Painting Walls & Interiors – Tip Sheet

Ready to pull out the paint rollers? This page is loaded with tips and inspiration to help you get the job done (including a gallery of ideas for painting walls, homemade milk paint recipes and more). Have fun!

How To Tell If A Wall Is Painted With Oil Or Latex: Pour some non-acetone nail polish remover or rubbing alcohol onto a clean rag and scrub the wall. If the paint is stripped then it’s latex, if the surface is unaffected it’s oil.

Can You Apply Latex Over Oil (and vice versa)? It’s possible if you prime the area first or sand the surface really well so the paint can grab onto the surface and adhere. Debbie Travis says no–unless you prime the area first with an alkyd primer.

What Kind Of Brushes To Use: If working with Latex, choose a synthetic bristle brush (nylon/polyester). For oil based, natural bristles will work well. Buy good quality brushes, cheap is not the way to go (they lose hairs more easily and don’t do as good a job).

Are Budget Priced Paints OK?: Buy the best quality (and brushes) that your budget allows, these are two things you don’t want to go cheap. Cheap paint tends to not wear as well nor stretch as far, meaning you’ll have to buy more per job as well as paint more frequently. I learned this the hard way.

What Shades Work Best: Light shades for smaller rooms (to help them look bigger), darker shades for a more enclosed feeling so a large room won’t feel so overwhelming.

What Finish To Choose: The higher the sheen, the easier it is to spot imperfections in the surface (the gloss reflects light). Paints with a higher gloss sheen are easier to scrub and wash, these are good for trims, kitchens and bathrooms. A flat paint is good for ceilings and eggshell finish is good for most walls. For hallways and entrances, a satin finish will provide a bit better scrubbable surface than eggshell.

How Much To Buy: Calculate the square footage of the room you are doing, then check the paint you are wanting to buy. The can should specify how much surface area it will cover.

Preparing Walls: Wash walls first with TSP so the surface is as clean as possible. TSP also acts as a deglosser, this helps the fresh coat of paint adhere to the surface. Make sure to rinse the cleaner off and allow to fully dry before applying a new coat. If the paint is a high gloss, do some sanding first before applying a new coat. Also make any necessary repairs (filling nail holes, dings, scratches) and sand as needed.

Painting Over Glossy Finishes: Sand the surface first so the new coat will adhere to the surface. Washing in TSP as well as applying a coat of primer also help.

Which Order To Paint In: Ceiling, then walls, then trims and frames.

Cut In First: For a neater job, do your cut-in work first then paint the rest of the area with rollers. For some tips on cutting in, here’s a helpful video:

Taking A Break: Wrap all brushes, rollers and trays with plastic wrap so the paint won’t dry out before you can start again. This trick will keep the paint wet for several hours to overnight. Also see this tip for easy cleanup (Tip #16).

Keep A Project File: Save the paint chips used in each room for future reference. This comes in handy if any repair work is needed or it’s time to repaint the room but you want the same color, you’ll be able to purchase the exact shade needed.

Extra Paint: Seal some of the leftover paint in a glass jar (baby jar or small mason jar) to keep on hand for touchup work as needed. Check with your local recycling center on how to safely dispose of the rest.

Another Handy Resource:

• Lowe’s How To Library

Gallery of Ideas

Laminate Furniture

Here’s a tutorial from Living With Lindsay with How to Paint Laminate Furniture:

Let me be the first to tell you this: With the right preparations, you CAN paint laminate furniture and it WILL look good. You just need to follow the following steps

I’m not really fond of laminate furniture and do my best to avoid it but sometimes the pieces just have to do (budget reasons). The good news is that you can personalize and update the furniture by painting it and it’s not too difficult to do.

The tutorial shows you how to sand the laminate first, apply primer with a foam brush then allow the primer to dry for several days (she explains why in the tutorial). Next apply your paint, reassemble the pieces and voila! a nice looking piece of furniture for your home (that doesn’t break the bank).

Please visit the site listed above for complete details, nice job!

Homemade Milk Paint Recipes

*First published September 3, 2007 and moved to this page for better organization

What is milk paint? See realmilkpaint.com:

Milk paint has been used for several centuries and has proved to be a very durable paint. Many antiques have survived to this day with their original milk paint intact. The rich colors are just as vibrant today.

Each of the recipes are listed below…

1870 Formula
Recipe From 1870:

1 Quart skim milk (room temperature)
1 Once of hydrated lime by weight (Available at building centers. Do not use quick lime, as it will react with the water and heat up. Hydrated lime has been soaked in water then dried.)
1 to 2 1/2 pounds of chalk may also be added as a filler.

• Stir in enough skim milk to hydrated lime to make a cream. Add balance of skim milk. Now add sufficient amount of powder pigment to desired color and consistency (Pigment powder must be limeproof). Stir in well for a few minutes before using. For best results continue to stir throughout use. Apply milk paint with a cheap natural bristle brush. Allow project to dry sufficiently before applying next coat. Extra paint may be kept for several days in the refrigerator, until the milk sours. Double or triple the recipe for paint. Allow to dry thoroughly 3-4 hours before use. For extra protection, give paint a coat of oil finish or sealer. Color may change – test in inconspicuous area.

Basic Recipe

Another recipe including tinting suggestions found here on the PainterForum Basic Recipe:

For approx. 1.5 Gallons Milk Paint

One Gallon Skim Milk
Two Cups Builders Lime also called Hydrated Lime (Do NOT use Quick Lime)
One Quart Linseed Oil (the boiled type)
1/2 Cup of Salt
Dye (Color) add in as needed

• Strain with cheesecloth or fine mesh screen wire
  Use within Two Days of mixing

The pioneer recipes for milk paint all had two things in common, Milk and lime. When combined they form a natural binding agent that is, in some ways, unmatched by today’s modern coatings. Color can be added with any natural substance ( rust, berries etc.) or water soluble dye. The classic red barns are most likely the result of an abundance of milk and the availability of red pigments in the form of rust (iron oxide). Livestock blood was also added to milk to produce blood paint.

Curdled

The best for last? Here’s a fantastic tutorial from Appropedia:

The following is a recipe for quark, or curdled milk, based paint. Quark is a Casein Paint. The recipe is very specific but casein paints last a long time, are fungi resistant and compostable. Casein paints can be used inside or outside, on wood, stone, drywall, wallpaper, earthen plaster, masonry and to cover existing painted surfaces.

Lots of pictures and details provided, nice job!