8 Best Interior House Painting Ideas for Beginners
Giving your home a new look doesn’t have to be expensive. One cost-effective way to freshen up your surroundings is to do some interior painting around the property. Whether you choose to paint your walls or ask professional painters to help with the renovation, you can create your ideal design in no time!
If you are new to painting, you should follow these eight interior house painting ideas for beginners:
1. Choosing colours
When it comes to selecting paint for your interior house painting ideas, the choice of colours and shades is virtually endless. Different shades of blue and purple often work well for a cool feel, whereas you can warm up a room with reds, oranges, or yellows.
Whatever colour of paint you opt for, it’s important to make sure that it suits its surroundings. For example, if you’re thinking about painting your living room walls, you may want to choose a colour that complements your sofa or chairs.
2. Different types of paint
You can purchase different brands and types of paint depending on the project you’ll be working on. Oil-based paints and varnishes may be ideal for painting wooden surfaces, while lighter paints are perfect for walls or ceilings. If you’re unsure about the right type of paint to use for your project, try asking for some advice at your local painting and decorating store, or checking out reviews and tips online.
3. Mixing paints
In some cases, a good interior house painting idea is to mix paints to create your desired colour. These interior house painting ideas are used for intricate designs and artistic work. If you’re mixing paints, remember that it’s a good idea to mix more than you think you need. This is because it is very hard to recreate precisely the same colour if you run out of paint during your project.
4. Painting walls
One of the simplest interior house painting ideas is to paint your walls. You may decide to paint every room in your home, or just focus on one room in particular that you want to change. You may need to do some preparation before you can paint, like removing wallpaper or scraping off old paint.
It’s also a good idea to lay down newspaper or dust sheets on the floor to catch any falling paint. Once you get started, you’ll typically need to apply one or two coats of paint to complete the job.
5. Painting furniture
Perhaps your favourite table or chair is starting to look a bit old. Or paint may be peeling on metal furniture, like your bed frames. You can make an old piece of furniture look as good as new by applying a coat of paint. Depending on the material you’re painting, you may need to sand it down first.
For instance, you’ll need to sand down wooden and metal surfaces to get rid of any existing paint before you put on a fresh coat. You may find it easier to take your chair, table, or desk outside while you paint it, or just place a dust sheet underneath it so the paint doesn’t stick to floor coverings or other items nearby.
6. Painting ceilings
Ceilings are often overlooked when rooms are being decorated, but how you choose to paint them will have a huge impact on how your space looks and feels. White ceilings are very common because they help create a light, welcoming feel.
You could choose a bolder or darker colour to add an unusual twist to your room’s decoration. Even if you decide to stick with white, touching up the paintwork on your ceiling from time to time is well worth doing so it keeps a neat and tidy appearance. You’ll most likely need to use a ladder when you’re painting a ceiling.
7. Using brushes and rollers
In addition to deciding what to paint, you also need to think about how best to apply it. It’s usually easiest to paint large areas, like walls and ceilings, with a roller. That’s because you can finish the job more quickly and ensure a more even coating of paint over a large space.
If you’re using a roller, you’ll also need to pour your paint into a tray so you can cover your roller in it. Brushes are ideal for working in smaller areas, like window frames, and narrow gaps of wall that rollers can’t reach. They’re also ideal when you’re painting pieces of furniture with uneven surfaces, like chairs and table legs.
8. Applying coats of paint
If your painting project requires you to apply more than one coat of paint, you’ll have to wait until the first coat is dry before moving onto the second one. Some paints will dry very quickly, whereas others can take several hours. Another thing to bear in mind is that paints will take longer to dry on certain types of materials.
Other materials, like some metals, benefit from a coat of primer before you start applying your paint. Primers help paint to adhere to the surface of the item you’re painting.
