Things to consider before buying paint & how to calculate the quantity needed

Making the final decision

At this stage, you likely have a colour scheme in mind and are planning on going to the store to find paint. Allow me to stop you for a second though. Before making final decisions, consider how well the colours will complement the size of the room. In general, light colours make a space seem larger, and dark colours do the opposite. It depends on what you want. Finally, don’t forget about how your colour scheme will interact with the colours of your flooring, windowsills, radiators, furnishings etc…

Find a suitable brand

Find a paint brand that offers variations of the colours that you are interested in. Most brands have colour charts available within stores, and you can even look at colours online. Some brands even have colour visualiser apps that you can download on your phone.

SVG of paint samples

Remember that lighting impacts colour

The lighting of a room has a big impact on how a colour looks. Some colours are very inconsistent in certain lighting conditions. I would advise getting a sample of the paint and viewing it in different lighting before making a final decision.

SVG of a woman drawing the curtains in a room to allow sunlight in

Some colours need to be mixed on site

Most of the colours in the catalogues can be found on shop shelves. Others must be mixed in store. If you can’t see the colour that you want on the shelf- don’t despair! Ask a member of staff and they will likely inform you that they need to mix that colour for you.😊

Calculating how much to buy

Illustration of a wall with a window and a door and their dimensions. Equation of how to calculate the required quantity of paint written on the side.
  1. Using a tape measure, measure the width and height of each wall. Multiply these numbers to calculate the square meter measurement. (Make sure to subtract the square meter measurement of windows and doors from this number using the same calculation.)
  2. Usually, two coats are applied to everything. You therefore need to multiply the square meter measurement of the wall by two.
  3. Divide this number by the square meter per litre stated by the manufacturer. This will tell you how much paint you need.

Tip

Some paint manufacturers sell paint that require only a single coat application. This will be stated on the tin of paint. It is more expensive than regular paint but reduces the amount of time and energy needed to get the job done.