Give blue paint a slight gray cast

I have been trying for weeks to pick a nice blue to paint my walls in the living/office/kitchen area of my very small apartment (room is 11x19). I finally decided Devoe Regency's Blue Danube is as close as I'm gonna get out of the can.

Now I'd like to know if I can add something to the paint can to give it a very slight gray cast. I asked the paint store lady and she added a little black to my sample can (actually, a quart) after I had used about a third of it. The next test area was way too gray - and now too dark too.

I like the lightness of the color, but I s'pose it could be the tiniest bit darker if necessary. But it just has too much of that "kids room" look the way it is. Can any of you offer advice?

Thanks,

Jim

 

How much black did she add? If she added the smallest amount - that amount would only be 1/4 as much in a gallon size.

How a room is furnished [including flooring, curtains, lighting] can affect how the color is percieved.

 

The way to do this is find a color as close as possible then add very small amounts of black tint,usually lamp black,to a full not partial can until you reach what looks good to you.

The partial can threw off the black's impact plus it sounds like she added a somewhat significant amount of tint.

The paint you now have likely can't be retinted to what you are looking for.You need to start over and find a salesperson with solid knowledge who is willing to work with you to find the right color.

Most paint tint systems work on a basis of a very small fraction of an ounce.Most are 1/48ths but I've also seen 1/32nds.

In a quart I wouldn't add more than 2-4 48ths at a time as the process went on.You can always add but can't subtract.Also if you add too much tint to paint it will adversely effect drying etc.At some point there will be a stopping point tintwise and also no room in the can.

And remember that you need to make up all you will need for the job as it is very difficult to duplicate paint like this.Be sure to record everything that is done to the paint in case you do need to try to duplicate it.

 

Thanks for the info. I live in a very small town and the lady seems to be more knowledgeable than anyone else within driving distance. Perhaps it was the amount of paint left in the can that threw her off. My problem is a quart costs over 12 bucks and that's the only size sample she has right now. I can't afford to make many mistakes, but I guess I will have to try another quart with a smaller amount of black tint.

Thanks for your replies.

Jim