Enjoy your home improvement projects, there is certainly no need for tesrs

If You Want To paint your home and you have never tackled anything this big in the past.Read these few helpful suggestions before you start. I’m sure you know many people who will offer suggestions along the way.

Lighter colour schemes will enhance the space in smaller rooms. If it is a large space, then you can put more intense colours on the walls without feeling hemmed in. Similarly, if the room does not get too much light, then, the place can be brightened by using lighter coloures with an eggshell finish. Using white though can make the place look stark and clinical – and it very quickly becomes grubby. Another reason to use eggshell paint is that it does accept the occasional wipe down. an important consideration when you have youn children.

Having searched though all those colour charts, and made your colour choice, the next decision is if you are going to employ a contractor to do the work or do it yourself. If you are going to  do it yourself, the easiest option is to paint the walls (and windowframes and doors). It is also a lot less expensive than wallpaper so it is much less a disaster if you do not like the result, and have to redo it.

The key to a good finish is preparation-preparation-preparation. Before you start, empty your room of as much furniture as you can. Anything that can’t be removed should be covered with plenty of sheets. This applies to carpets too. All surfaces should be thoroughly cleaned so that you remove the accumulated grease and grime. Next fill any small holes or cracks in wall with filler, if they are larger holes, do them in two or three layers. The filler will usually shrink as it dries. Give it 24hours to fully dry, then rub it down thoroughly with sandpaper  so it is very smooth. Next, smooth all the woodwork with sandpaper. Make sure the woodwork is smooth and dust free, where possible cutting right back to bare wood.

Now start at the top and work downwards. Paint the ceiling first. Wait until it fully dry before starting on anything else. Next place masking tape at the very edge of the ceiling so that you get a very straight line when you paint the walls. Do not leave the masking tape on for to long, it will be difficult to get off without damaging your newly painted ceiling.

When painting large areas, it is quicker and gives a better finish if you use a roller rather then a brush. To get good coverage and depth in the finish, you may need to use several coats when using a roller, even so you will still use less paint than if you use a paintbrush, it will dry faster, go on much faster and therefore, even though you are applying more than one coat it will still be faster.

Now for the woodwork. Again, mask the walls where they meet the woodwork. Then using a small paintbrush give the woodwork an undercoat. The undercoat will help the top coat to adhere better and will therefore last longer. It also gives a much smoother final finish if the undercoat is lightly sanded. It is normal to use gloss paint on woodwork. This is easier to keep clean and takes the considerable amount of touching that woodwork gets. Trying to paint too thick a coat can produce a poor finish. Far better to apply two thin coats. Always make sure that the paint is dry before applying the next coat

To save you having to repeatedly wash your brushes every time you stop painting, you can wrap your brushes tightly in clingfilm.It prevents air getting to them and will stop them drying out. Even after you have thoroughly cleaned your brushes, it is still useful to wrap your brushes. There are always occasions when you need to make good you decorations after disasters, so always keep any left over paint

Always paint window frames when the windows are slightly open. There’s nothing worse that painting a window frame and then finding you can’t open the window!  The same applies to doors. When painting doors, the rule is that you paint those parts of the frame that can be seen when it is open. Or in the case of an inward opening door, when it is closed.  

And finally. Don’t rush at this. Enjoy watching your room turn into the space which you have always wanted. Home improvement should be enjoyable.If you find you have hated every minute of it, then next time you want a rooom painted, save up to pay somebody else to do it for you. If you don’t enjoy the process, then you will tend to rush and skimp the work and the end result will not be so good.