When hiring a professional painter, you’re hiring them for their skill level and the trade secrets they know to get the job done quickly while looking fabulous. Amateur painters often make many mistakes that could easily be corrected. Below, we will discuss five pro painting tips to make you the best interior painter and decorator possible.
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Sand Imperfections
To get the perfectly smooth coat of paint, you are looking for; you should always sand away any flaws on your wall. If you can stand with the appropriate grit, you can quickly level out spackling compounds as well as any drywall patches. Sanding will also flatten out any nail holes and help hide any repairs done on the wall.
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Use High-Quality Brushes
When it comes to painting, this is one area where you do not want cheap supplies. Cheap brushes to apply the paint poorly. The strokes won’t be smooth and clean, and the result will look awful. If you were to buy a high-quality brush, as long as you clean it after use, it would last you your entire life. Another problem with cheap paintbrushes is the bristles often fall out in the paint, which ruins your paint. This leaves you open to accidentally having a paintbrush bristle dry onto your wall.
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Never Buy Cheap Paint
Cheap paint, similar to cheap paintbrushes, will always look bad. If you use high-quality paint, you get fantastic coverage on the wall, and the paint will hold up for a very long time when compared to cheap paint. Cheap paint, on the other hand, will take multiple coats to cover an area. It will dry poorly and won’t hold up well to washing. If you’re looking to save time and money long term, the pros recommend using high-quality paint.
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Use A Putty Knife For Your Tape
Hopefully, when you are painting an area, you are using painter’s tape. The tape is designed to mask off areas you don’t want to paint and help give you a clean edge. It’s essential to ensure the tape is fully on the wall or area you are masking off. If not, the paint will bleed through the tape, causing unwanted messes.
A tip from the pros is to take a putty knife to press down the tape. After applying the painter’s run to the trim you are covering, run a putty knife over the tape. This will make sure the tape is fully on the trim and will stop any possible paint bleeds.
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Always Use Canvas Drop Cloths
Every professional uses a canvas drop cloth, and never plastic cloths or even old sheets. Old sheets aren’t thick enough to hold the paint, so you can easily have paint leak through to your floor. The plastic sheets you often find in big box stores will rip and become ineffective. Plastic paint sheets are also slippery and will not stay in place. Your best bet is to use a canvas drop cloth because they will stay in place, absorb pain splatters, and last you a lifetime.
Closing Thoughts
As you can see, there are a few tricks of the trade you can add to your painting skillset to take it to the next level. If you apply some of these tips to your next interior paint project, we know you will do great!
