Save Money Painting

The second I walked through my new house I knew painting was a MUST! I wasn't a fan of the muddy brown walls in the living room, the golden color in the kitchen, or the sponge painted gold-green-red in the bathroom (gasp!). I facebooked my friend Jason, who's a professional painter to ask his advice. He said that Benjamin Moore paint is the only stuff he'll use. He said that the cheaper stuff is absolute crapola. He said that the cheaper stuff is harder to work with and you'll end up needing more coats and therefore buy more gallons and spend more time. Plus, it isn't durable at all and if you wipe it down, there's a good chance you'll also be wiping off the paint. I know this to be true because the previous owners used cheap paint. I was cleaning the wall and a bunch of paint came off on my cloth and now my wall looks like crap.

Now here's the dilemma. Benjamin Moore paint (and other high end stuff) is really expensive. It can be around $50-$75 a gallon. So what can you do? The answer is NOT buying cheaper stuff.

Here's a few tricks to getting your paint for less.
1. Do you know a painter? Ask them if they get a discount anywhere and if you can take advantage of it. That's what we did when bought the paint for the living room.
2. Visit the dump! Yes you heard me correctly! In the spring time, the hazardous waste section of the dump has gallons and gallons of unused paint. My Mom painted our entire house with free paint from the dump. I'm totally serious! She got designer paint for free and in really nice colors too!
3. Check out the mis-tints at the paint shop. Benjamin Moore has a big section at less than half price. You might not always find the color you want right away, but keep on checking. You'll probably find something sooner than later, and they can always add a shot of more color if it's not quite what you wanted.

We're going to the paint shop soon to get something for my daughter's room. I'm thinking a light purple, but a sophisticated shade, not a lucky charm marshmallow shade. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they'll have some in the mis-tint section.

Happy Painting!

Me Ka Aloha
- Elisabeth