Preparing the woodwork for painting is a very important job. Unless it is all new wood or been well looked after, there will no doubt be imperfections which need to be put right. Before any painting can be done, the woodwork will need to be sanded.

Start off with a 120 grade sandpaper to get rid of any paint drips or imperfections and finish with a very fine paper. Always sand in the direction of the grain. When this is finished, hoover up all the dust and wipe the wood over with white spirit.

Please check out my other pages for painting and decorating tips and advice. Painting Walls and Ceilings

The first task before any painting or decorating work can proceed, is to move the furniture. Sound like common sense? Move all the furniture into the centre of the room and box up any valuables. Cover as much as you can with dust sheets. Dust sheets on the floor should be doubled up to prevent any paint getting onto your carpet.

Cover all electrical goods with a protective plastic sheeting. Take down or cover all your curtains and pictures etc.

Our painters and decorators always carry a good supply of dust sheets and coverings.

The more of this you can do, the quicker the painters and decorators can get the job done and get your home back to normal.

If you decide to strip wallpaper off yourself, invest in a steamer or hire one. Once the paper is off the walls, they must be prepared for painting and decorating.

Wash the walls down with sugarsoap. You will now be able to see how much preparation and repair will need to be done to the walls before any decorating can be done. Check out this page Interior Painting Problems