6 planning tips to paint your place perfectly


We often think of spring as the ideal time for major home cleaning – and it certainly is. But the return to warmer weather is also the perfect time to freshen up your interiors with a new coat of paint and more contemporary colours.

These 6 tips can help you get started and ensure your paint job is fun and rewarding:

  1. Protecting your belongings: Painting can be a messy business and even without major spills, little drops of paint can splash on the floor and furniture. Make sure to move all room’s furniture to the middle of the room and cover it with old sheets or plastic. You’ll also want to cover your floors with a drop cloth (plastic can be slippery). And, even if you’re only painting one room, to avoid leaving a trail of paint, lay down a drop cloth out of the room to the kitchen, bathroom or garage – wherever you may need to cleanup or move cans of paint later.
  2. Cleaning: All right, so spring painting is a little bit about spring cleaning. New paint needs a clean surface to form a strong bond so use a sponge, water and mild dishwashing soap to remove dust, dirt and greasy finger marks. Once you’ve sponged away the grime, remember to rinse away any soap residue with a clean sponge.
  3. Patching: You’ll want to patch up any holes left from nails, screws and cracks with fast-drying spackle and wait about 24 hours for it to dry. Then sand the area smooth.
  4. Outlets and hardware: Remove light switch and outlet cover plates and cover the remaining hardware with painter’s tape. To avoid losing them, tape the screws to the back of the plates. Protect door hardware with painter’s tape, too. And if you’re painting the ceiling, you’ll want to slide down the cover plate and wrap your light fixtures with plastic.
  5. Windows and doors: Cover the edge of your window and door frames, as well as your trim, with painter’s tape. Remember: remove the tape as soon as you’re finished painting so dry paint doesn’t peel off.
  6. Paint: One gallon of paint should cover about 40 square metres. If you’re not sure how much you’ll need, this paint calculator will help. If you’re painting the ceiling, start there, then work your way down to the walls and trim.

Want even more tips? Check out here and here for lots of helpful tips.

Got tips – or painting tragedies – of your own? Please share them now the Shop Talk blog community forum!

Did you know: To prime or not to prime

Think your walls have so many layers of paint, you don’t need to prime? The fact is primer evens out paint coverage and gives your walls a more uniform look.  (Source)

17 thoughts on “6 planning tips to paint your place perfectly

  1. very valuable tips that I should know before starting the tasks.
    Thank you very much.
    George sandulescu.

  2. What does SLIDE DOWN THE COVER PLATE mean in the sentence that begins “And if you’re painting the ceiling, you’ll want to slide down the cover plate …”

    1. The cover plate is located where the wire goes into the ceiling. You’ll want to unscrew and slide it down when painting around the wire to avoid getting paint on it. Alternatively, you can apply paint tape around the cover plate.

  3. Horrible tips. I’ve been a high end painter for 24 years now. 1st rule…no spackle! And NEVER get paint from rona pr home depot! Big faux pas. Go to a paint supplier, sherwin williams, cloverdale, or dulux. Do NOT use Benjamin Moore.

  4. I need painting tips for ceilings. Doing cut in and paint rollers on long rods. Do you paint ceilings first, then walls or vice versa?

  5. I have nasty old cupboards in my apartment that are covered with what looks like a vinal sheeting and would like to know how to successfully paint over ,if possible at all ….

  6. Clothes: Wear old clothes, preferably with paint spots already on them.
    Also, I heard that you should paint the trim first, then the walls. That doesn’t work too well – I prefer to paint walls first, then trim.

  7. I would like to know why, if you require a pint or less paint for a small project, you are forced to buy a gallon. So much wasted paint going into landfills unnecessarily.

  8. You mention Exercise in your Keep Healthy and Slow Up Aging. I am 90; don’t smoke or drink; and have decided to return to the wonderful world of Square Dancing. I dance about once aweek and extra on weekends.
    I have always had a problem drinking water – I don’t like it. So I put 1/3 Apple Juice in a glass and 2/3 water. Sorrry, that’s the best I can do. .I should be walking daily but when I miss, I get on my stationary bike for 30 to 40 minutes.
    Thanx and God Bless.

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