Split image of Danny Lipford and Tracey Amadio
In this episode of “Ask Danny,” Tracey Amadio provides her ideas and tips for portray.


In Episode 3 of “Ask Danny,” portray pro Tracey Amadio shares her guidelines and tricks for having the perfect paint career. 


Tracey Amadio of Porch Daydreamer
Tracey Amadio, a.k.a. the “Queen of Portray Everything” is passionate about portray! (Courtesy Tracey Amadio)

About Tracey Amadio

Tracey Amadio is passionate about portray. She employs knowledge from her home enhancement job to train Diy tasks, property design and style, and portray strategies on her internet site Porchdaydreamer.com.

Tracey’s enthusiasts have topped her the “The Queen of Painting Everything” mainly because there’s almost nothing she will not paint!

Her superpower of coloration memory and very long background of color pattern examination is blended to discover the ideal paint shades for you.

Her mission is to consider the pain out of painting and decorating with her quick-to-comprehend tutorials.

Tracey was named a 2021 Superior Residences & Gardens Stylemaker and her do the job has been featured in HGTV, Improved Houses & Gardens, Very good Housekeeping, Region Residing, Apartment Remedy and far more.


Open paint cans of white, blue and green on a wood background
Colour pigments, additives, resins and carriers decide the rate of paint. (annastories)

Paint Price ranges

Why is some paint substantially far more pricey than other brand names and kinds?

Tracey: Value matters… to a issue.

Numerous householders only emphasis on the paint shade and really do not consider about what is blended in with the colour pigments. Resins, additives and carriers — like drinking water and oil — are vital substances that will make paint much more highly-priced. 

Bigger-quality pigments and resins will make the price go up, but you’ll have superior coverage. The middle cost place is the greatest option to opt for. 

Recall: Quality notion is dictated by the man or woman who’s working with the paint. A qualified may want a thinner paint simply because they’ll be utilizing a sprayer, but a home owner normally needs a thicker paint for the reason that they’ll be masking a wall with a further colour or painting a piece of home furniture. 

Expending a tiny additional on that much better paint is likely to give you an simpler software and fewer brush strokes. Also, the paint will dry to a improved, additional tough finish.


Hands holding up a sample of paint color swatches against a wall of paint swatches
Choosing a paint colour can be overpowering. Find an item to start off your color palette and do the job from there. (Feverpitched, Getty Illustrations or photos)

Picking a Shade

Can you offer some steerage on how to decide on a paint shade?

Tracey: When finding a paint coloration, start off with the colour you want to foundation your palette all over. It could be a piece of cloth, a rug, a plate, anything that aids you hone onto the colour you want.

Take it to the retail store with you to choose the correct paint. Also base it on the quantity of mild in the area, if it a darker too opt for a  lighter paint shade and sop forth.

I have a free of charge guide you can obtain. 6 quick methods to picking a paint colour.

Also, take into consideration the lighting in the space you are portray. If you have a dark place, lighter paint, if you have a light space, you can go with a darker paint coloration, a mid-worth paint is going to be greatest for most men and women.  

After you have an concept of what shade you want, buy a foam board and paint it with samples so you can transfer it all-around the room to see if it will get the job done for you. 

Just take your time choosing in advance of you decide a coloration. See how the color samples appear at diverse occasions of the day. 


Hand painting wall trim with a paintbrush
A satin or semi-gloss sheen is best for trim and molding. (JodiJacobson, Getty Visuals Signature)

Picking Sheen

What are the various varieties of sheen, and how must you decide one? 

Tracey: I utilized to work at a paint desk, and I would usually see the “deer in headlights” look when I questioned what sheen a individual wanted. 

Sheen issues! It’s really a lot more crucial than color. 

There are 5 kinds of sheen: flat, eggshell, satin, semi-gloss and significant-gloss. To decide what sheen you want, look at the space or project you’re portray.

If you’re painting a ceiling, you want a lower-reflective paint to cover any imperfections, particularly wherever the joints match up. A flat sheen is most effective for this. 

