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Sunday, December 14, 2008

Environmental paint – Go green with you paint



Using environmental paints is a great way to decorate your rooms. Not only does it give you a wide array of color to choose from but also ensures that Volatile Organic Compounds that are commonly found in regular paints are kept to a minimum. The low level of VOCs in environmental paints ensures that the paints will be odorless and that there are no health risks when you use them.

However, using environmental paint colors is not the only thing that you can do. Here are other design tips to help you create an environmentally safe look:

Environmentally safe floors
Using bamboo as flooring is one of the emerging trends this year. Bamboo gives you an environmentally safe flooring option for your warm interiors that is not only beautiful but also long lasting.



Also, do not forget to look for the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certificates when you plan to buy hardwood for your flooring. The FSC ensures that the means by which they harvest the wood is sustainable.

Environmentally safe accessories and furniture
Recycling furniture is the best way to help in the drive to conserve our environment. You can buy ready made recycled furniture and you can also recycle old furniture yourself. Also, buying antique pieces will help reduce the amount of waste that we produce.



Help in preserving Mother Nature by using these techniques to minimize waste. Find a way to incorporate environmentally safe designs in your homes and do not forget to use environmental paints.

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

House paint colors are important but so are your tools




House paint colors can be difficult to apply when your tools are not in the proper condition. The brushes, rollers and pads that you use are as equally essential as the paint colors that you will be selecting.

Here are some tips on how to care for your paint tools:


For your brushes:

After using the brush, you should clean it right away before the paint colors harden.

You should also use the appropriate solvents for different types of paints. For example, use water for latex based paints while thinners for oil based paints.

Do NOT let your brushes soak in water or thinner over long stretches of time. The ferrule will rust.

Do not rest your brushes on its bristles. You will do well if you hang your brushes instead.

The wet bristles should be combed to preserve form.

For rollers and pads

To make sure that the paint washes easily after a paint project, you need to get rid of any excess paint by pressing or rolling your tools over a piece of paper. Then you can wash them in water or any appropriate solvents.

After drying, just wrap them in paper and store in a dry place.

Proper care for your paint tools is easy and there is no excuse to neglect this part of painting. More than anything else, paint tools are important so that you can have the perfect house paint color.

Monday, December 8, 2008

Interior paint colors – Two tips on choosing the right paint


When choosing interior paint colors, you should consider the different elements that will affect the way that your paint project will look. Here are a couple of things that you need to think about before going through with your paint projects:

Small things first
If this is the first time that you will be handling a paint job, it is advisable that you start with small projects first and then gradually moving into more challenging projects. Start painting the bathroom first or your fence in the backyard. This will give you the benefit of trying out the paint colors that you choose so you can decide whether or not to use it on future projects. It also lets you get the feel of handling the paint and you can gauge its properties like drying time and viscosity.



Mood and lighting are essential
The mood and the lighting of the room that you want to paint will dictate the color that you should choose. Remember that if you want to go for drama then you must go and choose darker tones. Conversely, if you are going for a more subdued or warm look, then you go for neutrals and soft colors.

Another thing to keep in mind is the type of lighting that you would be using. Natural light will reveal your paint colors accurately. Incandescent lights will focus more on bringing out the yellow tone in colors while fluorescent lights will bring the blue tones out.

These two tips will be a great help in choosing the paint color that you want. Keep experimenting with different styles and looks and surely you will find your interior paint colors.

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Choosing paint color schemes for your office or home interiors




Choosing paint color schemes for your office and home interiors is one of the most important choices that you have to make because it will convey the mood that you want your visitors to have. Because of this, you must choose the colors that you want carefully.

Here are the three most common paint color schemes that are being used:

SOFT
The colors used in the soft color scheme are white, light green, pink and light blue. These colors are used when the room is well lit, preferably with natural light. It gives a very warm feeling and is best suited for girl’s room or a baby’s room.

NEUTRAL
Neutral colors like ivory, gray, beige and off white are staples in every interior designs. Because of the neutral nature of these colors, they can be used in a variety of settings and they can also be used in association with different other color schemes.

DARK
Colors like deep red, dark green and dark blue are colors that are used sparingly because these colors can work only in certain settings. Mostly used in formal settings, dark colors match well with rooms that have less light. However, they can also work on well lit rooms especially if you use the proper furniture to accent the over all look.

These three colors are the only the basic schemes that you can use in your office or home interiors. Try and experiment and discover other color combinations that you can use when choosing paint color.

Thursday, November 27, 2008

Living room paint colors – more ideas to help you



Living room paint colors posts a problem for experienced and beginner painters. That is why tips on choosing the ideal paint colors is always welcome. Here are more tips to help you solve your living room problems:

Select you paint
There are many different colors that you can use when you want to paint the walls of your living room. Preferences play a crucial role here and the totality of the look that you want to appear should always be kept in mind.

What makes this task difficult is that there are many factors that you need to consider when you are creating the look that you want. You will need to take into consideration the furniture that you have in conjunction with the paint colors that you choose.

One possible solution that you can do is to experiment with different colors until you find the color combination that works for you. Remember that the final color of each paint that you choose will differ depending on the surface and the size of your paint project.

Another possible solution is to look at different pictures and borrow certain elements of the design. Also take note of how the different furniture are placed so that you can maximize the functionality and aesthetics of the room.

Identify the wall
Another thing that you may try and experiment on is to paint your walls differently. Ideally you have four walls you can paint on. However, you may choose to paint all four walls with a single color or you may want to color each one with a different color. The choice is yours again depending on the look that you are going for.

Try and experiment with these ideas and see what different looks that you can create. Don’t hold back and let your creative juices flow.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Low odor paints - pros and cons




Low odor paints or odorless paints are one of the hottest paint products out there in the market. Upon using the paint myself, here are some of its pros and cons that I have discovered.

Pro: Indoor paint jobs
Ventilation is not a problem when you are using odorless paint colors. You can breathe easily while you paint when you are using odorless paints. I dare say that now you can paint the interiors of schools and even hospitals without worrying about how the smell of the paint colors will distract students or patients.

Con: Expense
There is one catch however - low odor paints are more expensive than normal paints. Though not as much, they are still more expensive.

And while a 5 percent increase in price may not affect small paint jobs like a home interior, it will factor greatly in large scale projects such as office buildings and other industrial projects.

To be tested: Durability
One thing that people are not sure about odorless paints is if it is durable enough to withstand a lot of wear and tear. With that, let’s just take a wait and see approach. There are no complains so far and that is definitely a good sign.

The verdict:
Cost is the only negative thing that you can find in low odor paints and there are a lot of reasons why you should use it over normal paints. The environmental and health factors alone outweigh the cost that you have to pay to purchase them not to mention that there are no glaring differences in the quality between the two types of paints.