Paint

How to Paint a Room: Tips and Tricks

Learn how to paint a room along with tips and tricks for making it look like it was done by a professional.

This post is a sponsored post by Purdy. I take pride in reviewing only products that fit my brand and will be beneficial to my readers. While this post is sponsored, all the opinions are my own.

Prep the Room

Before you begin to paint a room, you will need to prep the room.

Clear the Room and Protect Furniture

Move all furniture to the center of the room and cover it.

Fix and Clean the Walls

Carefully inspect the walls for cracks, holes, dents, or other imperfections. Scrape cracked or flaking paint and sand any small bumps. Use a putty knife and lightweight spackling compound to fill and repair holes and cover imperfections. 

Wipe walls clean with a damp towel or sponge. If you are painting in the kitchen with grease spots, use mild dish soap to clean the spots. Allow walls to completely dry before proceeding.

Make a Plan

Maintain efficiency by getting enough paint. A gallon of paint can roughly cover between 350 to 400 square feet of wall space.

This is a great time to test out your chosen paint color. Most likely the paint swatch you found in the store won’t look the same in your home.

Lighting changes the appearance of the paint color, and I love to purchase small samples and paint different areas of the room before I fully commit to a color.

Trim with Painter’s Tape

Mask off trim, windows, and door frames. Press the tape firmly in place to prevent paint from seeping underneath or bleeding through.

If you use Purdy® Clearcut brushes, you don’t need to use painter’s tape. They provide excellent cut-in ability and create well-defined lines, making edging easy.

Cover the Floors with Drop Cloths

Cover the floors with drop cloths to protect them from paint drips and splatters.

  • Canvas drop cloths are durable and absorbent. They can also be reused, and in my opinion, are worth the additional cost. 
  • Plastic drop cloths are durable and budget-friendly but NOT absorbent. Dripped paint is more likely to be tracked if stepped on. 

Prime the Walls

A quality primer is always recommended when painting a room – especially if you’re painting from a darker color to a lighter color. Primer helps hide imperfections and gives the finished coat of paint a uniform look.

Mix the Paint

Use a wooden stick to mix the paint. The ingredients in your paint can separate which could compromise the true color you are going for.

Invest in Quality Brushes, Rollers, and Paint

Invest in quality brushes, rollers, and paint. The painting job will go quicker and easier – and look better in the end. Clean your brushes and rollers well, and they will last a long time.

It’s also important to buy the best paint you can afford. It’ll go on easily, offer the best coverage, and last a long time.

Paint One Wall at a Time

Paint one wall at a time. Take a brush and cut in and follow up with the paint roller. When applying paint with the roller, use long strokes in a W pattern for ample coverage (and to avoid roller marks).

Before reloading your roller and moving on to the next section, roll over the area you’ve just painted in a smooth, continuous stroke from top to bottom to catch drips and help hide lines.

Overlap areas already painted and lightly lift the roller off the wall to avoid leaving end marks.

Once the wall is dry to the touch, it’s ready for a second coat.

Clean Up

Once the painting is done, remove all the painter’s tape. Gather drop cloths – make sure any spills are dry before you move them.

Clean the paintbrushes with soapy water and use the brush to clean and reshape the bristles. You can use the 5-in-1 tool to remove excess paint from your roller under running water. The tool is also useful for opening a can of paint, removing nails, and scraping.

Additional Painting Tips

Cover your paint bucket, tray, or container when switching between brushing and rolling – this will keep your paint and tools from drying out.

Make sure your room is well-ventilated by opening windows and using fans. The fans are an added bonus since they will speed up drying time.

Are you new to my blog? Go HERE to see my home tour and HERE to shop for items I use in our home.

Find me on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter Pinterest

Paint

How to Paint a Room

With so many of us home, it is the perfect time to tackle those projects that have been on your list forever, and it is definitely time to learn how to paint a room.

How to paint a room

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of FrogTape®. All opinions are 100% mine.

Whether you have never painted a room on your own, and or you have but you need some tips and tricks, you have come to the right place.

How To Paint a Room:

PREP

Prepping the space often takes more time than painting, but it is worth it. The more time you spend on the prep, the better your finished paint job will look. Clean surfaces and repair any defects. If you need tips for patching drywall, check out this article.

PRIME

If you are painting new drywall, primer is a must. Although a coat of primer is recommended for almost all painting projects (it is a sticky, flat paint that adheres well to the wall and provides and consistent base for topocoats), it is not always necessary. Primer tip: If you are using a darker paint color, you can have the primer tinted to match.

PAINT

PAINT FROM THE TOP DOWN. If you’re painting beyond the walls (ceiling, molding, casings, and trim), paint the ceiling first. Work from the top down: begin with the crown molding, then the walls, then paint the casement molding around the windows and doors. Finish with the baseboard molding.

PAINTING TIPS

USE PAINTER’S TAPE FOR CRISP LINES

I only use FrogTape® brand painter’s tape for my projects because IT WORKS. FrogTape® is treated with patented PaintBlock® Technology, a super-absorbent polymer that reacts with the water in latex paint and instantly gels to form a micro-barrier that seals the edges of the tape, preventing paint bleed and the need for touch-ups. The results are crisp, clean paint lines the first time and it will save you the time and hassle of fixing seeping paint.

TIPS FOR SELECTING THE BEST PAINT ROLLER

If you want more texture on your wall, choose a roller with a longer nap (3/4″), which holds more paint. Use a shorter nap roller (¼” and ½”) for the smoothest finish.

AVOID LAP MARKS

To avoid stripes, keep a wet edge by painting the full height of the wall and then moving over slightly so you can overlap the last stroke with the next.

LOADING THE PAINT BRUSH

You want as much paint on the brush as you can control without dripping. To do this, dip your brush around 1-2 inches into the paint, then tap each side of the brush against the side of the can (which knocks of the drips and forces paint into the bristles).

HOW TO PAINT BASEBOARDS ON CARPET

This is one of my favorite tips because it works so well! You can read more about it in detail HERE, but you just need a roll of FrogTape, a roll of packing tape and a wallpaper smoothing tool (or a putty knife). I recently discovered the wallpaper smoothing tool works amazing well because it is SO long.

HOW TO PAINT DOORS

Painting doors aren’t as hard as you may think, and I paint them on the hinges. You can see more on how to paint interior doors HERE, but one of my favorite tips is to use Frogtape on the hinges of the doors. Place the tape down, use an exacto knife to cut around the hinge, and removed excess tape. You will protect your door hinges from paint.

TIPS FOR PAINTING BREAKS

When taking a break, be sure to cover your paint and use a plastic bag to wrap around your roller(s) and brush(es). You can even put them in the fridge or freezer if you’re taking an extended break. Colder air prevents the paint from drying.

DOUBLE-CHECK WORK

Between coats you may need to sand off any bumps before applying the next coat – check the surface for drips, roller flecks, or other imperfections.

WHEN TO USE A SPRAYER

There are some spaces where it may be easier to use a sprayer. I used one in my bonus room, and you can read more about that HERE.

Have any other paint tips or tricks to share? Comment below!

Go create something!

Are you new to my blog? Go HERE to see my home tour and HERE to shop for items I use in our home.

Find me on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter Pinterest

Shop the Post
This error message is only visible to WordPress admins
This error message is only visible to WordPress admins