Adding a fresh coat of paint to the walls in your home can really go a long way to make a house feel like a home. If you’re going the DIY route, there are a few things you should keep in mind to make sure that the results are amazing.
Today, we’re giving you 5 helpful tips for your interior wall painting project.
Avoiding Lap Marks
Lap marks are the little streaks of darker or glossier paint that appear when you go over partially dry layers with wet paint. To avoid this, you need to keep a wet edge or make sure that you’re moving quickly enough that the paint never has time to dry before you go over it again.
This is done by moving from one corner of a wall to another, rolling up and down the entirety of the wall, and moving over slightly with each pass. While doing that, it’s also important that you never let your roller get too dry.
Use Canvas or Rosin Paper Instead of Plastic
Everyone knows that when you’re painting a room, you have to cover the floors. However, a lot of people wrongly assume that plastic is the best choice. While plastic coverings are great for furniture or other things you don’t have to walk on, using plastic to cover the entire floor can lead to slipping, especially when wet paint gets onto it.
Instead, use fabric drop cloths over carpeted flooring and rosin paper (taped in place) for hardwood and other, more slippery flooring.
Prime Your Walls Before Painting
This is especially important if you had to patch parts of the wall with new filler or drywall. If you paint over those without priming first, the patches will stand out as dull, uneven spots on the wall. Primer works to smooth everything out so that it all looks uniform once it’s been painted.
Don’t Remove the Painter’s Tape Too Early
When you’re done painting, it might be tempting to remove the painter’s tape from the trim as soon as you can to see the finished product. However, if you take it off before the paint is dry, you’ll find that some of the paint sticks to the tape and comes up when you try to remove it.
Wait at least one day (24 hours) for the paint to fully dry, and then use a utility knife to slice through the film between the wall and the tape as you remove it to get that clean edge.
Mix All Your Paint Beforehand
If you’re painting a large area, you won’t be able to use just one paint can. However, even if the paint is from the same brand, the same color, and everything, different cans will have slightly different looks to them that will be obvious once it dries down.
To keep the color uniform, estimate how much paint you will need and mix all of it in one big bucket so that you know it all looks the same. If you end up mixing more than you need, you can always pour it back into paint cans later.
There you have it! Five helpful tips for your interior wall painting project. Hopefully these tips will make your DIY painting endeavors go a little more smoothly.