Essential Guide to Paint
Paint is your passport to colour and arguably the simplest, least costly and most immediate solution to transform a home. It can be as simple as brilliant white, but that could exclude all the other drop-dead gorgeous colours. Paradoxically, oahu is the vast choice Diamond paintings that usually poses an issue - there are just so many brands, types and shades on the market.
Choose from historical hues for period homes; sleek chalky finishes that stand up to the rigours of modern life; or new formulas designed to match all surfaces. By understanding the merchandise you are able to unleash all the design possibilities of paint making it this kind of tempting medium.
Kinds of Paint
Water-based paints are often known as emulsions and were traditionally used just for interior walls and ceilings. But recently tremendous advances in paint technology show that water-based formulas, especially the high-performing acrylics, can be found for all surfaces, from woodwork to metal, and for interior and exterior use. The advantages of those paints over oil-based ones is that they're cleaner, have less odour and are more environmentally sound. Brushes can be rinsed clean with water.
Solvent or oil-based paints are employed where a tough, durable finish is required for interior and exterior timber, masonry and furniture - although, as previously mentioned above, the newest generation of acrylics and multi-surface paints offers viable alternatives. Generally, brushes have to be cleaned with turpentine or white spirit.
Make-up and quality All paints are constructed with four key ingredients: pigments, binders, liquids and additives. Generally speaking, the more pigment used to make the paint, the better the standard it will be: a ratio of 30 to 45 per cent binder and pigments by volume indicates a paint which is durable and provide good coverage and lasting colour. Consider the next when you are faced with a wall of paint pots and are struggling with what things to buy.
Pick a brandname you are able to trust Companies with their own high-street shops, such as Fired Earth and Farrow & Ball, and the ones that sell through the DIY giants are probably the most accessible. However, buying paint online is increasingly popular and may bring you a greater choice, especially if you live outside major towns and cities.
Choose good coverage Look at the figures per litre not for the whole can; 12sq m per litre is average. Coverability varies between brands, making the difference between needing 2 or 3 coats. You will generally find more pigment in premium paints, giving a better depth of colour.
Select the right product. There's a dedicated paint for practically every surface, including tiles and appliances, such as fridges. For high-traffic areas consider scuff-resistant multi-surface paints that can be utilized on both wood and walls. Kitchens and bathrooms benefit from specialist formulas designed to deal with humidity without flaking.
Try before you buy Colour cards are fine to make an original selection but you'll want to see a real paint sample in situ before committing. Tester pots vary in price from £1 to £4. Paint onto a page of paper that you can maneuver around the room allow one to see the colour in different light conditions. The effect varies greatly. The window wall can seem dark as the wall opposite will be flooded with light. And obviously there is a dramatic difference between natural and artificial light. Finally paint a patch directly onto the wall to gauge the colour, coverage and the ultimate finish.
Specialist wall, floor and furniture paints
Nowadays, there are paints to decorate every surface in the house, from melamine to ceramic tiles. Many of these formulas require no specialist preparation - Crown's Cupboard Makeover Paint comes in 12 colours and does not need a primer.
Additionally there are multi-surface paints, such as B&Q Colours Everywhere for walls, ceilings, woodwork and radiators, and Bedec MSP Multi Surface Paint, which may be used on sets from plastic to masonry. Areas such as bathrooms and kitchens benefit from durable, mildew-resistant coverings, which can be purchased in pre-mixed colours.
However, for the more discerning, Dulux Kitchen & Bathroom paint can be mixed in any one of its 1,200 colours, and Farrow & Ball is launching Modern Emulsion. Designed to complement its original Estate Emulsion, the paint has a slightly higher sheen, is fully washable and for sale in the total colour range.
Specialist paints also include some exciting new finishes, such as suede effects, metallics and high-sheen lacquers. Judy Smith, colour consultant at Crown, suggests an accent wall in one of these brilliant to lift a simple scheme. Crown's Feature Wall range, which includes eight metallic finishes, nine bright colours and a very reflective Pure Brilliant White, is available in convenient 1.25 litre tins.
If you have a timber floor that's not particularly attractive or is made from a patchwork of old and new wood, paint makes the perfect disguise. There are lots of choices - all of the colours from Farrow & Ball can be found as floor paint and Nordic Style provides an elegant selection, too.
Alternatively, a timber floor in good shape can be treated to an all natural or tinted stain, which allows the grain showing through. Eve Johnson's Scandinavian woodcare oils will take the yellow edge off pine.
If you're grappling with the issue of choosing a woodwork colour to opt for neutral walls, take a look at Architectural Colours by David Oliver, the founder of Paint & Paper Library. He arranged his off-whites for ceilings, cornices, walls and woodwork in chromatical groups and the style has been so well received that chromatically arranged colours, such as soft greys, greens and pinks, have now been introduced.