After painting most of our 2300 square foot home, I have gathered some helpful interior painting tools and tips that will make your painting jobs easier.

Cody helped me paint the basement this last weekend. As we were painting I thought about the amount of painting we have done since we moved into our home. We are on our eighth room! Then I thought, I will ask Cody what his number one tip would be for those that are thinking about painting in their home.

His answer: Hire someone to paint for you.

I laughed hard. He is right though. If you can afford to hire a professional, it will save you a lot of work, sometimes heartache, and will likely look better.

Then I thought about what tip I would give for those that, like us, can’t hire a professional right now.

My answer: Just get started and get the tools to make the job easier.

It is almost always worth the investment to paint. Usually you are painting a room a color that makes you happy and your walls will look sharper and cleaner after you are done. Getting started, like when you are wanting to exercise, is easier than thinking about or anticipating it.

Tools that we use:

Quality paint rollers *Just like brushes, getting quality rollers and quality roller frames will make your job easier and the results more beautiful.
Lots of paint trays and liners for the different colors *I get the plastic liners that are easy and inexpensive to replace and keep my more sturdy tray clean and ready to hold the liners.
Paint pails for detail work *The handy pail is super helpful in the corners or the room and at the trimmings.
Quality paint brushes *Having quality brushes is no joke. Go ahead and buy the cheap brushes and you can experience for yourself what a waste of time it is to buy them. The price is a pretty good indicator of the quality.
Painting ladder and or step stool *I like the ladders that have a place to put my paint tray!
Large drop cloths to protect flooring *Get the bigger one and then you can always fold if it is too big. Too big is better than too small in this case.

Painter’s tape *We have always used the frog tape and loved it.
6-in-1 painters tool *This really can do 6 jobs!

12 inch paint shield*This takes some practice to use well, but it is a lot faster than doing it with the metal edger and your paint brush.

Paint can spout *This is the best tool. This eliminates the annoying spills that happen without a spout. It is worth the few dollars!
Paint Edger *We used this in our kitchen and it did a pretty good job. We are not professional painters, but it certainly made better lines than the rooms where we painted without it.

Plastic Wrap: we wrap our paint rollers in between painting sessions so we don’t have to clean them out every single time. *A roll from the Dollar Store would suffice for this!

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If you are having a hard time picking out paint colors, check out this post. 

Tips:

As far as progress in the basement, we are done painting the walls. Look how much brighter the room looks with white walls! I bought two colors with the intent to have an accent wall, but once I put the paint on the walls, I decided that I wanted to keep the walls one solid color. There will be lots of room to add color through the decor and since there is low lighting in the basement, I feel really good about having the brighter white (Sherwin Williams Snowbound) reflect more light.

The next step will be to paint the smaller doors that cover water elements and then to lay the flooring. Cody says the flooring should go quickly. My goal is to be able to replace baseboards and door trim before we leave on our trip to Utah.

If you ever have questions about painting, please let me know. I am always willing to share anything that I have learned from my own experience.

Have a blessed and productive day!

Best,
Lucy