Adding color to your home is one of the important home improvement tasks that you can enjoy. Your paint color decision can transform not only the look of your house but the mood as well. When choosing house paint colors or schemes, you can get ideas from your furnishings, get samples or swatches from existing fabrics around the house or refer to paint color selection tools available on the Web or home improvement stores. If you have the eye for matching colors, you can do the selection through the Internet but in cases where your color knowledge and eye for coordination are low, you may need a professional or a sales person to assist you in getting the exact color you want. For instance, if you want blue, you will be given several shades of blue. Color selection tools like a color chart or wheel will also be presented to you in order to make your selection easier. Here are some tips to help you read paint color charts or other color selection tools when adding color to your house.
- It is important to use a browser that is compatible for the color chart you are viewing. Behr paint color system for instance, works well with Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox and Safari. With other browsers, some colors will not properly download.
- When it comes to color, everything revolves around the color wheel chart. Choose a color family starting from the primary colors – yellow, red and blue. Find a less strong color such as orange, green and purple which are the secondary colors, or a combination of primary color and a secondary color referred to as the tertiary colors.
- If the chart you are viewing uses color codes instead of color names, there is no need to be an expert in order to decipher the codes of the paint color chart. Usually the first letter tells you what color group the color is from. For instance, B is for Blue, BR for brown, G is for green, M stands for metallic, N is neutral, O is for orange, R for red, Y for yellow and V for violet.
- Manufacturers of interior and exterior paints usually make selection of colors easy for the customers. Behr paint and Glidden color systems for example have Web sites, which are easy to navigate. They may have different options but once you are on the page of the main color family swatches, you can simply click menus in order to get your actual color. There is also no need to decipher color numbers or codes. You only have to click your color preference and it displays the name.
- Color combinations are available when you have chosen a base color. Coordinated color combinations are established by hue, lightness and intensity. Hue employs the same color with slight differences on the color family. Lightness also uses similar color with variance on the lightness levels, and intensity is a color's brightness saturation. These factors are menu-driven using a computer.
Reading color charts may be confusing but it is surprisingly easy. While you have the convenience of selecting a paint color from your computer, take note that the colors you see may not look exactly as they are on the actual paint. What you can do is prepare your selection and turn it over to the local paint store or home improvement store and check from their samples or color charts if they match. There you can also get color suggestions and combinations.
Choosing the right room color can be confusing. Most people want their room to look comforting and relaxing after a day's work. You might think of hiring a professional interior designer. But that isn't necessary, because you can get professional paint color ideas straight from your desktop. The market is stocked with a thousand choices in room color paints nowadays. You may choose one color scheme today for your interior decorating, and then the next day you may realize that your second choice would best fit your room.
The Internet is a vital tool for you to mix and match paint colors. Online digital visualizers allow you to preview your room color ideas before you paint. You can work like a pro in your very own home. You can discover and explore numerous color palettes, choose what mood you want for your interior, and play with color coordination. These visualizers are also available at your local home stores. Here are some tips for choosing paint colors using a room color visualizer.
These are recommended sites that you may want to visit:
- Sherwin-Williams.com
- Valspar.com
- BHG.com
- BEHR.com
- Glidden.com
- BenjaminMoore.com
Check out color meanings, visualizers, etc. on these sites. Play with the different hues and color textures. What's good about these visualizers is that you can print what you have designed online and closely examine it beside your wall. (Alert! Please remember that your printer may not exactly interpret the hue you see on your screen.) You may also save some of your online creations for future use and preferences. Other sites offer more than mixing and matching, they even have a collection of complimentary colors and color suggestions for your fabric, accents, trim and flooring.
Whether you want a Tuscan color theme or something Victorian or industrial, you can explore a great number of possibilities by using a visualizer. Decorating ideas help to develop the artistic side in you. Find your perfect color room match with this tool. Here are some tips here that you may find helpful so you can fully maximize the use of a visualizer.
- Have a color scheme in mind first. Choose whether you want to use complimentary, analogous or neutral colors. Plan a theme for your very own room.
- Evaluate your colors effect under natural and artificial light.
- Personalize your own mood with your color preferences. Choose whether you want your room to have a warm mood or relaxing mood. You can match a warm color with a cooler compliment to have a better feel of the room.
- Assess every color's value and intensity.
- Compliment color with your accessories such as flooring, rug, vases, pillows,&etc.
- If undecided, or planning to rent or sell, you may want to choose safe, neutral colors.
