Paint Switch
Some of you e-mailed us recently noting that things were a bit different in the Home Depot paint department lately. And apparently some of our favorite Glidden paint colors (like Sand White in our living room and Wishes in our den) were nowhere to be found. We figured Glidden was subtly updating their colors…. no biggie. But when we popped in this weekend we saw their extremely not minor overhaul with our own eyes.
The big difference: Glidden has “refined” their palette to only the most “classic and contemporary colors with timeless appeal.” Translation – they reduced their line from almost 900 colors to just over 250 (by our count, at least). Casting off nearly 650 choices seems drastic, but one could argue it makes the paint selection process a lot less overwhelming. But what’s up with ditching some of our favorite colors? Well, we also heard from the paint specialist that they changed some of the names, so maybe our favorites are still around after all… just going by a different alias.
We do like that by limiting their colors, Glidden is able to provide more info about each option for a customized experience with every color they offer. For instance, now each paint swatch features an inspiration photo and a coordinating color guide on the back. Very handy indeed.
And now you can even grab a pre-mixed 2 oz. tester bottle right at the paint chip display. One of the coolest things is that each bottle has a built-in brush. Genius.
All-in-all, we thought the whole Glidden revamp was pretty cool if not extremely unexpected. Talk about a major makeover. The only drawback was that we couldn’t find the swatch we’d gone to Home Depot for (we’re hunting for a color to coordinate with Wishes, secret project to come…) but Wishes didn’t make the cut- unless it’s now going by a different moniker. But the good news is that Home Depot still has every single one of the old colors in their system, so you can still get the booted colors mixed while you wait, you just won’t have the benefit of taking home the swatch first.
Have any of you guys spotted this paint switcheroo in your neck of the woods? What’s your take on the new Glidden? And while you’re at it, what’s your favorite paint brand in general? We’ve always loved the range of colors by Glidden but the quality of Benjamin Moore and Behr- and we actually like some of Valspar’s colors as well as Freshaire’s no VOC line. But we’d love to hear your preference when it comes to paint.
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I haven’t been to the paint dept. lately at Home Depot, but I think I’ll have to make a trip there soon too see this new setup! My personal fav’s are Benjamin Moore Regal and Sherwin Williams SuperPaint. I’ve used every brand from Home Depot, Lowe’s, Porter, to Color Wheel in my houses, but BM and SW consistently hold up the best (with 4 active boys, I need a paint that will hold up). Plus, I loooove Benjamin Moore’s selection of colors. They’re much pricier, but to me it’s money well spent.
This change by Glidden is kind of bittersweet. I loved the wide range of color options that they provided, but limiting the selection to “classic and contemporary colors with timeless appeal” might be a good thing. Kind of a less is more theory.
I’d have to say my favorite paint brand would have to be Ralph Lauren, although that is always subject to change. I really like their colors and quality.
I’m a Benjamin Moore girl, and after trying their Aura paint it will take a lot of convincing to try something else! And I adore any paint brand that has the sample pots, it makes choosing a colour so much easier. Spending an extra $10-15 to try out some other sample options is way more cost effective than having to re-paint a whole room when the paint doesn’t turn out as expected. And you can use the samples for small little projects too!
I’m a Behr fan myself. Great news, because Home Depot is having a sale on Behr Paint this weekend (May 21st through May 25th). After mail-in rebate, you can get $5 off on one gallon sizes and $20 off on five gallon sizes. Cool, huh?
It’s interesting that Glidden are now doing the little tester pots with brushes. They’ve been in the UK for a while now – I was very suprised not to be able to find them in stores in the USA when I moved a couple of years ago. They are definitely very handy when it comes to testing a bunch of paint colors.
ooh – I’m about to paint this summer and love the idea of the little testers. thanks for the heads up!
I’m a SW girl (one of our only 2 options in town), but I like the idea of having premixed samples ready to go. 2oz seems really small though. I think more like 6 oz would be a bit more useful (the pint samples at SW are a bit large)because sometimes you need to put a bigger sample on the wall to really get the feel of the color.
Will they still color match or mix up special colors for you if you know the formula?
Pamela- Yes, the good news is that they can always color match things or mix up any tone that you already have the formula for (I would be inconsolable if they couldn’t). Hope it helps!
