Babies’ growth and development depend on the surroundings. Good ambience has a positive impact on children, while distressing environment has a negative impact on them. Since a baby spends most of the time in its room, it is quite mandatory for the parents to make it a very cheerful and beautiful place. They can stuff the place with toys, baby-posters or baby-items. However, the most important job is painting the room, in order to, have a positive impact on the baby’s development. Painting is not a difficult job, as long as one knows what to paint, how to paint and how much to paint. A baby’s room is a very sensitive region and thus, requires extreme care on the part of painting. Attention should be given to the color of the paint and its chemical constituents.
Arrange for the supplies
The very step while painting is to arrange for all the stuff required for painting the room. Correct brushes, paint tray, paint, roller and drop-cloth should be bought in before the work proceeds. These components usually come as a kit, though one can also buy them individually as per his or her choice. To protect the door-rims, edges of other walls and furniture, buy a masking tape. This tape is pasted between the wall to be painted and the area, which is not to be painted. If one wants to create straight lines on doors, ceiling or other regions, edger should also be bought in.
Prepare for a good painting session
Once all the stuff has been arranged for, preparation comes in. One should not start painting without having sufficient preparation. This makes work easy, fast and risk-free, keeping furniture and other room-stuff safe from accidental spraying.
Before starting,, move all the furniture away from the area to be painted – most preferably to the center. Use a drop-cloth to cover them so that no paint falling accidentally from sides or above ruins their looks and features. Use a masking tape to protect the rims and edges from paint-spread, which is a very natural phenomenon.
Choose a color
After all the preparations is done, it is time to choose the right colors for the right place in the room. One can either go for a single color for the entire room, or different colors to give more effect and elegance. For this, get samples from a paint-shop or factory and spread them in front, so that, it becomes easy to imagine which colors will suit a particular time of the year. Baby-rooms are usually not repainted for a long time due to adverse effect of paint on them. So, it is necessary to choose only those colors that last long. One should not go for dull colors, but brighter and softer ones. While the bright colors enhance the place and captivate every eye, soft colors allow us to experiment with numerous color-schemes.
Paint on single or opposing walls
If one wants to opt for multiple colors in a single room, there are two options available to him or her that will give the room a beautiful look: single-walled paint or opposite-walled paint. These options are available for situations, where there is heavy furniture in the room, set against the wall or one wants to go more multitude. In such a case, one should paint each wall with a different color or opposing walls in the same color. This will cost more in terms of money and paint, but the resultant beauty is worth the price.
Making stripes
Painting on walls can be plain or striped. However, the latter adds more dimension to the painting and enhances the room’s beauty. Two coats of different paints are used: one as a base and the other for the stripes. Basically, there are two types of stripes: basic stripes and combing.
1. The Basic Stripe
To go for the basic stripe, it is advisable to use a ruler if one is a novice. In this, one paint color is used with two finishes: one for base and other for the stripes. For instance, in case of a child’s room, there are high chances of walls getting dirty very easily. So, it is preferable if one goes for glossy finish, while keeping the satin paint intact. For this, the entire room is first painted with satin-finished paint and then is allowed to dry for at least four hours.
Using a ruler, fix upon a stripe width value and make marks with pencil to mark out these stripes. Then, stick a masking tape over these lines and rub out the stray marks, so that, the final product is not tarnished by lead spots. Paint the entire wall with two coatings. It should be noted that these coatings should be thin. Once the activity is done and paint has dried up, remove the tape, leaving behind the untouched portions of the wall, thereby, forming stripes.
2. Combing
Using a pencil and ruler is a cumbersome job and is not very interesting. In such a case, there is an alternative to create the stripes. This technique is known as combing, which utilizes a special ‘comb’ paint brush, available in any paint-store. The first step is to select two colors, which look good with each other. Once done, apply a coating of the first paint on the wall. This is the background color and provides the base for the combing effect to show up. Give at least 4 hours for the paint to dry up. Once that is achieved, apply the second coat before it dries up, using the comb-brush, draw lines on the wall in whatever pattern you like: diagonal, vertical, horizontal or any other pattern. These patterns reveal the background color beneath the second layer. As combing requires wet second-coat of paint, it is advisable not to apply paint on all the walls at the same time, or use glossy paint as the second paint. This is because glossy paint takes time to dry up.
Things to look out for
1. Always open the room’s windows and doors while painting.
2. If you feel ill any time, take a break.
3. Ask your doctor before beginning your project.
4. If you’re painting an older room, make sure that the paint is not lead-based. Exposure to lead can cause serious health problems for you, your unborn child, and other children in your home.
5. Whether you decide to paint all the walls, or parts of the furniture, painting is an excellent way give a complete look to your baby’s room.