Everyone deserves a relaxing environment after being out all day for work. Now, choosing the perfect room color shouldn't give you a terrible headache. All you have to do is sit at your computer and be an interior designer yourself. And knowing that you designed your own haven is indeed something you'll love to come home to.
There are several things that you should consider when choosing the right paint color for your home. After hiring a painter that will do the job for you, your next task will be finding the right color that fits you and your home.
- Be sure to have a lot of patience while going over the various choices that you may have. House paint must match with your fabrics, rugs and wallpapers. Keep in mind that patience is always a virtue.
- Research, analyze and review. Just by clicking on your computer at home, all of your questions can now be answered. Check out the latest trends and the popular names in interior designing and try to check out their blog sites for tips. You can research for a designer’s ideas for living room and bedrooms as well by logging on to their sites or discussion forums. The Internet has reliable information when it comes to all your color needs, trends for 2009, etc.
- Keep in my mind that dark colors absorb heat and they tend to fade faster compared to the lighter ones.
- When you plan to paint exterior siding of the house, you may consider professional consult.
- Walking around your neighborhood and getting ideas from their houses would also be helpful. Asking your friendly neighbor for the color of their house and the brand of paint that they used would also help.
- Study your colors carefully. You can refer to a Behr paint color chart. If you have a wooded house, you may consider using a taupe paint and other earthy tones.
- Begin with a color scheme in mind. The main color or your wall color should appear on 60 percent of your room surface. Your mid-tone color should be 30 percent visible in your room. This can be manifested in your sofa, drapes or bed skirt. And the remaining 10 percent will be for your accent color as seen on your accessories like vases, cushions and pillows.
- Find a good and tested brand. An interesting choice is Glidden Color. They have available testers on selected stores nationwide.
- A lot of paint stores now offer computer imaging as visualizer so that you will have an accurate picture of what your house would look like. Once you have narrowed your paint choices to a handful, you may buy a small amount of each and try them all at your house. Though the use of computer imaging is good enough, trying the color in your very own wall would help you make a final decision.
- You may also consider the palest shade of color for your moldings, doors and windows. You can try bright colors for trim on your light walls for a striking look.
Knowing the right paint color for your house could be a difficult and complicated task for you. But if you put all your heart and effort into it, you are sure to reap a wonderful reward after seeing your very own haven transform.
Painting can fun, but be careful: it's time consuming and if the job is not done correctly, you can be left with a lot of little errors to correct. Painting a complete room too quickly often leads to paint drips, and if you don't notice and clean them up right away you will be left wondering why your newly-painted walls still look so unfinished. If you're painting and you find yourself with lots of paint drips, it's helpful to know the easiest, fastest way to deal with them before they dry and cause an even bigger cleanup problem.
Paint drips are usually caused by packing the roller or brush with too much paint, and then using that overloaded brush or roller to paint. Do not worry; it can even happen to professional painters and it's easy enough to fix that paint drip. Here are some pointers:
- If you happen to catch the paint while it is still wet, you may be able to brush out the drip. Just make even strokes alongside the drip.
- If the wet paint dries while you're fixing it, you can continue to brush gently. Make certain you are seeing an improvement; if not, you should move onto the next step before you end up with additional problems to address.
- If the paint is somewhat dry, you can get a used rag and dampen it slightly. Use it to gently remove the dripped paint from the surface.
- For completely dried paint drips that aren't caught until the following day may need to be scraped. You can do this with something that is very sharp, like a razor blade. Once you have removed the dripped paint, you can reapply a coat or two as needed. It is very important that you do not scrape too deeply; if you gouge the wall underneath, you'll have a whole new repair job on your hands!
- When painting, it is best to take care and watch what you're doing as closely as possible; this way you will notice paint drips as they occur and you can fix them while the area is still wet.
While there are many different ways to remove paint drips, the above method is commonly used and very effective.
We all hope to get an extreme makeover for our homes from Ty Pennington but we cannot all get what we want. We also cannot expect five queer eyes to walk in and change our homes and lifestyle. Forget the house; the garage is the most ignored when it comes to beauty. The floor of your garage is even more ignored.
You designer will kill you when they see your garage floor. It is so lifeless with that flat concrete. It does not bring the much-needed oomph all of us are clamoring for. Splash a little color and bring life back to your tired old concrete floor.
Painting the floor is not as easy as it seems. With these simple steps, you can learn the essentials. Your garage floor will get attention and admirers will soon be flocking to admire your floor.
