How to choose paint for a room?

[Oleg Volk]

I need to re-paint several rooms. Any suggestions on how to pick the type of paint (latex, oil, water-based?)

[jamz]

Depends on the use.  Most rooms can get away with semi-gloss latex- washable latex if you might have to wash the walls from kids, projects, etc.  Latex cleans up with water, which is VERY nice.   I only use oil based paint on exterior stuff because it does "last" longer in an environment that will see weather. Inside it doesn't matter that much, IMO.

Remember to paint the ceilings first!  (flat paint, not semi-gloss)  

Also, it's hard to go wrong with a basic eggshell white, unless you are good with colors.  I leave all the color selection to Mrs Jamz, while I do all the manual labor involved.


Love, James

[Waitone]

Yea, what he said.  Louder about the part where the Ms. does the color.  Just remember your purpose is to do things, not think.

[Jason]

When choosing colors, remember it always dries differently than it looks.  You can buy small paint samples to use at some paint stores, apply that, and decide if its really the color you want.

Always use a primer.

[Guest]

Oleg,
First Off, I agree with the above.

Second, my ex besides being really good with decorating, was from a family of painters. Amazing how women  perceive this type of thing.  She also was NOT into wallpaper, only as far using it for border, and accent.

She took into consideration the size of the room, off-white colors such as Egg-Shell white makes a Room look bigger, darker can make one seem smaller.  Natural Light, morning or evening, direct or indirect were also considered. Natural North Daylight is what is used to grade diamonds and gemstones for instance, same applies if one is going to do sewing, knitting, reading, paintings - any hobbies where light affects color and texture.

Incandesent, Flourescent, Fireplaces, Oil lamps, candles...all types of lighting taken into consideration.

Oleg you know all about the affects of lighting, shading, hues and all.

Taking in consideration Furniture, type of wood, upholstery, Period themes....etc. Her goal was to accent and bring out. Pick  the colors and textures, a border, maybe even add/ remove/ change the molding.

For example, for relative of hers with a narrow, longish room going to used for Painting both Watercolors and small figurines, indirect morning light [North daylight] , took a off-white shade of white for one wall and "textured" every other stripe. It looked like wallpaper - it wasn't. Stripes were on the narrow walls,about 3" wide, alternated smooth and flat - horizontally- the narrow walls "appeared" wider.  Different shade of the same color ,  the same stripes running horizontally.  Room felt more "square" or "less long rectangles". Es[ecailly wit the use of mirrors used to "use the light to advantage".

First thing she said though when she walked into the room to when she was asked for suggestions - "get rid of the acoustical ceiling" .  Smooth ceiling , or one with a very subtle design, like a small "dab of a curve " here and there".

She watched her daddy a painter as a little girl, then "saw" things and ask daddy to try it on folks houses...

I'd just watch and learn, ask the right questions actually quite educational and something I enjoyed doing with her.

She took some feathers I had felled during Dove Season to match paint , fabric and texture - to do a room once. Said the hard part was getting something to go along with the Red AA Hulls she carried in too.  Yep- she did so too...*grin*

[garyk/nm]

A caveat: know what you are painting over! Oil and latex get along like Palestinians and Israelis. Not fun when you have to strip a freshly painted wall and start over.

As far as color selection, I'm no help; just a SWG (standard white guy) with no sense of style, as per Mrs G. If you can force yourself to do so, try watching HGTV for a while to get some ideas.

Good luck!

[roo_ster]

I have been in painting purgatory for a while (bought a fixer-upper house) and have learned a few things the hard way.  I will miss a few, but this ought to get you started.  I would recommend the Home Depot painting book or some equivalent for a good starter.

1. Go latex (water-soluble) if at all possible.  

As stated, oil-base is more durable in the elements, but is an almighty pain in the tuckus to clean up after with mineral spirits & the like.

How do you know if you can go latex?  Buy some denatured alcohol, place some on a rag, & rub the surface you want to paint.  If some of the old paint dissolves onto the rag, the old paint is latex & can be painted over with latex.  You can go latex over oil if you prep the surface properly, however, the prep is a bit more involved.

2. Don't skimp on prep.  

First and foremost wash your old walls & ceiling with water & detergent...twice if painting the kitchen.  

Get the dirt & oil off the walls prior to applying spackling, primer, or paint.  Do your drywall repairs now.  Change out hardware (elect outlets, switches) now.  Mask off what you want to mask off.  

A good wway to protect the floor:
a. Mask up to woodwork with wide masking tape
b. Roll 24-26" wide butcher paper along woodwork & tape down onto masking tape
c. A cheap poly tarp spread over the floor & taped to butcher paper

For the love of Pete, take the doors off & paint them with a hotdog roller...& don't paint the hinges, etc...or get new hinges/knobs.

Light spackling is a gift from God.

Plaster of paris helps repair crumbly drywall around old ceiling fixtures quickly.

Learn how to PROPERLY repair drywall.  Again, the HD general home repair book is handy.

3. Use quality paint

You will not save money using cheap paint...you will spend more $$$ and more time.

4. Dark colors (esp red & navy) do not cover old paint well...lighter colors do cover well

5. Use quality brushes/rollers, etc

Hint: if you need to quit for the night, you can place brushes & rollers in a ziplock bag & freeze them.  Thaw out next AM & keep going.

