Advertisement
Trending

‘Yea pretty sure our home’s previous owner did this’: Woman goes to Home Depot to inquire about paint. Then a worker steps in

‘Now there are like 7 slightly different shades of gray in the house.’

Photo of Alexandra Samuels

Alexandra Samuels

Home Depot sign(l), Woman talking with text 'pov the home depot employee shows you this hack for matching unknown paint colors.'(c), Paint cans(r)

Your home’s walls once looked amazing, but after a few years, the color began to fade. The problem is you now have no idea what color you bought for the walls when you first painted them. 

Featured Video

While the idea of matching years-old paint might seem daunting, a woman who said she used the MatchPaintColor app (@matchpaintcolor) shared a trick to make this task easier.

In a video uploaded to TikTok on Jan. 26, a woman said a Home Depot employee recommended that she use the MatchPaintColor app to match unknown paint colors.

“POV the Home Depot employee shows you this hack for matching unknown paint colors,” read the clip’s on-screen caption. As of this writing, the video has amassed more than 833,300 views.

Advertisement

Using the app is simple, she suggested. First, she said to take a photo of your unknown paint color. Once that’s done, she said to “line up your free white paint chip for accuracy.” (It’s unclear if the chip was obtained from Home Depot or otherwise.) After that, she said the app would suggest paint matches.

“This is such a lifesaver,” @matchpaintcolor wrote in the accompanying caption of her video. But is this app legit? 

Viewers dismiss woman’s paint theory

Those who watched the @matchpaintcolor video suggested that the app didn’t work. 

Advertisement

“Yea pretty sure our home’s previous owner did this,” one user said. “Now there are like 7 slightly different shades of gray in the house.”

“The paint begins changing color immediately after it cures,” another wrote. 

“Wildly inaccurate,” a third viewer added. “I have been through the wringer with this!”

Given their horror stories, some others advised on what to actually do if you need a perfect color match. One viewer, for instance, said it’s not just a matter of getting the color right; you need to find the manufacturer and “exact paint type” for the color you need.

Advertisement

If you don’t, the color “will still be different,” they warned.

Another shared advice from their husband, who they said works at Sherwin Williams.

“He said you’re better off finding a hidden area you can take a chip of paint from to get it matched because the color isn’t going to be exact using a camera,” she said.

Others said you’re better off asking a Home Depot employee to match the color for you.

Advertisement

“Bring in a sample of it to a physical paint store and ask them to match it,” one viewer said.

“[The] best way is to take a piece of drywall to Home Depot. Not Sherwin Williams,” another advised. “They’re the best at matching.”

“I usually pick my house up and bring it in to color match,” a third viewer quipped.

@matchpaintcolor

this is such a life saver!!

♬ Good Luck, Babe! – Chappell Roan
Advertisement

How do I find the right color match?

Beyond the advice commenters shared, there are a few other ways to match paint colors if you’re lacking a color code. 

This past July, USA Today shared the following tips. If you’re looking to touch up cabinets, it said, unscrew a cabinet door and physically bring it to a paint store. Then, reattach the door when you’re done. Follow the same process for drawers. 

Meanwhile, if your paint project involves drywall, it said to locate an inconspicuous spot on your wall and take a small, one-inch sample from it. “To easily conceal the sample spot with minimal effort after you’re done, one of the best places to take a sample from is behind the outlet cover plate.”

Advertisement

The outlet also recommended two color-matching apps, but as those who watched the @matchpaintcolor video said, these are far from perfect. 

But if you find yourself in a pinch, Family Handyman recommended five paint-matching apps. It said the best overall app was the Color Muse Colorimeter, which can be purchased through Amazon.

The Daily Dot has reached out to @matchpaintcolor via TikTok comment and to Home Depot through email.

Internet culture is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here. You’ll get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.

Advertisement

 
The Daily Dot