Paint My Living Room & Dining Areas

Paint the ceiling first.

It's time to update the paint on your living room and dining room walls, but you feel stuck. You aren't sure what color to choose or whether you should paint the walls the same color or take a chance and use two coordinating colors. When it comes to painting, anything goes, as long as it appeals to you and you can live with seeing those colors every day.

Instructions

1. Select the paint colors. Choose an item in your home that has colors you like, such as a pillow or set of curtains. Find paint chips that match two or three of the colors on that item. Use the darker color as the main wall color and the lighter ones for trim. If you want to use two separate color schemes for the living room and dining area, try to choose colors that are muted and have shades of gray in them.

2. Prepare the room for painting. Push all the furniture to the center of the room and cover it with drop cloths. Remove the face places from electrical outlets and light switches and take any photos or artwork off of the walls. Cover the floor with drop cloths.

3. Sand the walls with the pole sander to rough up the surfaces so that the paint will adhere better. You may need to stand on a ladder to reach the upper portion of the wall.

4. Apply spackle to any nail holes and spread thinly with the metal spackle tool. Let dry, then sand smooth. You may need to apply another coat, as it shrinks when it dries.

5. Clean the walls with soap and water to remove any dirt.

6. Cover the light switches and electrical outlets with painter's tape so that you don't accidentally paint over them.

7. Pour the primer into the bucket or tray and begin to paint the walls with the primer. Start by painting a 2-inch strip along the edge of the wall, using the angled brush. Fill in the wall area with a paint roller, making an "M" shape, then filling in the gaps. Let the primer dry for several hours. Clean your brush, roller and the bucket.

8. Pour the paint into a bucket and tray and repeat the process. Paint a line along the edge of the wall with the angled brush, then fill in with the paint roller. Let the paint dry.

9. Use a narrow brush to paint the edges of the trim. If the trim is more than 3 inches wide, use a wider brush to fill in the middle. Let dry overnight.

Tags: walls with, along edge, along edge wall, angled brush, bucket tray