Tuesday 2 September 2014

choosing colours

A simple decision at face value- choose a paint color or color scheme for your home - can turn even the strongest amongst us into quivering wimps. The fear of picking the wrong color has many homeowners paralyzed and unable to make a decision. You can always hire a decorator or Color Design Expert to help you solve your color selection problem. However, if your would rather do it own your own you can use a simple technique that I recommend to my clients and decorating workshop students.

1. Make a trip to your local home improvement center and head straight for the paint department. Pick whatever color you take a fancy to. Don't worry about where you will be using the color for now. Just have fun with your choices this will help you reduce the intimidation of choosing a color. This is the first step in overcoming your fear.

2. Grab you favorite fashion magazines and cut out images with colors you find attractive. After all if you are attracted to a color in make-up or fashion, odds are you will like that color in your home.

3. Find an inspiration piece in your home that you absolutely love. Use the colors from that piece to guide you in you color choices.

4. Buy pint or smaller sizes of paint colors you have decided on and apply them to a small section of wall or posterboard (tape it to the wall). Watch how the color changes through out the day as it responds to daylight and artificial light. IF you definately love the color -then get the color and start painting. If not just repeat this exercise.

remove old wallpaper

Before you start be aware that wallpaper removal can be labor intensive and could cause severe damage to the walls. Most removal damage is due to the lack of a wallpaper primer before the walls were wallpapered, resulting in the glue being absorbed into the wallboard. The top layers of wallboard (paper) will try to come off with the wallpaper backing. If this occurs in large areas, call a professional.

There are many different types of wallpaper on the market today. Some are dry stripable, solid vinyl and fabric backed papers can usually be removed by simply pulling them from the wall without wetting.

Most residential wallpapers are of the " vinyl coated "type. Vinyl coated papers are by far the most common in residential homes. The vinyl face of these papers is usually "dry stripable" meaning that the face will separate and leave only the paper backing on the wall. Start by removing as much as the vinyl face as possible. Find a loose corner, you may need a putty knife or scraper to get started.

After all the vinyl face is removed the paper backing should also be removed. The paper backing will require a wet removal. Fill a five gallon bucket to about half full with warm water, add about a cap full of fabric softener. 
Turn off the electrical power to the roomApply this solution to the wall with a paint roller or garden sprayer, a sponge can be used in corners. Wet a four or five foot section of the wall and make sure the wall section remains saturated with the solution for about  ten minutes. Remove the wet backing with a four or six inch putty knife or scraper.

After all the backing is removed finish cleaning the walls with a hand sponge and fresh solution of fabric softener and warm water. Allow the walls to dry and apply a wallpaper primer if you plan to re- wallpaper the walls. If you plan to paint apply an acrylic primer/sealer to the walls before painting.

How much paint do i need ,you can google examples of this calculator

Painter Forum's Paint Quantity Calculator 

Round all measurements up to the nearest 1/2 ft. and enter all measurements in decimals. for example 12 ft. and 3 inches should be entered as 12.5
Do not deduct for windows and doors, this will account for setup and cleanup paint waste 


      INTERIOR SMOOTH WALL PAINTING :

      1. Measure the height of the wall from top of baseboard to ceiling, or to ceiling molding.

        Enter the number of feet


      2. Measure the distance around the room, this will be the total length of all four walls.

        Enter the number of feet

        Gallons for one coat of paint

Everyone can have beautiful woodwork.

The woodwork inside your home - skirting boards, doors, door frames, architraves, windows and their frames and sills, and even picture frames - gives an opportunity to make a stylish statement with color.

While the main walls of any room should keep a classic, neutral color palette that will remain fresh to your eye, woodwork can highlight the home's special architectural features. 

Some woodwork is not necessarily a feature that you want to highlight; you can match cupboard or closet doors to the color of the walls to make them blend in. Then choose a single complementary or contrasting colour for the remaining woodwork to draw attention to special features. We recommend a single colour to highlight woodwork, to create a sense of continuity and flow throughout the area.

Don't overlook white as a colour for woodwork! At Courtney and Wise, we've put fresh white trim on walls of rich apricot or periwinkle blue for an elegant look. You can also use near color matches - eggshell and taupe, for example, or dove grey with charcoal grey. Carefully-chosen strong contrasting colours can make a bold, contemporary statement. For spring, berry shades that bring a pink cast to neutrals are a soft, muted colour scheme that looks fresh.


Once you've determined your colours, use an undercoat followed by one or two coats of full gloss, semi-gloss, or matte enamel. Traditionally, oil-based paints have been the first choice for woodwork. However, modern formulations allow us to make more environmentally friendly choices of water-based enamel. This makes for quick clean-up in high traffic areas such as kitchens, as well.
The extra time involved in careful planning of your home's woodwork trim will pay off in beautiful rooms.