Lessons Learned by a Lundy about Painting Please note that I'm not a designer (I just play one on the internet). These are just things I've learned recently while painting our house. Thought some might be useful or at least give you a chuckle. Most people get a laugh out of my pain. Ü Margie
1. First, if you have a large house, especially one with high ceilings, learn to love the existing wall color. White can be beautiful. Old wallpaper can be nostalgic.
2. People who say it’s best to remove all the wallpaper layers either haven’t done that themselves or have a different definition of the word ‘best’ than me.
3. When people say older homes have character, that usually just means it’s going to cost you a lot of money to fix all the problems building over a century.
4. Layers of paint and wallpaper over plaster walls soaked with water from a roof leak stink when removed.
5. Don’t think you can get 30 gallons of paint mixed at Lowe’s in a few hours. Plan to spend the day, bring lunch and lawn chairs, and check the colors before you leave.
6. When people say you should try out the colors on a small section of your walls to be sure you like them before you buy them, you really should.
7. When using colors from a magazine, you might have them color match the picture instead of using the color it says on the page.
8. Taping your trim is a very important step. Don’t think you can be careful, you can’t.
9. If you use the existing carpet as a drop cloth because you plan to remove it anyway, realize that if you don’t take it up right away, the wet paint spilled on the floor will be a problem.
10. Dogs will drink from an open gallon of paint.
11. Don’t choose the painting technique simply because it looks the best, believe me you won’t care after an hour. Choose one that’s easy, preferably one that uses a roller. Avoid techniques requiring rags, sponges, and especially small paintbrushes.
12. If you do use short criss-cross brush strokes, move the brush around in your hand, ensuring even blistering. That way your whole hand can hurt evenly.
13. Just because a technique looks very subtle, don’t think it will be simple to accomplish.
14. When your 3-yr-old says “mommy, my motorcycle has a crack, I need to caulk it” it’s time to take a break and play ring around the rosie.
15. Don’t worry about the warning on the top of ladders saying not to step there. The person who put that there did not have 11’ ceilings on their stairs.
16. When people say you should cut between the paint and tape before you remove it so it won’t pull up any paint, you really should.
17. Removing and making balls of rolled up tape can amuse your 3-yr-old and your 35-yr-old.
18. Just because they can do it in two days on Trading Spaces, doesn’t mean you can.
19. If you put up wallpaper, make sure if you ever sell your house, it’s to a stranger, or an enemy.
20. If you have Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, hire a painter. If you can’t afford to, sell a couch, a car, or a kidney.
1. First, if you have a large house, especially one with high ceilings, learn to love the existing wall color. White can be beautiful. Old wallpaper can be nostalgic.
2. People who say it’s best to remove all the wallpaper layers either haven’t done that themselves or have a different definition of the word ‘best’ than me.
3. When people say older homes have character, that usually just means it’s going to cost you a lot of money to fix all the problems building over a century.
4. Layers of paint and wallpaper over plaster walls soaked with water from a roof leak stink when removed.
5. Don’t think you can get 30 gallons of paint mixed at Lowe’s in a few hours. Plan to spend the day, bring lunch and lawn chairs, and check the colors before you leave.
6. When people say you should try out the colors on a small section of your walls to be sure you like them before you buy them, you really should.
7. When using colors from a magazine, you might have them color match the picture instead of using the color it says on the page.
8. Taping your trim is a very important step. Don’t think you can be careful, you can’t.
9. If you use the existing carpet as a drop cloth because you plan to remove it anyway, realize that if you don’t take it up right away, the wet paint spilled on the floor will be a problem.
10. Dogs will drink from an open gallon of paint.
11. Don’t choose the painting technique simply because it looks the best, believe me you won’t care after an hour. Choose one that’s easy, preferably one that uses a roller. Avoid techniques requiring rags, sponges, and especially small paintbrushes.
12. If you do use short criss-cross brush strokes, move the brush around in your hand, ensuring even blistering. That way your whole hand can hurt evenly.
13. Just because a technique looks very subtle, don’t think it will be simple to accomplish.
14. When your 3-yr-old says “mommy, my motorcycle has a crack, I need to caulk it” it’s time to take a break and play ring around the rosie.
15. Don’t worry about the warning on the top of ladders saying not to step there. The person who put that there did not have 11’ ceilings on their stairs.
16. When people say you should cut between the paint and tape before you remove it so it won’t pull up any paint, you really should.
17. Removing and making balls of rolled up tape can amuse your 3-yr-old and your 35-yr-old.
18. Just because they can do it in two days on Trading Spaces, doesn’t mean you can.
19. If you put up wallpaper, make sure if you ever sell your house, it’s to a stranger, or an enemy.
20. If you have Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, hire a painter. If you can’t afford to, sell a couch, a car, or a kidney.
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