How did you learn your trade? Pretty much I learned everything hands-on. It’s amazing what you can learn reading the back of a paint can or different products that you buy.
Describe a painter’s term. When you bring two separate walls or two separate pieces together, even if you’re painting a window section, we’ll talk about “can you cut the line?” We don’t want to see a painter come along and smear a bunch of paint up on the glass and say he’s going to razor blade it… The idea is to be able to cut the line.
Wrong way to paint: Most people dip their paintbrush in the bucket, wipe both sides, and they’ve already taken all the paint off. See, we just kind of put our paint in it, slap it on the sides of the bucket, bring it up, keep the paint on it and then you start to back away from where you’re edging to and work your paint to your final edge.
Best invention since sliced bread: Mini-rollers. They don’t splatter, they lay down the paint very nice and when you’re done with them, you take it and you throw it away, you know, and you’re done with it.
Decorating advice: Faux finishes are kind of not cool anymore. They were big for a while, now they’re not. Now colors are back. Darker colors, bolder colors are more in.
Colors used at home: My wife does that part… The outside of my house is almost an aqua blue with a pumpkin trim – kind of a soft yellow soffit base and as an accent (the numbers, lighting, little spots here and there) a real, real deep blue. And it works out pretty well.
Entertainment while you work: Radio. Fresh Air. Books on tape! I like listening to happy things… I’m a big history buff. I just finished up this whole thing on the Roman Empire because it’s kind of fascinating, you know. To me, history always repeats itself and I’m also a big time Civil War buff.
