Getting fancy with paint

Once I was old enough to be more help than hindrance, my mother and I did quite a bit of painting around our home. We couldn't afford to hire painters, plus we enjoyed each other's company. And we were complementary workers: She wielded the roller and got up on the ladder; I mostly stayed on the floor and painted the trim. She hated that "fancy" stuff, whereas I never much minded.

I have not lost my affinity for the "fancy" stuff. Even my current home, which has nowhere near the amount of trim and woodwork of the Edwardian I grew up in, evidences my fondness for color and pattern.

My favorite techniques

I'm not much of a faux-finish gal, although I love the look of one done well. Right now my favorite looks are contrasting shapes/colors/finishes. You can get high-impact looks for a minimal amount of effort, compared with techniques that actually require some skill.

Color blocks, stripes and other geometric shapes predominate now at my home. They range from a simple accent wall, in a contrasting color, to the Mondrian-inspired color blocks of my bathroom (see previous post).

Here's an example of contrasting finishes, rather than colors:


This is my older daughter's bedroom, done in contrasting flat and glossy stripes inspired by striped damask fabric (which, by the way, is used for her curtains). It was a simple process: Paint the walls in flat paint (here, Sherwin-Williams' Aloof Gray); measure the stripe intervals; tape off with painter's tape; paint alternating stripes with a clear medium-gloss polyacrylic.

Tools of the trade

I can't speak highly enough of the virtues of a laser level with a suction cup holder. Those stripes are straight, folks, and that is why. Follow the laser line with the painter's tape for consistently straight lines. I used this method in the color-block bathroom as well, and plan to use it in the master bedroom (one of these days).

Let me also address the question of tape. There are painter's tapes (the blue ones, folks) made by recognized manufacturers, and there are tapes put out by lesser or unknown companies. I used some of each in my bedroom and bathroom projects and, without naming names, found that not all tapes are created equal. On my next project, I'll probably spend the few extra cents to avoid tapes that tear unpredictably and allow seepage.

Of course, even more expensive tapes will allow seepage if you don't firmly press down the edges. Some people recommend going over the raw tape edges with a clear poly (I'd think the flattest finish would be best for this) before painting colors. I've not tried it, but it sounds like a good measure for large areas. However, I think I'd have driven myself nuts if I did this with the bathroom.

I found the most useful (and kind of cute) kit for painting my bathroom: a mini-roller kit with three 1/2" roller covers and the small roller, packaged in a mini paint tray. Here's a similar one. A construction buddy recommends these for cutting in at the ceiling: Wipe the excess paint off the end, and roll away.

Hey, I'd like to see more examples of blocks, stripes and such. Send me some links to post!