Paint

Changing the paint colour in a home can transpire the look and feel of a home or room. Painting is the easiest and most cost effective strategy for home renovating that would provide immediate results. The benefits of painting a home are many, mostly it boosts the home’s interior or exterior’s curb appeal , it make homeowners happy and provides the satisfaction that a difference was made without spending a lot money.

Why would you need to paint your home’s interior or exterior?

• Giving a fresh quote of paint can be the most inexpensive way to remodel. Homeowners may think that a major renovation is required to spruce the look of a home, but sometimes it only requires for the home to be repainted.
• When selling a home, painting can provide a quick way for it to have an increased market value.

• Sometimes changing the colour of walls in a home can have a huge effect and outlook on your living environment.
• Painting can protect the interior surfaces, it can help protect walls from damaging effects of water and the normal wear and tear. It can also protect the exterior walls from damaging effects of inclement weather.
• Painting can easily be used to cover stains and permanent marks that are proven difficult to remove.

Interior Paint

Painting may be the most inexpensive way to increase the value of a home or change the outlook, yet it has its challenges, such as choosing the colour and right type of paint. This can be a very daunting task. Here are some things you might want to consider when choosing a quality of interior paint and colour:

• Don’t strictly buy by brand. Manufactures have to comply with tougher regulations and therefore purchasing a more expensive brand than another may not necessarily mean that it is better, since all manufacturers need to comply with the same industry standard regulations.
• Use the store’s colour palette, you can take home sample swatches or you can purchase smaller sample jars so you can test on your walls.
• You may want to apply on different walls and also look at them at various times of the day to ensure that you have seen them throughout the day. The different types of light would also provide a different look and feel to the place. If you are fond of a blue or green colour, fluorescent lighting can enhance the colour, however this type of lighting can make colours such as red, oranges or yellow appear dull. Incandescent lighting works well with warm colours but can create another effect with brighter colours.
• Looking for a paint that balances environmental and health factors are also things to consider. Since there are stricter regulations regarding paint chemicals, manufacturers has begun to reduce the amount of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are used in paint that can make the smell very high. So looking for a paint with low VOC might be a good choice for making it safer for your family.

Choosing the colour of paint whether it is redecorating or preparing a home to sell can be a very difficult task. It is better to look at it from the buyer’s perspective rather than your own personal preference. To assist in making a more informed decision on what colour would enhance a home for resale, you may want to consider getting advise and ideas from an interior designer, looking at magazines, blogs, websites, talking to the local paint store provider or simply looking at the existing fabrics and furniture.

Generally, when a house is being prepped for sale you would like to promote a breezier, lighter and spacious effect. Choosing the right colours to get this effect is important. Most people may think that when selling their house a blank canvas of the same colour would do the trick. However, it may look clean and fresh yet it may not provide character or add interest from a purchaser’s perspective. Therefore, you would not get the wow factor from a buyer and that can result in a lower sale offer.

The paint chosen can influence and affect your mood, the colours chosen would definitely be a reflection of your personality. To create an open concept, light and flowing, use lighter colours, for a more cozy, warm or sophisticated look go with a darker colour.

Pick the type of mood for the room and the colours would do the rest! Too much colour in a room makes the room look busy, cluttered and disorganized, it is suggested that three colours or less should be used in a room.

There are few colours that can provide depth, character and pizzazz to a home such as; Beige – this colour can be very neutral, and it can act as a good back drop, other accent colours can complement the look which can make it quite classy. This is a good colour for achieving a balanced and stable look.

Grey – this colour is very trendy; warm greys would look quite nice if complimented with white crown moulding and trims. Grey can be a sophisticated colour if paired with the right accessories.

Yellow – If you require a warming effect, you might want to try yellow but not a bright yellow, use a subtle amber or cloudy yellow instead. Other warm colours would be red or orange or anything that would make you think of sunshine and heat. These colours are used in larger rooms so it can be transpired into a cozier room, the living room or family room would be good areas to use these colours.

Red – this colour can definitely raise the energy level in a room. This colour can be best suited for a living room or family room. Red colour promotes a strong impression; it brings people together and can stimulate conversation. This intense colour can also stimulate other excitement if used in the bedroom!

Blue, green and lilac colours have the ability to be calm, soothing and airy. Cool colours remind us of the sky or water. These colours tend to brighten a room and make it seem a lot larger than it actually is. These colours would be ideal if you have a small bedroom or tiny powder room that you would like to feel more spacious.

Mushroomy colour tones can also be very versatile. You can mix and match with other colours such as cream or taupe.

Flat, semi-gloss, eggshell and the list goes on… What does it mean? How do you know which one to choose? Like colour, paint is a personal preference, paint finishes would determine the amount of shine and durability desired.

Flat – A flat finish does not have a shine, this finish is also known as a matte finish. Since this type of finish does not reflect light, it makes an ideal type for hiding imperfections such as bumps on walls. Flat finish is a good option for textured walls, it goes over smoothly over rough surfaces. The downside to flat paint is that it is difficult for cleaning, so not ideal for high traffic areas such as the bathroom, hallways or kitchen.

Eggshell or Satin finish adds a bit of shine to a wall, however you would not see a shiny wall. It is better than the flat finish for resisting stains and can be wiped out with a wet rag. This type of finish can be used in high traffic areas such as the bedroom, bathrooms etc.

Semi-gloss paint is very good when it put to the test of water and cleaning and it shows less wear. It is tougher than eggshell finish, though if there are any imperfections on your wall it is will stand out more with this type of finish. Semi-gloss finish is often used for trims, doors, windows, kitchen and bathrooms.

Gloss paint promotes a shiny and polish look to your wall. It is good for resisting stains and is a good choice for any area that get the most wear and tear such as kitchen and bathrooms. With this type of gloss, mess such as food splatter or crayon marks are easily removed but if used on an imperfect wall, all the imperfections would be highlighted.

Oil based vs Water based paint

Traditionally, oil based paints were used in a majority of homes. It provided an attractive gloss with a hard durable finish and it promoted good leveling with the brush strokes to create a smooth finish. Today, oil based paint has been quickly phased out by water based paint due to environmental concerns and faster drying time. Another downside is that oil based paint has a high unpleasant odor when being applied.

Oil based paints do have other advantages; it generally tend to retain a gloss finish making it easier to wipe. It provides better protection for wood surfaces against moisture penetration. Yet, excessive moisture would cause oil based paint to peel more easily.