Really hating the colours I've painted my dining room

[Pleaselettheholidayend]

Just getting the second coat on the paint in my dining room and I just am not vibing it - I picked a kind of taupe but it's come up really pink so have tried doing a colour drenched of a soft green on the upper segment of the walls and the ceiling. It's just too girly for me - I think if I were doing it again I'd go white on the bottom section of the room and a nice moody teal on top/ceilings. Husband is a bit exasperated and doesn't want to spend the money on getting new paint. I think likely I'm going to have to live with it because we have two young kids and it's a complete pain finding the time to decorate - any tips on how to style to make it bearable?

You'll get used to it

Oh no, that's so disappointing after all your hard work!

You have a choice: live with it OR now the room is clear and ready to paint, just paint over it! New paint won't cost that much.

But it sounds like a big colour change, from taupe to white and teal?

What is the colour and brand of paint OP?

I sometimes search colour names as a hashtag on Instagram and it gives you loads of ideas on how to style the rook to make the paint colour work.

I really don't think the paint colour is the be all and end all, it's how the whole room is styled and finished that really matters, so I'm sure you can pull it back without repainting.

If you follow the interior designer Maria Killam on Instagram she explains this well.

So now it’s pinkish taupe on the bottom and green on the upper walls and ceiling? That sounds quite odd. But regardless, your choices are to live with it, or repaint now before all the furniture is put back. I’d repaint, personally. We’d picked a colour for our entire hall, stairs and first and second floor landings (enormous expanse, as it’s a tall house) that just didn’t work, so. I stopped the painters, bought new paint and had them start over.

White on the lower walls and teal on the upper walls and ceiling also sounds plain odd to me. Colour-drenching just means painting everything the same colour — walls, woodwork, skirting, sometimes ceiling etc. Different colours on the upper walls isn’t colour drenching

Sounds interesting? Could we have a photo please?

I’d repaint the lower sections myself, either with the same green or a darker (or lighter) green. If your husband does an evening of childcare you should be able to do two coats - ? This is the reason I’m not suggesting getting rid of the green on the ceiling and upper walls - those areas are much harder to paint …

What are the floors and furniture like? Curtains etc.

Sounds tbh I’d dump the green and over paint with white
greens are difficult, with taupe will drink up the light and make it gloomy

Thank you all - here's a couple of pics, one in daylight and one with lights on at night. I think the pics just don't convey the real PINK of what I thought was more of taupe - I tried to colour match a Valspar from a shade of Lick taupe. The green - I don't bloody fucking know, completely spiralled in B&Q.

@fundbund thank you, I will check her out on Instagram! I think I need to sleep on it and go back tomorrow.

And we have plenty of white emulsion to make it right if we abandon either colour and the leftover taupe/pink whatever can be used in kids bedrooms so not an entire waste!

I think they are both too light and don’t go well together. If the green was a darker olive and the taupe was darker it would be lovely, something like these colours

I don’t understand why you’ve used two colours — I assumed it was because there was a picture rail or moulding that divided the upper wall from the lower and made a ‘natural’ division, but there doesn’t seem to be? Why not paint the walls all the same colour?

As regards what colour that should be — what way does the room face? How much light does it get? What time of day/night do you use it most?

I don’t think you can leave it how it is. Neither colour looks right where it is. I think the safest option is just paint the whole thing white. As you already have that at home, and generally white will look okay.

i think experimenting with more dual colour combinations will be exasperating. Especially teal as it’s such a stark, dramatic shade. I think play it safe, keep it white, and as you spend time in the space, you may decide on colours in the future.

You definitely can’t leave it two tone the green and taupe look really odd together. I wouldn’t have two different colours at all though with the top section being that narrow.

personally I’m a white all over person and for now I’d repaint it white. Agree the taupe is very pink. Life got exponentially easier (and cheaper) when I gave up choosing paint colours! I know it’s not for everyone though.

Either of these colours are lovely, yes to all one colour though whichever you choose.

Sorry, my quote didn't pull across the two examples the other poster put up but they're a few posts up from me

No. It looks most odd and will drive you nuts. Why is there a demarcation there? Was there a picture rail?

I’d paint the whole thing white as this just doesn’t work.

I quite like what you've put on, op. But it's got to work for you...

Also I noticed you mentioned replacing that with a Teal ceiling. That is definitely a unique look. Here’s some examples.

These rooms look big, airy, stately and almost purpose-built to have a teal ceiling; which is how they pull off such a dramatic look in my opinion. I worry that you might regret painting your ceiling teal because it may look different in your space.

Sorry, OP, but unfortunately I think your instincts are right. Those colours don't work put together like that! Sometimes colours just don't look as you'd expect even after trying a sample or 10 (as I know too well myself!). It's usually cheaper to repaint than to spend on tonnes of new accessories to try and make it look better.

the pink/taupe is fine. you just need a darker green on the ceiling/top of walls. or take the pink/taupe up to the ceiling

I'm sorry to say but it's immediately made me think of those chalky lollipops that make your tongue bleed. Or apple and cherry squashies.

I'm not an "everything white and beige" person at all and I have a few dual tone rooms and bolder colour choices myself, but part of decorating a bit more creatively is accepting you won't nail it every time! In this case I think I would cover over with white and either have a rethink or style the white with some bold colours. OR just paint all the way up with the taupe and sit with it for a week or so, it might grow on you. It's not a horrible colour on its own.

The colours remind me of ice cream! Mint and strawberry.

Is the taupe plain enough that you can ignore it perhaps? The green looks a bit cold. Agree with pp's that the two together look odd. I'd go with whatever matches your furnishings best.

The teal ceiling looks like an upside down swimming pool!

As pp suggested, a warm olivey green on the lower section might look lovely, and saves painting the ceiling again.

I feel like the green is actually making it worse!
I would paint it all with the taupe and then lessen the pink tones with accessories lighting etc.
I think if you put olive greens, dark greys etc against it it will not look so pink!

I like these colours together though. I'm wondering if you paint a white stripe between the pink and the green?

I do think they're both too similar in tone and it would have been much better if one of them were a darker tone.

But I don't think you've much to lose by putting a white stripe in and seeing if you can embrace the pastelness of it all.

Maybe do that and live with it for a few weeks and then if you still really hate it you can repaint.