I’ve always got a stash of paint sample pots to hand — you’d be amazed at how often they come in handy for small but impactful DIY projects. Because, actually, you don’t need to totally repaint a room to give it something of a makeover; there are some clever ways to decorate that use small quantities of paint.
To prove my point, I’ve found four cool, modern paint ideas that all use smaller pots, whether it’s a liter or a tester, to do something that completely changes the feel of the room. From painted borders to using color in a way that shifts the design dynamic, here’s how you can make a little go a long way.
1. Add Two Color Details
The striped painted ceiling of the lounge at members' club Crafted at Powdermills was designed to create a “rhythm that responded to the proportions of the Georgian room,” explains Andreas Christodoulou, founder and creative director of House of Dre.
“The idea was to create a calming frequency overhead, something you might not consciously register but that gently settles the space.”
2. Create an Anchoring Accent
An unexpected contrast can be the most impactful use of paint, like the anchoring fireplace in this London home. “The brown is grounding and enveloping,” says Jessica Gibbons, the designer and director of Field Day Studio, “and hopefully it creates a backdrop that feels steady and enduring.”
The bright green accent brings life and energy. “It has an immediacy that contrasted beautifully with the richness of the brown.”
3. Create a Color Block
Color blocking can help change the perspective of a room, especially one with challenging proportions such as this one.
“The living room is relatively narrow yet very tall, so we wanted to counterbalance that strong verticality,” says interior designers Julie Nebout and Giuseppe Punzo of design studio Fotosintensi. “It works almost like a suspended plane — a kind of floating canopy that wraps the room rather than allowing it to endlessly stretch upward.”
4. Create Tailored Stripes
There’s something almost sartorial about the painted black line dividing the painted ceiling from the walls in the Rotterdam living room of interior designer and vintage furniture dealer Kesslee Kasius of Studio 2XK. It’s a design element that extends through the apartment, including in the kitchen and bedroom.
Of course, these are the only ways a little can go a long way. Why not consider how you could also use wallpaper remnants to decorate in an impactful way.
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