If you’ve moved into a home and plan on staying, then you should know that the days of plain white walls are long gone. Adding texture and color to your walls, and perhaps even stripes, is an easy way to make your home your own.
To paint straight lines on textured walls, you’ll need a few everyday tools that you may already have from previous painting projects. You’ll mainly need joint compound, painter’s tape, paint, and brushes. Although there may be different painting scenarios, the techniques used are all similar.
This article guides you through everything you need to know about textured walls and painting straight lines on such a surface:
- Various types of textured walls
- Why you should have textured walls
- Must-have tools for painting on textured walls
- How to paint on textured walls in different scenarios
Contents
- 1 Various Types of Textured Walls
- 2 The Benefits of Textured Walls
- 3 The Best Tools for Painting a Straight Line on Textured Walls
- 4 Best Painter’s Tape Options
- 5 How to Handle Different Scenarios with Textured Walls
- 6 How to Paint a Single Color Next to a White Area
- 7 How to Paint Two Colors (Not White) Next to Each Other
Various Types of Textured Walls
When choosing the type of wall texture for your home, you should go with what feels right for you. You’re the one who has to look at your walls every day. However, if you have no idea where to start, here are a few guidelines that can help steer you in the right direction.
You can often find thick or thin wall textures in homes of certain styles. If your home is rustic with large rooms and high ceilings, then it will be able to handle the drama of heavily textured walls. In Southwestern-style homes and overall homes with lower ceilings, you often find flat textured walls.
Dramatic Wall Textures
Below are some dramatic wall textures:
- Comb Texture: This is more of a regular pattern than many of the other drywall textures. Creating this effect is a two-person job. The first person should apply the drywall mud while the second person creates the pattern, usually a rainbow-like arc, with a trowel with teeth or a stiff brush to create something that resembles crow’s feet; that’s why it’s called that. This technique would require some trial and error until you master it. Instead of applying directly to the drywall, you should apply moist mud to a thoroughly dried drywall.
- Rosebud Texture: You would also create this texture with a brush on wet mud applied to a taped drywall. You might want to experiment with different brushes to create this circular flower-like structure. This technique creates a fairly uniform pattern compared to some other slap brush techniques.
- Trowel Skip: This is a pattern created by applying wet mud to drywall by hand with a trowel tool. The substance needs to be wet enough to spread thinly in small circles across the drywall, but not too watery to run down the wall. The result is a beautiful, visually interesting texture.
- Slap Brush Texture: This is probably one of the easiest techniques to apply to wet mud on drywall. You can experiment with different slapping techniques and different types and sizes of brushes. Using a larger brush would produce a bolder pattern and get the job done faster.
- Sand Swirl Texture: Instead of using mud, perlite primer is mixed with sand. You can perform this technique more easily if you have one person applying the mixture and a second person adding texture to the surface. You can do this by making circular motions with a large brush.
- Brush Texture Stomp: This is a series of straight brush strokes on wet mud over a drywall. You should use a large round brush with long bristles. This technique will be easier for those who can easily paint a straight line. You’ll need some practice if you’re not one of these people.
Subtle Wall Textures
Here are some subtle wall textures:
- Knockdown Texture: This adds a step to the orange peel technique discussed below. You use a knockdown knife to flatten the peaks left by the sprayed drywall mud. Let the drywall mud cure for at least 15 minutes beforehand. The result should resemble a stucco texture.
- Orange Peel Texture: This one gets its name because it resembles the bumps on the surface of an orange peel. After priming and mixing your drywall mud, you should spray the mixture onto your walls with a hopper gun in small splatters. To have more control and achieve the desired texture, you should avoid continuously spraying the compound. When done correctly, the result is an irregular, bumpy, textured surface.
- Popcorn Texture: This is still commonly seen on ceilings and is now being used by homeowners on walls as it is one of the easiest techniques. The compound used is a mix of Styrofoam and drywall mud and can be bought pre-mixed. You add water and spray it onto your primed walls with a hopper gun.
- Smooth Drywall Texture: This is an excellent option for contemporary-style homes. Despite its name, this texture is not entirely smooth. When thoroughly dried and painted, the wall has a very subtle orange peel texture.
The Benefits of Textured Walls
As a homeowner, you’ll benefit from many advantages of giving your walls texture. The benefits are both practical and cosmetic. Whether you’ve just moved in with your family or plan to put your home on the market, here are some ways textured walls can enhance your home.
For Families with Children
Textured walls are incredibly durable. If you have kids, you may have to repaint your walls every 2 to 3 years due to scratches and dents on smooth walls. This requirement doesn’t apply if you have textured walls.
Textured walls provide an unintentional benefit of soundproofing. The extent of soundproofing textured walls provide depends on the texture used and the thickness of the application. If you texture both surfaces of a wall, you get the most protection from noises such as loud TV or radio, kids bickering, band practices, and more.
For Homeowners Planning to Sell Their House or Condo
If you’re preparing to show your home and want it to look its best, adding texture to walls is one of the easiest ways to hide flaws without patching and sanding. When done correctly, a textured wall can be a work of art. You might have an accent wall that has a different texture than another color. At the very least, textures make walls visually interesting, especially in larger rooms.
The Best Tools for Painting a Straight Line on Textured Walls
The thought of painting a straight line along textured walls may seem daunting. It turns out to not be a difficult task if you have the right tools. Here are some top-rated tools you should have on hand if you plan to paint in your home. Chances are you have one or more textured surfaces, whether it be a wall or a ceiling.
Best for Caulking: DAP Alex Painter’s White Caulking
There are many types of caulking used for different DIY projects. For the painting you plan to undertake, you should look into latex caulks without silicone. Since you want your paint to last for at least several years, you’ll be looking for durable caulk that is paintable.
