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Interior designers interviewed by House Beautiful recommend choosing a room’s paint color after flooring, counters, cabinets, furniture and other major finishes are settled. They say comparing samples in the actual room, checking undertones and observing them for at least 24 hours can help homeowners judge how colors work with their space.
Interior designers interviewed by House Beautiful recommend choosing a room’s paint color last, after settling major finishes and furnishings, because those surfaces shape how paint looks and what colors will coordinate. The advice offers homeowners a way to narrow a crowded field of paint options before committing to one.
Dana Arazi Levine told House Beautiful that rugs, curtains, upholstery and art offer fewer options than paint. Choosing a wall color early, she said, can constrain later decisions or lead homeowners to spend more on custom pieces to make the room work. Lisa Quinn similarly said she first settles items that are difficult to paint or swap, including flooring, counters, cabinets and large furniture.
Quinn said colors that appear nearly identical on a store chip can look different next to materials such as honey oak flooring or cool marble. After the other selections are in place, she said, the remaining paint choices are easier to assess against the room. Levine cautioned that the best match may be a color homeowners did not initially expect.
The report also recommends looking beyond the paint chip, paying attention to undertones and testing finalists at home. Designer Lindsay Atapattu of LEB Interiors advised putting samples on the wall and observing them for at least 24 hours. She said lighting, room direction and existing decor can change how a color appears.
How Finish Choices Shape Paint
Paint is one of the room’s most visible surfaces, but the designers’ advice treats it as part of a larger set of choices. Settling fixed or costly finishes first can help homeowners judge paint against the materials and furnishings it will sit beside. That may reduce clashes and make the remaining color options easier to compare.
The report presents this as professional guidance, not a measured guarantee that choosing paint last will prevent mistakes or lower costs. Levine’s point about custom pieces describes a possible consequence of choosing a wall color too early; the source does not quantify how often that happens or how much homeowners might spend.
The Room Comes Before the Chip
The House Beautiful report addresses a familiar decorating decision: selecting one shade from many similar paint options. It focuses on advice from interior designers rather than a survey or controlled test. Its central recommendation is to settle the room’s less changeable elements first, then choose a color that complements them.
Other suggestions in the report refine that process. Lauren Grant said she often chooses a more subdued or neutral paint than the final look she initially imagines, explaining that other walls can reflect light and color around a room. Quinn advises comparing undertones—for example, whether a brown leans yellow, pink, purple or green—when shades look similar. Atapattu recommends looking at samples in the space instead of relying on store lighting.
““A color that looks neutral on a chip can clash the very second it meets honey oak flooring or cool marble.””
— Lisa Quinn, interior designer, as quoted by House Beautiful
What the Advice Cannot Predict
The report does not identify a single paint color that works best across homes, nor does it provide comparative data on whether choosing paint last leads to better results. Its recommendations are attributed to designers’ experience. Individual results may depend on the room’s light, finishes, furnishings and personal preferences.
The supplied source text does not give the report’s publication date. It also does not specify how large a sample should be or whether it should be tested on multiple walls, so those details remain outside the advice described.
Test Finalists in Your Room
For homeowners following the designers’ approach, the next step is to settle the room’s major finishes and furnishings, then bring home a short list of paint samples. Compare their undertones and apply them in the room, where natural and artificial light and nearby materials can affect their appearance. Atapattu recommends waiting at least 24 hours before making a choice.
The report does not announce a formal next milestone; the guidance ends with testing colors in the space before making the final selection.
Key Questions
What is the main rule designers recommend before choosing paint?
House Beautiful’s report says to finalize major finishes and furnishings first, then choose paint that works with them.
Which room choices should come before paint?
Designer Lisa Quinn names flooring, counters, cabinets and large furniture. Dana Arazi Levine also points to rugs, curtains, upholstery and art.
How long should paint samples be tested at home?
Lindsay Atapattu recommends putting samples on the wall and observing them for at least 24 hours. The report says lighting and room direction can affect how a color looks.
Why check a paint color’s undertones?
Lisa Quinn advises checking whether similar shades lean toward yellow, pink, purple or green. Those undertones can help distinguish colors that look alike on a chip.
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