Is the interior of your home in desperate need of a fresh coat of paint? For one reason or another, we all postpone the painting project until we finally become completely sick of the way things look at that particular moment, realizing that something certainly needs to be done.
Okay, there are those responsible individuals among us who do this on a regular basis. Regardless of what group you’re in, you’re most probably wondering one specific thing.
How involved is interior painting actually? Is this an easy task that won’t take long, or is it rather complicated and difficult? Why are you even wondering this? Probably because you want to understand if you can do this alone, or if hiring professionals is in order.
Usually something people wonder when dealing with painting projects for the first time, but it’s not uncommon for those that have previously worked with professionals to suddenly start wondering this as well.
Wondering how much professional painting costs? This will help: https://www.forbes.com/home-improvement/painting/interior-house-painting-cost/
So, is interior painting actually complicated, or is this something you can do all on your own? Depends on what you find to be complicated. Thus, understanding the actual process, and the different aspects of interior painting is what will help you make that decision and realize what you have to do.
Different Aspects of Interior Painting
You just grab a bucket of paint, get your brushes and start smearing the paint all over the walls, trying to be as precise as possible? That’s it, right? Wrong. It is precisely this assumption that makes people ultimately regret their decision to do the painting project alone, because they realize afterwards that they’ve done so many things the wrong way and that they’ve basically ruined the walls. And possibly the furniture.
Wanting everything to look aesthetically pleasing and pretty much amazing is normal, but expecting to achieve that look without really understanding the different aspects of interior painting is, well, ludicrous.
There are stages to the process. Stages you need to be aware of and carefully go through if you want to do this right.
First off, there’s the preparation stage, that involves quite a lot of steps. If you’ve ever seen interior painters at work, you’ve probably wondered what it is that they are doing and why aren’t they grabbing the paint and the brushes already. Well, because they are trained to do everything right, and high-quality work begins with proper preparation.
Moving tables, furniture and blinds to the areas that won’t be painted, and covering things that can’t be moved with a plastic sheet is the first preparation step. Then, there’s the part of sealing up the window frames, the baseboard and the door jambs. And, on top of it all, the walls need to be cleaned with water and soap, and then dried, because paint cannot adhere to sticky and dirty surfaces, regardless of its quality. Depending on the size of your house, the preparation stage can take some time, and it’s important not to rush it.
The part of getting the supplies comes next. Carry out your research before you go shopping, because you need to learn two important things. What to buy and what brands to buy? Buying binders, additives, as well as pigments of high quality will ultimately result in the perfect quality paint. So, be careful while doing your shopping here.
Apart from the supplies, you’ll also have to buy the tools. Paint grids, trays, brushes, rollers, extension poles… Those are just some of the tools you’ll have to use during the project, but the ultimate selection will depend on your interior space. Rollers are perfect for ceilings and larger surfaces in general, while brushes are ideal smaller places, when you need to be more precise.
Naturally, choosing colours will be one of the next important steps to take before starting the actual work. If you’re not sure whether the colour you’ve set your mind to will look good on the walls, buy a small quantity of it, apply it on the wall and check how it looks. If you can’t seem to make a choice on your own, getting some advice could be helpful. This could also help choose the right paint.
Now’s the time to do the actual painting. Think this is the easy part? Think again. Keeping the colour uniform is quite a challenge, but it is definitely doable if you are concentrated enough and careful when doing the mixing. Of course, another thing to remember during the painting part is not to skimp, meaning you should apply at least two coats of colour to the walls. Remember to make sure your strokes overlap and don’t let the previous one dry before applying a new one.
When to Hire Professionals?
Does all of the above sound like too much work? I get it. It really is too much work, and the truth is that you may not be cut out for it, or you simply don’t want to waste your time doing it.
If unsure of your painting skills, leaving things up to the professionals is the best idea, because they’ll definitely do great work, while you may wind up making mistakes that will ruin the overall look of your walls.
So, unless you’ve done this before and unless you’re sure you have the necessary skills to do it perfectly, hiring professionals is what you should do.
Even if you believe you would be able to get it done all alone, hiring pros may still be a much better idea. Why? Because you would get to save your own time, and have the entire project completed far more quickly than it would have been if you decided to do it alone.
Naturally, experts will not only complete the job more quickly, but also more successfully, making sure that everything is done perfectly and that you are happy with the end results. All of this goes, of course, only if you hire the right painters for your project, so make sure not to rush things and be careful when choosing.