If your home has the same interior décor from the 1980s, then perhaps it is time to bring your humble abode into the 21st century. You don’t even have to spend tens of thousands of dollars on remodeling, buying new furniture, or upgrading the security system.
What do you need to do then? That’s simple enough: grab a paint brush, purchase a couple of cans of paint, and turn that bedroom, solarium, and bathroom around.
Just be sure you learn from the pros first before you apply your first coat.
Here are five industry tips from painters to bring life into your walls:
1. Yes, Your Walls Have Flaws – Sand Them Down
We are sorry that we have to point this out: your walls have flaws – many, many flaws. Everything from cracks on the surface to holes from trying to erect a new painting of dogs playing poker, your walls have numerous flaws that can impact a painting job.
Aside from just tearing down these load-bearing walls, what options do you have?
That’s easy: sand them down.
By sanding down your walls, you produce a perfectly smooth finish – painters concede that they sometimes spend more time sanding their walls than painting them.
Here are a couple of tips for the best sanding job:
- Start from the baseboard and work your way up to the ceiling.
- Proceed to sand horizontally from baseboard to ceiling.
- Use fine-grit sanding paper.
- Do not put a lot of pressure on the paper or on the walls.
- Once you’re done, apply a sanding sponge to seep into crevices.
This is how you tackle the walls.
2. Dirty Walls? Use a Degreaser
Walls get dirty. That’s a fact of life. Over time, they become so dirty that it can seem like an impossible endeavour to bring them back to where they were. Does this mean you’ll have dirty walls forever?
Not quite.
Indeed, a dirty wall can make it harder for painters to effectively paint. However, all you will need is a degreaser to eliminate the dirt, germs, bacteria, smudges, and remnants from that pasta sauce you made – no, it doesn’t taste like your grandmother’s.
Because it’s a powerful product, be sure you wear gloves and eye protection.
3. Remove Furniture from the Room
A lot of homeowners make the mistake of keeping everything in the room and merely just covers them up. Although it is convenient and saves you a lot of time, veteran painters say one of the best things you can do is to remove every furniture item from the room and temporarily place it somewhere else.
By having an empty room, you can have easier time to paint without any hurdles to overcome. Moreover, you don’t risk having paint reside touch your 18th century antique sofa or the dust from sanding seep into the crevices of your bookcase.
It can be a hassle, but it’s worth it if you want an excellent painting job.
4. Complete One Wall at a Time
Like keeping all the furniture in the room during painting, many homeowners make the mistake of attempting to do all of their walls at the same time. Unless you have been painting day in and day out for 30-plus years, and you have more than two arms and hands, this is the wrong approach.
It is hard enough to have a perfect wall, so imagine having five perfect walls.
Remember, slow and steady wins the race. Just do one wall at a time.
5. Forget Taping Windows – Scrape Them
Don’t you hate when paint gets on your windows?
For a long time, painting neophytes believed tape would be a perfect remedy to this annoying problem. However, veteran painters have learned the best way to get rid of paint is to scrape the windows.
It is true that there isn’t anything you can do to stop the red paint from splashing on your windows, so you can just live with it and scrape them. You just need to be sure that you’re doing it correctly, otherwise you’ll leave annoying scratches on your windows with the razor blade.
Our homes need a makeover from time to time. You don’t want to be stuck with an interior décor you’d find in a home magazine from the 1970s. You may not have the funds to do a complete remodel, but a simple paint job can magically transform your home. You can either request professional painters to do it for you, or you can do-it-yourself (DIY). Either way, these are excellent tips to be aware of.
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