Katy C.- I would definitely try asking them to color match the swatch. Although the results are said to be iffy, we’ve had extremely good luck matching things, so it’s definitely worth a shot! The other great thing is that they don’t make you purchase the gallon until after you see and approve the little paint dot that they put on the top (so you hold your swatch up to it to see how close they really got). Hope it helps! Happy paint hunting…
xoxo,
Sherry
I experienced this first hand last week! I’ve been searching for over a year for a paint swatch I love for the main living area (well, I had one about 5 months ago, but one of my dogs munched on it and I couldn’t remember the name) I wandered in to a Home Depot in an area I usually don’t go to and to find something for one of our home reno projects, and of course had to pass the paint section – and found a color I LOVED! A couple of days later I decided I would get a sample of the paint to try in the room and took my swatch to my normal Home Depot – and that’s when I saw the new paint display. Of course my color wasn’t in their display – but they were still able to make a sample, having said that, after painting the sample on my wall, I wasn’t happy with how it came out- it had more blue in it than my paint swatch. I’ve been thinking about using their color match system to see if they can scan the color on the paint swatch I have? Or maybe it was just the sample didn’t mix right because of small size and I should try again – all I know is I have to have that glidden color – I’m in love with it!
I haven’t noticed the change at my local Home Depot and I seem to be there almost daily the last month. I should also say that we don’t buy this line of paint so I may just not have noticed. I do love the 2 oz test bottles with the brush – so practical and helpful. It stinks to buy a gallon of paint just to come home and find out it doesn’t look right on your wall.
We just repainted our entire first floor and used Freshaire brand of paints that are VOC free. the color selection is much less compared to a brand like Glidden or Behr but we actually liked not being as overwhelmed and found colors we absolutely love.
It figures! We’ve have paint strips taped to our kitchen wall for a few months now and have finally decided on Glidden’s Ripple Effect. Glad to hear that they could still mix it for us, although I will miss the strips with the different shades.
Behr is definitely my favorite! My Depot here in ATL hasn’t revamped their painting dept yet, but we’ll see. Behr is so great because it rarely even needs 2 coats! Awesome quality.
Although, I do like Gliddens primers the best :)
Never bought paint at Home Depot – I always get my paint from Ace – but I’ll have to check out those sample bottles next time I’m there. They sound like a great packaging design… is it like a rubber cement jar with the brush in the lid?
Our favorite paint is Benjamin Moore. I love it for everything. Good color selection and great quality.
I am a commercial interior designer and I have experienced all of the major paint brands re-coloring and rebranding. A lot of times my favorite colors disappear and I am heart broken. Most of the time the popular colors haven’t been dropped, they have just been renamed and numbered. Thankfully whenever there is a major change likes this the phone operators at the 1-800 numbers have conversion lists. Just call in, tell them the color name (and number if you have it) and they will let you know if it has been renamed. If it was truly a dropped color they often have replacement color suggestions as well. Good luck finding your paints!!!
We love the quality of Behr. We’ve had lots of trouble with Valspar in terms of coverage. Glidden has great colors so we usually do a Behr color match.
We are die-hard Benjamin Moore fans, but we occasionally cheat on him with Restoration Hardware. Since we have the 4 dogs, we really need a durable, washable paint. The RH paint that is currently in our living room and kitchen is not up to the task and needs to be repainted after less than two years.
After hearing all of the hype about Aura, I was intrigued but wanted to compare it for myself. So, I did an informal side by side comparison. We painted samples of BM Aura, BM regal, and RH on our walls (builders white in our “dog room”). After letting the samples dry for a few days, I took a damp microfiber cloth and scrubbed each sample. No paint came off of the Aura, a moderate amount came off of the RH, and a TON came off of the regular BM regal. You couldn’t see where I had washed the Aura, but you could see spots and streaks on the other two. Aura was the undisputed winner of my not-so-scientific study.
As a side note, the Aura went on very smoothly and dried almost instantly. It also had no odor and seemed to dry to a smoother finish (even over imperfections in the wall). Our current painting plan is to have the BM aura paint tinted in our favorite RH color.
