Here are the tips you need to turn the house you have into the home you want. With these suggestions you will soon have the inspiration you need to confidently take on your redecoration dreams.

Colours

Look around. Ask yourself why you like what you like. Look for ideas in other people’s homes, magazines, and shops. Begin with any elements you don’t wish to change, such as the furnishing, fabrics. For exteriors consider how your home fits in with the surrounding homes, and how will blend in with the rest of your street. Will you be complementing your garden colours or blending in with them. Take into account the colours of plants and flowers, and use these as a springboard. Painting your home either dark or light will dramatically alter its perceived size and shape. A house will appear smaller painted in dark. A house that has a dark roof and light walls will appear to be shorter. Your roof is an important consideration, because of its size. When painting the walls and exterior trim, such as doors, windows, columns and other components, choose a scheme that will complement the colour you have picked for the roof. Finally if you live in a mainly hot area, consider using light colours for your roof to reflect heat. Then use paint retailer Colour Chips to help you choose colours and shades. Remember, colours appear lighter in small patches. The sunlight will make the colour range appear lighter than colour card. Ask your paint retailer for advice in selecting the best paint for your project.

Preparation

Preparation is first step, so take your time. The effort you put into preparing surfaces will result in a better finish. So correct preparation is as essential as choosing the right product. Sanding of previously painted surfaces (particularly enamels) before you start painting will ensure the topcoats have better adhesion and last longer. Different grades of sandpaper will give a different finish. Start with a coarse sandpaper and finish with a finer grade. Paint will not adhere well to powdery and greasy surfaces so give a good wash down with Liquid Sugar Soap in warm water. Surfaces must be clean and dry before painting.

Painting

Before painting please read what it says on the can simple instruction are contained on the labels. Most mistakes are made by not reading the instructions. Good quality tools save time and give a better more professional result. Don’t buy cheap brushes. A quality new brush with good bristles holds more paint. This reduces spattering, which ensures better finish Old rollers are a waste of time If you are using a roller: Don’t put to much paint on it. Don’t roll to quickly or the paint will flick off. Good brushwork requires a crossing stroke. Hold the brush near the base applying light pressure. Dip only one third the length into the paint, and tap the brush against both sides of the can. Don’t wipe it across the top of the can. Water based paint is easier to apply if you soak the brush with water before you dip it in the paint. On hot or windy days you should work with two brushes, always leaving one to soak in water and changing brushes every thirty minutes.

Cleaning and disposal

Store all paints and tools out of reach of children Do not pour paints, strippers and other chemicals products down drains, or into gardens. Water based paints can be disposed of with household rubbish if they are dry. Check with your local council regarding collections.

You can learn a lot more about decorative tips, ideas and practical techniques here – http://www.interdecorator.com/articles2.html

Nicky Taylor
CEO Of http://www.home-painting-services.com/exteriorpainting.html

If you are interested in more info pertaining to exterior painting or other t

A wall border is used in defining a wall pattern. It is also used as a decorative and beautifying element. It is usually the only decoration that is used unless the house had been stenciled or is owned by a rich and elite family who can easily afford the new wall paper which became very famous in the United States and England way back in 1970’s.

The art of stenciled walls is primarily done with the use of paper or metal stencils. They are then later on embellished using freehand. You can have a similar look using several basic materials and of course, time investment.

Simply follow the simple and basic instructions in order to come up with your very own uniquely creative wall border with the use of stencils.

Here are the materials you would need in order to stencil a wall border:

Flat Latex or alkyd paint to be used as a primer on the wall to be stenciled.

Your choice of border stencils
Ceramcoat Stencil Paints or Japan Paints
Stencil brushes with natural bristles
Paper towel
Masking Tape
Palette knife

Easy Step-by-step Guide to Stencil a Wall Border

Wall preparation. Match your own paint.

Prepare all the paint you need for your entire wall border all at once. Put the paints in the saucers. With the use of your palette knife, make the colours or shades of your choice. Otherwise, have the paint pre-mixed based on your own preferences and specifications. Make sure that you have enough paint for the entire project.

Lightly mark the position of your borders on the wall using a pencil. Mark the top and right edge and the bottom and left edge. Be as accurate as possible.

It is recommended that you start on the dominant corner of your room to make a continuous border. Preferably where your gaze usually land as soon as you enter the room.

Tape the stencil on the wall and carefully dab the stencil brush on your paint. Using some paper towel, dab it there until it is almost dry. Then, apply the paint on the stencil and wall with a light dabbing motion.

Move the stencil carefully following the light pencil marks you have placed on your wall. Once you have finished around 2/3 of the wall, get your stencil and them accurately measure what’s left of the wall.

Assuming that there is no more way by which you can run the stencil up to the end, you might need to stretch it or squeeze it together which can be accomplished by using either one of these methods.

Get the stencil and when you have run to the end of it, move it around two inches or until the pattern had repeated by one to two more turns. After that, stencil those before beginning at the start of the stencil. However, assuming that it has to be shortened when you are doing the stencil, skip at least one pattern and then repeat ending just beyond the middle. And then, you can begin repeating it.

Once you have completed one wall, begin again to the point where you first started and you can start working on the second wall beginning on the same corner. Again, use the light pencil marks you made for the first wall in order to create an alignment to the second wall and them move across.

After this, you can now proceed to the opposite corner of your room and you can start with the second set of walls.

Once you have accomplished and completed the designs, do not forget to cleanse all brushes using mineral spirits.

Public Designs: Do it Yourself Home improvement.

When you decide to paint your kitchen cabinets it is not only one of the best projects you can do for your kitchen, it is also important to do if you plan on selling your home. Kitchens are one of the most judged rooms by prospective buyers. Painting your kitchen cabinets is easy and affordable to do. There is no need to remodel your entire kitchen. A simple change to the cabinets and wall colors can do wonders.

