TIL a trick for painting trim without tape that actually works

I always used painter's tape for my baseboards. Took forever. Last week, I was painting my living room in my place in Denver. Ran out of tape halfway through. My neighbor said to try a steady hand and a good angled brush instead. I thought he was nuts. But I tried it with a 2.5 inch angled Purdy brush. You have to load the brush right, not too much paint. Then you just press the angled tip into the corner where the wall meets the trim and pull slowly. It leaves a super clean line. Did my whole room in maybe an hour, saved a ton of time and money on tape. Anyone else skip the tape and just use a good brush? What's your go-to brand?

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3 Comments

cooper.phoenix6mo ago

Hold up, you're telling people to just freehand it? That's a disaster waiting to happen for most folks. A steady hand sounds great until your coffee kicks in or you get a text and your arm jumps. Tape might take longer but it gives you a foolproof line every single time, no skill needed. I've seen too many DIY jobs with wobbly edges because someone got overconfident with a brush. The extra time for tape is worth not having to fix your mistakes later.

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laurac966mo ago

Have you considered how tape can actually cause more bleed under the edge on textured walls? That smooth line you want often ends up fuzzy anyway, and then you're peeling off dried paint and touching up both sides. Sometimes a good angled brush with a light touch gives you more control over the final result on imperfect surfaces.

4

adam7316mo ago

A steady hand is a skill you can build, and it's faster than fixing tape bleed later.

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