I just noticed this last week! I was given full reighn over the boyfriend’s kitchen and tried to find Gentle Tide and it was no where to be found. I went with another light blue, but it turned out way too bright! So off we went to Ace down the street and i went back to Benjamin Moore (what we’ve been using on the rest of the house). Ended up with lenox tan, one of the pottery barn colors :)
Aura, Aura, Aura. There’s really nothing else to say. I’ll never use anything but, unless BM comes out with something new they think is better. I recently painted my whole kitchen — cabinets included — with Aura and it looks great.
I haven’t always paid a lot of attention to different brands of paint, I just look for a color I like and that varies from brand to brand! I am remodeling my kitchen (just finished grouting the backsplash last night – yay!) and I got all the paint for the cabinets from Sherwin Williams. Normally I just go to Lowes (it’s closer than Home Depot) and pick out a color I like and go with it.
It’s too bad to lose so many colors, but the test pots with a brush included??? SHEER GENIOUS!!!!!!! It makes me want to find something to paint!
We’ve recently done a TON of painting at Brian’s house, trying to beat the carpet installation on June 1. But, we too have mixed and matched a bunch of brands…. Glidden for the ceiling, Behr Antique White for the Master, Freshaire color in Behr paint for the guestroom and master bathroom, and Glidden for the trim. I must say, I LOVE Freshaire’s colors but we can’t always find a Home Depot paint person who will colormatch into the Behr paint (our pref. brand)… some say no and some have no problem. Obviously, they want to sell you Freshaire at double the price!
When we were there (Sat, Sun, Mon, Tue- no joke!), the Glidden display had not been set-up but the new Behr Primer + Paint All In One (exterior I believe) display was set-up. They seemed to have some great colors as well. Plus, neat little holes in the corner and circle rings so you could make your own swatch book- very smart thinking!
We just painted (almost) every room in our house with Glidden since it is relatively cheap (~$20/gallon) and was well rated in Consumer Reports. It’s also low-VOC at 50 g/L, which we found out when it occurred to us to check the side of the can *after* painting the master bedroom!
So far I haven’t noticed any lapse in quality, other than what was caused by my own painting mistakes.
I’ve been avoiding the paint section in HD since we got done, so I haven’t noticed any changes there! But I did like how they had, like, EVERY possible shade of EVERY hue.
Behr all the way – for quality and value (i.e. low cost). On the occasion I can’t find the perfect color, I have used color match of other companies paint chips. I recently wanted a robin’s egg color & couldn’t find the perfect shade in Behr. So they color matched BM Bird’s Egg for me. Love it!
I don’t have a favorite brand yet; haven’t painted enough. :) But I do like the option of low/no VOC. As for Glidden, I really like the update! And the pre-mixed paints will make me check their paint colors before others.
I actually caught them switching the samples out. I went in to get a specific swatch and there were four guys putting new swatches in a practically empty display. They helped me look for the one I wanted, but we couldn’t find it. I asked if it was possible the color was recently discontinued, and they didn’t seem to know anything about it. Now I know what they were really doing!
I haven’t gotten to my Home Depot yet. This is somewhat disturbing news as I have been admiring the color in your living room for quite some time. Can you give me the formula on the back of the swatch just in case when I run to HD it’s not there?
Hey KJ,
All Home Depots keep every formula in their computer whether they’re discontinued or not so if you walk in there and ask for Sand White by Glidden they can mix you up a batch while you wait. The only difference is that you won’t be able to bring home a color swatch. Hope it helps!
xo,
Sherry
I’ve been a BM girl for years now and am getting ready to do some more painting – not because it has faded but just to change to lighter colors . Has anyone used their no/low VOC paints? I’m thinking of getting those this time around even with the additional cost and wondered if it was worth the extra cost?
Hey Carol,
Their low/no VOC line is called Aura and we’ve heard people raving about it for months but we have yet to try it out for ourselves. The good news is that if you scroll up you can read at least two reviews about it from our readers (and they’re quite complementary)…
xo,
Sherry
I was told that even if they don’t have the swatch in store any more they still have the formual in their paint machine. And they have this giant book of thousands of colors – most of which don’t even have names, just numbers – to choose from.
They can also make colors from Benjamin Moore and Sherman Williams if you provide them with the name.
Thanks for the update, guys! I’ve used both Sand White and Wishes in our current house (you two always find the best colors), but since we’re moving to a new place this weekend, I wanted to recreate the same looks. It’s good to know that they can still create the colors for you – thank God I held on to my swatches! :)
Interesting switch!
