 The colours and textures used on your walls will determine the character of your home. The correct application of those colours and textures is very important. If the walls are not prepared correctly or the type of paint is incorrectly chosen, you could have a major headache. Let's have a look at the way that professionals paint a room inside a house. The first step is to take all the furniture out of the room, get as much art as you can. If you can't get them out, move heavy items into the centre of the room, covering them with a plastic sheet for protection. Then remove all the light and power outlet cover plates and the curtains. If there are cracks or blemishes in the wall, they should be repaired before painting. If you slide your palm across the wall, you'll feel little imperfections that were left from the previous painting. A quick sand with a hundred grit sandpaper will get rid of these imperfections and also roughen the surface of the wall to provide a key that the new paint can grip onto. Why off any dust that may remain? The first thing to do is give the paint a stir. The paint has tiny particles in it that will sink to the bottom of the can over time. Stirring will suspend these particles in the paint. It's a good idea to pour over the front of the label so that the instructions on the back of the can are not hidden with paint overspot. In a year's time, you may want to use the left over half can of paint that you've stored in the garage and will most likely want to read the instructions, so it's a good idea to keep them clear. This pour over a drop cloth to protect the floor or carpet from paint splashes. Start edging from one corner, applying the paint below the edge of the ceiling. We're using a 50mm brush and painting a strip smoothing it off as we go. We've put just a little paint in the bucket. If it happens to fall and that will happen at some time or another, we won't have paint all over the place. The brush we're using is for doing the edging and is known as a cut brush. It is an angled edge which allows one to paint edges and to get into corners more easily than with a straight edged brush. You can see that the cut brush gives a nice straight edge when used in one long movement. Professional painters seldom use blue tape. It adds to the expense and takes time to apply and to remove. When a section of one wall is edged, we'll change to the roller. When using a roller for the first time, rinse it in water and then ring it out and roll it on a wall to remove most of the water leaving the nap slightly damp. This is called priming the roller. Working the paint into the brush sections while they are still wet will smooth out any brush strokes. We'll do the same at the base board and at the corner section of the wall. Now we'll fit the roller handle to a broomstick. Put a few turns of masking tape around the end until it fits snugly. We're finished with the ladder and can move it out of the way. With the paint tray on the floor, we'll work across the wall. It doesn't matter if you go right to left or left to right. Always use a drop cloth. You will have paint droplets coming off the roller. Sometimes they're very tiny and you won't notice them, but after cleaning up, someone will say, one of those little drops on the floor or on the base board and then you're going to have to start rubbing and cleaning. Professionals cover up right from the start. Once a section about 2 meters wide is done, run over the whole section again to get a very smooth finish. Running in an up and down motion is a good way to work. You'll use muscles that you don't normally use and this method is not too hard on the body. Overlapped each pass by about 5 centimeters and once again roll over that pass 3 or 4 times. Continue until you reach the far wall. Most water-based acrylic paints can be recoded after about 2 hours. In cooler weather, you may have to wait a little longer. Now this is just the first coat. You can see that the paint is covered quite well. However the second coat is the money coat. The coat that's going to make the job look great. You should always do a second coat. For the second coat, repeat the process in the same way as you did for the first coat, cutting in the edges all the way around the wall. The rolling stage is next and is also done in the same way as for the first coat. The roller should have just enough paint on it. Don't try to overload it and when it shows signs of needing more paint, dip it into the tray for a recharge. Working this way is quite easy once you get used to it. Standing straight up while painting a wall is less tiring and you don't have to bend to recharge the roller. If the first coat looks good, the second will make the job even better and provide the protection that will make the paint last for many years. Many people think that second coats were developed by the paint companies to get more money out of your pocket. Check it out for yourself. You'll see the difference. A quality paint will give good coverage and look great for many years if applied correctly. It's quite a job you don't want to have to repeat the process in a few years' time. Be sure to choose a washable interior paint. You can clean marks off it without damaging the surface which is vital if you have a family. If you'd like further advice, pop down to your local paint dealer and have a chat. You'll be glad to provide you with all the assistance that you need and you'll save a bundle by doing the job yourself.