There are times when people come in to have a certain color of paint mixed but then they are unhappy with the color. Sometimes, they just don't match things right, but the color they didn't like, might just work for you. Hardware stores, home improvement centers, and even Walmart and such will often sell you those "oops" colors for less than the usual cost of a gallon of paint. Don't be shy about asking to see what they have available. You might just get a great deal.
Good point! I have never done this before, but I had a friend who was able to save a ton of money by doing this. He was in no hurry to paint, so he was able to just wait until the right colors came up. This is especially helpful if you have any small rooms to paint that you don't need multiple cans for, such as bathrooms, pantries, etc.
Great tip. I do this a lot too not only with paint but also almost anything that I know will probably have some discarded products I could use. There's no harm in asking and I think this is especially applicable for items you will just be using for fun or experimentation anyway. For a more professional job I might be less willing to compromise, but if it's just something I am doing as a hobby or for personal enjoyment I'd be very much willing to sacrifice a bit of customization to get savings.
Home Depot just has the miscolored cans sitting out for sale by the counter in the paint section. There's usually a dot of paint on the lid so that you can see what color is in there. I'm definitely going to buy my paint there next time I move.
I have bought the "oops" paint at Home Depot on a couple of occasions. It saved me a lot of money, especially when I needed the paint for a small area or a space in an inconspicuous location where the color didn't matter. We remodeled our pantry a few months ago and needed to paint the walls before we rehung the shelving. We found a great color that actually complements the rest of the kitchen and paid pennies for it.
I have painted almost my entire house with oops paint from Lowes! My luck varies on whether I will find a color I need, but with a little bit of patience I can usually find something that will work for my project. The oops paint at Lowe's is almost always $5.00. Thati s a great deal seeing as most paint is $25.00 and up!
