Specialized Interior Painting How To

The first question you should ask yourself is, “How long do I plan to live in my house?” If the answer is one or two years, the color choices are simple. White or Builder’s White. You want to make the space bright, clean, and fresh. Any realtor will give you this same advice. Whites will always do the job.

Color is such a personal choice. While you may have the best taste out there, you need to give the potential buyers (or renters) the freedom to mentally plug in their dream colors. They could easily be turned off buy a color that you love, but they don’t.
You’ve probably seen those fixer-upper type of shows. You’re probably as addicted as I am. (I don’t watch for the design ideas. I just like to make fun of people on TV.) It doesn’t matter what channel you are on, my wife and I will make fun of your suit, haircut. It’s all fair game. And God help you if you have a toupee. We are very shallow people, but we don’t let that stop our fun.

Anyway, home improvement type shows give you a great example of why color choice is so crucial. We’ve all seen a couple walk through a home that looks great, but they will say something like “Oh this room will need to be completely redone”. They are often reacting to the color. If the color palette rubs them the wrong way, you could lose out on a sale.

On the other hand, if you plan to be in your home for a while, then the judge and jury is YOU! Make yourself happy. Love your home. If you want to make your home look minimalist and sparse, there is nothing wrong with that. If you have always dreamed of living in the common room of Gryffindor house (I have), then no one can stop you. Except maybe the fire marshal. That unicorn tapestry looks pretty flammable.
So, lets proceed with the assumption that you are designing for yourself. And by the way, there is some middle ground between art gallery minimal and Hogwarts.

Before you get started, there is one piece of insight that may save you time in choosing a color with the help of your partner. Here is what I have found to be true:
People who work with color all day tend to prefer a more muted home environment. While people who do not work with color or design tend to surround themselves with color at the end of a hard day. With that…

Step 1: Choose Your Colors Carefully

• Think about what your room will be used for
  You will generally work with two types of paint:
  Warm colors. The colors red, yellow, beige, and orange are considered to “warm” as they evoke strong feelings and stimulate imagination. These are perfect for kitchens, dining rooms, and living rooms.
• Cool colors. Colors such as green, blue, brown, and grey represent this type. Colors in this range are known to have a calming effect on the mind, making them ideal for your bedroom, nursery, or home office.

Always test first

Those color cards in the local hardware store can be deceiving. However, you can get a very misleading impression of how the tint will appear on your walls when using this method. Many of the large paint companies sell stick-on color swatches. Sherwin Williams, Behr, Benjamin Moore; they’ve all got them.

Consider the lighting

You should consider how sunlight and LED light bulbs can change the appearance of your paint when you’re buying supplies. It’s best to paint a piece of white foam board in your chosen shade and move it around the room periodically to eliminate any surprises. This will give you an idea of how your paint will look during the various hours of the day and night.
Measure the room’s dimensions
You should always measure the square footage of your room before visiting a store so you can calculate the amount of paint you’ll need for your project. Some interior experts recommend buying a gallon of paint for every 400 square feet.
Nonetheless, you may need more if you plan on painting rough surfaces, unprimed surfaces, or surfaces with texture. Even if you buy too much paint, you can still use the leftovers for future touch-ups.

Step 2: Clean up the Area

• Examine everything thoroughly
  For an impeccable paint finish, you should be aware of any imperfections on your walls or ceiling. Here are some methods you can use to repair scratches and dents:
  Before applying a fresh coat of primer and paint, lightly sand, scrape, and rinse any cracks, flakes, or peeling areas. You will need to start from scratch if you skip this step, as the old paint will crumble under the weight of its replacement.
• To remove greasy spots from walls, wet a sponge with dishwashing soap and water.
• Dust should be removed from the walls and ceiling by wiping them with a damp cloth.

Spill-proof your items

Moving your belongings out of the to-be-painted room or rooms is the easiest way to protect them. When this isn’t possible, cover the furniture, floors, and electronic equipment with old blankets, drop cloths, and plastic bags to protect them from rogue paint drops.

Disconnect all light sources in the building next. Alternatively, you can cover your door knobs with small plastic bags that you can secure firmly with tape.

Finally, remove all light switch and outlet covers – this will only take you five minutes, but will save you a lot of scrubbing and potentially unnecessary damage to your property.

Get your equipment ready

You should not paint without the following paint supplies:

• Brushes, rollers, and painter’s tape. You will save yourself hours of laborious repainting if you use good brushes and rollers. Additionally, painter’s tape will protect your skirting boards from spills.
• Supplies and tools. The list includes but is not limited to a putty knife, sandpaper, sealants, primers, a paint can opener, a ladder, and canvas drop cloth.
• Guard the perimeter. It is particularly useful when painting tricky sections of your wall, such as where the wall meets the skirting board or the ceiling.

Taking safety measures

Even though wall painting is generally a safe activity, it is important to follow a few precautions as a preventative measure. If you are dealing with chemical paint strippers or paint thinners, you must wear gloves and goggles to prevent skin burns. Be sure to wear heavy duty gloves. Paint thinners and strippers will dissolve latex and nitril gloves. Even yellow dishwashing glove will not hold up. If you are placing a drop cloth over a wood floor, be careful it doesn’t slide under foot. I recommend a not slip drop cloth. Its slightly more expensive, but I promise you will not regret your choice.

It is also recommended to wear a quality dust mask when sanding surfaces to avoid inhaling dust or paint particles.

Extra tip: Do not use plastic sheets because they will not absorb paint spills and will be very slippery. A canvas drop cloth will help keep your stepladder stable. If you have a spill on your drop cloth, especially a significant one, be sure to make sure the paint doesn’t bleed through the fabric. While drop cloths are intended to protect against spills, but be smart. Always double check.

