TIL paint color looks totally different on textured vs smooth drywall

I spent last weekend painting my basement in St. Louis and grabbed a can of gray based on a sample I painted on a smooth piece of cardboard. Put it on the textured walls and it came out looking almost blue. Had to buy a second gallon of a darker shade to fix it. Anyone else run into this with orange peel or knockdown texture?

2 comments

2 Comments

oliver8114d ago

Huh, did you check how much natural light hits that wall at different times of day? I painted my living room and the same gray looked totally different depending on the time.

amyb544d ago

Wait hold up, I gotta disagree with Oliver on the lighting thing. Actually, the texture matters way more than people think. I painted my whole kitchen with the same flat finish on smooth ceiling and textured walls, and it literally looked like two different grays. The bumps and ridges on textured walls catch the light and cast tiny shadows, so whatever color you pick is gonna read a few shades darker and cooler than it looks on a flat surface. You can test this yourself - take a piece of sandpaper and paint it, then compare it to a flat painted board under the same light. The difference is real. So yeah, the light changes things a little, but the texture is the main culprit here, especially with those heavier textures like knockdown or orange peel.