Painter's tape can help create clean edges.
Painting can be a difficult chore, especially when it comes to painting trims or edges. While angled brushes are made for edging, it takes practice to use them correctly to create straight lines. Painter's tape provides a more convenient method for painting straight lines. Contemporary accent walls require a clean edge on the corner, and using painter's tape correctly can help the weekend painter achieve the desired result.
Placement
When painting accent walls or windowsills, painter's tape can protect adjacent walls or windows from being painted. Painter's tape should be applied to clean, dry surfaces. Blue painter's tape is made with a special adhesive that should not lift existing paint off the wall, but test a strip of tape in an inconspicuous location to be sure.
Painter's tape should be adhered to the wall slowly. This will help ensure a straight painted line along the molding or corner, as well as allowing the tape to adhere to curves or contours, especially on textured walls. If a long strip of tape is attempted, it can easily become tangled or could break when stretched. After applying the tape to a wall section, press along the length of the tape with your palm to smooth it out. A putty knife can be helpful to smooth tape and ensure that it lays flush against baseboards or moldings.
Seepage
Even when painter's tape is smoothed out against the wall, the possibility of color seepage from the new paint is a common problem for many painters. Solve this dilemma by painting over the tape's edge with the existing wall color to seal any tiny gaps that may exist between the wall and the tape. For example, use white paint over the seam where the tape touches a white baseboard. If the existing wall color is not available, use a clear gloss finish. Allow this coat of paint to dry for a few hours before beginning to paint the wall with the new color. Although this method adds another step to the painting process, it saves time that could be spent fixing a botched edge.
Removal
Painter's tape must be removed carefully to avoid pulling sections of paint from the wall. Ensuring that tape is applied to surfaces where paint has been dry for at least 30 days will minimize the risk of paint removal, as will using painter's tape instead of regular masking tape. Pull the tape back straight over itself at a moderate speed. Pulling at an angle will increase the chance of tape breaking or damage to the new paint job. Tape should be removed within two hours to 14 days of painting, but sooner is better. If the tape is removed too soon and paint is wet, it may smudge the perfect line.