Step 3: Prepare the surfaces

Using pre-treatment on walls and ceilings

If you have already painted your walls, you don’t necessarily need to use a primer, but you should still do some maintenance to ensure that your new paint sticks:

• Get rid of stains and dust on your walls. Smudges can be removed with dishwashing soap and water. After you’re done, rinse everything with water and let it dry overnight.
• Remove old paint flakes. Make the surface nice and even with a paint scraper or putty knfe.
• Fill in all grooves, dents, and holes. Spackle of joint compound.
• Use a wet knife to smooth out the patched-up area after carefully applying the material with a filling knife. Sand the spots only after they’ve dried completely. For larger holes this may take overnight.

Remember to use a size 220 fine grit sandpaper over sturdier stains if your walls are seriously damaged. If you apply a compatible primer over your walls, let it dry overnight, then sand the spots. Finding the right primer can be difficult, but a good salesperson at your local paint store will know the answer. For this type of specific advice, its best to go to a specialty paint store rather than a big box store. They will have more options for primers and the staff will be knowledgeable on all of them. Always, always prime. Don’t treat this step as optional. Paint adheasion problems will add time onto your project. And did you know that your local paint store can color tint your primer?

Treating wooden surfaces

You will probably also find trims, casings, skirting boards, moldings, and other woodwork in your room, in addition to walls and ceilings. Follow the steps below to efficiently pretreat yours:

• Sandpaper (grits 100 to 150) must be purchased. Using sandpaper to remove old varnish or gloss paint is extremely useful. The product can also be used to smooth out nail holes, sharp edges, or to remove grain raising caused by water-based coatings.
• Use a wood filler to fill in dents. Once the material has dried, sand the repaired areas.
• Make use of a sanding sponge. Sanding contours and shaped moldings can be tricky with regular sandpaper. Sanding sponges are pliable, so they are useful when sanding curves and other awkward spots. You can now remove any leftover dust with a brush and wipe the surfaces with a damp cloth.
• All untreated or sanded wooden surfaces should be primed before painting.

Step 4: Apply the Paint

Painting a wall: the basics

Protect your trim work with masking tape first. The other steps are:

• Make sure the paint is well mixed. You should not use runny paint on your walls. If the consistency of your paint is thicker, add as much water as necessary to dilute it.
• Paint from the top down. Work your way down from the ceiling. For narrower sections between your ceiling and the upper window frames, use a smaller brush.
• Create “W” shapes with paint. Specialists in the field swear by this technique. Draw a big “W” on your wall with a roller that has an extension pole. Fill in the entire shape without lifting the roller and repeat this procedure until the walls are painted.
• Let the first coat dry. Check the entire treated area for accumulated blobs of paint and remove them with a putty knife, then sand the spots with a medium or fine-grit sandpaper before applying the final coat.

Ceiling painting: the basics

Even though painting a ceiling on your own can be challenging, it is not impossible. The following tips can help:

• Trim the edges of your ceiling. With a paint edger, create two 12 inches-wide strips without touching the wall. Use a brush and trim guard instead if you have a cornice.
• Divide your ceiling into a grid. Paint your fictional ceiling grid square by square with your extension pole to achieve seamless results.
• Don’t go overboard with the paint. Brush your roller back and forth over the shallow end of your painting tray to remove excess paint.

Painting woodwork: the basics

Stain. Varnish. Paint. Whatever method you choose for priming your woodwork, your finishing material needs to be diluted with a suitable thinner. You can also try:

• For best results, use a trim guard. According to many experienced painters, this is the most reliable way to apply the finishing coat. All you need to do is gently press the trim guard at an angle until it starts leaning towards the wall.
• Work your way down from the top. This is especially important if you’re painting door casings or window frames since it allows you to quickly deal with drips. Keep the glass panels paint-free when painting window trims with a trim guard.
• For a perfect finish, apply two or more coats. Allow the first coat to dry, then sand the area with fine grit sandpaper and apply the second coat.

Step 5: Apply the Finish

Finishing a painting is essential. Here are a few types of commonly used finishes to help you decide what type is right for your project:

When to use a matte or flat finish

• Latex paint is used for this type of finish. Because the finish is non-reflective, it is especially suitable for walls and ceilings.
• It may take you two to three coats to apply the paint. You will have to determine the exact number based on your wall’s condition and whether it has already been primed.
• Paint can be applied with rollers, brushes, or sprayers. Despite the fact that latex paint dries faster than the other paints, you will often need to dilute the paint quite often in order to achieve consistent results, especially if you use a sprayer.

Eggshell vs. satin finish

• If you want to add extra shine to your surfaces, this is the perfect product. In general, these finishes will last longer than flat paints and are more suitable for walls than flat paints.
• For a smooth and “soft-looking” interior, satin is the best option. Wood surfaces can also be finished with an oil-based satin.
• Depending on the brand, both finishes may have different sheens. Make sure you buy the same brand of paint if you run out.

How to choose between semi-gloss and gloss finishes

• These finishes are durable and shiny, and they are primarily used to paint or seal wooden surfaces.
• Both paints come in water-based versions. Acrylic enamel gloss paints are just what you need to achieve a smooth, long-lasting finish. Semi-gloss water paints, on the other hand, are mold-resistant, making them a popular choice for bathrooms and kitchens.
• Easy-to-clean semi-gloss finishes are ideal for painting children’s rooms.

There are so many more pro tips that can make your job go smoothly and yield a better result. Don’t be afraid to reach out to Dorwae Interiors for some advice. We will help you in any way we can. As I often say at the end of my blogs, consider hiring a professional. There is no substitute for the experience professional. Feel free to contact Dorwae Interiors today for a free consultation. We can make your house into a space that will make Slytherin house so jealous. We paint in normal ways too. It doesn’t have to be Harry Potter stuff.