Painting Interior Trim

Painting interior trim doesn't have to be a messy pain. With a little preparation and practice you can save money an have fun too!

Painting interior trim isn't difficult but neither is it extremely simple. It's not a matter of slapping some paint around the windows and baseboards, that's not going to get you the straight lines and clean finishes.

There are three main steps to painting interior trim successfully; protect, prepare and paint. Each of these has steps of its own that are essential to your trim looking professional and clean when completed.

Interior trim may not seem important but when the paint around your windows and doors is peeling and cracking it can lead to your entire wall needing to be repainted.

Protect your belongings, flooring and walls when painting interior trim. Preparation is part of protection when painting. You want to protect your carpeting and flooring from any paint chips and shavings that you might have to scrape away. In addition to the furniture and carpeting the walls need to be protected.

Painting interior trim can be tricky if you are not removing it from the wall first for current trim or want to paint it after installation for new trim. A drop cloth can be used to cover furniture and cover carpets and flooring.

Drop cloths are best used when protecting large areas and can be tacked down with tape. Painter's tape or masking tape play an important role and help to protect painted walls, doors, windows and molding from stray brush strokes.

Also, if you want your trim to have a clean, straight edge then tape or a brush guide is essential. Painting interior trim doesn't have to be a messy pain; with the right protection it can be an easy and almost mess free clean up.

Preparing before painting allows the actual task of painting to become easier and faster. Preparation is more than buying the correct brushes and type of paint. Old interior trim can become cracked and begin peeling and before you put on a fresh coat this old stuff is going to need to be removed.

You can use a chemical to remove the paint, a paint chisel or sand it off with either a power or hand sanding tool. Before using any chemicals remember to open windows, use a mask and wear gloves. Chemicals can be toxic so follow the directions on the packaging, take precautions and use with extreme care.

Tools are needed in preparing the trim for painting. Some of the tools you may need are paint scrapers, painters tape, utility knife, gloves, a putty knife and putty to fill in gaps and holes, sandpaper, eye protection and a drop cloth to name a few.

Being prepared with the right knowledge and tools is the only way to go about painting interior trim.

Painting! It's what you've been waiting for, right? You've prepared your interior trim whether it is new or old and protected the walls, furniture or flooring. Sounds like you are ready to get down to painting interior trim.

Choose the right type of paint for your trim oil base, acrylic, latex or enamel paint. Your oil based paints do take longer to cure and dry slower at times taking up to a month to complete the curing process. Enamel paints may need to be thinned for brushing paint on the trim. Acrylic and latex paints dry quicker allowing you to use the room sooner without the risk of something rubbing off or scratched and having to redo it again.

No matter what type of paint you use to paint interior trim follow directions and ask for help when you get stuck or have a question. Use wide strokes to paint and paint in one direction which allows fewer brush strokes to be seen.

Two coats of paint are recommended when painting interior trim and allow the first coat to dry to the touch before adding the second coat.

Protect, prepare, paint, the three P's of painting. After the paint has dried completely you can remove the tape and any floor or furniture coverings. If any paint has dried to the tape you can carefully use a utility knife to score the edge for easier removal.

Properly dispose of any leftover paint and materials. One more project completed giving you more time to relax and enjoy the fruits of your labor!

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