I was pretty disappointed when we moved to Germany and discovered the paint selection was maybe 1/20 of what we could pick from in the US. We couldn’t find samples even close to the shades we were looking for. Since we’d just moved there, we didn’t have any samples of what we did want other than on the computer.
Looking forward to the surprise project!
Katie
BM Aura (for the colors and quality) and SW Duration (for the quality–I’ve striking out on the colors lately). I’ve used BM Regal and didn’t care for it and am currently toying with using Farrow & Ball in my dining room, but I don’t think the colors will work out (talk about an abbreviated palette).
I’ve used Behr exclusively for a long time (with one dalliance with a Kilz primer on one of the few original surfaces left during our gut reno), but I was recently tempted by a Valspar color I saw at Lowe’s. As I painted, and for days afterward, I was amazed by how much the smell of the Valspar paint bothered me. Even though I’m fairly sensitive to smells, I’d never had a problem with Behr so I’d always vetoed the no/low VOC out of concern for price. The Valspar was a whole different story. Lesson learned: should’ve color matched with Behr.
My new favorite paint is Mythic. It’s eco-friendly in that it has no VOCs, and water and soap wash-up is great, too. The colors are more earth-tone. It is very thick and provides good coverage. In Richmond, I got some at Eco Logic on Main St. If you haven’t been there yet, please go and get some great ideas!
Hey Jennifer,
We love Eco Logic and were actually there to help them celebrate their launch. They’re a great little store and we’re so glad that they’re growing and gaining more and more followers here in RIC!
xo,
Sherry
I think I’ve used every paint out there at one time or another. I think Sherwin Williams, Benjamin Moore, Laura Ashley (Valspar), Ralph Lauren and Behr are all comparable for quality, but you can seldom beat Behr for price. I just wish they were a little more proficient at color-matching — you never know how close you’re going to get when you ask Home Depot to color match the Behr paint (as opposed to Sherwin Williams, who gets it right 9 times out of 10). The only paint I avoid is Olympic. I used it once and it was awful — my kids have finger paints that cover better.
So, I was one of those folks that wrote you about the paint and I also found that of the two Home Depot’s in my town, only one had transitioned to this new thing, and the other still had all the colors. I asked the paint guys if they knew of any plans to do the same revamp and they said no, that Glidden had just come and done some “reset” on their stuff. So perhaps it is sort of a trial-run for certain stores.
They’ve apparently also changed the formulation to be better – it’s slightly different, but, overall I do see a change for the better in quality.
While I love you guys (and I mean love:) and your paint color selection. I can not for the life of me understand why you use Home Depot Paint. I used the Glidden paint last summer when I wanted my kitchen to follow yours and be Gentle tide. While I loved the color I hated everything about the paint(poor coverage, drips and so forth) and cursed the entire time for cheating on my beloved Benjamin Moore. So the fact that they have reduced their color selection is no big deal, i think they should just get ride of their paint all together.
-Erin
I noticed the same thing the other week! We used Sand White for our neutral constant in the house- we had it mixed as Behr paint tho. So, when my family saw our new walls and commented on the Sand White, I thought I would pick up a swatch and share it with them. Alas, Sand White was nowhere to be found! Luckily, we have the handy Home Depot bar code on our old paint cans, should we want more. I can see how less is more in this case, but dropping 650 colors seems very drastic. Thanks, Sherry and John, for introducing us to the color- we love it!
I noticed this last week! I have been searching for the perfect pale tan/taupe/khaki color for our living/dining room and wanted to try a sample of Sand White since I loved the way it looked in your home.
I wasn’t always such a sample advocate, but I had a minor kitchen/family room disaster… the creamy white (Navajo White from Behr) I chose turned out to be much more buttery, yellow with the amount of sunlight in that room. It doesn’t look bad it just isn’t what I wanted, but I’m sort of stuck with it for a while.
Even though Gildden didn’t have that color I picked up about 20 different tan swatches and six different samples. We ended up going with Natural Linen from Gildden. It is perfect for our space and feel so rich, but still looks good next to our buttery family room.
Thanks so much for all of your fabulous painting advice! I have relied on it quite a bit lately.
I should add that my absolute favorite brand of paint is Behr from Home Depot. Consumer Reports rated it second best for interior paints (first being Benjamin Moore, which is pricey as we all know). The coverage is excellent, I could go on and on. The only time I venture out of Behr is when I find a Martha Stewart color I love from Lowe’s. I’ve found the service to be far better at Home Depot, too.
