Things I've learned about painting this week alone......

After starting just a couple of "quick and easy" projects in the last two weeks and then having to turn to Google (who failed me miserably, by the way!) when they went totally sideways I wanted to share a few problems I've encountered and solutions.

First ~ Sandpaper primer or spray paint.

Has this ever happened to you?  You find yourself with a sunny afternoon, a piece of furniture and a spray can of paint or primer.  After getting her done, following all the directions and tips EXACTLY, you have a finish that resembles nothing less that 50 grit sandpaper?  This has happened to me numerous times and I could not figure it out.  I searched the internet, Pinterest and even emailed prominent spray painters and could not find a cause.   Turns out that spray painting outside, in a breeze, will cause a rough and bumpy finish.  The breeze partially dries the paint in midair so when it hits the furniture its a rough little glob of paint.  This was my suspicion after spraying SIX dining room chairs with KILZ Spray primer, only to realize that I would need to sand them all down to a smooth finish.  I've had it happen with regular paint too and its such a hassle.  I confirmed this with a sales clerk at Benjamin Moore who knew exactly what had happened from my description of the finish.  It was great to know that it wasn't how long (or little) I shook the can, how far away I was holding the can or that my coats weren't thin and even.  My advice - stick to a well ventilated garage or an outdoor space without any significant breeze.

Second ~ Brush strokes

Skip the brush all together and use foam rollers with high quality, slow drying paint.  This was a lifesaver on those same six dining room chairs.  I used a high quality brush for the first coat and it looked horrible and was miserable on the spindles.  For the second coat I used a small foam brush to get into any tight spaces and then used the roller on everything including the spindles.  While the paint seemed to bubble up at first it settled as the paint dried over the required 16 hours.  I'm left with a really nice, even finish.  It's not factory smooth by any stretch of the imagination but at least its got consistent coverage and was a whole lot faster too.

Third ~ Ring around the Room

After deciding to paint the playroom quickly while the Big Girl is at camp (and I can use her room as a holding space) I ran out to gather supplies.  I've painted a lot of rooms and didn't think this would be more than one evening.  Turns out I was wrong.  I chose a color called Clear Moon by Behr after deciding on this room as my inspiration.  After getting two coats on I realized how awful it was looking.  Where I had cut in looked completely opaque, while the walls appeared to be but were contrasting with the cut in lines.  I literally have a ring around the perimeter of the walls.  UGH!

As it turns out, after going back for a second gallon of paint and talking to the salesman at the paint counter, this is called lapping and is quite common in both really light and really dark paint colors.  I knew that dark paint required several coats to get good consistent color but had no idea it applied to light colors too.  He assured me that the cut in lines are as dark as they are going to be so adding more coats will only make the entire wall consistent.  So now, armed with a second gallon of paint and some more rollers I plan on finishing it tonight.  I hope.  I pray.  I'd better!!!!!!!!!