The construction-grade of DAP Alex Painter’s (18065) white lightweight spackling is a white, paintable caulk. Rated 4.7 out of a maximum 5 stars out of 1,492 customer reviews, this caulk comes with a 25-year guarantee of durability. This product cures within an hour, so you have enough time to work on each section of your wall.
Best Painter’s Tape Options
If you’re not a professional painter like most other homeowners, it’s important to find a kind of painter’s tape that’s easy to work with. You should choose a paint-for tape product that is easy to apply and remove from the wall and is durable. Nothing is more frustrating than tape tearing while being removed from the roll or painted surface.
Below are two of the best options for painter’s tape to paint straight lines on a textured surface.
ScotchBlue Original Multi-Surface Painter’s Tape
This should work well. Rated 4.8 out of 5 possible stars based on 331 customer feedback, this tape offers excellent value for money. With five width options and a wide range of multipack options, this ScotchBlue tape is an excellent choice.
The manufacturer recommends this tape for lightly textured surfaces. You can leave this tape in place for up to 14 days without damaging your wall or leaving sticky residue, but that doesn’t apply to this project.
FrogTape Multi-Surface Painter’s Tape with PaintBlock
This should be your top choice for walls with a more pronounced texture. This tape brand is a premium painter’s tape. Additionally, it is rated 4.8 out of 5 possible stars based on 3,779 customer reviews. What sets this tape apart is the PaintBlock technology that FrogTape has developed to work with latex paint.
Latex paint contains water that reacts with the polymer in FrogTape to create a gel. The gel forms a barrier along the edge of the tape, filling in the tiny gaps on your textured wall. As with all painter’s tapes, you shouldn’t push your brush bristles into the edges as this could break the barrier created to keep the paint in check.
Best Paint: RECOLOR 100% Recycled Interior Latex Paint
There are so many options for paint when it comes to painting your interior walls. You have to consider the available color shades, the type of paint, the type of finish, the cost per pint or gallon, and the brand’s environmental friendliness if you have the luxury to do so. Here’s a unique brand of latex paint that should serve you well and be better for the environment.
It’s rated 4.6 out of a possible 5 stars based on 271 customer feedbacks. What makes this paint unique is that RECOLOR produces its product from 100% recycled paint collected from other trusted brands. You might think this is an expensive process, but it’s less costly than manufacturing paint from scratch.
Tip: Although the paint manufactured by RECOLOR is of the highest quality, they recommend mixing several containers of the same shade to ensure that you have a large batch of consistent color. Due to the recycling process, the same shade can vary slightly from batch to batch. To estimate how many liters you will need in total, you should be able to paint 100 square feet of wall area with 1 liter (0.95 L) of RECOLOR paint.
How to Handle Different Scenarios with Textured Walls
Now that you have the right tools, let’s see how easy it is to paint a straight line on textured walls. In addition to paintable caulk, painter’s tape, and paint, you’ll also need a brush for each color of paint, paint sticks, drop cloths, and possibly a ladder or step stool. You may also have a damp sponge on hand to moisten your fingertips when working with the caulk.
How to Paint a Single Color Next to a White Area
There are times when you want to paint one color up against another area that is painted white. This scenario could be a colored wall against a white ceiling, something that is very common. It could also be a colored accent wall next to a non-accent wall that is already colored, or a colored stripe painted onto a white wall. Watch this instructional video:
Let’s go through the steps for you:
- Prime all surfaces you’ll be painting. This step includes all wall or ceiling surfaces, whether textured or smooth. Priming your surfaces ensures they are clean and ready for paint. It also helps achieve better coverage with the paint.
- Paint each surface with one coat of paint. Let the first coat dry to see how well you’ve covered the areas with paint. Then apply a second coat of paint if the coverage is not sufficient. Let the paint dry completely before moving on to the next step.
- Apply painter’s tape in segments of 2 to 3 feet. Since your walls and ceilings are not perfectly straight, trying to apply your painter’s tape in one long piece would be quite challenging. Leave a gap of 0.06 inches (0.16 cm) outside of the white edge. Use your fingertips to ensure the tape is smooth and adheres to the surface as securely as possible.
- Take your paintable white caulk and apply a small bead directly along the line where the white surface and the painter’s tape meet. Then moisten your fingertip with the damp sponge and run your finger along the caulk line. Make sure the caulk is a smooth, consistent line that completely covers the small space you left between the white edge and the painter’s tape. Continue smoothing until you’re happy with the result.
- Remove the painter’s tape immediately and carefully. Since the caulk can dry within an hour, it’s important to remove it before that. Removing the tape while the caulk is still wet will make the line as clear and clean as possible. Since you used white caulk and the painted area is also white, you won’t need to do any additional painting.
How to Paint Two Colors (Not White) Next to Each Other
In this scenario, you’re painting a straight line with two different colors on two textured surfaces. Neither of the colors is white, but you’ll still be using white caulk for this technique. You’ll often find yourself in this position when painting an accent wall next to another colored wall. Although less common, you might be painting a colored surface next to a colored ceiling.
This video demonstrates how effortless it is to paint straight lines onto contrasting textured walls using the same principles we learned above:
Here are the steps you’ll follow:
- After priming and painting your two adjacent textured surfaces, ensure the paint is 100% dry. In the example shown in the video, the homeowner is working on the line where two walls meet. Using painter’s tape when the homeowner was rolling the walls did not prevent the texture’s ridges from showing.
- Apply a bead of white caulk along the line where the two differently colored walls meet. Then moisten your fingertip with a damp sponge or towel. Use your fingertip to smooth the caulk and help it fill in the indentations to transform that line into a smooth surface. Allow the ca