First time painting a flat myself, some feedback/advice appreciated.

dekaspace1

I last painted 20 years ago when I was doing charity work and we bulk bought paint so no worry about not having enough.

I bought some 1 time only Johnstones one coat matt emulsion 2.5l and wasn't sure if it was enough.

It was to cover a wall where the HA had done some work prior to me moving in, in the kitchen that I didn't bother about too much as it's where the fridge goes and beside it where I store things and a few small patches around the flat.

I put a small amount in a tray and used a roller to go over wall and it looks fine first time and even had enough to cover one of the other patches and to touch up the paint around the sockets and you can't tell the difference between that and the older paint.

In my stairway area though I went over a few darkened areas (after wiping them) and it looked great, put light on and you could tell a faint difference but it may fade itself and blend, but assuming I have enough I can probably paint the whole stairway area and if I still have some I can paint the bannister.

But is that a good idea for both? Matt emulsion on a bannister etc.

WIAWSNB

Matt emulsion is not suitable for areas that'll be handled - it'll soon look very untidy. 'Matt' is also not usually seen as an attractive finish for woodwork - satin or gloss will be more suitable.
Photograph?
And touching up walls is usually not completely successful due to the different paint textures, such as brush or roller, or roller pile, that sort of thing. So no surprise it can be seen at certain angles, even if the actual colour match is good.

Albermarle

From my own experience, 'one coat' emulsion is not always such a great idea, as sometimes you still need a second coat. Also as it is thicker in consistency, it does not cover as large an area as normal paint, so the cost saving as not as much as it seems .
Better to just use normal emulsion and do two coats. This has the added advantage that each coat does not have to be perfect- you can miss small bits and get away with it- so you can slap it on a bit quicker.
If you are covering dark areas with light paint, then best to use a good quality paint. If the colours are similar, then you can get away with a cheaper one.

For 'damp' areas, like kitchens or bathrooms, then best to use Vinyl Silk emulsion rather than matt.

dekaspace1

My walls appear to be chipboard or what it's called, like if I go to put in a screw in bedroom it crumbles what looks like wood.

So far, the large area in kitchen that I did apart from 2 small patches it looks like one coat is enough so can go over that area area.

Overall I have been hesitant to do this for various reasons, inc I was given wallpaper from a relative and was thinking of putting that up in stairwell but as I haven't done that before and given it won't be all level thought it would be difficult for a first timer.

WIAWSNB

dekaspace1 said:

My walls appear to be chipboard or what it's called, like if I go to put in a screw in bedroom it crumbles what looks like wood.

So far, the large area in kitchen that I did apart from 2 small patches it looks like one coat is enough so can go over that area area.

Overall I have been hesitant to do this for various reasons, inc I was given wallpaper from a relative and was thinking of putting that up in stairwell but as I haven't done that before and given it won't be all level thought it would be difficult for a first timer.

Photo of the wall material? 

Yes, wallpapering is a tricky job, and not for the faint-hearted unless you are that way inclined - very good with accurate and detailed work, coupled with physicality! 

Bigphil1474

Wallpapering isn't easy, wallpapering a staircase area doubly so, not for the beginner really. We've got about 9 or 10 tins of paint in our loft for various jobs we've done around the house. I always buy more than I'll need. It's worth getting some cheaper trade emulsion from somewhere like Screwfix. You can use that to paint the first coat - pour some in a pot, mix a bit of the top colour in with it, and save your good paint for the top coat. I have a big tin of white emulsion and use it for all the ceilings as well. Honestly, you might notice the irregularities but unlikely anyone else will, so if you are happy with it, good stuff.

YBR

Wall papering in a stairwell can be really difficult. Best if you can get someone to show you how and start in a room that is relatively simple with smooth flat walls, square corners and minimal things to paper round, like switches, sockets, light fittings et al.

twopenny

Light from different aspects ie N,S,E,W can change the look of colours.
Also light direction and different times of day.
I've done some patch covering and usually it looks right but depending on how daylight changes during the day it can sometimes be seen.
Worth doing though until you have the time and inclination to do the whole lot.

As the others. Wallpapering a room with square walls is ok. Anything with a bend or sloope don't put yourself through that.
Hang pictures instead.

dekaspace1

I don't mind painting the stairway it was more as it gets a lot of usage as I have a cottage flat with indoor stairs things like the banister and walls get dirty easily and also white walls looked bland so I wanted to cover it, I stay in social housing so was hesistant to spent money on it but in recent years being having a DIY urge.

I guess I could just buy a non white paint for the job.

twopenny

If you choose a colour choose something basic that will be around for a while because I did a huge hall in the 'latest' peach and these trends darken with time so no patching works.

That is unless you get an obsessive urge to keep painting it

dekaspace1

Hi, well due to dog I don't paint as much as I want as when she is sleeping I don't want to disturb her lol.

But I did more and more of the painting, the kitchen behind the fridge was a nightmare as I had to move the things I had stored next to it into hall making it look very untidy, and had barely enough room to move fridge into doorway to get behind it and paint and was worried about putting it back until it dried, mix in I mopped under the fridge, and the drip tray was disgusting to cleaned that and also ended up tearing a little of the lino so I had to glue it down.

All that to paint something you cant see, but it looks nice and noticed behind some posters in bedroom was some marks (where I had covered the marks with the poster) so painted them and the areas around them to blend.

Still haven't done the stairs though and have half a tub of paint left so may just paint that to use up the tub and I noticed around the window on the wall looks a bit dull so will do that but thinking I need the same paint as for bannisters/door frames for the curtain plate.