Tips from a Chandler Painter: The Art of Painting Preparation
Whether you’re painting a room for the very first time or you’re ready to reinvigorate with a painting touch-up, take a look at our three easy-to-follow steps to learn how to effectively and efficiently prepare your canvas.
Wash the Walls
Because we’re sure you know the ins and outs of protecting your room from harmful splatters, we’re going to skip the set-up and plunge right into the wall prep. Before even pouring that paint, be sure you take a few minutes to thoroughly wash your walls. If you skip this step, you’re leaving your soon-to-be interior masterpiece susceptible to nicks and bumps from dusty and dirty patches. This is also a great time to be on the lookout for any resilient nails and screws that you may have overlooked when clearing the wall of shelves and frames.
Start Up High
Once you begin applying the primer (or the paint, if it’s two-in-one), start with your roller in the upper corner of the wall. This way, you can avoid (or work with) any dripping that may occur. Be sure to go back in to outline the edges with a small, angled brush that will allow you to fill in the corners without painting right over (and across!) your painter’s tape.
The “W”
Though there are many different opinions when it comes to the perfect painting strategy, when it comes to DIY, our Chandler painter is a firm believer in The “W”. By this, we mean starting in the corner (see the step above) and painting on a large “W” shape with your roller. You should then be able to fill in the crevices of the “W” in one continuous motion, reducing your chances of dripping and increasing your chances of a smooth and seamless finish.