Nothing separates a professional painter from an amateur painter like the quality of the lines they paint.

We hammer home the importance of prep work to separate you from a beginner painter, but this may be a close second.

If you want to avoid a painting disaster, brush up on your skills, and paint like a professional, then this article will show you one piece of the puzzle.

Clean The Surface Thoroughly 

Clean the painting surfaces thoroughly with a soapy cloth to remove any dirt, dust, and other grime that can end up redirecting your stroke and causing an uneven paint job.

Sandpaper To Remove Any Edges 

Remove Edges With a 60-80 grit sandpaper or an abrasive sponge.

Use An Angled Brush

Using an angled brush allows you to paint straight lines easier. You can buy an angled paintbrush with 1-2 inch long bristles anywhere painting supplies are sold.

Use Painters Tape

Painters tape is simple to use, just apply the tape over spots you want to block the paint from. Always remember to measure twice before you paint once!

What most people don’t do is this next step we’re going to tell you:

Instead of painting over the tape with the new color, apply a coat of the old paint color first so you can seal in the tape and prevent the new color from bleeding under the tape.

After that coat is dried, then apply the new coat. After the new coat has dried you can remove the painter’s tape and see your nice clean lines.

Let Things Dry

A mistake many painters make is removing painter’s tape too soon, rushing jumping into painting before the primer is dry, and applying 2nd coats of paint before the previous coat has dried.

Put Caulk On The Tape

Sure you can hand cut a straight line, but the truth is not even the best painter in the world can beat a good tape line. 

Double & Triple Check Your Work

You can never check your work enough times to see if you’re on the right track.