Have you ever watched HGTV or TLC’s “Trading Spaces”? Well as our reality TV becomes increasingly popular and extreme, producers and sponsors, such as Home Depot and Lowe’s, have understood the power of the handy person’s and interior decorator’s dream world ? reality home makeovers. Now, I understand that some of you all may be sick of all the reality shows, but there are some key points that even we may need to understand. When you either trade spaces with your neighbor or ask designer’s challenges for a makeover on the smallest of budgets, one of the quickest, most effective and dramatic changes comes from paint. Painting is parts and parcels for any dramatic or even subtle change to a home. A home that is in dire straights, that is old, worn and badly used can roar back to life with the stroke of a paintbrush. It is key and important that paint is one of the most important investments a family can make. If you are contemplating selling your home, painting and molding are one of the best ways to generate quicker sales and higher returns for your money invested. A word of caution, just be careful not to be too bold in your color selection if your intention is to paint your home for selling purposes. However, today we are going to briefly chat about painting as if your home is going to be a longer term investment, someplace you will live in for more than the next few years! If not, we should talk about painting, but merely use very neutral, potentially non-offensive colors!

Whether you have recently purchased a new/previously owned home here in the Sugar Land/Greatwood area or have lived in your home for years, it may be time to replace that cheaper, watered down, builder’s grade khaki paint that envelops your home. Now some of you may say how you like that color and I personally don’t mind it. In that case, we will briefly talk about how you can accent the color of your beige walls and immediately have a powerful impact on the look of your interior.

If you were to ask me, “Garrett, what paint would you recommend?” I would probably quickly answer with a good quality Sherwyn Williams paint. They have been around for ages and the quality of paint stands the test of time and kids! Don’t get me wrong; I have known plenty of people that use the Home Depots, Lowe’s, Ralph Lauren, Wal-Mart and tons of various brands. You just need to really weigh the cost-benefits based upon what your plans are in terms of how long you are planning on living in your home and how often you may want to paint.

As I mentioned before, if tastefully done, painting can truly add invigorating life to a house and can create a wise return on investment. Those walls that are cracked, smudged with dirt from your kiddo’s hands and dinged can be revived with simple paint. Now there are so many different options and each time we meet with a family to paint their homes, they ask us what type of paint they should use. This answer truly depends upon your lifestyle. First there are oil-based paints that are primarily used on wood such as crown molding, doors, framing, banisters, etc. Oil-based paints are becoming more difficult to find primarily because of potential environmental hazards when disposing of this type of paint. If you have an oil-based paint on wood and you cannot find any oil-based paint to paint on top of, you are going to have to use some sort of water-based latex paint. However, it is extremely important that you understand you cannot paint a water-based latex paint on top of an existing oil-based paint that may be on any wood in your house. If you do, your paint job might look good initially, but your paint will eventually peel away and you will have to start all over again! In fact, you may find that your paint will bead up on your oil-based paint if you are using a water-based paint on top of your oil-based paint! First you must lightly sand down the existing oil-based paint and then preferably apply a primer before you begin repainting. There are a number of primers that you can use, but traditionally our company uses a brand named “Killz”, which supposedly helps to prevent any mold or mildew from growing on the surface of what you are painting. Note: If you are planning to paint over existing mold or mildew, bad idea. Don’t think that Killz will simply solve the problem and you can paint over that mold or mildew problem. Eventually the mold/mildew will bleed through the surface area you are painting. You might want to call a painter or find a way to properly remove any mildew or mold you may find. We will eventually discuss the “dreaded” mold scam later in another issue, although there are some merits to the mold debate!

Typically the homes that we help improve are homes with families. That usually goes without saying that there are either children living in the homes or children are on the way. With that being said, we suggest that you choose a “satin” finish paint on your surface (i.e. walls). A satin finish allows you to easily wipe away stains, dirt, etc without completely wiping away the paint and eventually exposing the sheetrock and without having walls that look too shiny from using a semi-gloss. You will find that over time, if you wipe off dirt from a builder’s grade flat paint, you will be wiping off your paint.

However, when attempting to determine the correct finish of paint to use, it truly depends upon what room or what purpose you will be using your paint. Many times a semi-gloss paint is more appropriate and other times, the non-sheen finish of a flat paint adds the right touch. As a basic example, a room with a Texas or southwestern theme may want the neutral beige or other southwestern colors in a flat finish while a more contemporary room decorated with brushed metal accessories may want more of a satin to semi-gloss finish. Really there are no right or wrong answers; it truly depends upon your taste. However, it is important to note that there is a right and wrong way of painting over oil-based paints. This simple knowledge may save you quite a bit of time, money and frustration!

There are simply tons of ideas with regard to paint and people have written entire books as a result. To simply name a few, faux painting has become one of the new trends in painting, along with finishes that give the impression of stucco, leather covered walls (using plastic bags), felt walls and cloud covered sky murals. In fact we just looked at a home that used straw in their paint to create a rough textured, plaster appearance! Our company does them all, but you can tackle these with a little bit of time, practice and patience.

When I used to live in Georgetown, I loved the way homes, that were literally hundreds of years old, looked when their family rooms and guests rooms were painted with deep, dark rich, warm colors. Now I don’t suggest you paint your entire house this color, but if you have a large enough formal living room or room that may be visible to the street, I challenge you that you may be daring enough to go out on a limb and paint it with a deep, dark, rich red, maroon or dark “rich” color. Although a rule of thumb is darker colors make rooms appear smaller, it will definitely add to the uniqueness of your home. When you add a bright white gloss crown molding and/or chair molding to your home, along with soft lights illuminating pictures and/or paintings, you have not only added value to your home, but you have also added character to your home and an inviting place to visit as you curl up and read a book during a cool/cold Houston’s winter night!

With the challenge of adding some color to your home being said, we are running out of room for this month’s edition. However, I also challenge you all to consider using crown molding for your home. Clearly, if you use crown molding on houses with flat ceilings, you can create a beautiful effect of raising the height of your ceilings. I also suggest that you use a bright gloss white to accent any colors that you have on your walls. As I mentioned in the very beginning of the article, even if you keep or use the standard beige walls, adding a bright white 4 ½” crown molding to your home can create the allusion of a larger home with higher ceilings and an added touch of magnificence to any type of home, whether or not your home is a $3 million mansion or your own starter-home palace! We may have to devote an entire article to crown and chair molding, the differences and how it can greatly add to the value and stately look of your home! Suffice it to say, crown molding is another way in which “Trading Spaces” and your own “Designer’s Challenge” can add dramatic changes and value to your home!


Next month: “Playhouses: A Home Away from Home for your Kids”

If you have any questions or comments about this month’s, last month’s or next month’s article, and/or any other comments/questions, feel free to either call or email your neighborly, turn-key solution - Ames Home Improvements, LLC at: 281-343-5600, Garrett_Ashmore@tamu.edu
www.amesinvestments.com

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