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Posts Tagged ‘london decorator<’
Probably the best kept secret to any good painting job lies in the word “preparation”. If you want your painting handiwork to look as good – if not better – than the professional look, you need to be well organised and prepare effectively. If you are not too sure about proceeding with the job yourself, you can find a decorator right here on Mr-Skill. Then, just sit back and let the experts do in one day, what may take you far longer.
Begin with the protection factor – preferably remove the furniture from the room you are redecorating. If this is not possible, then cover everything with old sheets to prevent paint spills and keep out the dust. Don’t forget the carpets, and remove pictures too. If this is starting to sound too hard, perhaps you should consider a decorating quote? 
Attend to any cracks or holes in the surfaces you are about to paint and sand them down when dry. Now, mix a mild solution of sugar soap in warm water, and use this for removing marks, oil, grease and general dirt. Mask off anything necessary, including straight edges where ceilings and walls meet, so that you can concentrate on the task at hand, namely painting!
We’re assuming you have all the materials you require for the job, such as:
- The appropriate quality paint, brushes, rollers and trays
- Interior plaster-filler
- Suitable ladder
- Cleaning cloths
- Covers (for the furniture and carpets)
Always begin at the top with the ceiling, since paint does drip from your brush, and rollers do tend to flick paint everywhere too. Use rollers for ceilings and walls, and brushes for the detail work in corners, on skirting boards and around cornices. Rollers are designed to spread paint effectively, so avoid saturating them when you refill.
Depending on the colour you select, you may need to apply two coats of paint to get the desired finish. Remember to let the paint dry properly between applications.
One of our London decorators says that the biggest test of a job well done is the clean up after you have finished. He’s assuming of course that you have completed the job as expertly as he would!
Tags: brush, ceilings, cleaning, cloths, cornice, covers, find a painter and decorator, home painting, interior decorating, ladder, london decorator, masking, materials, paint, painter and decorator quote, Painting, professional painter, roller, skirting, tray, walls
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With the right planning and preparation, interior decorating can be great fun, and will certainly add to the value of your home too. Don’t make the mistake of under-estimating the task though – you could end up having to find a decorator, just make sure they are one of Mr-Skill’s if you do!
Light and Bright versus Dark and Heavy
A general rule with interior decorating is that strong and bright colours reflect energy. Conversely, darker richer colour choices may come across as somewhat drab and austere – although there are of course exceptions. If in doubt, rather go for an off-white, cream or beige. These form the neutral range, and help to tie together virtually any other colours present in your furniture, fittings and wall hangings.
Neutral choices have the added advantage of staying popular for much longer, as they remain the number-one choice for many people. Keep in mind that light and neutral colours create the impression of more space in your rooms, whereas a darker paint choice usually has the opposite effect.
Before You Start
You should decide on your colour schemes, in order to buy the right paint first time. As with all DIY projects, shop around, but don’t compromise too much on the quality of the paint you choose. While out shopping, remember to  stock up on brushes, rollers, trays, spackling and sandpaper too. Make sure that you have everything you need before you start the job. In fact, why not look to Mr-Skill for some decorating quotes – you may be pleasantly surprised, then you can sit back and enjoy the benefits!
Cover the floors with drop sheets, making sure that you shield skirting boards too. Drape the sheets over furniture if you cannot move and store these items elsewhere. Now, you can start preparing the wall surfaces to be painted, filling cracks and holes as you go.
Smooth off any patches when they are dry, and vacuum up any dust. That completes the prepration phase.
Ready, Steady, Go!
You should now be ready to start painting. One of our regular London Decorators advises that once you are ready to roll, try to block out all distractions. They are bound to prove irritating, and all your good planning will be for nought!
Tags: advice, brushes, chart, colours, cover, dark, decorating, decorating quotes, DIY, drop sheet, find a decorator, floor, larger, light, london decorator, paint, rollers, sandpaper, smaller, spackling
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You have made your mind up and you have decided to clean your garage – again! The first thing you stumble upon is loads of leftover paint pots in various stages of decay. What do you do next? Well, if you are like most of us and are environmentally principled, you should be thinking the three “R’s”. That is, reduce, reuse and recycle.
Does this sound a little hard for you? You could also get a waste removal quote from Mr Skill by clicking on this link. This will direct you to a number of cleaning services. Next time you find a decorator, why not ask them to remove the leftover paint after they have finished?
