Primed and painting

When it comes to painting an entire house, the idea can be overwhelming. That is a LOT of walls. And don’t even start thinking about the ceilings or you’ll need a drink.

But just like eating an elephant, you can do it one bite at a time.

And when the plaster was all ready, we still had to give it a little time before painting.

Officially, the plaster veneer we used calls for 48 hours to fully dry before painting. But in some corners of the Internet (corners that care about these types of things), users recommend waiting for a month or longer.

Realistically, a month wasn’t going to happen. I would like this house to be done before Henry graduates from high school.

But we decided to give it more than the standard 48 hours to be safer. And since Ryan was doing all the work himself, many of the rooms had been drying for weeks. (It took him nearly 6 weeks to finish the whole house.)

When strategizing, we agreed that spraying everything we could would be ideal. We have an industrial sprayer (which we purchased when we painted our barn) and it sprays from a five-gallon bucket of paint.

The upsides to painting with a sprayer – it’s super fast and gives a nice, even finish. The downside – you have to be careful with overspray and tape off all the windows, outlets, and lights.

It was really a no brainer for us. We decided to spray primer on all ceilings and walls, and then go back and spray all the ceilings. Once it was dry, we’d roll and brush the walls to get the colors I wanted.

I was able to tape off and plastic everything in a few hours before Ryan could get to work with the sprayer. For indoor spraying, masks and ventilation are a must.

Right out of the gate, Ryan had a little hiccup and had to take apart and clean the sprayer really well. (There was some paint caught in the hose.)

But once he got going, he FLEW. He finished priming the entire house – top to bottom – in about 4 hours. Which is insanity. (We chose to use KILZ Premium primer, which is suggested for plaster walls and water-based for easy cleanup.)

It went so fast and dried so quickly that he got right back to work and painted all the ceilings the same day – in about 2 hours. (I bought Behr Ceiling Paint in Ultra Pure White for all the ceilings.)

So in one day, our house went from plaster to white. (Extra bedroom)

Like, so white. It was blinding. (Our master.)

So, I wasted no time cracking open the wall paint. I suggested I just check the color to see if I like it. And then I just painted the entire living room like a possessed crazy paint woman.

I picked Behr Pumice for all the walls – it’s the same color I used on the exterior of the house on the shaker shingles. It’s a little darker inside, but it’s a really pretty neutral – it looks grey in some lights, tan in other lights, and even a bit green in other lights. (Note: I received this paint from Behr as part of the Behr DIY Expert program.)

My mother-in-law came over the next night to try to finish the main living area and we got right down to business. There are so many windows that it went fast. I used Marquee paint and with the primer, it easily covered in one coat. (With a little touch-up in the areas that I cut in.)

And I’m sorry, but could you DIE over this view? I seriously can’t even stop thinking or talking about it. The sunset last night was incredible. And this is going to be our HOUSE.

At first, I worried that the color was a bit too dark. But I knew I wanted a little depth to the walls, and with all the natural light, I don’t think it’s going to be gloomy. Especially once we get going on trim work.

There really is a lot of power in paint. It makes it truly feel like our home. I’m still working on the stairway and upstairs bedrooms, but it’s coming right along.

And our flooring has been acclimating to the space and can be installed promptly.

Pinch me. It’s actually coming together.

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