How to Save Money Using Oops Paint and Get the Paint Color Changed Free

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By Peggy Hazelwood
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Wait! That's not the right paint color!

When it's time to paint a room in your house, it's easy to do and to save money. Many stores that sell interior paint, such as Home Depot and Lowe's, sell Oops paint. Oops paint is paint that someone ordered then returned because they didn't like the paint color.

'Oops, this isn't what I had in mind!'

After the paint is returned to the store, a store employee then retints the paint to a new paint color so the same customer who returned it can't come back and buy that paint (the same color) again at a discount.

Oops paint is deeply discounted. It sells normally for $5 a gallon and $1 for a quart. The original retail price of this paint usually starts at about $20 a gallon and around $8 per quart.

Brands of paint that become Oops paint include Behr, Ralph Lauren, Glidden, and more.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Desire to save money when you paint
Oops paint that is the wrong paint color

Step 1

The first thing to do when shopping for Oops paint is locate it in the store. Oops paint is found in the paint department, often on a table near the mixing station. There are usually several cans with sometimes bright, gaudy interior paint colors decorating the tops of the cans. Or maybe they are dull looking paint colors: grays, tans, browns.

Sometimes the bright colors will work for you. Or the dull paint color might be just what you had in mind. Sometimes it isn't.
Step 2

If you see an interior paint that you like but you don't like the paint color, check to make sure the type of paint will work. If you are painting a kitchen or bathroom, an enamel or semi-gloss finish that can be scrubbed may work best. For bedrooms, living rooms, and dining rooms, an eggshell, flat, or satin finish may be a better choice.
Step 3

Choose the can or cans of interior paint and ask the person who mixes the paint if they can change the paint color of the Oops paint. Have a paint swatch in hand of what color you'd like to end with to make their job easier. Choose an Oops paint color that is as neutral as possible to make the paint color change easier.
Step 4

Be prepared--the paint color may not match the paint swatch exactly. After all, the person mixing the new paint color has to use a different base color to begin with than the normal white they usually work with. Be flexible and you can save money on your next home decorating budget.

Comments

Gottaloveit said

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on 6/27/2009 I've never even heard of Oops paint! Where have I been?? I know about buying 'mistakes' at local ice cream place here (name will NOT be mentioned)...

jdds08 said

on 3/23/2009 I have also used Oops paint and had no idea they could change it, just thought you got stuck with whatever was out there. Thanks a million!