As the American DIY market is fast headed to becoming a $14 billion dollar industry, there’s no slowing down the amount of money being spent. The number of people trying to figure out how to paint the most challenging spaces is now at an all-time high. If you’re honing professional DIY interior painting techniques, you need to learn a few tricks from the pros to get the job done right.

Here are four tips to ensure that you get it done right the first time.

1. Keep A Wet Edge

We’ve all seen a wall that’s been painted poorly where you can tell that the wall was poorly or sloppily repainted. One of the most obvious ways is when you see a lap mark or a stripe of paint that looks uneven or stands out from the rest.

To ensure that you don’t end up with any marks that show where you’ve made a lap, you need to keep your edge wet at all times. You all need to roll the full height of your wall each time, not to do the top half and then the bottom half.

Rolling over paint that’s only partially dry causes paint build up. These laps occur when you fail to maintain a wet edge or allow your roller to dry out. Each stroke should overlap the previous one before the wall dries to ensure that you don’t end up with marks.

Start painting from one corner and roll all the way from the top to the bottom. Move over a little with each stroke. If you can’t reach the top of the wall, then get a tool that extends your roller so that you can do it all in one stroke. You’ll be far less likely to leave ridges or stripes when you roll the full length of your wall.

2. Mix Your Paint Together

If you’ve had a custom color made or even chose a factory made color, you might end up with uneven colors as the paint color can vary from one can to the next. Your best bet is to empty all of your paint cans into a giant bucket and mix everything together.

This will ensure that you end up with an even color all the way around your home. Mix all of the paint that you’ll be using into one large bucket in a process called “boxing” to keep all of the color consistent and not having to go back and redo anything.

When you have a tough time estimating the amount of paint that you’ll need, then do more than you think you need. Unused paint can be poured back into your cans later on.

If you’re working on a massive space, then your bucket should be accompanied by a roller screen instead of a roller tray. This way you can load your roller quickly and easily.

Dunking the roller into the bucket and then along the screen is much easier than trying to keep refilling your tray. Efficiency and cleanliness matters when painting.

3. Cut Paint, Don’t Just Rip Tape

When the paint dries, most people grab the tape and rip it off. Many people argue whether to rip the paint off when the paint is wet for a natural edge or when it’s dry to have more control. The answer is to never rip the tape off at all.

You should cut the tape off instead. When you tear the tape off, you risk pulling off dried paint and having to do repairs to your paint job.

Wait for your paint job to dry all the way. Give yourself at least 24 hours if not longer. Then take a sharp utility knife to then cut the film carefully.

You can often use the edge of the trim or your window and door frames as a guide for where to cut. Make a thorough cut and when you’re done, then carefully start removing the tape. Pull it at a 45-degree angle so that you don’t end up tearing anything else off.

The cut that you make with the blade will create a perforation that can help you to remove the tape easier. Pulling tape that’s buried under paint can be a challenge without a little bit of assistance.

4. Start With the Trim

When you’re looking to repaint your whole interior, start with your trim and then move to your ceiling. Once those elements are done, then you should move to the wall.

Starting in the right order ensures that you don’t deal with any drips or spillage. It also makes sure that you’re not going to have to go back to fix the trim or ceiling because they’re not going to be impacted by the walls.

It’s much easier and faster to tape off your trim and your ceiling edge3s than to have to try to somehow tape off your wall.

When you paint your trim, you can make a mess. Your only focus needs to be to keep the wood finish smooth and for it to look natural. If trim paint gets on the wall, you can cover it up later.

After you finish the trim, cover it with an easy-release painter’s tape to ensure that you don’t have to redo your work.

If you have a challenging material like galvanized steel, check out this useful post to take care of it.

Interior Painting Techniques Are Easy To Learn

Once you learn any of these interior painting techniques, you’ll apply them to every project your work on the future. Getting a handle on what it takes to make the most out of your next interior painting project is a matter of knowing what to do.

If you’re painting in an effort to sell your home, check out our guide to getting the most for it.