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12 Essential Tools for Painting Projects
Sam Lutz • November 4, 2014
If you don’t paint very often, or have never done it before, you may be lacking in a few essential supplies. We recommend these tools for anyone who may be striving for a beautiful interior paint job.
- Angled paint brush: Angled brushes can reach places where flat brushes can’t, like in corners and crevices. Angled paint brushes are also very useful for painting straight edges.
- Tarps: Plastic tarps are a critical part of protecting your furniture, floors and other personal belongings.
- Handy magnetic paint pail: This valuable little painter’s cup is perfect for holding your paint while on a step ladder, so you don’t have to spend time going up and down the ladder for paint. The handle on this pail makes this the cup easy to carry, and the magnetic rim inside the pail grips the metallic strip on your paintbrush so it won’t slide into the paint while you’re not using it.
- Painter’s tape: Never under-estimate the value of good painter’s tape. Commonly used to cover and protect surfaces that shouldn’t get paint on them, painter’s tape also can be used to secure tarps to the furniture or walls, tape baggies over wet brushes, and a thousand other painting-related things.
- Paint edger: Edges can be difficult or even impossible to paint in a straight line. Professional painters take years to learn how to paint along the edge of a wall (a process known as “cutting in”). Fortunately, with help from a paint edger, you can make straight, professional looking edges without all the years of practice. Paint edgers are made from absorbent pads protected by plastic edges. They’re designed to pick up paint and then distribute the paint neatly along the edge, without smearing.
- Roller: There’s no better time saver than a paint roller. Paint rollers are best for covering large areas in a short amount of time. A good roller will also provide an even application of color, provided that the roller itself is adequately covered with paint.
- Paint tray: Paint trays are essential if you’re planning to use a roller to apply paint to large flat surfaces, like walls or ceilings.
- Long handle: Long handles are attached to paint rollers to give the painter easy access to high places, like ceilings.
- Spackling: This product is used to fill nail holes and smooth uneven surfaces before painting begins.
- Detail brushes: When your painting project is mostly finished, you may find some detail brushes will come in handy for doing small touch ups.
- Rags: Never, ever start a paint project without a stack of good rags on hand. You’ll need them for wiping down walls, cleaning up spills, and wiping away paint from the bottom of your shoe.
- Step Ladder: You’ll need this item for reaching high up places–or for sitting down when it’s time for a break.
For these tools and more, residents of the Pittsburgh area can stop by Ace Paints and Unfinished Furniture. We’re excited to show you our inventory of quality paint products–and we love helping our customers find just the right tool for their needs.
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