or lose confidence halfway through a project — especially when it involves a new wall color. But every paint color storm has its silver lining, and how to fix a paint color mid-refresh is easier than you may think.
Livingetc's color expert, Amy Moorea Wong, says, "new colors over large spaces are visually and physically overwhelming (especially once they go past head-height)." Perhaps you began a paint job in the evening, and now the morning sun is casting a different light on it, or maybe the color just isn't sitting exactly as you had pictured. Learning how to paint a room is an art, and it's perfectly fine if the first attempt doesn't go quite as planned.
Whatever the problem, there are ways to tackle it. To find out the best approach, I spoke with experts, and below, I share the tips and tricks they gave me when it comes to the warning signs for paint regret, and how to fix a paint color once it goes wrong.
Why Paint Colors Can Easily Go Awry
Pale yellows are often hard to place, but can be extremely airy and bright when you land on the right shade.
Interior design is deeply personal, and when it comes to choosing paint colors, we are often inspired by other spaces we’ve seen or visited, as well as the latest color trends.
While these are great jumping-off points for choosing a palette for your own home, Helen Shaw, a color expert at Benjamin Moore, says, "It’s important to pay attention to the specifics of the space you’re applying that color in, otherwise it can easily feel 'wrong'."
For example, if you haven’t considered the room’s lighting or orientation closely enough, "when it comes to applying the paint, it can look quite different from other spaces you’ve seen it in," says Helen.
North-facing rooms often lack warm sunlight, which can cause colors in north-facing rooms to appear cooler than intended. Alternatively, south-facing rooms receive abundant light, which may exaggerate undertones or make pale shades feel flat.
Helen Shaw is a color expert and the international marketing director at paint brand Benjamin Moore. Helen and her husband Craig are the founders of Shaw Paints, acquired by Benjamin Moore in 2020.
Until the room is completely put back together — curtains, furniture, rugs, life, etc. — "new colors can feel strangely abstract and a bit scary," adds Amy.
So stop, take a breath, and don't panic-pick another shade. "If the alarm bells are ringing very loudly, step away for a few days and give yourself a chance to settle and get used to the hue," says Amy.
And if all else fails, below are a few tips on how to fix a paint color.
1. Test the Paint in the Room
It’s always a good idea to swatch test paint in multiple areas before beginning a project.
It may seem obvious, but the best thing you can do when painting a space is swatch testing the paint throughout the room before you begin.
"Testing paint samples directly on the walls is an essential step, as it allows you to see how the color behaves at different times of day, in various weather conditions, and under artificial lighting," says Helen.
To avoid the need to know how to fix a paint color, put the effort in and learn how to use paint samples and other essential techniques. Once you’ve painted a few swatches, Amy says, "Check on them at different times of day, and move them around the room to see how the color changes."
Compare the colors to the objects within the space, find the undertones of your paint colors to make sure they complement each other, and most of all, trust your instinct. "If a shade feels wrong in sample form, ditch it and move on; there are a lot of colors out there," says Amy.
2. Tweak the Lighting
What looks like a dark shade of blue can read much lighter in direct sunlight or south-facing rooms.
If you are wondering why your paint color looks different on the walls, don't forget to consider how lighting may affect it. "A shade that feels warm in natural daylight may suddenly appear dull, cold, or washed out once artificial lighting takes over in the evening," says Helen.
Lighting is one of the most crucial elements when decorating with color, especially paint colors. "Sometimes it’s as simple as changing bulbs from cool to warm white that can take your paint color from wrong to right," says Helen.
If you feel like you've made a serious painting mistake, try living with it for a while before painting it again. "Observe the color in different lights, and you’ll see how the space alters throughout the day — it may mellow into something more pleasing, and you might relax into it," says Amy.
3. Bring in a Bit of Decor Back
Adding a bit of the decor you plan use in the room may help you visualize the paint color more accurately.
So you’ve done the prep work, but something still doesn’t feel quite right. For that, try bringing a few pieces back into the room — artwork, furniture, textiles — to help visualize your space as a whole.
"This step will help to see if the hues, tints, tones, and shades all click together, bearing in mind you can adjust smaller pieces to work with the wall’s undertones," says Amy.
Should you realize the paint doesn't work with your prized possessions, it's an easy decision as to what needs to change. "A repaint is always going to be a faster and more cost-effective solution to solving your color palette troubles," says Helen.
4. Mix or Tweak the Paint Itself
A dark space can be really beautiful when planned and executed properly.
And, if all else fails, you can consider your options for mixing and correcting your paint. Specialists can add pigments to paint to deepen or calm an existing shade into something more livable, but this probably isn’t a solution you’d want to DIY.
"You can try treating the original color like a base coat and layer a slightly translucent tone or muted top coat over it to form a subtler effect," says Amy.
Using a limewash paint technique can also help to temper the color of the wall. Or perhaps it’s a supporting color that needs to change. "Is the ceiling paint color too stark? The trim tones slightly off? Perhaps a tweak around the new color will make it all fall into place," suggests Amy.
Amy Moorea Wong is a color authority and contemporary interior design writer who has specialized in all things decorating for over a decade. Alongside being Livingetc’s Color Expert, she also contributes to an array of global publications and has a book, Kaleidoscope: Modern Homes in Every Colour. Amy is an ardent believer in the power of color in a home and how creative design should never be intimidating.
Giving your room a fresh coat of paint should be exciting, not stressful. Take the proper preparations, and know that mistakes may happen. And if they do, it's not that hard to learn how to fix a paint color.
Pretty soon, you’ll be confidently coordinating paint colors throughout an entire home.
