Painting inside your home can be a challenge in summer, especially if you’re a parent with children home from school. Back-to-school season is a better time for do-it-yourself paint projects, says Debbie Zimmer, paint and color expert with the Paint Quality Institute.

“With kids out of the house, interior painting is several grades easier, and with proper planning, you can ace the job in record time,” Zimmer says.

Her tips for parent painters:

Plan a palette. Start by picking up color cards at your local paint store. Bring them home and gauge them against your decor to plan a cohesive palette.

Buy smart. Purchase 100-percent acrylic latex paint in a glossy finish, which is easy to maintain—ideal when cleaning up child messes.

Prep the room. Slide furniture away from the walls and cover it with protective tarps. Fill any holes or patch any nicks on the walls, and wipe them down once finished. Remove any switch plates or outlet covers. Apply painter’s tape to protect the ceiling, the floor and any woodwork.

Cut in. Use an angled trim brush to “cut in” the edges of the wall—applying a three-inch strip of paint where the walls meet the ceiling, doors, molding and/or windows.

Work the “W.” Use a roller to cover the wall in three-foot by three-foot sections, working from one side of the wall to the other. Roll out the paint in a “W” pattern, then fill in the pattern and move on to the next section. Be sure to finish an entire wall before taking a break—a line may be visible otherwise.

Trim last. Wait until the next day to paint any trim—this will allow ample time for the walls to dry. Using a two-inch angled brush, work from top to bottom (e.g., crown molding to window trim to baseboards) when painting.

For more painting tips and tricks, visit blog.paintquality.com.

Source: Paint Quality Institute
 

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