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Painting the trim has been on my to-do list since we moved in. The trim and interior doors were painted in flat paint and it felt almost like chalk. Any little ding or scratch showed and there was no way to even try and clean them. It bugged me every time I walked through a doorway or accidentally touched the trim. Even though the trim was white, it just looked dingy and dirty. So this summer I decided to tackle the trim.

Well let me tell you, if you haven’t tried painting your trim before, how labor intensive it can be. I honestly thought it would take a weekend to paint the trim. However, I forgot I also needed to paint all of the interior doors and closet doors as they were painted in the same flat, white paint. This project probably took me an entire month, with the paint can almost becoming a permanent counter decoration. But I got through it and made it to the other side thankfully.

The first thing you want to do before actually painting your trim and/or doors is to find a paint color. Most people have white trim, but there is an ever increasing trend for black, grey, or some other shade. I really liked the trim color in our previous house, however our prior house was mostly grey tones. I wanted to make sure that the white we chose for our previous house wouldn’t be too cold for our current house with warm tones. So I dug out my “home binder” with all the specs in it and held up my “iconic white” paint chip next to the trim and the walls and it didn’t scream cold, so I went to Lowe’s and bought the paint.

If you don’t have a specific shade picked out it can be quite overwhelming when you are standing in the paint aisle. Choose a few whites that you like. You’ll be able to see them all next to each other and some might seem too stark or even too yellow. Take a few paint chips home and place them next to each other on your walls, bordering your trim. Then choose the one that you think looks the best!

When you buy the paint, be sure to grab some painter’s tape, a good paintbrush or sponge brush, and some silicone sealant. You most definitely need to make sure whatever paint you buy is semi-gloss. If not, it will be flat, not washable, and unreflective! The most important reason I wanted to paint the trim was for it to be washable as the pups are able to look out the windows. But one of the other benefits that I did not take into consideration or think about was the light reflection from a glossy finish! We have a lot of windows in our house and the reflection of light actually helps brighten up the room. It’s an added perk!

The first tedious task you’ll need to do is to tape off all of your trim. Windows, baseboards, crown molding, and whatever else you plan on painting. Then you’ll need to prep your paint by mixing it really well. Now, you can choose to pour your paint into a container, but since I didn’t use a roller (not even on the doors or closets) it was just easier for me to dip the brush directly into the paint can. You’ll also waste less paint as well. Be sure to mix thoroughly and often (~30 minutes).

Here are a couple of paint hacks:

1. Wrap a rubber band around the paint can with the rubber band in the middle of the opening. You’ll then be able to wipe excess off your brush on the rubber band rather than the side of the opening. If you use the side of the can you’ll most likely make a mess in the cover groove and possibly down the side of the can. It can make it more difficult to put the cover back on the can later.
2. If you can’t finish all of the trim in one day (hopefully it doesn’t take you a month like it did for me!) wrap your brushes with saran wrap. It’ll keep them from drying out and you can reuse them multiple times.

Not long after I painted a section or room, I went back and pulled up the tape along the floor. I wanted to pull it up before the paint dried just in case there was some paint that seeped through, and then I could then quickly wipe it up.

Now our house is a little bit older and as homes age, they tend to shift and settle. We had a few gaps in our trim that still showed no matter how much paint I applied. You may have these as well. After all the trim was dried and all of the painter’s tape was removed, I went back and re-taped the gaps. I then filled it with white silicone to close them. I simply put a string of silicone between the tape lines and went through with a paper towel and smoothed it all out and left it to cure. I’m so happy with how it all came out!