If you want to do that, you have to make a smal transparant PNG image.
Mine is 5x5 pixels.
Then:
Set te color on the desired color.
Set the opacity to 40 / 50 % (or what ever you want, the lower the better you see the background)
---> In the better programs you have this function. Not in paint

Bucket fill the image.
Save the image.
In your ACP, edit the stylvars of your layout.
Find: Forums --> Forumrow_background
In there you set the folowing:
Background color: Transparant
Background image: the path and filename of your UPLOADED image.
Background repeat: Repeat
Units: empty
Background Image Horizontal Offset: Left
Background Image Vertical Offset: Top
There you go
Note...
There are several settings to be changed.
This was just 1 example.
You can see an example here:
www.papegaaienforum.nl