The Modern Estate

Robin offers some advice to get the paint job done right the first time.

From “Ask the Expert”:

Question No. 1: When I painted the ornamental brickwork on the façade of my building, the color didn’t dry to the terra cotta of the sample—it came out fiesta orange. Why?

• Paint looks different on a large section of wall than on a small chip or paint strip. That is due to the variation in light; both, natural or artificial, at the location, as well as to the way the eye perceives the color in comparison with the colors around it. The only way to get a good match is to follow two rules: Never go by the name of the color on the can and— most important—always test the paint in the location where it will be used.
• In fact, finding the hue you desire should be the final step in your painting process. What’s absolutely crucial to a good result is careful preparation. A poor prep job inevitably yields a homely result that often puts you in the position of having to repaint. The finished room will look only as good as your prep job allows. So, although the prep work—stripping, sanding, and skim-coating—can cost more than the paint job itself, it’s well worth it.
• My experience has led me to make this strong recommendation: Always prep by skim-coating—adding a plaster coating to the walls. A proper job involves applying the plaster, doing a significant amount of sanding, and, often, applying another layer of skim-coat. You need to skim-coat whether you’re dealing with old plaster walls or with surfaces in a newly constructed building.
• Skim-coating fills the cracks and smoothes the surfaces of old plaster walls. (If the original plaster walls are in really bad shape, you may even need to have canvas or mesh put on the walls first to hold them together, then skim-coat.) In new construction, the taped joints of the Sheetrock will come through the finished paint job if you don’t skim-coat first, no matter how good the painter or tape job is.
• Choose colors wisely, but put your money in a good prep job!