- Realize that you are working with concrete. Concrete is a lot harder to paint than sheet rock because it needs extra steps and extra tools. Make sure you are ready for a very difficult time. Save some extra cash for an expensive day.
- Get your tools and materials ready. Drive to your nearest hardware to pick up some essentials. You will need a mask to protect you from the fumes; eye protection to make sure your eyes are not irritated by the painting process, and gloves to keep your hands clean. To apply the paint, you will need a paint roller, a paint brush and a paint tray and some concrete paint. To prepare the floor, get some scrub brushes, etching acid, concrete primer, trisodium phosphate, hydraulic cement, and a mop.
- Clean the surface. Remove everything inside the garage. You will need the entire garage floor exposed. Clean the floor thoroughly with a mop and some soap. All the grease and oil on the floor should be removed to ensure the paint sticks. Once all the grease is removed, you can proceed to the next step.
- Apply TSP to the floor. Mix the TSP in the bucket according to the instructions. Apply the TSP onto the floor using the mop. Once you are done with the TSP, then rinse the floor thoroughly with some tap water. Once the TSP has been washed off by the water, leave the floor for a few hours to dry.
- Plug up any visible holes. Since you are painting the floor, you will need to repair any dings or holes on the concrete. Apply some hydraulic cement to the holes on the cracks on the floor. This will smooth out your floor and make the paint job look superior.
- Mix and apply the etching acid. Follow the instructions on the package for the mixing liquid. When mixing the etching liquid, protect your eyes by using goggles and protect you hands with some rubber gloves. Apply the etching acid mixture using a mop. Do this in small increments to make spreading the acid easier. Again, let it dry.
- Start painting the floor. When painting a garage floor, you start it off by stirring the concrete primer. Make sure that the primer is mixed well. Pour some paint into the paint tray and apply the primer using a roller, then let it dry. Once dry, repeat the same step for the concrete paint and sealer.
Congratulations! You now have a newly painted garage floor. After some hard work and a little bit of waiting, you have done an extreme makeover the five queer eyes would be proud of. Give yourself a pat on the back and show off your new garage floor.
It's not always necessary to get rid of old or dated furniture. Sometimes a good sanding and a coat of paint is all a piece needs to bring it back to life. Whether it was a hand-me-down from a relative or a garage sale find, you can bring back life to your furniture. Follow these steps to learn how to paint distressed furniture.
Step 1
Find a well-ventilated area. This project will take at least a couple days, so find a spot you can work in that have good air flow and is away from open flames. A garage or a workshop would be ideal.
Step 2
Prepare the furniture. Before you can paint distressed furniture, you will need to prep it. Do this by removed any pulls, handles and any other hardware that you can. It's not necessary to deconstruct the whole piece. If you can't remove something but you don't want to paint or damage it, cover it in painters tape. (Masking tape will do.) Then, working on top of a drop sheet, sand down the piece of furniture with fine-grit sandpaper. Of course, safety glasses and a dust mask are a good idea here. You can use a sanding block or a small electric sander. Just be aware that electric sanders tend to leave marks. Use caution. Your goal is to make the surface of the piece as smooth as possible. Once the piece has been sanded back down to its original wood grain, run a vacuum and a wet cloth over every nook and cranny to remove any residual dust or paint chips. The whole piece needs to be clean and free from dust. Now is the time to clean your work area too, since you don't want any sawdust to get into your paint. Take a few minutes to vacuum up all of the sawdust and debris in your workspace. You are now ready to paint your distressed furniture.
Step 3
Apply a coat of primer. You want to give your furniture a good base before you paint it, and you can do this by starting with a coat of primer. You can apply this by brush or with a spray can. Look for a brand that dries without brush lines, if possible. Water-based primer is your best bet. Depending on the brand of primer you used ,your piece will need to sit to dry for some time. This can vary from a few hours to a whole day. Check the instructions to be sure. Test to see if the piece is dry by touching it with your finger in a hidden spot. If no marks are left, gently hand-sand any rough spots. You are ready to move on to the next step.
Step 4
Add some paint. Now you can finally paint your distressed furniture! Using water-based paint, apply your wood paint with even strokes of the brush. Allow it to dry overnight and then apply a second coat the following day. (You may want to sand between coats if the surface isn't smooth). Be sure that you wash out your brushes each time you use them. Once your final coat of paint has dried, you're done. Step back and admire your first attempt at painting distressed furniture.
