You might think that painting is one of the activities that anyone with proper motivation can do. However, it is not as easy as it seems. There are techniques that you should use if you want a good outcome. If you want a professional feel to your paint job and for your brush to last longer, then you have to be a bit more mindful of how you handle everything during your painting process. Below are some of the best paint techniques and tricks to give you the best paint job results and to help make your brush last longer.

1. Roll the full height of the wall and keep a wet edge to avoid lap marks

If you fail to roll your brush the full height of the wall, paint will build up and form uneven strips called lap marks, which make the wall look bad. The marks appear because of partly dried rolling paint. Therefore, to avoid them, you should keep wet edge. To do this, you need to start your roll near a corner and go up and down the full vertical length of the wall making sure that each stroke goes over slightly. Ensure that the roller does not become almost dry. A simple way of doing this is making sure to reload every so often.

2. For a consistent color all round, mix all the paint you need in a large bucket

Depending on the batches and many other factors, paint color may vary from every small container to another. In order to avoid a noticeable change in color in the walls within the same room, avoid opening different cans at different times during the painting process. Open all the cans you need to use and mix them in a larger container to provide a homogeneous mixture and uniform color. This process is called boxing. Even if you are unable to determine the amount you will need just mix what you think will be slightly excess.

Do not worry about the remaining paint as you can put it back in the cans later when you are done. The important thing is to get a homogeneous mixture and uniform color in the room. In order to stop the roller from starting to dry too fast as you paint, use the bucket together with a roller screen rather than a roller tray. This will increase your pace by half and help you avoid lap marks.

3. Paint the trim first then the ceiling and walls

If you want to paint like a professional, you should use the same system they use. Start your painting by doing the trim first the followed by the ceiling and then finish with the walls. This helps you only tape off the trim instead of the walls or both. This reduces the time you spend painting the trim as all you have to worry about is getting a smooth finish on the trim. Never mind if the paint goes over to the walls as you will paint over it again. Leave the trim for at least 24 hours to dry. Then strip it off and start on the ceiling.

4. Make a point of cleaning dirty surfaces so the paint can form a strong bond

Avoid applying your paint over oily surfaces and dirt as they prevent the paint from forming a strong bond and it will eventually peel off leaving you with a bare wall. Therefore, before you start painting, use a heavy-duty cleaner to clean off grime and dirt off the walls and leave them clean for the paint. This will help in the cleaning of painted surfaces or varnished ones to strengthen the bond between the paint and the wall.

5. Use cotton drop cloth instead of plastic

It does no matter how careful you are with the paint. Somehow, there will still be spills on the floor and probably onto your carpeting. Therefore it is better you prepare yourself for the inevitable instead of dealing with the spills on surfaces you do not want them on. The best way is to place a canvas drop cloth on the area you want to shield, usually on the whole floor.

The beauty about a cotton drop cloth is that it stays in place and does not anything to hold I down and is also easy to walk on or place a ladder on without slipping or sliding off like the plastic cover does. Perhaps one of the most annoying things about plastic is that even though it might protect your floor from the direct impact of spilled pint, all the paint that spill on it stay wait and you will probably step on it and track it all over the house. Even if it does not, it will definitely get on your shoes when you are walking around spill on the carpeted floor when you are removing it.