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Painting Tips and Techniques Part 1: Gathering Supplies By Melissa J Wantuck  |
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 A simple way to spruce up a room and change its appearance is to paint it. While undertaking a painting project takes time and effort, the benefits last longer than the work put into it.
Here is a list of supplies and why they’re important:
Brushes: angled, 2-inches wide. You’ll use the brush in corners, and painting roughly two inches between where the wall meets the ceiling, the floor, and around windows, doors, and any other trim. Use a smaller brush for narrow areas you can’t get into with a larger brush.
Rollers: a 9-inch roller will work well on most interior walls. Buy 2, one for each coat you’ll be putting on your walls. Rollers are best on walls because they allow for a smoother paint application without any tell-tale brush strokes if you used a paint brush solely on the large surfaces. You can buy an extension pole for tall ceilings or if you don’t want to step up on a ladder or chair to reach high places. You can also purchase a small 4-inch paint roller to use on smaller areas where you want a smooth surface.
Small and large paint trays: You’ll want both a small and large paint tray. Paint trays are necessary so you don’t carry a heavy paint can around the room and you can’t dip a large roller into the can. Pour paint into the trays then use the smaller tray as you work with the paint brush and a small roller, and the larger tray when you use the large roller. Paint trays are more portable than a can and will protect from spills and drips.
Painter’s tape: it’s important to buy painter’s tape to protect trim and any other area you don’t want painted. If you don’t have a steady hand, using painter’s tape to line areas, like your ceiling will result in a clean, straight line of paint rather than splotches and bumps of color along your ceiling. Buying tape made specifically for painting is the key as it’s designed to have a lower adhesive than regular tape so while it will prevent paint from seeping underneath the tape as you paint, it will also remove cleanly and not take chips of new and old paint with it. Read the labels of painter’s tape to determine which one you need for your project.
Drop Cloths: old sheets or old blankets are a more economical choice to cover your furniture and floors with to protect them but you can buy commercially made drop cloths as well. Use drop cloths to cover anything you leave in your room to protect them, particularly from any unfortunate paint-related accidents. Newspapers can be used as well beneath paint cans and paint trays as drips are hard to avoid.
Primer: Primer is typically a white paint that seals your painting surface from anything below it, such as knots on wood, or other colors if you’re changing the color of your room and the paint shade below it will change the color you intend to put on your walls. Most commonly, if you go from a dark shade to a light shade, the primer will act as a clean slate on your walls or else the dark shade will transform your new shade into one you weren’t intending.
Miscellaneous supplies: use medium grit sand paper and a putty knife to scrape off areas where there is chipped paint, then sand down the area to create a smoother surface. This will remove the chipped areas so the new paint will cover them up. Have paint stir sticks on hand. Most paint sellers will give them to you when you buy the paint, but ask for a few extra. You’ll need to stir the paint each time you reopen the can and you’ll probably do that at least two times or more.
In Part 2 we’ll begin painting and finish the project.
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