Paint Tips

Ace Paints & Unfinished Furniture Painting Tips

Planning

A fresh coat of paint is the most inexpensive way to “remodel” a room, and Ace Paints offers the premium quality, easy-to-apply coatings you can use to add glamor and style to your home. Whether you are painting your home a simple and elegant white for a clean and refined look, or using one of Benjamin Moore’s, Modern Master’s, or Ralph Lauren’s unique faux finish products to create a spectacular effect, or anything in between, Ace has the expertise, and tools you’ll need to achieve professional-quality results. (Also, we know lots of professionals if you want let someone else make your home truly stand out.)

Preparing

To get a great-looking finish coat and the beautiful, long-lasting results you expect, take the time to ensure that the surface to be painted is clean, dry and smooth and coated with the correct primer. Preparing the room before beginning your project not only makes it easier for you to paint, it also protects your home from inadvertent splatters or spills.

Remove draperies, pictures, mirrors, area rugs, hardware (if possible), and switch and receptacle cover plates.
Move all furniture to the center of the room or the room, if possible. Cover all furniture with drop cloths.
Tape off woodwork and tape down plastic drop cloths.
Wrap plastic around light fixtures, and use masking tape to cover any hardware you can’t remove.
Open a window or door to ensure good ventilation.
Clean the surface as needed.
Gaps between walls, ceilings, crown moldings and other interior trim can be filled with the appropriate Benjamin Moore® caulk after priming the surface.

Smooth Operator

Swedish Putty is the perfect prep product for imperfect surfaces. Usually applied with a trowel or putty knife, Swedish Putty from Fine Paints of Europe is able to sanded to a glass like smoothness. Forget traditional spackling compounds. If you are using a satin or gloss finish coat you need a surface that is as smooth as possible. No need to hide imperfections with matte finishes when you can erase imperfections with Swedish Putty.

Available for sale through our website.
.75 Kg. and 4 Kg sizes available.

Promotions

$23.99 per case on 40 year caulk.
$19.99 per case on 25 year caulk.
50% off on Ralph Lauren Faux Finishing Kits

Clearance Items

New pieces go on sale regularly, so stop in frequently and be sure to check out our "mistint pile" for bargain gallons starting at just $12.

Painting Tips for Benjamin Moore Aura Interior Paint

1. Aura paint is self-priming. It can be applied over latex coatings, bare drywall, bare wood, and other surfaces with no previous primer coating. Ensure all surfaces to be coated are clean before painting.

2. Aura can also be applied over oil-based or alkyd coatings without priming. However, the surface should be lightly sanded or de-glossed, and cleaned before applying Aura.

3. Any Benjamin Moore color (and any other color) can be mixed in Aura, and is available in 4 interior glosses: Matte, Eggshell, Satin and Semi-Gloss, which are all washable, and durable. You can even use a flat paint in a bathroom. All colors & sheen levels should cover in no more than 2 coats.

4. All colors are also available in Exterior Aura, which is available in Flat, Low Luster, Satin and Semi-Gloss finishes. The Flat, Low Luster and Satin are Self-Priming, One-Coat Finishes; a primer may be recommended for the Semi- Gloss finish.

5. Aura Paints dries quickly, and can be re-coated one hour after applying the initial coat. However, the dry time can be slowed, and “open time” can be increased by adding up to one half-pint (8 oz.) of Benjamin Moore’s 518 Extender per gallon of Aura. DO NOT ADD WATER. DO NOT MIX WITH OTHER PAINTS.

6. Aura Paints are somewhat thicker and heavier than other paints. Therefore you should apply Aura with a firm, synthetic filament brush, or a high-quality Aura roller cover.

7. Aura blends into itself very well without lap lines or hat marks. So you don’t have to over work, or attempt to spread the paint out too much on the wall. Just be careful not over apply, which would lead to drips, or sagging.

8. If drips do occur, allow them to dry, sand them, and then touch up the area. Likewise, if you see that you missed a spot, allow the area to dry for one hour before touching up.

9. Order pizza and invite friends over to help. This makes any job easier.