Neighborhood Painting Expert

Continuing in my series of articles on experts in our neighborhood, this time I am introducing you to Karen Gehrke ( www.KarensDecorativePainting.com ) or (763) 424-4156.
Karen is a professional painter and artist -- Muralist/Decorative Artist and Interior Painter and Color Consultant.

Murals and Interior Artistry
First impressions are key for the home. Interior artistry works for any room but especially for the entry or a kitchen or to "add" a window to a room. Karen also often paints accents around a room as a decorative touch -- the murals and artistic touches take from 1-4 days to complete and these details can set your home apart!

Tips
Interior
Preparation (prep'ing) is key.
Clean the walls, patch and fill any holes, gouges and cracks - using pre-mixed drywall mud which comes in small quantities makes it easy.
Next, prime the walls, especially if you are covering dark colors. If you are repairing smoke or water damage, an oil-based primer is important - Kilz works well for this as well as for priming dark-stained woodwork. Additionally, a flat primer helps with paint adhesion.
Patience and skill -- it will take liberal amounts of both of these to finish with a nice-looking paint job. Often rooms will take 3-4 coats, especially if covering a previous dark color.
Go with quality -- paint and supplies.
Paint -- Karen gets her paint at Hirschfields where she chooses a 97% low-smell (low VOC/environmentally friendly) paint. She says Hirschfields paints often can complete a job in just one or two coats.
Rollers and Brushes -- use Purdy brushes which you can also get at Hirschfields. Don't reuse your rollers. If you will be starting with the same color the next day, you can wrap your rollers in Cling Wrap overnight but must clean brushes at the end of each day.
Painters Tape -- she gets this at Sherwin Williams and recommends using a credit card to ensure the tape is tightly adhered in corners and around wood trim prior to painting. She also recommends removing the tape while the paint on the wall is still wet to prevent lifting the paint from the wall with the tape.
Clean-up -- to clean paint from trim (prior to drying), use baby wipes or a wet rag.

Types of Paint
Flat -- good for primer, but is not washable so won't work as a final coat. Often used in new construction as it makes for a good primer coat and is inexpensive.
*Egg Shell* -- Karen's favorite. Hides imperfections in the wall better than more glossy paints and is cleanable.
Satin/Semi-gloss -- more shiny so will show imperfections in the wall but very cleanable.
Enamel -- more for woodwork and cabinets
Lacquer -- very hard and durable. Similar to varnish, won't yellow like polyurethane.

Choosing Colors
Accent walls are one wall or section of wall painted a different color than the rest of the room. These can add interest to a room and also add a feeling of space.
Colors should be chosen according to the home-owner's taste and to accent the rest of the home.
Dark colors are ok and don't necessarily make rooms feel smaller, they can sometimes be calming.

Finally, some tips when hiring a painter.
A painter should be responsive to your needs and phone calls. If you don't get prompt returned calls or they aren't there when they say they will be, choose someone else. You want someone who will work hard to get the job done in a reasonable time and see it through to completion, including the details!
Look for an experienced painter and ask for references-these should be freely provided from a reputable painter.

A good suggestion is the professional we have right in our neighborhood -- Karen Gehrke.
She can be reached at (763) 424-4156 or ( www.KarensDecorativePainting.com )