Collaborative Post¦ Paint is an affordable way to transform any home. But it’s not just about choosing the right colour and splashing it onto your walls – paint can be used in many different ways to change the appearance and function of interior spaces. Here are ten top tricks that both interior designers and painters and decorators love to use.
Use paint to raise your ceiling height
If you want to make your ceiling appear higher, try painting the skirting boards the same colour as the walls. This will make the walls appear taller and your room seem grander. Alternatively, try painting the ceiling in a much lighter colour than the walls to make the space feel airier.
Or lower it
Paint can also be used to create the opposite effect. By painting your ceiling in a warm, deep colour, you can make it feel closer – bringing more cosiness to the space. In period properties with high ceilings, it’s worth continuing the colour over coving and cornices or down to the picture rail. This should help move the ceiling even closer in and make it a real feature of the room.
Make a room appear bigger
You can also use paint to make a room feel bigger. If you paint bulky items such as radiators, bedside tables, bookcases and headboards the same colour as the wall, it helps blend them into the background – making the room appear more spacious.
Hide and change features
You can use paint in the same way to hide large features such as doors. Not only can this extend the wall to make the room appear bigger but it can improve the feel of the space. However, if you want to make a door look bigger, then paint it and the area around it – including the architrave and some of the wall – in a lighter colour than the rest of the room.
Simulate panelling
If you don’t have the time or budget to install panelling, paint can be used to give the impression of panelling. Simply paint the top and bottom half of the walls in two different colours. You can use contrasting or complementary colours for this but to achieve a crisp, straight line, it’s best to use a laser level and decorator’s tape.
Or a headboard
Panelling is not the only feature you can mimic. Painting an arch above the bed can create the effect of a headboard. So, you can turn your bed into a focal point without it taking up any extra space. Attaching a piece of string to a pencil is a good way to draw out a perfect arch shape for your headboard.
Add character
Paint is a cheap and cheerful way to add character to your home and highlight its best features. For instance, you could paint the woodwork such as skirting boards, architraves and staircases in a contrasting or bright colour to make them stand out. It’s also a great way to use dark and dramatic colours in the home without overwhelming the space.
Divide spaces with paint
If you have an open or broken plan space or one that’s multifunctional – such as a bedroom with a desk for home working – then paint can be used to zone the different areas. You needn’t use lots of clashing colours to do this as subtle tone changes on your walls should work just fine.
Or connect them
Paint can also be used to join spaces together. By continuing a colour from one room to another, it can improve the flow of your home. You don’t need to paint the whole room in the same colour as the adjoining one. Instead, you could paint one side of the door and its edges, along with the inside of the architraves, to provide a seamless transition between your rooms.
Use paint as a budget way to follow trends
Many of us love following interior trends but they can be hard to keep up with and expensive to carry out. However, paint is very good at helping you to do this affordably. For example, you can use paint to create stripes on the walls instead of using expensive wallpaper. It can also be used to create scalloped edges on walls, shelves and furniture instead of replacing them or adding trim. Plus, it’s ideal for making over floorboards with a checkerboard pattern or giving plain furnishings a folksy upcycle.
A few quick paint tips
Gloss paint will make your woodwork hardwearing and easy to clean. So, it can be good for high-traffic areas. Plus, its shiny finish can help brighten dark hallways. However, it does take a bit longer to dry and white gloss can yellow over time. So, you may prefer to use a scrubbable or satin paint.
Matt paint gives surfaces a modern feel and helps to make dark colours more impactful. It’s also less likely to show up small imperfections than paints with a sheen. But it does make finger marks and scuffs stand out and isn’t easy to clean. So, it’s usually best suited to bedrooms and lounges.
Although paint is DIY friendly, it’s a good idea to call in professional painters and decorators if your walls are bumpy and cracked or need a lot of prep work – otherwise, you might not get the finish you’re after.
Cover photo by Nataliya Vaitkevich