This year, we've partnered with HANDy Paint Products, our favorite painting tools that make the job so much easier, to tackle four paint projects in our home. Naturally, the first project on deck was painting the wainscoting we added to the nursery last week before the wallpaper had to go up.
Since the main walls, above the trim, were getting wallpapered, there was a lot of brushwork to do. In fact, the only thing we rolled was the ceiling. Inside each box and everything else including the crown molding, chair molding, wainscoting (plus the thin portion of wall around the wainscoting a roller couldn't get to) and baseboards all needed to be cut in and brushed.
Years ago, we upgraded from using the red SOLO cup (you know the ones) for cutting in, to these HANDy Paint Pails for trim work and it has made the whole process so much more enjoyable. There's a magnet that holds my brush in place when I'm not using it, which means it never gets dipped too far in.
It also has a really great handle on the back that fits snug to my hand, keeping the pail from slipping or my hand from cramping up from trying to hold a small handle for a long period of time. (It can also slip onto a belt loop if you need to climb a ladder!)
Normally, I do the trim work and Chris does the rolling, but since there was so much, and I just spent four hours caulking the day before, so we tag-teamed the job and it went so much faster.
Painting white on white could be the most boring paint job there is, but all the trim work got two coats of Benjamin Moore's Super White in satin (so it would really pop!) and we kept ourselves entertained singing every word of our DIY/Painting playlist, you can listen to right here on Spotify or I embedded it below.
When we finished, the liners (you can buy in a 6-pack) pop right out and can be disposed of. This is also super helpful if you have a quick color change to do in a room.
The wallpaper went up the very next day and I can't wait to show you how that turned out on Wednesday! This nursery is shaping up to be something sweet.
Thanks to HANDy Paint Products for sponsoring this post.
Leave a Reply
WE'RE CHRIS + JULIA
Portfolio
Projects
What sheen do you use for the ceiling? I was told at the store that most people use dead flat, but noticed that the current ceiling paint does have a slight sheen. I am wondering what you guys usually do.
we have textured ceilings that we like to minimize as much as possible so we go with dead flat as well!
What Nike shoes are you wearing? I LOVE them!!
Thank you! They are Nike Pegasus 30. I've had them for a few years, but I'm sure they are still bouncing around.
Hi! Love the nursery progress so far!! Quick question, we also have wainscoting in our formal dining room that's in need of a paint job! Our walls are in an eggshell finish, would you use a satin on the trim and wainscoting or a semi gloss!? Every time I use semi gloss (esp on doors) they stick like crazy!! Suggestions?? Thanks SO much!!!
We used satin and I think it's the perfect amount of sheen. :)
I could paint all year with that song list going! But I would definitely add Kashmir by Led Zeppelin to make the painting go to the next level! Looking forward to the wall paper! Love the trim work Chris made! One classy nursery.....
Hi there! Loving following along with this project of yours! Its so amazing! Question on what type of roller covers and paint brushes you would suggest for painting walls?
We are big fans of the 3/8" nap Purdy rollers and a 2" angled short-handled brush--Wooster makes a great one.
Thank you so much!! <3
Oh my goodness - your playlist is crazy similar to mine! *also - I am excited to see the wallpaper go up.
This room...sigh. I can not wait to see the wallpaper!!! If I remember correctly, the cloudy paper is your favorite/dream wallpaper, yes?
Yes!!
How do you paint without a tarp covering your beautiful floors?! Are guys just that skilled by now, or so you have any pint cleanup tips? Thanks!
Paint* cleanup tips! Doh.
On tile, like we have in here, we find it so much easier to let drips be until they are dry and then scrape them up.
You have Matt Hires on your playlist! I loveMatt Hires!
Why, oh why, weren't we listening to this in Baltimore? We're gonna have to listen to this for our upcoming project!
You inspired me to come home and make one!
I tried searching for the playlist in Spotify and couldn't find it. :( My husband and I just bought a new house and we always struggle with what to listen to as we work around the house.
The link in the copy of post will open it in your browser. Or, I embedded it at the bottom of the post and you can stream it there. If you want to find it in the app, maybe search for me, Julia Marcum, and it will be under my public playlists!
Thanks, I was searching on Spotify on the Sonos app to stream it throughout our house. Clicking on the links in the post just opened Spotify on my computer, not through Sonos. :P But I started following it on Spotify and then it popped up in the Sonos app. Wow, that seems way more complicated than it needed to be.
Honest question, because I had two girls only 2 years apart and didn't change a single thing in the nursery room. Would you have redone the nursery if it wasn't part of the ORC? If so would it have been as extreme?
Oh, totally. I don't think we would be doing it this early (would probably wait until end of May-ish to get started), but not only are nurseries are the funnest room for me to do, but we did one for our first two daughters (Greta actually got 2 because we moved), so it just seems to make sense to make a room for this one, too.
The other aspect of it is, Faye only recently moved to the bunk room with Greta and she still felt a big attachment to the nursery, insisting it was HER room. We worried she would have jealousy issues when the baby came, but ever since we started updating the room, it's amazing how she has now started saying it's the new baby's room. It has really really helped.
So fun you answered this as a reader question on the podcast, too! I didn't realize you took comments here for that :)
I think you need to add "Knights in White Satin" (by the Moody Blues) to this particular paint list!
Ha! Yes!!
We have the HANDy paint pail and its great. Btw, as if your beautiful home had not already confirmed it for me, your painting playlist just proved you're my kind of people!