5 Tips to Choose the Perfect Paint Colour for Your Home
Choosing a paint colour sounds simple until you’re stood in front of a wall of colour cards wondering where to even start. I see it all the time—people get stuck between a few shades and end up second guessing everything.
From experience, the colour itself matters—but how it works in your space matters more, which is something I can always offer guidance on as part of my decorating services.
1. Start With How You Want the Room to Feel
Before looking at colour charts, think about the end result.
Bedrooms usually want to feel calm and relaxed
Living rooms — comfortable and warm
Kitchens — brighter, cleaner, a bit more energy
A lot of people jump straight into picking colours they like, but if it doesn’t suit the room, it never quite feels right once it’s on the walls.
2. Light Changes Everything
This is one of the biggest things people overlook.
The same colour can look completely different depending on the light:
North-facing rooms can feel a bit dull or cool
South-facing rooms get a lot more natural warmth
I always say—don’t trust how it looks on a tiny swatch. Get it on the wall and look at it:
Morning
Midday
Evening
You’ll often see three different versions of the same colour.
3. Use What You Already Have as a Guide
Your walls sit behind everything else, so they need to work with it—not against it.
Look at:
Flooring
Sofas and furniture
Kitchen units or wardrobes
If you’ve got a lot of warm wood, cooler greys can sometimes feel off. Same the other way round. It’s about tying everything together so it looks intentional.
4. Watch the Undertones (This Catches People Out a Lot)
Not all whites, greys, or neutrals are the same.
Some have:
Yellow warmth
Blue or cooler tones
Slight pink or purple undertones
You might not notice it straight away, but once it’s on a full wall, it shows. That’s usually when people say “it doesn’t look like I expected”.
Best thing to do is hold a few similar shades next to each other—you’ll start to see the difference straight away.
5. Use Testers Properly (Don’t Skip This)
Tester pots are worth it—every time.
Paint a decent patch on the wall (not just a tiny square) and live with it for a couple of days. Move around the room, see it in different lighting, and next to your furniture.
It saves a lot of hassle compared to repainting a full room.
A Quick Tip on Choosing Colours (What I Recommend to Customers)
A lot of my customers use Valspar Trade colours, which I also use on jobs. One of the good things with Valspar is how easy it is to actually choose and match colours.
You can:
Go into B&Q and pick up colour chips in person
Or browse and build a palette on the Valspar website
Once you’ve found something you like, it can be mixed accurately into Valspar Trade paint, so you’re not guessing or trying to match it later.
It just makes the whole process a lot more straightforward.
Finishing Touch
Colour makes a big difference—but the finish, prep, and how it’s applied is what really makes it last and look right long term.
If you’re unsure, I’m always happy to help point you in the right direction or sort colours as part of a job - just get in touch.