An interior designer turned a DIY painting fail into his dream bedroom, and he says he no longer fears making decor mistakes

• Richard O'Gorman has spent the past year transforming his drab home into a colorful, cheery space.
• He started sharing his designs on Instagram as "House Homo" in 2020 and now has 36,000 followers.
• O'Gorman said that after a DIY fail, he's formed a golden rule: Don't be afraid to mess up.

If there's one thing interior designer Richard O'Gorman has learned over the past year, it's to not panic when an idea goes astray.

O'Gorman has spent the past 12 months breathing life into every nook and cranny of his drab two-story home in Birmingham, England, through bold and vibrant wall murals. Posting his designs and room transformations to Instagram, he has amassed more than 36,000 followers to date.

Homeowners who choose a bold paint color that doesn't turn out quite as they envisioned shouldn't lose hope, O'Gorman told Insider.

He learned that lesson himself when he first painted his bedroom. O'Gorman originally opted for a rich dark green paired with burgundy accents around his door and fireplace. As time went on, the combination made the room look more like "the set of the next Hallmark Christmas movie," he told Insider.

"I really pushed forward and tried to make it work, but it looked ridiculous - I was constantly craving mince pies and egg nog - so I knew I had to change it up," O'Gorman said.

He ultimately decided to change directions.

O'Gorman used more paint to create a textured look, effortlessly covering up the DIY fail

To cover up the red, O'Gorman first applied a dark base layer, then gradually added lighter shades of brown to create a rust effect.

"The beauty of paint is that it's inexpensive and paint over-able, and no one will ever know," he told Insider.

"Sometimes messing up leads you to the right decision," O'Gorman said.

To see more of O'Gorman's room transformations, follow him on Instagram @househomo.