What to do to spruce up an old room?
Question:I have an old house and it took forever to get the wallpaper off the 4 walls. They look awful and have the old big wood baseboards. I don't have allot of time or $$ for re-doing but I need to paint in a way it covers the wall damage and what do I do with the base boards instead of removing them? The room is pretty small also...
Answers:
Grab yourself a bunch of stucco mix and trowel it onto the walls (fresco work)...no need to be picky, bumps, ridges and grooves are all fine...then paint a nice fresh 'wash' over it in ... no need to ensure it's all coated, white showing through gives character...choose a nice fresh color that will brighten the room up...whites with a blue, green or purple hue...just a hint of color works well or a nice pale golden yellow for that Italian fresco look. Base boards...these are character adders ... paint them a fresh white...this is particularly stunning in a room with a dark wood floor.
Or go with a nice tan/beige color with white base boards...also nice and fresh then add color with the accents (pillows, vases, art work etc) Minimalistic furnishings and trinkets/knic knacs.
Stay away from patterns of any sort and no dark colors on the walls...if the ceiling has that tin on it...paint this a fresh white as well to add height. Filmy curtains or sheers or those great wide bamboo slatted blinds (roman) in an ivory or white will look great as window accents. Check with a local fabric store...we have Bouclair's here and I purchased all the roman blinds for our house for under $100...all on sale, most expensive one was $8.00 (cheap decorating that looks incredible is always the most fun!)
Main thing...nice fresh painted fresco work will cover up the imperfections already there and it's so easy to slap on...a bucket of the premixed might set you back $25.00. Do a search if you think this is of interest ... for fresco walls, create a fresco look etc. Try to stay away from more wall paper...unless you are considering the textured paper that is paintable...still, it is somewhat more expensive. The alternative is wood or tile of some sort...but that's expensive too.
Without seeing the room or knowing which room it is...dining/sitting/living/bed... etc., this is the best I can suggest ;)
Good luck
You can buy a textured paint that will cover the unsightly look of wallpaper. Also, I would recommend painting the baseboard white. This will brighten and make the room look new. Good luck!
Paint is the least expensive option. It is also the most "reversable" (as you discovered getting that darned wall paper off!)
The best advice is to use a primer first and to make sure you use a FLAT finish, not a GLOSS
Gloss finishes are popular because they clean up more easily, but they are notorious for showing imperfections in the wall.
Personally, I'd also avoid faux finishes, because they often come out very badly. Also, if you go with textured paint, be sure you like the texture and know how to apply it correctly because if you don't like it, you'll have to scrape/sand it off.
Paint thick, then sponge darker color over it. Between the sponging and applying the paint thickly, it will cover a lot of mistakes. Tried it!
The big old wooden baseboards & woodwork are what gives an old house it's charm! You can buy texture to add to paint that will cover the damage. We just used it the first time ourselves and were thrilled with the results! I would leave the baseboards and paint them if anything!
usually u can go to a home depot and they show a variety of different ways to paint walls , new curtains and a few throw rugs always brighten up a room, if u don't have a home depot where u live try calling the hardware stores in ur area and see if they have any displays
paint the baseboards black!! (spray paint will do)...go to home depot and look for the paint section, they always have paint that was ordered and never picked up...they sell it for cheap...($5) if their isnt plenty of one color for your entire room, buy two colors that look mixable and make your own ! its so much fun! i just did it and painted my room chocolate brown with red wine opposite walls. i even removed the old crappy carpet and painted the cement floors...i love my cheap room!
Well, depends what room it is, but you should paint the walls a pale white/green witha thick coat of paint, and you should either put a rug, or even better, a hardwood floor, on the floor.
If the room has windows, add some color. If the room is old and dingy and like an old granny bedroom, add some pizzaz to it!
I would put a sleek modern white couch, and two bright green pillows. Buy a white coffee table (not glass because it's really hard to clean!) and a bright green vase, and put white tulips in it.
Put some modern abstract green and white art on the walls, and a fluffy green or white rug under the coffee table.
You should also maybe put in a white tv and maybe another couch, one person sofa, or loveseat.
If you don't like green, do this same idea with another color, like bright pink, or bright blue, or bright purple.
Don't do browns or greys or tan's because your room will look old again!
Try to get modern and sophisticated!
Good Luck!!
After the walls are clean, use a sander to smooth them. If you don't, you may be sorry that you went to the work to take off the wallpaper, but the walls look rough. You may need to fill any little nail holes or dents with some filler, too. A satin finish paint on the walls and ceiling will make the room feel like new. Good luck!
Fix-ups don't have to be expensive. I understand how it can be when you're pressed for time and money. Damaged walls can be easily fixed with a little puddy and a faux finish. You can fill in the lines in your wood panel with puddy, let dry, sand and paint over it. You’ll never be able to tell that it’s a wood panel. Also, I recently added a faux finish to my room and I love it. The faux finish adds texture to walls which will cover the damaged walls and make your room stand out. Home Depot has faux finish books to show you how to do it.
For your paint you might also try Home Depot because people always request colors and never pick them up, or the person mixing the paint doesn't get the shade quite right and so they sale the paint for really cheap. You may like some of the colors.
Now for the trim, if the floor trim is worn, cracked or just plain ugly, you can replace it for a good price. Home Depot carries a new foam trim that is pre-painted in several finishes and costs less than 50 cents per linear foot.
I hope this helps.
just hang a picture over it or add some drapes. and for the floors add a nice inexpencive carpet.
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