do you use masking tape?

[jamie128]

When painting near skirting boards etc do you use masking tape to prevent it getting on the ceiling or the adjacent wall?

If you do it freehand can you reccomend me a good 'cutting in brush' preferably one i can grab from b and q as i have vouchers.

Also doing it freehand any tips how to hold the brush or which way to have the bristles etc?

[944fan]

Masking off takes age to do and it doesn't always give a better result. Just take you time and build up the edge slowly. I find the blue handled B & Q brushes are fine. They are quite cheap so if you forget to clean the gloss off properly you can bin and they don't loose many bristles at all. The more expensive Harris brushes in B & Q don't seem worth the extra for me.

[Vipers]

jamie128 said:

When painting near skirting boards etc do you use masking tape to prevent it getting on the ceiling or the adjacent wall?

If I had to put masking tape near the skirting board to prevent it getting on the ceiling I would be worried.

Couldn't resist. I know what you mean.

[jamie128]

944fan said:

Masking off takes age to do and it doesn't always give a better result. Just take you time and build up the edge slowly. I find the blue handled B & Q brushes are fine. They are quite cheap so if you forget to clean the gloss off properly you can bin and they don't loose many bristles at all. The more expensive Harris brushes in B & Q don't seem worth the extra for me.

I got a harris one for cutting in but i dont know if thiers any better ones, do you drag the brush along or push it into the join, how do you do it yourself?

[Big Al.]

If you do need to mask use frog tape gread stuff and it does what it says on the tin.

[RedWhiteMonkey]

Not a huge fan of masking tape but it has its place. If you're looking for a perfect straight cut with masking tape it really is worth paying a little bit more for Frog Tape.

[jamie128]

RedWhiteMonkey said:

Not a huge fan of masking tape but it has its place. If you're looking for a perfect straight cut with masking tape it really is worth paying a little bit more for Frog Tape.

Yeh the only problem is you end up paying about 7 quid a room to mask

[Hoink]

I use tape when painting as I find it gives a better finish. However it:
- is very time consuming
- expensive, it's surprising how much you go through
- can cause the paint to pull away from the ceiling when removing

All in all I think it's worth the effort.

[jamie128]

Hoink said:

I use tape when painting as I find it gives a better finish. However it:
- is very time consuming
- expensive, it's surprising how much you go through
- can cause the paint to pull away from the ceiling when removing

All in all I think it's worth the effort.

I used tape last time it took most of the paint away with it and it actually had good reviews but it was st

[Big Al.]

jamie128 said:

Yeh the only problem is you end up paying about 7 quid a room to mask

Cheap, if you have to spend hours cleaning off your overpaints.

[Hoink]

jamie128 said:

I used tape last time it took most of the paint away with it and it actually had good reviews but it was st

I tend to buy the cheapest stuff from B&Q. Results vary

[paul_y3k]

Found frog tape to be horrid. Super high tack that took the paint from the walls.
cheapo BnQ stuff was much better.

I've tried cutting in, never mastered it.

[x 7usc]

the longer the bristles on the brush are the easier it is to do! its not that difficult, unless you have a massive hangover hahaha

[Justin Cyder]

Cutting in is the thing. It's not that hard to do. Brush reasonably well loaded but not overloaded and the real trick - keep moving - it'll give you nice straight lines.

[jamie128]

Justin Cyder said:

Cutting in is the thing. It's not that hard to do. Brush reasonably well loaded but not overloaded and the real trick - keep moving - it'll give you nice straight lines.

The problem i find is if i try to keep going it usually keeps straight but i run out of paint quick and end up having to touch bits up which then makes it uneven again

[Justin Cyder]

Load the brush on both sides & flick it over from the empty to the full side. It's a knack but not applied maths!

Alternatively cut in until you run low on paint, reload and then come back in from above where you were before - like a plane landing if that makes sense. You just pick it all up with a bit of practice.

[Tumbler]

Big Al. said:

If you do need to mask use frog tape gread stuff and it does what it says on the tin.

This, wish I discovered it years ago, used to to paint straight lines on a wall, brilliant results.

[Pooky67]

Another fan of Frogtape here. Best to wait until the emulsion on the wall is properly cured (a few days) to avoid it pulling the paint off. It is excellent for pin sharp lines though.

[Willber]

I bought a really handy Harris paint pad which is about 5" square and has two wheels on one edge. It makes cutting in a lot easier, perfect for the novice painter like me and, I assume, yourself?

Masking tape is OK but it does have problems with paint bleeding under and pulling the existing paint trim off.

By using one of those paint pads and using gentle pressure you can end up with very clean and efficient lines, worth a shot for £3 in my book!

[kooky guy]

I only started using masking tape recently and I can't believe I wasted all that time and effort doing it by hand and getting mediocre lines before!

Frog tape is excellent. It's available in different tackiness grades so you can avoid pulling paint off (usually) by using the right tape.

I'd never go back to trying to do it by hand now. It's so much quicker and easier with tape and you get a much better finish.

Just stay away from cheap and nasty masking tape as you'll get bleed through/under/whatever it's called.