Before you repaint your cabinets there are a few details you need to think about.

If your cabinets are already painted, you will have to decide if you would like to paint them the same color, or choose a new color. Before you begin to paint take the time to visualize the color and look you would like in your kitchen. Doing so will ensure you will be satisfied with the results.

After planning and finding the perfect color, you will have to clean the cabinets. This is one of the most important steps to painting the cabinets because the surfaces may have food particles, grease, and grim on them which you will not want to leave on. It may be easier to take the cabinet doors off so that you can clean them with a rag on a flat surface.

Once the cabinets are free of any gunk, you can begin sanding. A piece of grit sand paper will work well. It only takes a few passes over the doors and the cabinet boxes. This might be one of the longest parts of the painting process, but it is for the benefit of the cabinets. Having them fully sanded will help the paint last long. You could always ask someone else to join in and sand with you so it gets done quicker.

The next step is applying a primer. The purpose of primer is to hold the paint better so it will not chip and peel. Regular paint alone will not last as long. There are different types of primer to choose from. It depends on what type of paint you are going to use.

The cabinets are ready for painting after you applied the primer. There are a few ways to painting the cabinets. One way is with a pneumatic sprayer. This sprayer will give the paint a glossy and smooth coat. It is fine if you do not have one because a brush can get the same look. The best way to get a professional type paint job is by applying the paint in think coatings. You do not have to lay heavy paint right away so you are done. It will take longer, but doing different layers of coats will give your cabinets the most durable and attractive look.

After letting the doors dry, hang them back in your kitchen. You will be amazed at what a simple and easy painting can do to renew your kitchen space. It will look like you remodeled, so keep the secret to yourself.

Typically, many Apartmentites don’t spend a ton of time worrying about color in their apartment, but color is the key to emotional response in the place you love!

The color that you paint your walls can help promote certain moods and can reflect on your decorative capabilities in huge ways. But the mood that you wish to create can vary from room to room. It’s important to remember to connect the colors from room to room to make sure they flow together.

How do you do that? Easy!

Select A Carry Through Color- One important rule to remember in making a variation of colors work in different rooms yet flow together is to make sure and give each one originality that doesn’t clash with a common color. Select one color that you love that will run throughout each room to combine them with a common thread. You could do this with more than just paint. If you want to be subtle, make the common color come out in your fabrics, blankets, candles, and accents.

Contrast, but Include- Maybe you want to have two different rooms with very contrasting colors like pink and green. Great. Just make sure to accent the green room with the same color pink and the pink room with the same color green from the other room. This is a technique of basically cross-linking the two different colors and will still create a flow among the two rooms. For best results, use a common trim color for each. Painting this common trim white will create an awesome and easy way to connect every room in the apartment.

Limitations Are the Key- Don’t go overboard trying to mix and match many different colors. Pick two to four and stick with those. Otherwise your place may end up looking like a complicated, clashing rainbow….and nobody wants that.

Be Aware Of Lighting- Lastly, but very important is to be aware of the lighting that you have in an individual room. The same color orange can look very different in a room with several windows versus a room that is lit by lamps or an overhead light. Play with the color swatches that you can get from paint stores to find the right color for the right room.

Just remember that decorating, styling, and painting your apartment is FUN! So the most important rule in doing any type of decorating is to have fun doing it and always remember that if you end up not liking what you did…it can always be redone! Good luck!

The colors you choose to use when painting the interior of your house can say a lot about you. Sometimes they say that you like things bright, sometimes they say that you like things dark, and sometimes they say that you are color blind. Whatever look you are going for, it’s important to take specific steps, steps that help assure the statement the interior of your house is making isn’t “Help me.”

With this in mind, it might seem easy to jump right in and begin painting: all you need is a can, a stirrer, and a brush, right? Well, not exactly. Though these may technically be all the items truly required, jumping right in can leave you with a finished product that’s anything but polished.

More often than not, painting goes awry because of a failure to prepare. It’s the preparation, and not the painting, that often holds the greatest importance.

For this reason, before you pick up a paint brush, take the following actions:

Take an inventory of the room you’re going to paint and remove furniture and other items that you don’t want to get paint on (i.e., the dog or your spouse). Place a drop cloth over large furniture too heavy to move, carpet, and tile floors. It’s also a good idea to lay an evenly spread drop cloth on the floor and place your paint bucket over it.

After you’ve removed things from the floor, continue the removal process by removing items on the wall. Pictures, nails, and even outlet and electrical covers all should be removed. Don’t worry, they’ll understand.

Next, patch up any holes, cracks, or breaks you find in the wall with caulk and run an electric sander over newly patched areas as well as unusually rough spots. If you don’t have an electric sander, a manual one will suffice. Doing this will give your walls a smoother look and keep paint from appearing clumped or broken.

After the wall has been sanded, dust and wash it. You don’t apply makeup to a dirty face, so why apply paint to a dirty wall? If your wall has wall paper, it’s best to strip it off. While it’s possible to simply paint over wall paper, getting rid off it completely prevents complications from arising.

The final step before “Operation Paint” can begin is taping. You’ll most likely begin your paint job with a roller or thick brush: these kinds of brushes aren’t good for the edging. Instead of attempting to paint around the edges, and risking that you’ll end up with a straight edge that is anything but, place an inch thick piece of tape around all edges, window sills, and baseboards. After you’ve painted the large parts, go back to the edges with a much finer, and smaller, paint tool.

This might all seem like a lot of work, but taking the lid off your paint bucket before proper preparation can leave you taking the lid off a whole can of worms in the process.