Painting Tips For Dummies
Home › Blog › Painting Tips For Dummies
Posted by Victoria Yardley on Nov 24, 2021
You don’t have to be an expert in DIY to paint a wall, however, getting to grips with the basics is always a good idea. With most painting projects, knowing a few additional painting tips and tricks is a good way to achieve your desired results. This includes everything from how to store the paint to how you apply it. In this article we share our top painting tips for dummies to help in your future painting projects.
A frequently asked question when it comes to painting is ‘what painting supplies do I need?’. It would be wrong not to include what supplies you need to get started in our guide for dummies. Here are the most important supplies you need to add to your DIY shopping list:
Paint roller and sleeves
Next on our list of painting tips is to do your research to make sure you buy the right paint. You may be wondering, what is the right paint? Good question- your paint should be high quality and ideally free from VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds). Although high quality, low VOC paint may appear more costly at first and harder to come by, it is actually more cost effective in the long run. This is because if you decide to go for a cheaper paint instead, the chances are its quality will not be very good meaning you will have to touch it up and repaint much sooner than if you had initially used a high quality paint. Furthermore, in many cases a cheaper paint coincides with higher levels of VOC. There are a number of reasons why you want to avoid VOCs as they come with quite a long list of side effects. These effects include anything from strong chemical smells to nausea and headaches. Opting for a low VOC alternative sold by Victory Colours includes the following benefits:
Next on our list of painting tips is to clear the area of any furniture that you can. This is for multiple reasons, firstly you want to make sure you have ample working space to easily move around the room whilst painting, this will ensure the paint on the walls flows better. The next reason is because furniture can be a tripping hazard. If you are in the flow of painting you may forget to look around for obstacles. Finally, you will want to remove furniture from the room you are painting to avoid any damage from spillages. If furniture is too big to move, make sure you cover it adequately with a dust sheet.
Prepare the walls properly
Another key tip which is absolutely crucial to ensure that your paint adheres to the surface correctly is to prepare the walls properly beforehand. In order to prepare the surface, the first thing you need to do is look for any damp, this is because moisture can affect the result of the paint. Next you need to ensure that there are no cracks or bubbles if you have existing paint on the walls. If you see any cracks, or imperfections, make sure to sand the walls and smooth out the affected areas. You can learn more about ‘why does paint crack’ in our next article. Finally we suggest using a high quality primer before painting your walls. This is because it helps you get the best result in regards to colour, application and overall finish.
Always check the colour first
Check the colour and finish are correct before use. Colour variation can occur slightly from tin to tin, so if using more than one tine, always mix them together first to ensure colour uniformity.
Always decant your paint
It is important to decant your paint into a paint kettle or a paint tray first before painting, in order to avoid spoilage. It is very easy to introduce bacteria into the paint by placing the paintbrush or roller directly into the paint tin, so unless you are planning to use all the paint at one time, always decant it first.
Load your brush correctly
Now let's get onto the fun part, the actual painting. The first thing you will want to do is load your brush correctly. To do this we suggest dipping it into the paint approximately half the length of the bristles. Then tap the brush on the side of the pot to make sure any excess paint has been removed. Now you are ready to put the paint on the walls.
Balance the roller
When you get to rolling, you want to load the roller carefully. To do this push the roller forward on the tray and lift it to see if it rolls evenly. If your roller does not appear to be rolling evenly, this could mean it is unbalanced which can lead to the paint being applied unevenly. To even the amount of paint on the roller, keep rolling it over the tray with full rotations to spread the paint.
Painting tips for storing leftover paint
If you happen to have paint leftover after your painting job is complete and want to avoid waste, you can store the paint for the future. In order to store the paint properly, you should first clean down the tin to prevent any dry flakes falling in. After this you should tightly seal the paint and keep it stored in a dry and dark place, this is because freezing temperatures or can affect the quality of the paint and heat can cause off gassing.
Overview of painting tips for dummies
We hope we have shared some useful painting tips and tricks to make your next DIY painting job as good as the pros. All of the products mentioned in the article are environmentally friendly and sold by us here at Victory Colours. To find out more about our products and the background of the brand, visit our blog.
Washable Paint For Walls
Why Does Paint Crack and How to Prevent It
Non Smelling Paint