Painting / Wallpaper

Ragging is a faux finish technique that uses a rag to produce a mottled decorative effect. Ragging can be done negatively where the rag is use to remove the glaze, or ragging can be done positively where the rag is use to apply the glaze to the wall. Either way you choose to do it, ragging is a simple faux finish that most DIY'ers can pull off without too much trouble.

If you have no curtains or blinds covering your window, there are a few ways to make sure you have the privacy you need. You can apply a film or decal directly onto the window, or use furnishings or accessories to obstruct the view of your room from the outside. Some methods will result in less sunlight entering the room compared to others, which may not be a problem for you if you have other windows or sources of light in the room. Consider these following options that add privacy while not detracting from the attractiveness and style of your home.

There are lots incentives why homeowners desire an improved home exterior. Maybe you want to sell your home in the future, are bored with the old look or wish to add equity to your home. Painting, landscaping and new window shutters will give your home fantastic results. Learn about exterior paint and the quick curb appeal of your home.

When you are painting, knowing how to paint so that the finish is neat and even can mean the difference between adding value and beauty to your home and taking away from the same. Straight lines and clean trim make the room look professionally styled, and will really improve the overall look of the decor. There are several ways discover how anyone can paint in a straight line with some care, patience, and effort. Contrary to everything you learn in painting class, you do not have to paint the room before the baseboards, trim, or molding. In fact, it is better to start by painting these objects instead of finishing with them. It is much simpler to touch up the trim than to go back and touch up walls, and trim touchups are much less noticeable overall.

Painting a room, no matter how large or small, can create some confusion when it is time to purchase paint. You want to be sure that you get enough without going overboard. However, you also want to have a little extra to fix mistakes or to allow room for error. Very few stores will allow paint to be returned, especially specialty shades, so it is essential to learn just how to calculate the right amount of paint for a room.

Painting walls is the easiest way to change the look and feel of a room. Sometimes, though, flat paint is too bland for the look of the room, but bold effects are too much. That is when subtle wall effects come into play. There are a variety of subtle wall effects that can be created from paint finish formulations.

Ever seen someone dithering over the rack of paint samples at a home improvement store? That's a home decorator in agony over how to pick paint colors for his or her home.

Without a doubt, selecting paint colors can be one of the toughest jobs in home decorating. That's because the human eye can discern some 7 million different shades of color, and paint manufacturers seem determined to produce all of them! Unfortunately, paint companies don't always give help on how to combine those colors in harmonious ways in your home. The answer to this problem? A color wheel.

A color wheel is a tool that takes the seven colors of the visible spectrum – red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet – and places them on a 360-degree circle. The circle is set up with three primary colors, red, blue and yellow. These colors combine to create three secondary colors, orange, green ...

Tired of your flat, drab closet doors? Whatever the style of your bedroom or home, there are faux painting techniques that you can apply to create closet doors that complement the rest of your living space. Faux painting creates visual and textural interest for little cost. All you need is a base paint color, glaze, and tools that can usually be found at your local home improvement store.

Brushes are a good choice for painting trim and woodwork. They are also useful for cutting in the edges around the top and bottom edges and corners of walls, before using a roller to cover the larger areas. Brushes can be used in areas that are too confined to use a roller. When selecting a brush for painting, it's important to choose the correct type. There are both natural bristle and synthetic bristle brushes; if you are using latex paint, you will want to make sure to choose a synthetic bristle brush. Synthetic brushes can generally be used with any type of paint. Good quality brushes will have the bristles trimmed on the ends so that the brush has a chisel edge instead of a flat blunt end. The tips of the bristles should be split or fuzzy; this enables the brush to ‘grab’ the paint so that you can apply a smooth even coat. When trimming in around edges or woodwork, always choose a sash brush, which is the style of brush that has an angled edge instead of a straight edge, to make it easier to paint a clean straight line.

The advantage of spray painting is the sheer speed at which you can do it. A room that would usually take a weekend to paint can be done in less than half the time with a spray painting machine. The same goes for garden fences and exterior walls. Whilst some jobs will always require the work of specialist (wood spraying, cladding spraying and others) these simple jobs can be easily achieved by anyone with a little bit knowledge and this article intends to give you that knowledge.

Before you begin papering, your goal should be to make the wall surface as smooth as possible. After this is done, shine a light (work lamp, flashlight) sideways across the wall's surface. Irregularities will cast shadows, allowing you to see if you missed anything. A single roll of wallpaper contains 36 square feet of paper. American wallpaper is sold in bolts of single, double or triple rolls with varying widths. This guide will walk you through planning and installing Wallpaper.

As with any painting project, preparation is crucial to achieving a high quality result when painting wall stripes. Whether you are painting one horizontal stripe or floor-to-ceiling stripes, you should first measure the walls and determine the thickness and positioning of the stripes. Use painter’s tape to mask all door and window frames, ceiling edges, baseboards, chair rails and fixtures, just as you do to prepare for painting the room a solid color. Also cover the floor to protect from paint drips. Begin by painting the entire wall (or walls) a solid color, which will end up as one of your stripe colors. Try to plan your project around applying a basecoat of your lightest color, followed by painting stripes with your darker color(s).

Long gone the days when wallpaper was only seen in your old gran's house, today, wallpaper is one of the trendiest most fashion forward touches you can add to a house, and it can truly make the difference between modern contemporary and boring wannabe modern contemporary. So if you're thinking of adding wallpaper to your home then here's a step-by-step guide on how to do it.

If your home is looking a bit shabby and in need of a good old lick of paint then you might be considering a DIY paint job. If the thought of picking up a paintbrush fills you with dread however, do not despair. Just follow these simple tips and you will soon be happily painting your house from top to bottom! Before you begin, move light furniture such as tables and chairs out of the way and cover up larger items like sofa beds with dust sheets if you simply can’t move them. If you are painting a ceiling, also remove curtains and other fixtures.