Decorating Tips - Filling Cracks

You are probably on our website looking at wall stickers as you have recently decorated a room or are just about to re-decorate. So I thought that maybe you would like a few tips and hints from a professional so I have enlisted the help of Jen Pashby who is my local painter and decorator. If you are a regular DIYer, no doubt you'll already be familiar with these techniques, but those of you who have never picked up a paint brush this could be the information you need to start on your own project. The first tips I asked Jen to look at was wall preparation and this post covers how to deal with cracks before you get to putting your lovely new paint on the walls.

Step 1. Remove, dirt, grease and any other loose or flacking paint from wall surface.

Step 2. Repair all holes, cracks and dents from the wall by first digging out the area with a scraper, this will help the filler bond better and evenly hopefully stopping it cracking again, brush away any loose plaster and dust.

Step 3. Using a multi-purpose filler on a scraper push the filler evenly into hole then scrape any excess.

Step 4. Smoothing the wall surface can either be done by hand sanding or electric sander making sure to wear a face mask and open the window as it will get dusty. Aswell as smoothing the sanding will create a good surface for the paint to bond too. The more you prepare the better the finish!!!

Tip. If you are decorating the whole room make sure joining walls and ceilings are painted before wall stickers are apply as this could be difficult to edge afterwards.