Bathroom paint is way too bright - please help :-(

[andrewpreece]

I can't quite see how you can escape from repainting it. The only way to 'tone it down' is to put a layer of something over it, so you may as well bite the bullet and repaint in a more neutral colour. If you really don't feel like doing that the only thing I can think of is a semi-transparent finish, like a glaze, probably with a bit of white/burnt sienna etc etc in it. You would need to mix up oil-paints as desired ( artists oil-paints usually, but I suppose anything suitable will do, with a bit of white spirit and the glaze. I'm not sure whether you can get satin glazes. Maybe a quick and dirty alternative is a pot of clear satin varnish mixed with some appropriate paints you have to hand, probably some white/magnolia/beige etc and test it over a sample of your 'Elizabethan Gold' and see how it looks.

Andy.

[Chocolate Sauce]

I've just had the bathroom refitted & returned home from work tonight to find the colour of the walls is too bright to live with for long. The tin called the colour "Elizabethan Gold" (soft sheen emulsion) & the label showed it as a sort of muted beech colour. However, on the walls it looks simply like a ripe orange - whilst it's not blindingly bright, it's irritatingly so. It's even more highlighted by the more neutral shades in the hall right next to it. I don't mind an orange tone to the colour (like a very light apricot), but the colour has nothing golden or apricot about it, just lots of orange. I'd rather tone the colour down rather than risk putting something totally different over it that might end up looking far worse. We're not mad on pastels, & I really wish we'd stuck to a stone/beige/light mushroom sort of colour now. Any advice would be much appreciated, as the quicker this colour goes the happier I'll be. TIA.

[Chocolate Sauce]

I've just had the bathroom refitted & chose a colour for the walls that looks too bright to live with for long. The tin called the colour "Elizabethan Gold" (soft sheen emulsion) & the label showed it as a sort of muted beech colour. However, on the walls it looks simply like a ripe orange - whilst it's not blindingly bright, it's irritatingly so. It's even more highlighted by the neutral shades in the hall right next to it. I don't mind an orange tone to the colour (like a light apricot), but the colour has nothing golden or apricot about it, just a lot of orange. I'd prefer to tone the colour down rather than risk putting something totally different over it that might end up looking far worse. We're not mad on pastels, & I really wish we'd stuck to a stone/beige/light mushroom sort of colour now. Any advice would be much appreciated, as the quicker this colour goes the happier I'll be. TIA.

[fred]

You should get out more

[TheCatsWhiskers]

On 10 Nov 2004 "fred" wrote in news:41929dff$0$12175$ [e-mail] while still grieving for JR:

And you should remember that most of the people using this group are adults with adult concerns. If your babysitter has gone home, it's clearly time you went to bed, as you must have school (remedial or otherwise) to get to tomorrow. When you get to school, please ask the teachers what it means to have manners, & then ask them to schedule in the backlog of classes you clearly have to catch up on. It's usually never too late to learn.

When the day comes that you need assistance (here or elsewhere), I hope you get shown a bit more grace and maturity than you've displayed with this silly reply.

[Bob Eager]

I quite agree.

However, what do Melbourne IT think about you using the domain name that they administer? Not sure they'll be happy about the spam you are causing them to be sent...

[TheCatsWhiskers]

On 10 Nov 2004 "Bob Eager" wrote in news: [e-mail] while still grieving for JR:

I honestly wouldn't know, as I've had the address less than a day to use as a spare one (not set up by me), & this was the first message sent using it. However, I've changed it now to ensure they don't get anything now from anyone who might want to be spiteful. Thanks for letting me know about it.

[Chocolate Sauce]

On 10 Nov 2004 "andrewpreece" wrote in news:4192b7bd@212.67.96.135 while still grieving for JR:

I've got over my initial horror, & I think what you suggest is ultimately going to be the only answer. As I didn't see it until after 5pm, I'll see what it looks like in proper daylight first. But knowing my luck, if I try anything too fancy it will make it even worse, so a full paint job it will have to be - that will teach me not to listen when I'm told :-). Thanks for the help.

[N. Thornton]

2 other options:

1. sponging. Maybe sponge it with white, or something duller. If youve got a bit of unused paint aruond, and are going to repaint anwyay, its worth a go, and might turn out well.
2. Liming. Wipe white paint on then immediately wipe it off, leaving only a very thin film. Traditionally done with diluted lime putty.

NT

[Chocolate Sauce]

On 11 Nov 2004 [e-mail] (N. Thornton) wrote in news: [e-mail] while still grieving for JR:

Thanks for the info - I haven't tried either of these techniques before, but things can't look any worse than they do now, so I've got nothing to lose & may well gain better-looking walls :-)

[Owain]

"Chocolate Sauce" wrote | I've just had the bathroom refitted & returned home from work | tonight to find the colour of the walls is too bright to live | with for long.

Have had similar reactions to new paint in the past. I don't know if the colour continues to flatten for several days after the paint dries, or if it's just a case of getting accustomed to it, but it might look less awful in a week's time.

Also, most newly painted rooms are comparatively bare. Once the wall surface is broken up a bit with pictures etc, it's less overpowering. (This might not be the case with bathrooms though, which tend not to have lost of things on the walls.)

You could also change the lightbulb to a slightly dimmer one.

Owain

[Chris Hodges]

Try the different output spectrum of an energy saving bulb as well.

We tried tester pots from dulux, crown and b&q in our kitchen (kitchen and bathroom paint) recently. All came out significantly darker than the colour card (especially the dulux). This was true in a range of lighting conditions, holding the colour card right next to the test patch (2 coats on pale yellow).

We went for white in the end.