Painting is the cheapest thing you can do to a space; creating the highest impact.
After painting double digits in rooms, here is every tip and trick I have learned along the way. Read this before you head to the store, or pick up the old paintbrush. A few things can make or break the “simple” color change.
All My Painting Tips & Tricks in One Space!
Patch It
It’s all in the prep! As much as I want to just get to painting, prep work is 90% of a good paint job. This little guy is perfect for the quick patch and sand work you may need for various screw nail holes. It’s a patch, prime, scrape, and sand in one. I like to use my finger instead of the angled edge for a smoother finish. I will warn you that at a certain point you need to cut the tube open to use the rest, but I love having the sandpaper on the end so much.
Wipe Down the Walls!
Wiping down the walls make sure you aren’t adding dust and hair (gross, but true) into your paint. The extra 5 minutes will give you the perfect fresh start. You can use a tact cloth if you are being very detailed, but a dusty or damp cloth should do.
Get in those baseboards and corners.
Consider Painting the Ceiling
My friend is an interior designer, and for a while, she nudged me to paint the ceiling the same color as the walls. I thought this would look like a funhouse. One day I was using my go-to Taupe Tease neutral and rolled right onto the ceiling. I can’t stop. Whether I’m using a neutral or a navy, I am obsessed with including the ceiling. It makes your space feel like an encapsulating blanket that’s giving you a hug.
Your ceiling is your 5th wall. Forgetting about it just looks like you didn’t finish. Do you really want a white hat on that look? If you do, great. Otherwise, roll on up.
Paper Over Plastic
We all have battled a plastic $4 drop cloth. It’s the worst. The noises are annoying. They tear. The tape just stuck to them. They are useless. Over the years I have grown a disdain towards the thin plastic drop cloth.
Enter heavy paper. Those $14 rolls of heavy paper will last you longer than you think. You can actually exist by leaving them in place during breaks. And it’s overall better protection for the floors underneath.
If you are covering a chair or a couch, sure the cheap plastic drop thing is fine; so is an old sheet. If you like the idea of sheets but don’t have them – head to the local thrift store. Run them through the washer and ta-da recycled drop cloths.
Primer
The thing we all want to skip, but you really shouldn’t. Primer helps you on several accounts.
Primer allows your chosen color to reach the true tone. You can pick out a taupe-y white and paint it over a blue wall, but without primer, you’ll get a blue-ish white and use double the amount of tinted paint. You can get the primer tinted closer to your paint color too! Home Depot doesn’t like to do it, but Sherwin Williams did it for our fireplaces and half bath. Lifesaver. That way you aren’t going from dark to white primer too dark again. Primer saves you time and money in the end. We love Zinsser which is sold at both Home Depot (in 2-3 shades) and Lowe’s (tintable).
Rule of Primer: When you are done priming, it should look like you are done painting.
Tape!
Blue Tape for similar colors. Yellow Tape for contrasting colors.
If you are doing a neutral or a less saturated color over a white trim, blue painter’s tape is your new BFF. A great tape job speeds up the painting process. If you are heading into a navy or a chalkboard wall, spring for the delicate yellow tape. It’s a tad bit pricier, but the yellow tape is a leap of a difference.
Yes. Pros will go without tape, but trust me when I tell you that is a pandora box as a beginner.
Tip: Pull the tape up with the paint is still a little wet. You don’t want to pull up paint with the tape. Pull from the side you started taping on towards the side you ended and pull at a 45-degree angle. That should pull it up in faster waves.
Brushes & Rollers
Grab yourself a Wooster Shortcut angle brush (these are my absolute favorite; I should buy them in bulk) and a good roller. For the roller, you’ll want a nap (the fuzzy part) under 1/2″ depending on your wall texture. A foam roller is a great choice for furniture, cabinets, or even shelving.
You’ll need both of these and a tray.
To avoid “framing” (when the brush paint dries in strokes, framing out the wall) you can grab a small roller of the same nap to blend.
Tip: Don’t waste your supplies!
Wrap you roller and brush in plastic wrap or plastic bags and store them in the fridge to avoid them drying out between coats.
Paint!
I prefer Sherwin Williams ProMar 200 which is a professional-grade paint. It’s about $60 a gallon unless you can wiggle your way into a pro discount. At Lowes, the HGTV lines are great. I’ll put it on the table that I haven’t found a go-to Behr paint for walls. For cabinets, I loved the PPG Timeless Exterior paint in Satin.
If you have a question DM me! Good paint is worth the bump in price. It matters house it will roll on, dry, cover. You know when you go into a room and can see the roller lines? That’s because they did a cheap roller and cheap paint. If you are going to do the back break work of painting a room, spend the extra $10-20 to make it look pristine.
Clare Paint delivers to your door and has great reviews. I’m hoping to try them out during this lockdown situation.
Tip: Take a picture of the paint label and the sticker with the paint formula before you start painting! Those get messy quickly.
My Favorite Neutral Paint Colors!
Get to Know Your Sheens
Kylie M. Interiors made this paint sheen chart and it’s great.
Even if I am painting all one color, I like to use a semi-gloss for trim and satin or eggshell for the walls. It adds dimension and interest to the cozy room.
Millwork should match doors. If you do a contrast trim, make the doors the trim color.
NOTE!
Do not just throw paint away!
Google your local guidelines to check the proper way to dispose of or list your used paint on Facebook marketplace for free. It is good to save it for a rainy day or wall touch-ups if you have space!
Feature Image for the post is by clare.com