[archosman]

I'm moving into a new office at work and want to change the color. It was painted about 6 months ago so the walls are in pretty good shape. It's currently a tannish-yellow and I want to change it to a dark blue. Any suggestions as to what kind of paint to get? Or actual painting tips? I figure I probably should do the area close to the ceiling and around the door jams first.

 

[rickcr42]

Benjamin Moore Regal Wall Satin is the absolute best paint you can buy on the planet.Go with the regular finish unless you expect high wear then go up the ladder in "shine" according to expected wear and tear to eggshell,semi-gloss (tough to work with but nice combo durability/regal looking) or full gloss (a real bitch to get right in large areas).

With any of the above you need to always work to a wet edge.That means cut in a wall by brush then roll it out immediately before going on to the next section.Fail to do this will result in "flash off' which is an uneven shine where the roller overlapped the brushed in parts.

Pain the entire space with a caot,let dry overnight then do it all again.

If any trim is to be painted that comes after the walls and if the ceilings need painting then that is step one.

 

[elnero]

Use good brushes, don't cheap out, it'll make all the difference in the world.

 

[archosman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickcr42 Benjamin Moore Regal Wall Satin is the absolute best paint you can buy on the planet.Go with the regular finish unless you expect high wear then go up the ladder in "shine" according to expected wear and tear to eggshell,semi-gloss (tough to work with but nice combo durability/regal looking) or full gloss (a real bitch to get right in large areas).

Would you recommend picking this up at a Home Depot?

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickcr42 With any of the above you need to always work to a wet edge.That means cut in a wall by brush then roll it out immediately before going on to the next section.Fail to do this will result in "flash off' which is an uneven shine where the roller overlapped the brushed in parts.

Do you mean quickly do the corner where the wall meets and then nail it with a roller?

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickcr42 Paint the entire space with a caot,let dry overnight then do it all again. If any trim is to be painted that comes after the walls and if the ceilings need painting then that is step one.

I thought about painting the ceiling black, but it might be a tad too dark. I'll try and post some pics of the room for suggestions. Thanks for the tips. It's important that it look nice since I will now be dealing directly with clients.

 

[rickcr42]

Quote:

Would you recommend picking this up at a Home Depot?

STAY AWAY FROM HOME DEPOT PAINT MAN !!!!!!


really,you will end up doing five coats and still not be happy in the end (looks like i am getting sued now

)


Quote:

Do you mean quickly do the corner where the wall meets and then nail it with a roller?

Kinda.A roller works in large flat areas only so you must get paint into the areas where a roller has no shot.what you do is from every section where two opposing surfaces meet (corners and such) you must use a brush to bring the paint out from the corner to about six inches or so.Far enough to get a good overlap between the brushed surfaces and the rolled surfaces.you also want to get the roller in as tight as possible to the wall.The "texture" of the rooles will not match up to the brushed in areas.The good news is this is not a thing noticed in corners which have shadows anyway.

The suggestion of a good brush is dead on.Either a "Purdy" or "Wooster" in a 3.5 or 4 inch width.Polyester bristle.should run about $20 at Home Depot (saved by the brush !!!!!

)

Foir the roller do NOT get one of those "all-in-one" kits with the handle,the sleeves,the pan and maybe even a little mini stick extension pole.
instead go for the professional quality Roller Handle and FULLSIZE rolling pan.you can thank me later man,really.Fail to have a big pan that holfds enough paint to tryuly wet the roller sleeve and you will be in for a tough run.
also-1/2 inch knap on the sleeve and wet it well with paint
also ll-get an extension pole for the roller handle,your back will thank you for it later

Quote:

I thought about painting the ceiling black, but it might be a tad too dark. I'll try and post some pics of the room for suggestions. Thanks for the tips. It's important that it look nice since I will now be dealing directly with clients.

stay away from dark ceilings unless they are cathedral ceilings and have lighter color trim breaking up the large areas of dark !

(also a real b*tch to work with dark colors and have it look one consistant color)

A dark color will have people ducking as they enter the room due to the illusion of it being low.Dark colors make something appear small,light colors open an area up.
If you must tone down go with either a linen white (almost a tan) or Benjamin moore China-White (the color of chipped china internally)


By "wet edge" i mean work an entire section at a time.A single wall should be cut in with a brush then rolled out immediately before going on to the next.you have maybe 15 minutes or so to get it done correctly if you are gunning for a smooth finish without any shiny/dull areas.
Do not cut in a wall then do lunch !

Best bet is a two person team-one cuts,one rolls

 

[archosman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickcr42 STAY AWAY FROM HOME DEPOT PAINT MAN !!!!!!

So should I go to a real paint store or do you have another idea?




//knows nothing about home repairs!

 

[jpr703]

I'll second Benj. Moore paint. The stuff is great. It costs more, but a lot of times you can actually get the job done in one coat. Get yourself a good roller and pan and some painters masking tape and you should be good to go.