6.  5-gal bucket, roller, extension, and grate are your friends

Unless you rent professional paint sprayer equip, the best way to paint walls & ceiling is the old bucket+grate+roller trick.  All those other gimmicky doohickeys are worthless.

7. Ralph Lauren Knows Color Better Than I

My wife & I look through Ralph's brochures until we find a scheme that we like that works for our house.

Good luck

[mfree]

Also don't do what was done in my house. All the rooms have something like eight or ten coats of paint on them, bathroom has maybe more. The trim looks like chewing gum and there's no line between it and the walls. It's all going to have to come off some day soon, or it'll come off itself. *my* decision gets to be what's the easiest versus best way to get all this nasty paint off the walls without doing a complete remodel.....

[Larry Ashcraft]

Latex (water-based) is the only way to go.  Lots of good advice above, jfruser has most of it.  We are also fixing up a 70+ year old house.

We use a good primer to cover old paint.  KILZ is a good brand.

In our family, I guess we have it backwards.  I'm the authority on color.  Last summer we repainted and I picked an off-white with a green tint.  Then I did the area over the fireplace in a sort of subdued avocado green as a splash of color (fireplace is red/brown/black with a couple spots of green).  Finished off with one of Standing Wolf's prints which was pre-dominantly green, the effect was outstanding.

The way to pick color is to get a bunch of swatches from the paint store and tape them on the wall. Contemplate them for a day or two until you pick one.  Then go a shade or two lighter than the color you picked, as a whole wall will be much more overwhelming than a swatch.

[DigMe]

Amen to EVERYTHING that jfruser said!  I've repainted the inside of almost my entire house.  We used good quality primer and paint on everything.  I used oil-based in the kitchen and it was indeed a big PiTA to clean!  We used latex everywhere else.

For colors I also agree with looking in brochures or magazines and books to find something that looks good.  

I've used both Kilz and Bullseye 123 primers and I think they worked equally well.

Paint-wise I've used Behr Premium Plus from Home Depot and Valspar American Traditions from Loews.  They are expensive but both were rated tops in almost every category by Consumer Reports.  I only had to use one coat on everything except when we painted red, but that was expected.  The neutral colors and whites that I used one coat on look great.  Red and navy are hard to do and require several coats to get right.  

Are you considering selling your house any time in the somewhat near future?  If so then consider neutral colors.  In our hall, guest bedroom and living room we painted a beigeish color which Valspar American Traditions calls "Sandy Cove."  We get lots of compliments on it and it's neutral.  If you do want color but think you might be selling your house in the next five years then I'd consider trying to not do anything that might be considered kinda weird or something.  Get honest, second opinions.  Also, spend the money on good brushes and rollers.  There IS a difference.  We've bought Purdy brushes and rollers almost exclusively.  They are pro quality.

Oh yeah and make sure you use good rolling technique.  Look it up on google.  We used the "W" technique.  Otherwise it will come out real sloppy.

brad cook

[charby]

all good advice, but unless your selling the place or have a SO that thinks otherwise, you'll be painting it for yourself. Colors can make or break a room. I just painted my office at work a easter egg lilac color, and it goes well with my medium oak colored cabinets and desk.

But skip on paint from Wally World and go to a Sherman Williams or Diamond Vogel Store. Buy quality rollers and brushes, remember a $20-30 brush will last you the rest of your life if you take care of it. I used to paint for extra cash in college and I still have all my brushes and did quite a bit of painting with them this winter.

I recommend latex paint, even if you already have oil on the walls, just easier to clean up when finished, clean all your tools up in the kitchen sink with soap and water.

[Stickjockey]

Just this bit to add to what's been said already. Lowe's and Home Depot have (at least here) a computer setup in their paint departments that allows you to try different color combinations and then put them into different rooms. You might try playing around with one of these for a while to get some ideas as to what looks good in different settings. Just remember to check using the actual color chips as the colors in the systems can sometimes be off depending on the monitor settings.

[Jspy]

Keep in mind that flat paint will probably hide more flaws in the surface, especially if you have a lot of spackle work before-hand. The downside is that even the very best flat enamels won't wash as well as something with more sheen, generally speaking. Don't mess with oils for painting walls, unless you like a lot of aggravation and smell. Also don't be afraid of using colors to mix it up a bit. Darker colors will make the space seem a bit cozy and warmer, and lighter colors will make the space seem a bit larger. DON"T skimp on the brush you use, as it will make the job easier if you use a good one. You could also just hire a professional, which by the way has been my occupation for over 32 yrs. Lotsa luck !

[Standing Wolf]

When choosing colors, remember it always dries differently than it looks.

Always! Paint store samples are sometimes close, but often not.

My bed room is red below, very light yellow above, with a white ceiling. My massage therapist was going to do the brush work, so we went to the paint shop together. She wanted to use rust reds, orange reds, wimpy reds, and assorted other girly reds. I wanted a red red.

I found the red I was looking for on a package of low budget Nylon brusheswhich stayed at the shop, by the way: you couldn't pay me to use anything but a top quality bristle brush. I asked the fellow behind the counter whether he could match that red. It's a medium-deep cherry red, very round, very warm. He said he could. She was appalled. The red on the walls almostnot quite, but almostmatches the red on the package.

I ended up with my red red. It's a north-facing room with a single unlarge window. It's gone from a dark to a light room, a room that felt chilly to one that feels warm.

Make sure you get your colors instead of somebody else's. If your paint store guy can't mix the color you want, go to another paint shop: there's not exactly a shortage.