PAINT

"Painting is the art of covering surfaces, and exposing them to the critic."
- Ambrose Bierce

fauxed_columns_07 pic goes here — Through experience, which includes painful mistakes, I know a lot about painting.
Some things I've painted: Canvases. Walls. Floors. Cement. Wood. Cars. Pools. Signs. Furniture. Cabinets. Boats. Steel Weldments. Murals. T-Shirts.
Some stuff I've painted with: Enamel. Gel Coat. Acrylics. Latex. Oil Base. Stain. Water Base. Varnish. Brush. Roller. Spray. HVLP. HPLV. Airless. Pressure Roller. Texture Hopper. Windsor Newtons.

paint_travel_kit pic goes here — What painters can accomplish is dependent on a number of factors, including "shop" space (your garage?), the painter's skill, equipment, and especially experience. The top right photo shows the rear end of my trailer, with its own generator and compressor. Lower right: The masked man is a *very* talented painter,... handsome I hear, and can he dance!

generator_and_compressor pic goes here — What painters can accomplish is dependent on a number of factors, including "shop" space (your garage?), the painter's skill, equipment, and especially experience. The top right photo shows the rear end of my trailer, with its own generator and compressor. Lower right: The masked man is a *very* talented painter,... handsome I hear, and can he dance!

The easiest way to know your painter is incompetent: they leave the switch and electric outlet plates on the wall, tape over them, and then paint over and around the tape, allowing paint to bleed onto the covers. Then if you ever change the switch cover, and it doesn't match exactly, you see the old paint color. Lazy!
Taping e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g is a sign of inexperience and NO SKILL. Don't tape beautiful base board, as otherwise the tape wicks the paint to bleed onto the board. A good painter cuts with a brush by hand,...and its FAST, when you got skills. Tape after you cut the edges to protect the base board from roller droplets.
Then there's that "trick" of using a clear caulking along tape to get a straight edge. This results in very troublesome long term effects if your painter or DIY-er uses silicon caulking to perform the trick. Also, the gloss level of the paint rarely matches the caulk. Gawd help me!

Furniture and cabinets: the question is, can they be painted in your home? NOT. Although,... I just witnessed a contractor tell a client who owns a $1 million+ home that he "has a guy" who could repaint her aging kitchen cabinets in place. Such arrogant ignorance. Can it be done in your garage? Yup, by creating a spray booth with plastic sheeting, let's say. Painting fine furniture is a lot like painting a car. But don't expect to park a car inside while that operation is taking place.

Shown is a sanding block used on a cabinet to smooth the oil base primer that was applied over varnish in preparation for spraying a high gloss finish. trunk_sanding_primer picture goes here

mural_in_progress pic goes here — "Murals" can be full walls, graphic effects, or borders. I have painted between 100 and 200 murals in Las Vegas,... but have lost count.

paint_02 pic goes here — "Murals" can be full walls, graphic effects, or borders. I have painted between 100 and 200 murals in Las Vegas,... but have lost count.

paint_01 pic goes here — Above: Tenant improvement in an office and house painting. Big jobs, a whole lot like work. In areas of the country where rain is part of life, the paint on a house is so much more important than out here in the Mojave. That's Vegas, baby, where you can afford to have the cheapest laborer follow your orders. That can work. Teen age boys appreciate the pay. Just manage the job.

painting_eaves pic goes here — Above: Tenant improvement in an office and house painting. Big jobs, a whole lot like work. In areas of the country where rain is part of life, the paint on a house is so much more important than out here in the Mojave. That's Vegas, baby, where you can afford to have the cheapest laborer follow your orders. That can work. Teen age boys appreciate the pay. Just manage the job.