We’ve been putting it off for ages, but we need to get some serious decorating done around our abode. The woodwork is all chipped and the walls are looking distinctly grubby.
As much as I would love to hire someone to come in and do it all, it would be too costly and I can’t justify paying someone to do something we can do ourselves.
I have a terrible habit of cracking open a tin of paint and attacking a wall with it on a whim, then running out of steam half way through or when I’ve splattered paint on my best jeans (always think I won’t, always do!) My planning and prep is a bit minimal, shall we say, so this time I’ve decided I need to tackle the work more like a professional. One of the things that frustrates the heck out of me is not having all the tools and equipment I need to hand. I waste too much time searching for things in the shed which breaks up my momentum and eats away precious decorating time.
(We probably therefore also need to organise the shed better, but that’s a future project!)
For now, I’m going to ensure I get everything I need together at the start so I’m properly prepared (I may even consider getting myself a boiler suit so I can get as messy as hell and not care!).
If you are new to decorating, or just want to get better organised like me before you begin the work, these are the essential items I think you need to have to hand.
Dust Sheets
Plastic or fabric, put them down on the floor to save your carpets/tiles/wood flooring from spills and paint splashes. Also chuck them over any furniture items you can’t move out of the room.
Scraper
Really handing for chipping off old blobs of paint, lumpy plaster and old wallpaper.
Decorators Caulk & Gun
This stuff is amazing for filling in gaps around door frames and skirting boards, giving a smooth, gap free professional finish.
Paint Brushes, Roller & Tray
A range of different sizes and an angled brush for ‘cutting in’ (ie using a paint brush first to paint areas that are too tight for rollers e.g. he ceiling line, corners, skirting boards etc). The better quality brushes are a bit more expensive, but well worth it as you’ll know if you’ve ever spent an afternoon picking stray bristles from cheap brushes out of your lovely paintwork. A roller gives much better and quicker coverage than a brush for large areas, I’d definitely recommend using them to emulsion your walls – the paint does ‘spatter’ more though so be prepared to have speckled hair and make sure you use that dust sheet. You can find a great range at Engelbert Strauss for paint brushes and rollers.
Masking Tape
This is amazing, especially the green Frog Tape – you can tape off the bits you don’t want to get paint on e.g. glass panes in doors and also use it to get a sharp edge between two different paint colours on your walls as we did here and here.
Gloves
Disposable gloves are great to protect your manicure!
Sandpaper & Sanding Block
I hate sanding, but it is necessary on wood work – you don’t have to take the paint right back to the wood, but just rough it up a bit to give the paint a ‘key’ – something to adhere to.
White Spirit
This is for cleaning off oil based paints from brushes (like gloss), where water and soap won’t clean them.
Dust Mask
If you are sanding you should wear a mask so as not to breathe in the fine dust.
Sugar Soap
A great cleaner for getting walls and wood work properly clean and ‘de-greased’ before you start decorating.
If you have any other essentials you would recommend let me know! And if you are a newbie who needs to ask a decorating question, feel free and we’ll try to help. There’s a great DIY and decorating blog I’d recommend too, called Little House on the Corner where you’ll find lots of project “how-to’s” and advice.
