Welcome to Home Decorating Guide
The Cheapest Do It Yourself Project Article
14. The Cheapest Do-It-Yourself Project
from:Are you sick of looking at the same old room? The easiest way to change your room is to start with a new color on the wall. That will open the whole vault of new ideas for your room. Color coordinate some pillows, bedspread, sofa throw, coffee table treasures and the like.
Painting your wall requires you to remove all nails and patch the holes. Smooth down the patch and proceed to find any cracks or other cosmetic problems on the walls. Measure each wall. The reason to measure each separately is related to the fact that you may decide to do a two color paint room with 2 walls one color and two walls another.
When you get to the paint store, browse through the colors and then through the paints. Choosing a good paint with easy clean-up makes you project so much easier. One gallon of paint will cover about 400 square feet unless the new color is lighter than the first, at which point you may need to do 2 coats of paint. A good quality paint will cost about $20 per gallon.
Maybe you need a primer. There is a new product on the market that is a primer and paint all in one. This might be considered if the wall has never been painted before.
You will need a roller and pan, paint brushes and masking tape to tape the top of the base boards and around the top of the wall at the ceiling. The extra brushes and tape and pan will cost you about $20 or less.
Maybe you already have a color in mind, because you want the paint to match the sofa, the bedspread or something you already have. Take a swatch of the fabric to the paint department. Today, computers make everything easier. The paint clerk will scan you fabric sample and the computer will automatically put the right colors in the base gallon of paint.
The clerk will put a dab of the paint on the lid and dry it so that you can see the match before you take the can of paint home. Modern technology is wonderful!
For an inexpensive face lift for a room, nothing is easier than a fresh coat of paint. Painting the walls is a sure fire way of perking up the appearance of the room.
As children grow up from nursery to preschool age, the fresh coat of paint can change the whole appearance. And your teen will love that he can have a geometric design in place by using a few color paints!
By the way, use a safe ladder and an extension on your paint roller. Safety first! Your teen might even become involved in helping. Don't count on him for clean-up, but for the creativity, call on him.