There is no doubt that white paint speaks more than being a neutral color. No matter where you paint it, it gives off a dazzling and brilliant appeal not to mention that it creates a lot of drama. However, if instances tell you that the white paint appears too bright for you, you can tone it down a bit or even a lot. This will result in giving you an off-white color, which lessens the brilliance but increases the drama of the real color.
The good news for you is that even if you have already purchased a can of white paint, it is not too late yet to give it an off-white color. There are a lot of ways on how you can effectively tone it down to your desired shade. Here, check out these steps in turning your white paint into an off-white one:
- Prepare dark stains. Turning a white paint into an off-white one is as simple as adding some dark stains into it. Therefore, decide on what kind of stain you wish to add on your white paint. The easiest and most convenient to use is a brown paint. The type and kind of brown paint to use does not matter here. In fact, even your daughter's finger paints can do the trick here. Same is true for your old dark stains in your garage.
- Consider old fashioned ways. An off-white finish can also be achieved using traditional ways such as adding coffee or tea. To prepare coffee, brew around five tablespoons into one-fourth cup water. Before it can be used, let this coffee solution set for around three hours. On the other hand, to prepare tea, you simply place a teabag in hot water for several minutes.
- Add the dark stain. Pour in a few drops of your prepared brown paint, coffee, or tea into the can of white paint. In cases of tea, squeeze the teabag into the can to let go of a few drops.
- Stir the paint. Once your preferred dark stain is poured in, stir the paint carefully and efficiently. Make sure that the dark stain blends well enough with the white paint.
- Repeat the process. If you are not satisfied with the color after the first try, repeat Steps 3 and 4. Repeat these steps as many times as you wish to achieve your preferred off-white finish. If you are using tea, make sure to place the teabag into hot water in between squeezing it into the can of white paint.
With this, you are now ready to paint whatever your project is with an off-white color. It is good to know that it requires no magic to tone down the shade of a bright white paint. Doing this is as simple as adding a darker stain into the paint little by little to transform it into an off-white shade that you wish to have. Hence, anyone can do wonders for their white paint, even you who have no experience in mixing paints before.
Applying new paint for your walls or roof? Use a paint spray machine. You can easily cover more mileage than using a paintbrush. Aside from that, you can add art into your design with the use of spray. But before you start spraying, do not forget to cover your furniture with plastic if you are spraying inside. You may use masking tape and newspapers for the windows and chandeliers too. If you are painting outside, better cover your car and your fence including your neighbor’s car or anything that may be close to your target area. Most of all cover yourself. As much as possible, cover your exposed skin. Better yet, wear a suit that covers the whole body that is specially made for spray painting. And protect yourself from the fumes and the bits of paint, not just with a thin, cloth gas mask, but also with a respirator. It is bad enough to inhale fumes of fresh paint, and inhaling paint itself is even worse. As you spray, make single or thin coats only. It is better to thicken the coat than to try fixing drips and runs of paint along the wall or fence.
To achieve the output you really want for your wall, fence or roof, be sure to know how to use a paint spray machine. Here are the instructions on how to use one:
- Know the knobs and buttons and the purpose of each. Familiarize yourself with the on and off button, the spray and priming button and the pressure adjustment knob. Once you know which does what, you may start using the paint spray machine.
- Fill a bucket with paint. Then place the spray machine’s tip inside the bucket.
- Get your priming hose out of the bucket of paint. Point it towards the floor or ground. Remember not to point the hose towards anybody. Hit the power on button and set your button to prime.
- Slowly increase the pressure by turning down the knob. You will see water and paint coming out of the priming hose. Wait until only pure paint comes out thoroughly, and then you are good to go.
- Switch the button to spray. Turn down the pressure knob just to make sure you have enough spray for the spray gun.
- To use the spray gun, squeeze the handle. Make sure you are not pointing the gun at anybody.
- In case the spray gun gets clogged, twist the spray tip one hundred eighty degrees. Squeeze the handle. This will unclog the gun. Then twist back the spray gun’s tip one hundred eighty degrees and squeeze the handle so you can continue spraying.
Do not point the gun at anybody’s face or skin. Treat it as a real gun, dangerous. When the spray gun is triggered, the paint travels at a very high speed that can puncture your skin and enter your blood stream that is bad for your organs. If this happens, proceed to the nearest hospital as soon as possible to get professional treatment.
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