Do I dare go over to the dark side?

[sluj]

I am usually an off white, nervous kind of decorator but I have been doing some building work and have a new snug/tv room/den to decorate and I am wondering about being brave and using some dark paint.

Here's what I have -
Square room about 9 feet each wall
Central door on one wall facing central full length window opposite.
South facing so very bright
No carpet as yet but will be neutral
Mid grey sofa to go on the one wall
(Horrible) Ikea unit takes up all of the other wall for tv and storage. Birch colour (I know). Has to stay for now.

I have three F and B samples on the wall - hague blue, downpipe and some Ichsomething blue (v dark).

Do I dare to paint some of the walls with the dark colours? Maybe combining with old white on other walls?

I feel like I need a bit of encouragement to give it a go but maybe its a daft idea altogether.

What do you all think?

I’m not a huge fan of feature walls but I do love rooms in strong colours combined with plenty of bright white woodwork. Would painting the Ikea white be an option? (Chalk paint is easy as no prep needed). At the end of the day if you hate it just paint over it! (Although I appreciate it’s potentially an expensive mistake!!)

Dark walls can look great - I've used them several times even in rooms with little natural light and they look fab. Make sure your woodwork is all white and if you can have coving do as it sets it off better. Don't use matt paint! Even the scrubable ones just don't work with dark colours as the water marks stay afterwards. I've discovered this in my hallway (F&B Oval Room Blue but had it mixed by Johnstons with their premium washable paint) and it's a nightmare.

Have you looked on Pinterest? Lots of pics to inspire.

You could go the whole hog and Annie Sloan your birch unit.

Go for it!

Dark walls are a really good way to lessen the impact of a large TV.

I think when done right dark rooms can look absolutley gorgeous

www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/26177241566144734/

www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/451697037620393726/

www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/294211788151215185/

I know the navy on all walls look isn't for everyone (we have it in our living room and I love it) so maybe something like this:
www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/177188566566651829/
Might be good? Sounds as though it would go with what you've got currently

What would you use instead of Matt titsy?

I've just painted one of our small rooms in F&B Inchyra blue, and we love it so much that we've used it in 2 other places too! Definitely recommend this colour, it's so lovely.
Also, I got the colour mixed by Valspar in B&Q. Half the price of F&B and really good quality paint.

my house is victorian so has fairly large windows, high ceilings and picture rails. My living room is navy, my bedroom is deep purple up to the picture rails. Above the picture rails its a dull white, (parchment w on the tin I think ) Kitchen is a very deep raspberry. Hall and landing have a dado rail so dark red on the bottom and the parchment on the top.
I like a bit of colour and the house can take it. I keep it plain as I have dozens of pictures and framed photos.

I'm not a fan of 'feature walls' either (wall paper) but in my living room I have a strong colour on one wall and the other three are literally 2-3 shades lighter. It has quite a cozy effect and also makes the room feel longer. You wouldn't even notice them slight difference in colour yet it has an impact

Do it! It's only paint. If you really hate it you can paint over it again (although maybe use a slightly cheaper paint option if that's a possibility!)

we have a basement kitchen diner in a Regency house, and changed it from white to dark blue - and it looks great. White paintwork, bold paintings on the wall, no clutter. Particularly lovely in candlelight.

Some great ideas there and photos. Thank you
I think I like the blues better than the downpipe at the moment. Maybe some bright cushions?

We’ve painted our lounge in f&b Inchyra Blue and love it. I was expecting mixed opinions from family and friends but so far everyone loves it.

A slight sheen I guess Smiled. Maybe it would be ok in a living room where there is lots of furniture against walls. Hallway and kitchen definitely a no-no though!

If it's mainly going to be used in the evenings or winter then I'd say go for it.

Lots of white to break it up (white woodwork, white picture frames on the walls, maybe a white or very pale rug). Warm colour touches so it feels cosy - old gold, terracotta, dusty pink, and all flame colours work well with dark blues.

I think dark rooms are lovely and we have a few in our house. However, farrow and ball paint is crap. And it's worse with the dark colours. If you ask a painter and decorator, they will likely say the same. Firstly to put on and then in terms of wear and tear. If you wipe it down, you get marks, even though you are supposed to be able to wipe it. Our bathroom walls look terrible because of this. If you have a patch that needs touching up, you have to repaint the whole wall as if you just do small sections, they look different and almost shiny. This is with f&b whites, or with darker colours (we used a lot of colours such as railings or Hague blue). If you don't roller it in a very specific way, then again you can end up with some bits looking Matt and others shiny. Our f&b ceilings look awful compared to where we used cheaper white paint (dulux or valspar). Wed never use f&b again if you paid us, but we're stick with it for now as we've used it in so many places.

However if you get the colour mixed with valspar or Johnstones base then that might totally change the situation as the paint itself won't be f&b.

I can't recommend Little Greene paints highly enough though if you're looking at that price bracket. Much better paint quality without the issues described above (from our experience) of using various medium to darker xolours. Not used LG whites.

Also think it looks nice if you paint skirting and any other woodwork in the same dark colour as the walls too, rather than white, depending on the look you're going for. It is much more dramatic and luxurious looking, and makes the ceilings look higher as you're not cutting the walls off with a white band at floor level. Have a squiz at people like Abigail ahern for inspiration.

Go for it. We have large south facing living room and it’s a lovely petrol blue. We have had so many compliments on the colour. Depends on the size of the room but I think all walls same colour looks great. Some white walls may look like you weren’t brave enough to commit to a bold colour.

Inchyra blue is great for one feature wall and not too dark, definitely blue in all lights.
Hague blue is very dark and striking can look green in some light looks great with teal or mustard. very striking.

Go for it and accessorise with bright yellow cushions, throws and come back with a picture afterwards.

Seconding @RubyBoots7's recommendation for Little Greene. Hicks' Blue might fit the bill.

I think the full-length window will be to your advantage - lovely bright, light curtains will break up that wall.

Thank you for your help.

I nearly fainted at the price of the F and B tester pots so I can't see me trying out a whole load of LG ones at the moment.

However I will have more rooms ready to paint later in the year so I'll bear your comments in mind.

I think it will have to be white wooden shutters at the window but I can add some colour and pattern on the shelves and sofa.
I'll take the photo in a week or two, if I dare.

Thanks again

Darkest green - I love mine ☺️

Do it!

Little known fact: Little Greene offer a colour matching service too. So you can ask them to match F&B colours and you will get F&B colour and LG quality. It's a good match too (unlike some I've had from Johnstones etc)