Painting Pins Blowout!

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I’ve done LOTS of painting since we bought our house and over time have tried a lot of different tips, tricks, and supposed shortcuts…  I have found some of them on Pinterest and shared them with you.  But today, I’m going to just run through the things I’ve tried in the past sans my own pictures.  Just a quick run down to help you out next time you get ready to paint some walls!  Click pictures for pins, sources or products - just remember I am not paid to endorse anything linked to and I am not responsible for the quality of product or services you obtain through links :)  I am only providing them so you can see what I am talking about!

1.  Use a good brush – my favorite for cutting in is a 2” angle brush that costs me about $15.  It’s a little steep but if you take care of it well it lasts a long time and is well worth the investment!

2.  Use contractor's paper to cover the floor (hard floors).  It’s cheap and you don’t trip on it. Just use some painter’s tape to hold it down.

3.  Buy a reusable flexible plastic spout for pouring paint.  It cuts down on the mess of pouring out of the can and lets you put the lid back on better because there isn’t a well of paint in the groove.  And it makes it easier and neater to take the lid back off later because there isn’t dried paint gluing it down.  I have a few and they cost me a couple bucks at the big hardware stores paint departments.

4. Unless you are super horrible at cutting in don’t tape the whole room.  It takes forever, it’s difficult to do it totally straight and it’s hard to get it off without pulling at the paint you so carefully put where you want it.  Now, believe me if there is something important expensive to paint against, by all means tape.  You can bet your behind I taped the edges of the $$$$ tile work we had in our bathroom (whole floor, shower walls and ceiling!).  But generally I don’t tape for ceilings or trim.  Instead of spending a bunch of time with tape, take extra time being careful cutting in.

5.  Go around the room in the natural direction.  For me, it’s going from left to right.  I’m righty and I do better with paint strokes from left to right.  I can see better and I have more coordination.  Next time you paint think about which direction seems better.  Your results will be better if you work to your strength!

6.  Use a paintbrush groomer/cleaner to clean your brush.  It looks a little scary but it makes a HUGE difference!  It has metal spikes on one side to comb out the brush as you rinse it and a metal brush on the other to brush off dried paint from the metal parts and upper bristles.  Again, only a few dollars investment – I have this specific one and love it.

7. Wrap things like doorknobs is foil or plastic wrap. It takes 2 seconds and you won’t be mad at yourself for bumping the roller into them. 

8.  But if it all possible just take off all hardware – switch plates, outlet plates, doorknobs, curtain rod paraphernalia….  anything you can remove will make painting go much faster.  For things like sinks and toilets it’s pretty unlikely you’ll take them out so wrap those is plastic wrap.  But if you are starting from scratch paint the walls BEFORE installing them!

9.  Use a fine sanding sponge between coats, especially when using a paint with any gloss to it.  It’ll get those tiny little bumps off.  Just make sure to wipe down the walls again!

10.  When you’re having a hard time choosing a color – get some white cardstock (or similar color to what you’re painting on) and paint the papers then tape them all over the room.  You’ll be able to see what the color looks like in all parts of the room and different lights at the same time.  And one little sample paint will paints lots of pieces of cardstock.

11.  I have lined my roller tray with foil several times.  It is a great thing to do when you don’t want to keep buying those things but pay attention to the types of grooves.  It worked best for smaller job and trays that had bumps as opposed to lines.  The lines were too sharp and broke through the foil after a bit so I still had to deal with paint on the actual tray.  So just look close at the tray before bothering.

12.  If you’re painting a ceiling get one of those shields that attach.  It’ll keep the spray off your floor and your hair.  And when you’re cutting in for a ceiling or other high areas cut a plastic container lid to sit around the brush to prevent drips.

13.  If you have to wait some time between coats or need to stop in the middle, wrapping your roller/brush in plastic wrap then putting in a plastic bag will keep it from drying – for a bit.  Best if you’ll be getting back to it within 24 hours because otherwise there are some dry bits that end up on the wall… we learned the hard way on this one :)

I think that exhausts my wisdom on painting…  do you have any other tips to add??

Stephanie