Can someone give me a primer on translating the British terms for wall / house paint into their American equivalents? [more inside]
posted by holgate on Nov 24, 2009 - 14 answers

My animation company is moving into our first real office and we want to make a very large "brainstorming wall" with a dry erase surface so that we can collaborate and share ideas more intuitively. [more inside]
posted by alexherder on Sep 25, 2009 - 13 answers

Repainting already painted wood paneling - can I just slap on a new coat? [more inside]
posted by Lesser Shrew on Aug 24, 2009 - 9 answers

I'll be spending this coming weekend removing possibly several layers of painted-over wallpaper from 70-year-old plaster walls in my new house. Got any tips, tricks, secrets, or advice? [more inside]
posted by nitsuj on Aug 9, 2009 - 18 answers

Why is gloss or semi-gloss paint recommended for exterior house trim? [more inside]
posted by muirne81 on Jul 20, 2009 - 8 answers

We're moving into an apartment with some really heinous paint on the walls and ceilings. We're painting it ourselves so we're not stuck with an all-white apartment; help us do it on the cheap. [more inside]
posted by uncleozzy on Feb 27, 2009 - 20 answers

DIY home repair - I would like to re-paint the walls in my apartment by myself. [more inside]
posted by alice ayres on Feb 10, 2009 - 16 answers

Got any advice for removing a gazillion layers of (probably lead) paint from a hundred-year-old banister, complete with an abundance of balusters? Oh, and a pocket door. [more inside]
posted by apostrophe on Nov 22, 2008 - 7 answers

Can I use metallic paint on my wall to make a metallic surface which I then can use magnets to stick things on? [more inside]
posted by aeighty on Nov 3, 2008 - 14 answers

The original wallpaper in my house was applied directly to the drywall. I'm guessing this is/was a pretty popular builder's trick, at least in the 80s (and oh, the horror of the peach and navy wallpapers), but even with careful scoring and steaming I am losing the very outer epidermis of the drywall paper in a lot of places. [more inside]
posted by Lyn Never on Jan 10, 2008 - 18 answers

Should I paint my untreated pine shelves then assemble? Or assemble then paint? [more inside]
posted by t0astie on Oct 25, 2007 - 15 answers

We are replacing a section of our white wood picket fence that someone's car hit and want to give the whole thing another coat of paint while we're at it so that the new section will blend in with the old section. What do we need to do? [more inside]
posted by onlyconnect on Mar 27, 2007 - 5 answers

I've seen several DIY shows on BBC America where ceramic wall tiles are painted using products described as 'new' - within the last 5 years - tile primers followed by paint and more recently, self-priming tile paint applied directly to the tiles. I've searched DIY sites and googled extensively, but I've yet to find a source in the US.
posted by carriest on Apr 17, 2006 - 3 answers

What's the best quick-and-dirty way to change the colour of my bicycle? [more inside]
posted by xanthippe on Mar 23, 2006 - 23 answers

I have an old house with lathe plaster. There are rooms that have had peeling paint that just got painted over a few times in the distant past. I do not much like the way it looks, and I would like to expose the bare plaster and start fresh. Is there any way to remove all this paint? I do not want to sand the ceilings of such large rooms, as I feel I will get tired of that real easy. I have not seen any solvent that lists paint on plaster as an appropriate use. I am quite confident that the plaster itself is sound and uncracked. Help me Obi Wan Kenobi, you are my only hope.
posted by thirteen on Dec 22, 2003 - 15 answers