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Wood Colour Made Easy

Every piece of wood has the potential to react differently to the painting process, due to the natural properties of the substrate. This can make things a little complicated when it comes to choosing a colour for your garden fence!

Consider it this way. We know mixing blue with white paint makes a pale blue. But if mixed with yellow, the result would be a shade of green. The same logic applies when it comes to applying colour to exterior wood. A colour test on a medium oak wood will have completely different results if then applied to a piece of pine, or beech, or oak.

With the introduction of our new "Colour It" exterior wood paint sample pots, we've made this process easier for you. 180ml of tester paint, designed to allow you to test our how your chosen colour on your garden fence, shed or furniture - before committing to purchasing the full tin size.

Colour It Exterior contains a semi-matt, opaque finish paint (similar to our Ultra Classic or Valtti Opaque exterior paints) that can be applied to new and previously painted or stained surfaces. Ideal for use where a complete change of colour is required or where the existing surface has become weathered and uneven in appearance. Available in all 2000 colours from Tikkurila's collection - with the additional option of colour matching should you have something specific in mind.

What do we mean by an opaque finish?

With Tikkurila's exterior decorative wood paints, we offer two finish options; Opaque or Woodstain.

  • Opaque finishes are simply non-transparent meaning they don't allow light to pass through. A paint that is opaque will give a solid colour and will hide what is underneath
  • Wood stains add colour, while maintaining the natural appearance and hue of the original wood.

Colour It Exterior Wood Tester is an opaque, fully saturated finish. If you are looking for a natural wood finish, we would instead recommend our Valtti Color woodstain which is available to order in 250ml tins across 133 unique shades.

What is unique about "Colour It"?

Ever ordered a sample pot of paint only to discover that the final shade of your chosen paint is slightly different?

Colour differences can occur when tinting is done on a large scale or when samples are pre-tinted and stored on shelves for an extended period of time.

Thanks to Tikkurila’s unique colour map manufacturing technology, our “Colour It” sample pots are all tinted to order in the same way as our full-size tins.

This results in 100% colour accuracy between the sample and your chosen topcoat; so you know exactly what to expect before you start painting.

Continue reading to learn our top paint sample application tips.

Order Yours Now

Our Colour It testers are available to purchase for just £4.80 (with free next day delivery).

How to sample paint colours on exterior wood:

1) Stir (or shake!) your tin before application.

2) Paint directly onto the wood, applying two coats and over as large an area as you can.

3) Paint testing areas at eye level, where possible.

4) If you're choosing between a few colours, don’t line up your sample swatches right next to each other (this can affect the way each reads).

5) Once dry, study the colour(s) in different lighting conditions. From daytime light to dusk and evening, depending on what light sources you have feeding into your garden.

Not decided on your colour yet?

Get inspired by Tikkurila's colour collections. All of the featured shades are available in our Opaque wood finishes.

Greens

Using different shades of green outside can complement the plants and flowers whilst ensuring they’re not being merged out and highlights the revitalising effect of nature.

Greys

Grey exterior paint offers the perfect neutral backdrop to any garden and lets the colourful plants and flowers take centre stage.

Blues

When it comes to the garden, the more colour the better, and blue is a great choice to enhance all the vivid hues of the plants and flowers.

Yellows

A yellow garden fence can bring a ray of sunshine into your garden no matter the weather, and help the garden greenery to look even more vivid against the bright background.

Pinks

Pink has become synonymous with modern style, and there’s no reason to keep it confined to inside the house.

Explore our full colour directory here

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Use this calculator to work out your requirements, if you have any question please get in touch with one of our team who will be more than willing to help you.

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Disclaimer: Tikkurila UK Paint Calculator is provided as a guide only. The coverage rates will vary depending on surface being coated and the particular product range being used. More information on these products can be found on the cans, on the technical data sheets on individual product pages, by using our live chat service or by calling our technical team on 0131 334 4999.

Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the estimate, however paint requirements may vary depending on the surface, type of paint, sheen level and colour chosen.

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