If you want to redecorate your home, you’ve got to make sure the ‘canvas’ is up to the work! That means double checking the condition of the walls, floors, skirting boards, door frames, systems, and even the pipes in your home. Why? Because you don’t want anything going wrong, or to make a spot of DIY harder for yourself. It’s not just design rules you need to keep in mind here, so check out the tips down below to make sure you’ve got everything ready for a new lick of paint.
Story Stages
Check if the Walls are Clean
The walls are going to be the main target of a redecorating project, and that means they deserve some special attention before you get going. Most of all, they need to be clean, and sanded down a little to help get rid of imperfections, as well as to help new paint stick to the surface.
Any dirty fingerprints, handmarks, old crayon or felt tip pen etc., all need to be wiped off before applying a new coat of paint, or even a strip of wallpaper. If left, these colors may bleed through and ruin the look you’re going for. You’ll just have to paint all over again, and that’s just not worth the effort!
Check the Pipes are in Good Condition
If you want to redecorate your bathroom, you’re going to need to check the quality of the plumbing. When you’re retiling or grouting over some old lines, the pipes themselves could get dinged up pretty bad, or even be causing damage to the walls thanks to irregular shaping or pathing.
Beyond that, you’ll also need to double check how well your water tank is doing before and after. Costly water heater repairs can crop up just after redecorating a typically ‘wet room’, and it could be due to the new materials you’ve used or the debris from ripping out old tiles, which can get easily stuck in the drains and pipes if you’re not careful.
Check the Colors Will Work
Finally, double check you’re using the right color palette before you apply anything to the walls or floor. A new carpet is lovely, but only if the shade matches the furniture you’re already using and want to keep. The same goes for any wallpaper or paint you want to use – does it complement, both in tone and pattern, the way your home already looks?
It can be a hard question to answer without visual references, so take some pictures before you go material shopping at your local DIY store. Match the colors together to see how they rub alongside each other; a clash can be fine if there’s a medium tone to blend them (like curtains or cushions), but they shouldn’t be paired together otherwise.
If you want to redecorate, check these areas first. It’s always best to ensure the structural integrity of your home before you give it a facelift – the work will go to waste otherwise!
