… with the alternate title,
I had been toying with a paint 101 post idea for a while …
Unlike most woman who blame their mothers for their childhood woes, I blame my dad. And it has nothing to do with those stereotypical abandonment daddy issues. I was never abandoned. My parents have been married close to 60 years …
Plus I love my dad. Adore the man. Have the utmost respect for his integrity and unheralded work ethic. The man is a work horse …
… oh, and I’m his baby …
The daddy issue — the one that could’ve sent me to therapy — was that as much as I begged and pleaded and followed him around on the weekends …
And when it came to painting the house, my father would never even think of hiring someone for that job. So every four or five years he would paint the entire house — inside and out — all by himself. Well, maybe not all by himself. He would drag my older brother reluctantly along for the ride …
But me? I so very, very much wanted to paint too …
So when I moved into my first apartment I was determined to paint … whether it needed it or not. And I dragged my new roommates reluctantly along for the ride …
So now as I share my oh so basic tips on how to paint a room, my biggest fear is that my blog is donning a leather jacket and water skies and venturing into shark infested waters …
#1 – Paint Matters. I find that paying a premium for quality paint (can you say Benjamin Moore or Sherwin Williams?) pays off with less coats … which equals less work. And I can always, always get behind less work …
#2 – Paint Brushes Matter. I don’t want paint brush hair on my walls … and am thinking you don’t want that either. So when painting my walls my go-to paint brush brand is Purdy. It costs a bit more but they really help me with cutting in … as in cutting in without having to painter’s tape it off first (sometimes) …
#3 – Paint & Brushes May Matter … But Ziplocs Rule. This is a tip I glommed onto … and practice as frequently as I can. Instead of cleaning your paint brushes each day when you’re done, you can just zip them up into a Ziploc. That’s right. Zip. Them. Up. If you’re only waiting a few days, room temp is okay. If you’ll be waiting weeks, then stick them in the freezer … I had one covered in chalkboard paint hanging in the freezer for close to a year and it defrosted just fine.
#4 – Paint Tray Liners Don’t Just Matter … They Rock. I hate the clean up part of the painting. And I don’t have a slop sink so I’m hunched over the tub rubbing and scrubbing (and there may be some cursing …). That’s why I use disposable paint tray liners. I heart them. I may need to marry them … or buy stock in them.
#5 – In The End, It Really Can Matter How You Apply That Paint. Always try to keep a wet edge. I (try) to work in 3’ to 4’ square sections of wall at a time so I can cut in with the brush and then roll into a wet edge …
… I work from the top down. Cut in along the ceiling. Roll down. Cut in along baseboard. Roll up to meet the roll down. Move ladder to the left (or right) rinse and repeat …
… and that 3’ to 4’ square section method works when painting a normal size wall in a normal size room. Now if you happen to find yourself painting a vaulted ceiling with a very long pole? Can I recommend getting the paint up there any which way you can …
P.S. In the interest of full disclosure, the orange paint I used in my teen son’s room remodel was not BM or SW … and I regretted not paying the premium with each and every coat of orange that I had to keep applying to those walls …
Sharing:
* Between Naps on the Porch * Home Stories A 2 Z * At the Picket Fence *
My dad and mom were partners in DIY–they renovated an 1876 farmhouse. I grew up in a construction zone and have been living in one (for the most part) ever since. DL has taught me to use most of his power tools and I am doing the living room ALL BY MYSELF! (He is holding stuff for me, but that’s it.)As for paint, my husband loves Behr, but I am a Benjamin Morre girl. I will say this–Behr had the perfect color for my living room and it looks great!
I completely agree about paint and brushes. I have not heard of the ziploc tip though… can’t wait to try that one out!
Once and only once I strayed from Benjamin Moore. It took me TWO gallons to paint a teeny tiny home office. I was cursing the paint the whole time! Thanks for the tips!
You know I come from the very opposite roots… oh we didn’t pay anyone to do home repairs and we NEVER, I repeat NEVER painted but that is because we either lived in military housing or rentals my entire life. Seriously! For my entire life at home we never owned or lived in a place where we were allowed to paint. In fact I lived in military dorms for the first 2.5 years after leaving home…. so since getting married I’ve been making up for every paintless year!! So Benjamin Moore or Sherwin Williams, huh? We’ve only used Valspar from Lowe’s because of military discounts…. but I recently won a $50 gift card from Sherwin Williams. Can you say new paint?? 🙂 for our bedroom and bathroom. woo hoo!
I had the same kind of dad–and the same issue! I longed to paint, and I never got to. I really wish he’d taught me how to use power tools. I think my first forays into home improvement were also paint because it’s the easiest thing to do. And requires no power tools.
Your paint tips are the best. Learned them all the hard way. I see lots of other advice that makes it all more difficult than it needs to be.
You want to marry your paint tray liners – now that’s cause for therapy!
Thanks for the tips – but I’ll always imagine you dangling from a chandelier as you painted the high ceilings in your bedroom!
Kelly
I completely agree! I was fortunate to be the oldest and my dad taught me to paint AND use power tools. I figure that he really had no choice, my brother is four years younger than I am. I do, however still tell myself that it’s because he liked me the best. xo
Great tips…I sent this to my daughter..she gets it from both ends..her Dad and me…original DIYers who have two DIY daughters. Just working on converting the son-in-laws who try to keep up! LOL
Great tips! And, Yes, Yes, paint makes a huge difference!! We can only get one brand locally and I have stopped using it because it takes forever to cover. Extra coats always seem like such a waste of the time…such a long to-do list and sadly, little time to do it! I have been so pleased with Behr that I bring it home as baggage. Wonderful post!
I enjoyed reading your tips about painting. Would you believe that I had never heard of putting your paintbrush into a ziplock baggie until I read it on a blog about a month ago? So I tried it the last time I painted and it works marvelously!
Great tips! We’ve tried all the fancy paints and keep coming back to Lowe’s Valspar paint. It’s tops, I tell ya.
My dad…he was always teaching us girls things…like how to change the oil in your car…just in case….and how to change a tire…just in case…for you see, my brother was always at the ballfield…he practically lived there..leaving us girls to be the DIY’ers in training…the only thing is that we never were allowed to get near anything that was considered a power tool..thus my allergy to them!!…A really good thing that a car is not considered a power tool!…Loved your paint tutorial…!! and I always use SW or The Benjamin…great paints!
Hi Linda,
I’m a big Behr fan.
I love the fact that one coat almost covers and two does it with no effort.
I’ve never done the top, bottom – meet in the middle technique. Interesting. Must try.
~ Dana
CookingAtCafeD.com
Hey Linda, I wanted to let you know that I nominated you for the Versatile Blogger Award! Cut and paste this: http://kamsmomusa.blogspot.com/2012/07/i-was-nominated.html to get the details!
Carolyn
You know your stuff, because i know these awesome tips too, so that’s how i know you know, you know? …. and i also know the angst of orange paint, 3 coats in the family room! Which i’m now considering painting over to make my house more seller friendly. ~sigh~
I love your tips. And total light bulb moment with the cut in, roll, move ladder. I’ve always been a cut in the whole room first kinda gal … but I have no idea why
Painting is fine… but all that prep work? That is okay, I will just come here and enjoy your projects. 🙂
What a great post, Linda! I’ll be bookmarking this one for sure 🙂
great tips!! following you! hop on over my site and you’ll find some creative frugal decor and projects!