Afternoon delight: easy weekend paint projects

From the Resene decorating blog

When is a pot of paint not just a pot of paint? When it’s a surprisingly easy and inexpensive way to revitalise a room. Here are five fun projects you could tick off in an afternoon – satisfaction guaranteed.

1. Make an entrance

The saying ‘first impressions count’ rings as true for our houses as it does the people we meet. Your home’s entryway is ultimately functional, but it’s also a chance to start as you mean to continue on the styling front by making it look and feel just as polished and welcoming.

“This space is the first, and sometimes only, part of your home visitors see, so you could perk it up by adding a feature colour to your front door,” says interior designer Annick Larkin. If the exterior of your home is pale, a bright or unexpected colour will really pop – try eye-catching magenta Resene Scrumptious, mustard gold Resene Billy T or saucy red Resene Rock N Roll.

“If bold hues aren’t your thing, try taking colour cues from inside your house,” says interior stylist Megan Harrison-Turner. “Think about the colours of the space your front door opens into and contrast or conform to that palette.” If you have an accent colour that repeats throughout your home, you might like to use the same shade on your front door to achieve a cohesive effect.

Use Resene Enamacryl gloss to help your front door colour stand out, or for a more subtle sheen use Resene Lustacryl semi-gloss waterborne enamel.

Beyond the front door, you might like to paint its surrounds with a contrasting or tonal shade or update the threshold with a lick of the general-purpose flooring and paving paint Resene Walk-on tinted to your desired Resene colour. Leave your front door neutral and opt for a statement feature wall in your internal entryway instead. Or take it all even further outside and use small Resene testpots to bring personality to your letterbox.

2. Door to door

Resene has a range of interactive paints that are ideal for wardrobe and home office doors, playroom cupboards and kitchen cabinetry too. Use them to create instant blackboards, chalkboards, magnetic boards and whiteboards for memos, artworks, photos and fun. Resene FX Blackboard Paint is exactly that, while Resene FX Chalkboard Paint is available in a wide range of colours to create a coloured chalkboard. If you prefer to avoid chalk dust, create a writable wall with Resene FX Write-on Wall Paint, a clear finish that you can apply over your Resene wall paint for a coloured whiteboard that will fit in perfectly with your room’s colour palette.

3. Redeeming features

Feature walls are popular for good reason, and those reasons are simple: they’re easy, ultra-effective and no big deal to alter if your taste changes. Stick to a single colour or get more creative – there’s practically no limit to the patterns you can create with paint.

In open-plan homes, a feature wall can be a great way to define distinct areas, such as your designated dining zone or a reading nook in a living room. Or use one to highlight a focal point, such as a beautiful fireplace, a picture window, a gallery wall or the wall behind your bed.

“When it comes to choosing a Resene colour, think about how you want the room to feel,” says Megan. If you seek serenity and calm, try inspired-by-nature moss green Resene Green Mist or yellowed neutral Resene Miso. Perhaps you want the space to feel crisp and refreshing – if so, try pale blue Resene Half Spindle, bleached grey-blue Resene Dusted Blue or hazy coastal blue Resene Half Kumutoto. For a more intimate vibe, opt for dusky warmed grey Resene Rocky Mountain, slate grey-blue Resene Balderdash or masculine ink-and ice-inspired blue Resene Avalanche.

Resene paint expert Jay Sharples says, “If the wall you’re painting is pale or light, you can skip the priming part and begin applying your new Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen colour directly to the wall. If the wall you’re covering is dark, apply Resene Quick Dry first to help cover the dark colour before applying your choice of Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen colour.”

4. Furniture, but make it fashion

Give your furniture an upgrade with Resene’s extensive range of fashion colours. This could be a simple cosmetic makeover with a single shade or visit @habitatbyresene on Instagram for an abundance of more ambitious ideas.

Whatever your furniture is made from, you’ll want to clean it thoroughly before you paint, to remove any dust and grease. If you’re after a shinier finish, prime with Resene Enamacryl gloss waterborne enamel, then follow with two coats of semi-gloss Resene Lustacryl semi-gloss waterborne enamel tinted to your chosen hue. For a vintage look, Megan suggests using Karen Walker Chalk Colour finished with Karen Walker Vintage Wax, for an on-trend shabby-chic aesthetic.

5. Make the switch

Here’s an idea that will subtly improve any room in the house (if you use a sophisticated shade that complements your walls) and bring a touch of fun to children’s spaces (if you go for broke with bold brights or themed colours). Say ‘see ya’ to standard or dingy power outlets and switch covers by removing them with a screwdriver, applying an even coat of Resene Waterborne Smooth Surface Sealer to the front and sides and allowing them to dry. Leave the back unpainted. If you only have a few, you can use small Resene testpots, but if you’re doing a house lot, opt for Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen or Resene Lustacryl tinted to your desired Resene colour. Take care to turn off the power when removing or adding switchplates and that the switchplates are fully dry before putting them in. Never paint the switch plates while they are still in the wall.

August 17, 2020

Take a look around your home – there are endless opportunities to update with paint. See the Resene project section online for easy step-by-step project ideas then visit your Resene ColorShop for everything you need to get the job done.

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