Reduce – If you find that there’s always some paint left over from a job, this tends to suggest that you are buying too much in the first place. Speak to your friendly paint shop and ask them to calculate your paint requirements next time, based on the measurements you provide. Most paint pots also provide coverage guidelines on their labels.
Reuse – As long as you store leftover paint properly – meaning correct sealing and storage – you can keep the paint for quite a considerable time.  Tip – wipe the rim of the open paint pot clean and replace the lid tightly. Make sure you have a decent seal and then invert the pot. If you store the pot upside-down like this, you should have an airtight seal that will prevent a skin forming under the lid.
Recycle – Check with your local authority when it comes to recycling empty paint containers. The chances are good that these can be handed in at your local waste station. If your paint containers cannot be recycled, dispose of them responsibly as general household waste.
Now my old mate Ray, who’s been a professional London decorator for more decades than he cares to remember, suggests that if you do have usable leftover paint that you are never going to need, then you should try donating it instead. Check your local charity shop for advice. Better still. Make sure the cost of disposing of messy paint pots is included in the painter’s quote next time. This information is provided by Mr-Skill as a public service.
Tags: buy, calculate, charity, clean, container, dispose, donate, find a decorator, garage, leftover, lid, london decorator, measure, old, paint, painters quote, pot, recycle, reduce, remove, reuse, shop, skin, store, tin, waste
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Preparing the exterior walls of a house or bungalow for painting is an onerous task that few private homeowners attempt. Does that sound too much for you too? No worries. We can help you Find a Painter who’s been rated by other customers already.
When he or she arrives they complete the preparation of the outside as summarised below. That’s assuming they don’t find anything exceptional, that they did not anticipate when preparing their Detailed Painting Quote. If they do, they’ll negotiate in good faith.
 Cast an eye over the structure to make sure there are no cracks that might admit water and cause damp. They’re likely to report any structural concerns they may detect too, although that’s not the job you’re paying them for.
Clear out and close-up any gaps with rendering. They’ll work elsewhere on the building for the next few days while the fresh plaster dries.
Remove all flaking or damaged paint using a combination of hand-scrapers, sanders, power washing and chemicals. Attend to any mould or fungus.
Discuss the best paints to use and the colours that you like and are practical too. When that’s done they can begin apply the paint.
I was chatting to my old friend a retired London Decorator who has a thought on anything and everything. I just can’t understand, he said, why so many folk try to paint outside in winter, when it makes so much more sense to do the inside then.
Mr-Skill provides a FREE service to UK customers requiring the services of a Painter / Decorator, or for that matter any other Skilled Person. They pay to list with us after we have checked them out. That’s the only money that ever changes hands as far as we are concerned. We make not a penny more from it, no kidding, so all this is FREE to you with our compliments. Isn’t it nice to know that you can still get good service like this today?
Tags: bungalow, chemical, clear, close, colour, cracks, damaged, damp, decorate, decorator, exterior, find a painter, flaking, fungus, house, london decorator, mould, paint, painter, painting quote, plaster, prepare, redecorate, remove, render, sander, seal, structure, wall, wash, water
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 A good London Decorator will tell you that keeping mould at bay is as simple as not creating an environment in which it flourishes. The problem is of course that we share a liking for similar humidity and temperature levels, which is where the problem begins.
Mould is a fungus that spreads across almost any surface, sowing spores everywhere it goes. It’s not poisonous. In fact it’s not dangerous at all. But it is unsightly and nobody likes to see it. It flourishes in warm damp conditions where the temperature is above 70-Degrees Fahrenheit, and the Relative Humidity over 70% too.
- When you shower, open a bathroom window to keep the temperature and humidity down.
- If you can’t stand the idea, then open it before you leave the bathroom, closing the door behind you as you go.
 This is not to say you won’t still get mould on your bathroom ceiling though. You’ll just have to do the following less frequently. If you don’t, you’ll need to Find a Decorator to eventually clear up the mess.
- Wipe away the mould using a damp cloth. Get rid of all of it.
- Sterilize the ceiling using a fungicidal barrier from a mould eradication kit.
- Next time you are looking for a Decorating Quote, specify a fungicidal additive added to the paint.
Now was that really all that complicated? Just another service from Mr-Skill. Your provider of tradesperson quotes at no charge at all.
Tags: damp, decorating quote, door, environment, eradicate, eradication kit, find a decorator, fungicide, humid, london decorator, moist, mold, mould, shower, spores, temperature, warm, window, wipe
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