The Truth About Interior Painting…
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There is slightly more to painting than meets the eye, so for this article. I am going to focus on a wall that has been painted before and not a new construction. This is also interior painting. I am not going to go into details of painting over a variety of surfaces, but maybe I will in future article. This is everyday simple painting here.
There are 6 major steps to painting:
- Plan
- Purchase supplies and get organized
- Prepare the room
- Prime the room
- Paint the room
- Clean up and get rid of all that painting tape.
There now doesn’t that sound simple?? LOL….
Plan for your room, choose a color that best fits the style of the room and your personal preferences. Color the room for the mood you mostly want to be in while you are in the room. Light colors make a room look larger and cooler. Dark colors make a room look more intimate and warmer.
After you have a plan for color and a measurement of the room for size, so you buy the right amount of paint. Head on out to the paint store, don’t get overwhelmed at the paint store by the variety of colors. At this point, look for the color that you have decided at home and take a deep breath and pick the color that stands out to you almost right off the bat in that color range. Your first instinct in color choose will probably be right.
Get the amount of paint needed for you room, avoid the paint that is the very cheapest. You also don’t need the most expensive a good mid-range priced paint is usually quite good.
You should pick up an equal amount of primer coat. The primer that you choose isn’t all that important, but the fact that you do get it will make your wall twice as color correct when you get to painting it. Primer also blocks out unwanted stains and such from the under coat of the wall. It acts as a sealant from any past damage as well, no it won’t stop that major crack that is creeping down from your ceiling, but it will keep out some things.
You can pick up painters tape and floor protection as well. The cheapest of these will probably do perfectly. I used giant plastic sheets that were less than a dollar each for my last paint job.
The most important thing you should buy is the brushes and roller. You should get a medium sized brush where the bristles are soft and easily bend as you finger through them. Stiff bristles will leave more marks in your painting than soft ones. Synthetic bristles with split end like ends and wooden handle will work best. Your brush should have angled bristles for perfect painting in the seams and corners where the roller can’t get to.
The roller that you choose should have short naps. A steel frame will be more sturdy than some chooses. The frame should have sealed ends to keep the paint out of the center of the roller and on the roller. After you purchase the roller, give it a good rubdown to get the lint and dirt from storage off it.
Tip *** Pringles or Lays chip containers make great storage for a paint roller over night, they will keep the paint moist enough for a second paint job, if your paint job is large enough. You can easily do it over a weekend. ***
Now that you have all the supplies, it is time to prepare the room.
You should wipe down all the walls to be painted. Tape off all the edges of where you want the paint to end, like the ceiling or moldings. I have found that installing the tape in small sections rather than running it across a whole wall at once makes an easier install. I generally apply tape in 3 feet sections and cut the tape in the corners at an angle for easier application. You can then lay the drop cloth.
That sounded like a really short part of the project, but I have found that the preparing actually takes longer than the actual painting of the room.
Next, you paint the complete room with the primer layer. This should be a very thin even coat, you can consider it practice round if you would like.
You should allow the primer 24 hours to fully dry.
You can then apply the paint of your choose. Confident and proud that you have picked the perfect color and the room is going to look great in only a few hours.
Allow the paint to dry as well before taking the tape off, taking it off prior to drying fully will cause the paint to peel at the edges where the paint meets the tape.
The tape will be much easier to remove than it was to apply. It is much more fun as well. Pick up those drop clothes and take a deep breath while you admire your new room.
Extra paint will store nicely in 1 quart sports drink bottles, so you will have that touch up paint when you need it for the little one who colored on the walls and you can’t seem to get it off.
Written by Jennifer Hitchcock - Visit WebsiteComments
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