I did do this to paint some furniture a couple of times. I found it was nice to be able to create my own color. However, the downside to this would be that if you've got none of the new color left it's very difficult to make the exact same color again out of dregs at the bottom of cans. For this reason I personally wouldn't do that for larger pieces of furniture or entire rooms, but for painting something small I think it works well and is a good way of using up little bits of leftover paint.
I think it is a good way to use up extra paint. I usually only have white paint though and there is really not much to create with that. I rarely have other colors of paint to mix, so this is one of he problems with that theory. I would like to be able to mix and create paints. I think you could come up with some interesting colors that way, and also use left over paint so it doesn't go to waste.
I like this idea and I appreciate that it's upcycling and nothing goes to waste. As for the poster who said they only have white paint, Wal-Mart has 8 ounce sample jars of paint for $2.49, so for $2.49, you could get a sample of an intense color to dilute with your white paint. $2.49 to add color to your white paint is still a LOT cheaper than buying an entire can of new paint.
Having also done this in the past and would agree that it can be an excellent way of using up small amounts of left over paint - its not something that I would recommend doing - unless planning to mix the same type of paints as well as the same brand and more importantly - are not too fussy about the color. Particularly as - although the idea sounds and appears like a real simple, very inexpensive way of achieving a truly unique color - it can sometimes be false economy - simply because - as it rarely ever turns out to be the exact same color that you are expecting - however rigid you've been in getting the color balance right - the end result can sometimes be so unique that it may not suit the purpose it was originally intended for - or any other for that matter. Which is why - as I've always preferred to decorate my home using my own customized colors - I rarely ever mix them myself - as not only do I find it way more cost effective, time efficient and very definitely less messy to have them professionally mixed for me - but there really is no need to - now that many paint manufacturers offer this option for free. That said - fortunately mixing left over paint is rarely, if ever anything that I have to consider doing - as apart from trying to avoid having any excess by calculating how much I need for each project prior to buying it - as I always only ever use colors that I like and that are complimentary to my surroundings - if there ever is any left over - it generally gets used up as it is - for hand painting - motifs or patterns onto ceramics, tiles, glass or flower pots.
We had several painting jobs in our 15 years in this house. My husband is in charge particularly with the purchase of paint. He never fails to make a good estimate of the amount of paint to buy for the job. He said that a leftover paint should be used or thrown unless there is an intention to use it later. But keeping leftover paint for more than a month is not a good practice since the paint will just go dry. And mixing an old with new paint? I don't see any problem although we do not do that.
I have done this before with great results. I would not recommend it if you were going to paint a room or something big because you have to be careful about mixing the right ratios and stuff. Small things like furniture and crafts is perfectly ok to do.
This is a good idea and a way to save money when buying paint but it does have it's drawbacks as mentioned mostly not having enough to finish the project. I prefer to check out the 'oops' paint myself.