Oh, one more tip. I don't know what it's called, but there's a long piece of slender plastic or metal (usually about 4 inches wide) that you can hold in one hand and use as a barrier to keep the roller from getting paint on the trim or carpet. They work wonders!

 

[jpr703]

Oh, one more thing. If you're painting indoors, be sure to use Latex paint. It cleans up with water and is just a whole lot easier to work with than enamel.

And for Ben Moore paints, you will have to go to a real paint store. Just check your phone book to find a dealer.

 

[rickcr42]

Quote:

Oh, one more tip. I don't know what it's called, but there's a long piece of slender plastic or metal (usually about 4 inches wide) that you can hold in one hand and use as a barrier to keep the roller from getting paint on the trim or carpet. They work wonders!

good call man.Called a sheild guard but a wide taping knife will do the same thing and not add to cost (unless i charge for these pearls of wisdom of coorse,THEN it may get really really expensive and FAST !

).You just need to move it along as you paint and wipe off the exess ocasionally.
Press the carpet down until the tackles are exposed,paint,release.

Quote:

And for Ben Moore paints, you will have to go to a real paint store. Just check your phone book to find a dealer.

Benjamin moore chooses who gets a franchise to sell their paint so you can be sure any dealer of the product will be a good source of both materials and information.any place that deals with professional contractors-buiders,remodellers,painter,etc.,will have the product and if you don't come across as a one time customer you may be inline for a contractors discount.Play the game man,set up an account and save the 30-40% of retail even if you have no intention of doing this again.

Even though Benji is top shelf you will not get it done with one coat when doing a total color change unless it is in the same "palette".if doing blue you need to have come from the blues and greys or forget it.
but with two coats you will end up with a finish that will have the appearance of depth.Actually will look like you can stick your finger in the wall paint and have in go into the wall !

Obviously this is not possible but the effect is cool anyway.

 

[wallijonn]

Your workplace allows you to paint your office?

At Sony there was an executive suite done in all Cherry wood. It was absolutely gorgeous.

That executive left, a new one came in, and had all the oiled Cherry Wood painted over in grey by building maintenance.

I almost cried.

I no longer have any respect for execs; they have inflated egos with no common sense.

3 months later that exec left and the ruined Cherry furniture was left as her testament. I saw such waste all the time.

 

[rickcr42]

Quote:

3 months later that exec left and the ruined Cherry furniture was left as her testament. I saw such waste all the time.

It is a power thing,an effort to prove they can do what they want no matter if the decision is a good one or not and is also just ASKING for someone to say something negative so they can truly find out what the pecking order is.

But nothing that is done can not be un-done (OK,not EVERYTHING

).

A good stripper and some tung oil can do wonders but the job will have to be done nights and weekends or no one will be able to work there.The chemical odors are not good and are actually dangerous to a persons health in the case of the tung oil in a closed space.

VENT PEOPLE !

If you get light headed LEAVE THE AREA IMMEDIATELY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The damge you do will not show up today but dsown the road you WILL pay !

For years the gov has been trying to erdicate oil based products and all the major players have had the labs going trying for the elusive water based substitute.They have come a long way but NOTHING beats an oil finish on wood or trim.just no contest.

 

[archosman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wallijonn Your workplace allows you to paint your office? At Sony there was an executive suite done in all Cherry wood. It was absolutely gorgeous. That executive left, a new one came in, and had all the oiled Cherry Wood painted over in blue by building maintenance. I almost cried. I no longer have any respect for execs; they have inflated egos with no common sense. 3 months later that exec left and the ruined Cherry furniture was left as her testament. I saw such waste all the time.

If it was Cherry I wouldn't be touching a thing.

 

[archosman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickcr42 Benjamin moore chooses who gets a franchise to sell their paint so you can be sure any dealer of the product will be a good source of both materials and information.any place that deals with professional contractors-buiders,remodellers,painter,etc.,will have the product and if you don't come across as a one time customer you may be inline for a contractors discount.Play the game man,set up an account and save the 30-40% of retail even if you have no intention of doing this again.

And finally...

How many benjamins will a can of Benjamin run for? When the office was originally painted it went from dark green to the current tan-yellow and it took 2 cans.

 

[rickcr42]

Sounds about right.Unless you go for an "off the shelf" stock color (unlikely) you will have to have the mix done when you decide to purchase.This is not a time to short the materials and if you think you want a gallon and a quart go for the two gallons so the color will be consistant.

Remeber man.Once everthing is painted you will be moving stuff in and the way things work you are bound to bang up a wall or two no matter how careful you are so you want to have an identical match for touch-up.

get the two gallons

 

[archosman]

So get this...

There's a carpet store a few blocks away that just became a Benjamin Moore dealer. Got a "color" consultation from one of the ladies here and went down to get some paint this morning. Got 2 gallons for $25 a piece and the store "lent" me a huge drum of primer for nothing and told me to bring back the rest when I'm done. Very good service. Tomorrow thru Monday will be painting days. I guess I need to wait a day for the primer to dry before I jump in with the main color.