I am a Sherwin Williams loyalist. My office (interior design firm) uses it more than any other paint because it has such a good color range and the quality of paint is phenomenal. It may be more expensive than some options, but it’s thick enough to cover in one coat so in the long run it’s more cost effective than having to coat 3 times with a cheap paint and get billed for more labor. I also use it for all of my projects at home. A few weekends ago I painted my bathroom using the Harmony paint (No VOC’s) and I can’t say enough great things about it!
Sounds like Sherry’s Glidden paint swatch book is going to become a collector’s item! Now your ottoman paint library is an archive!
As a previous poster noted, both Home Depot and Lowes are offering some good deals for this holiday weekend – both have $5 rebates for a gallon of paint ($20/off 5 gallon). With that said, do you guys have any projects planned for this weekend?
Happy Holiday!
I’m not a HD person, but I definiely like the sample idea they have going.
Well, this leaves me feeling a little blue. I don’t usually stick to one company (have even found an orange I LOVE at Walmart that I used in my bathroom), but I must admit I often use Glidden. We’ll have to see what the future holds, as I’m not planning on painting any time soon, but I have a feeling I’m not going to like the switch with so fewer colors to choose from.
Also, I carry all the swatches from my rooms in my wallet – is that weird? That way whenever I’m shopping and wonder if something will match well enough, I just whip out the swatch!
Ben Moore is the best! It has a consistency that does not drip. I can paint without using a drop cloth. How the paint performs on the paintbrush /roller is a very high priority for me.
I love the finish of the Aura, but it is pricey.
And to me, it still smelled yucky for a couple days, but I am sensitive. It is a huge improvement, though.
I have to agree with elizabeth – I never use anything but Sherwin Williams anymore. I had too many frustrating painting incidents with Home Depot paints.
I just picked up those 2 paint swatches at my local HD (in Mobile) last week! I guess that was just lucky. I haven’t been back to see if the store has changed their Glidden display. Guess I have the color info now, so that’s all that matters! Those little pre-mixed color pots (no standing aroud waiting for them to mix it for you) with a built- in brush to boot is awesome. That’s one smart cookie who thought up that idea. I’m a Sherwin Williams girl myself, but I may give Behr a try on some paint projects soon. Thanks for keeping us informed!
I used to use Sherwin-Williams but had a bad experience with super streaky red (even on a dark primed wall) after several coats, went to Home Depot and got the closest color in Behr and one coat made it look fantastic, so I’ve been loyal to Behr ever since.
No one even comes close to Sherwin Williams in terms of understanding color theory and the organization of their palette. It’s almost a science choosing a color there. I bought the fan book to keep at home, but the store display makes it even easier to fine-tune your color selection. And the paint is fabulous. So, no reason to even look elsewhere.
As an interior designer, I’ve used every paint brand out there. For my clients, I always go with Benjamin Moore’s Aura (love that paint!) and Sherwin Williams Super Paint (also awesome). I used to use Behr and Glidden, but one I had 2 active twin boys and a big (even more active) lab, those paints just couldn’t stand up. They’re fine for walls that don’t get touched (no kids, no pets!), but if you want true durablility, wonderful color selection, and long lasting quality, you truly get what you pay for!!
I’ve tended to go with Benjamin Moore because the hardware store right near our house sells it (is that lazy of me?), but I have been really happy with the quality. Now, I’m really tempted to try Farrow & Ball, if only to see what all the fuss is about, but I’m still having trouble justifying the $85/gallon price tag!
While I love Benjamin Moore (my living room is Woodland Snow; my bedroom Sweet Daphne, which was a Pottery Barn colour), my new favourite paint line is C2. I wish I had enough walls to use all of the 496 colours, which are wonderfully named. I have an accent wall that is very, very blue–Windsor. The best part of C2 (other than the amazing coverage) is that they sell 18×24″ paint chips!
Speaking of paints, can anyone recommend a semi-gloss white for trim and most importantly, for bookshelves and the tops of cabinets and radiator covers that really hold up? Every time I place something like a picture frame or heavier vase on those surfaces, they tend to leave marks. Would love to know of a super-strong white paint. Thanks!