My neighbor's comment made me rethink my whole approach to painting trim

I spent last Saturday painting the baseboards in my living room, taking forever to cut in perfectly around every corner. My neighbor Bob came over to borrow a ladder and said something like "you know, nobody notices the tiny brush strokes unless they're crawling on the floor." He told me he uses a small foam roller for trim and gets a smooth finish in half the time. I tried his method on the hallway last night and honestly the result looks cleaner than my careful brush work. The whole job took me about 45 minutes instead of 2 hours for a similar sized space. Has anyone else found shortcuts that go against the "right way" you always hear about?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_phoenix17d ago

Legit try a 4 inch foam roller for door casings too. I was always told you gotta use a brush for the detail work but Bob's onto something real. The foam lays down such a thin even coat that it self levels almost like spray paint. I did my whole kitchen baseboards in under an hour with a roller and some Frog tape for the floor. Only place I still break out the brush is the top edge where the trim meets the wall because the roller can bump into the paint line. Honestly I think half the "right way" painting rules are just old timers gatekeeping simple stuff.

harper_wright17d ago

Try using the foam roller on the top edge too if you cut the foam at an angle?