There are few home DIY projects as impactful as painting. Paint can transform any room in your home from mundane to inspiring! It can also raise property value and help protect interior surfaces.
Step 1 – Prep
To begin with, move all furniture away from the walls and cover your flooring with old sheets (don’t use plastic as it can be very slippery). Remove all electrical covers and tape the screws to them so they don’t get lost.
Step 2 – Clean the walls and ceiling
Paint doesn’t stick well to dirty walls, so clean them with sugar, soap and water using a cellulose sponge. Wipe well with clean cloth to remove the residue. Let it dry out.
Step 3 – Outline with tape
Tape the trim, windows, fixtures and doorframes with masking tape. Remember to remove the tape immediately after painting – before the walls dry, so you don’t peel off any paint with it.
Step 4 – Prime the walls and ceiling
It’s a common myth that walls that have been painted many times don’t need to be primed. In fact, primer helps maximize the sheen and coverage of paint and gives the finished coat a more uniform appearance. Primer is especially important if you have any stains such as smoke or water marks – which need to be primed using an oil-based primer.
Step 5 – Rolling the Ceiling
Before you begin painting the ceiling, remove excess paint on the roller by slowly rolling it back and forth over the ridges of the paint tray.
Start painting near the corner of the room, blending the coating into the ceiling line painted previously. Paint across the width of the ceiling, rather than the length.
Step 6 — Painting the Walls
Once your ceiling is dry, return to the spot where you began painting. Use a trim brush to carefully cut in along the wall-ceiling line. Extend out about 6cm from windows, doors, and fixtures. Once you’ve cut in around an entire wall area, use a roller to fill in.
For efficiency, start in the corner of a wall and roll on in a W pattern, then fill it in without lifting the roller. Continue in sections until you’re finished, painting one wall at a time.
Step 7 — Painting the Trim
Once the walls are completely dry, place masking tape around where the trim meets the wall. Paint the skirting boards, cornishes, door and window frames with an angled brush. And, voila!