Is preparation the key to success?

As in most things, the answer is yes, especially when it comes to getting walls and woodwork ready for that gorgeous topcoat of your favourite colour. Much as it is tempting to launch into the satisfying opening of the new tin of paint and the glide of the new paint across the wall, without the correct groundwork, you are bound to feel a dispiriting sense of disappointment after all your hard work.  Lumps and bumps, poorly filled cracks and stains left untreated will all contribute to an uneven and patchy finish and leave the overall project looking, well, a bit meh.

The best approach is to thoroughly rake out cracks, counter intuitively making them deeper and wider, so that they can be properly filled, the larger surface area offering a better chance of adhesion and a smoother blend with the rest of the wall. Stains, for example from an old leak from a shower or following damp, need to be properly treated with a good quality stain blocking product so that they don’t creep through the topcoats, however many layers you might apply. Sometimes the walls, especially in older properties, can’t be salvaged without a skim layer of multi finish plaster, which offers a beautifully even layer to work from without the expense and time needed for a full plaster.

In short, the best effort you put in at the start, the better the end result will look. Of course, if you don’t have the will and would rather use your weekends not watching paint dry, then you know where to come!