For walls, you want a better sheen, like eggshell. Cooking splatters and accidental spills take place, so you have to have a finish which is cleanable. 

When you scrub a flat paint, it burnishes it and can make it shiny. Flat paint is terrific for touchups but not for superior-website traffic parts where you have to have scrutability and longevity.

The greater the sheen, the harder the paint will be when it dries. I commonly encouraged satin, at minimum amount, or semi-gloss for trim and molding. These sheens are nevertheless wipable but they’re far more long lasting, so they’ll stand up to scuffing and jarring. 

I don’t endorse a large-gloss paint. The more reflective a paint is, the far more flaws it’s heading to demonstrate. It’s also hard to implement, so I would go away that to a expert.


Paint brush swiping deep blue paint over faded blue paint on a wood wall
Exterior and inside paint can not be interchanged. Always paint the outside of your property with a paint rated for outside use. (Susie Hedberg, Getty Illustrations or photos)

Exterior Painting

What temperature is finest for painting a home’s exterior?

Tracey: Most of the time, exterior paint just cannot be applied in temperatures below 55-50 levels Fahrenheit. You want to paint outdoors when there is low humidity and the temperature is reasonable — involving 55-75 levels Fahrenheit. 

Paint has a great deal of water in it, so the far more drinking water in the air, the lengthier time it will consider the paint to dry. Let oneself three sunny times, if feasible, for the paint to dry.

When painting your home’s exterior, only use paint which is rated for exterior use. For the reason that exterior paint has to offer with temperature adjustments once it’s dry, it’s fortified with particular resins and pigments for unique longevity. It can broaden and deal to a diploma that interior paint cannot.

The best paint for exterior use is acrylic latex. I steer distinct of oil paints for the exterior. Oil paint isn’t straightforward to thoroughly clean, and if you are making use of a white oil paint, it will yellow more than time due to the fact of the oil in it. 

Now, there is oil-enriched enamel paint that is h2o-centered, so it is uncomplicated to clean up with cleaning soap and h2o like acrylic latex. This paint has oil molecules suspended within it, and as it dries, individuals molecules activate to act like oil paint. The end consequence is a area that’s difficult and durable with all the gains and adaptability of latex paint. 


Black and green plastic outdoor furniture around a fire pit
Refresh plastic outside furniture with a new coat of paint. (Jonathan Cooper/Pexels)

Painting Plastic

How do you paint plastic outdoor furnishings?

Tracey: I consider a twin tactic to painting plastic home furnishings. Apply a bonding primer spray very first, then include it with a regular spraypaint. 


Paint droplets on a beige carpet
(travellinglight, Getty Illustrations or photos)

Even Specialists Make Mistakes

Tracey: Even even though I’m a paint skilled, I in some cases go on the internet to see what other persons in the portray planet are performing. 

About a yr in the past, I determined to paint my stair risers, which have been stained and intensely polyurethaned. 

One blogger advisable liquid sandpaper, and I considered that could conserve me a step. I taped off the risers, used the liquid sandpaper and then painted on major of that.

When the paint was however damp, I pulled the tape off at a 90-degree angle. A total piece of film peeled suitable off the stair riser, and the whole position was ruined! 

I discovered a difficult lesson: Have faith in my intestine and go with what operates. Use a deglosser, then use a bonding primer, then use the paint.

My paint has stayed place and is vacuum-cleaner evidence as well!


Power sander sanding a wood board
Sand absent any imperfections ahead of portray wooden. (3 Echoes Articles Studio)

Tracey’s Strategies

  • By no means overlook good surface area preparing. If you do, the paint will occur off. Get the surface awesome and thoroughly clean and sand any failing locations.
  • Use stain-blocking bonding primer if portray above a stain. If you never, the stain will rise up to the floor and develop color inconsistencies.
  • Fork out attention to the re-coat time. A lot of folks imagine dry time and recoat time are the exact. Typically, recoat time is more time than dry time. If you don’t wait around the suitable volume of time advised by the producer, the paint will adhere to by itself and in no way absolutely dry. You conclude up with truly tacky, sticky paint that’s pretty much impossible to repair.  

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