House Painting Ideas In Mechanicsburg, PA:
Although currently residing in Camp Hill, my brother and I both grew up in Mechanicsburg PA. The city has transformed wildly in our lifetimes, and I never imagined how much of this change we would have the opportunity to see while operating a contracting company. In this article I am going to present several cool trends and ideas I have seen pop up over the last few years. These house painting ideas in Mechanicsburg will cover both interior painting and exterior painting, as well as some more specific ideas dealing with design and color.
Interior Painting in Mechanicsburg – To start with, we have seen a noticeable trend with neutral colors leaning more toward gray and less toward beige. While Sherwin Williams Kilim Beige is still quite popular with new construction and quick flip houses, I have seen gray being used more and more often as the go to repaint color running throughout main, open spaces. Paired with bright white trim and any color flooring, grey has a more modern look that is resonating with customers of all ages. I am seeing it most often with dark hardwood, and it really does provide some added “pop” compared to it’s beige counterpart. Grey also has been working great with…
Painted Cabinets in Mechanicsburg – We have had a dramatic increase in the amount of cabinet painting we are being asked to do. While I sometimes hate to see the wood go (oak not so much), it is hard to argue with the clean look painting cabinets provide in both kitchens and bathrooms. Cabinet paint has come a LONG way in the time I have been in business. It was once a forgone conclusion that paint would quickly scratch or chip off of wood, but this no longer the case thanks to new and improved primers and topcoats. We take great pride in our ability to paint cabinets and I have written extensively on the topic. For specifics on our process, take a look here https://www.justaddpaint.net/house-painting-ideas-kitchen-painting-kitchen-cabinets
Painting Brick Fireplaces in Mechanicsburg – This is another house painting idea that can be difficult to accept depending on the brick ( I grew up with a brick fireplace that I loved dearly in my family home in Mechanicsburg, so I get it..) BUT – this is great way to make a HUGE change in the overall feel of a room that is otherwise stagnant. We have painted a handful of great colors on brick fireplaces, so don’t be afraid to think outside the box (although start with the same white your trim painted is if you aren’t sure which direction to go). Painting brick can make for an average level difficulty DIY project as long as your bricks are in great shape and not too porous. Otherwise call a pro (specifically us!) to make sure you get everything sealed in properly. A masonry primer is a must, and both Valspar and Sherwin Williams make an excellent product depending on the texture of your brick. In general, if brick is more porous and mortar has damage/is cracking, go with the thickest product you can find.
Painting Stripes in Mechanicsburg – We have seen LOTS of this lately, and it is not just limited to Mechanicsburg. Vertical, horizontal, football rooms, kids Disney inspired rooms, Pinterest inspired rooms, walls, ceilings, you name it we have seen it over the last 2 year. A few good rules of thumb before you decide to add stripes are: 1. Consider cost. Stripes involve lots of planning, taping, and re-taping so it is time consuming and can get expensive. More colors add more dry time, more tape, more days, more material, more labor, etc. 2. Make sure you know what you want BEFORE you start painting. We use Pinterest.com and Houzz.com as resources, and I am sure HGTV.com has some great stuff too. Making changes to stripes once they are up usually means a good sanding to knock down tape lines, priming, remeasuring, and then starting from scratch. There are tricks to knowing the best places for stripes to start and end, as well as figuring out the width you will want. Read up on this before getting started to avoid headaches. 3. Stripes are extremely style specific, and not for everyone. If you are not in your “forever” home, keep in mind that a striped room is one of the first things your realtor will ask you to paint over before listing your home. 4. Lastly, tastefully painted stripes look AWESOME and can create a great showpiece room for you home.
Painting Exterior Brick in Mechanicsburg – Like it or not, this trend is here to stay. Especially in the Mechanicsburg and Camp Hill areas, as our brick is aging and starting to show it’s wear and tear. Masonry work helps with damage but is very difficult to have match in exactly and often becomes an eyesore. Painting exterior brick is much more difficult than painting an interior brick fireplace due to the sheer size, and also because it usually has more damage from the elements. Airless paint sprayers can help work paint into areas that are difficult to cut and roll, but remember to use a fine finish tip so you don’t accidentally paint the house or car next door.
Exterior Deck Staining in Mechanicsburg – The bad news is that with new VOC environmental standards, this usually needs to be redone every 2-3 years instead of every 5-10. The GOOD news is that if kept up with maintenance, you can still keep your deck’s longevity intact. Remember that a solid stain is good choice for decks that have uneven color after years of semi-transparent stains, and despite popular opinion you will still be able to see the natural texture of your wood.
