What tips do you have when painting a room in your house?

prep the night before painting day. Take off face plates and other hardware and keep all these items in a plastic container. Move and cover furniture. Wash baseboards. Put down drop cloths. Gather all painting supplies and tools, rags, etc. wear cheap flip flops so any time you walk away from the room you can leave your shoes on the drop cloth and walk into the rest of your house knowing you're not tracking paint anywhere. Use the correct size and shape brush. Don't tape if you don't have to. Practice makes perfect. Complete the job before stopping. Use a step stool or ladder.

That is a really good point, I hate the idea of starting a big project and having to run out a thousand times to supplement supplies. Thanks for sharing!

If you don't cover the windows, you will certainly drip paint on them! I use bubble wrap to mask windows: get bubble wrap from a stationary store on a wide roll, then cut strips the size you will need to cover top to bottom, as many as needed to cover the window surface. Use a bottle with plain tap water ( if you keep distilled water around, it might be better, but I've never actually tried it) in an ordinary spray bottle. Spray the window surface so the fine mist covers the glass, then simply press the bubble wrap into place. Capillary action will literally hold the bubble wrap up to the window. When the paint is dry, peel the bubble wrap off. You may need to clean the windows as you ordinarily would, but any paint drips will be on the bubble wrap, not on the glass. It litterally takes a moment to mask each window. If you live in a very cold area or have old windows like I do, you can save the cut bubble wrap and reapply for insulation during very cold weather.

Another tip - if your walls are tall, do get a paint stick to go on the rollers- I've used step-ladders, and the long handles made to screw into the paint roller handle are far easier, far faster.

If you are using a water based (latex) paint, paint the ceiling first, then walls, then trim. Keep a clean damp rag handy to wipe off any smudges or drips on already finished surfaces at once. Be vigilant, and you can cut way down on the need for touch-ups.

The advice others give is good too. Don't skimp on drop clothes. Cover everything, even if you think "Oh, I'll be careful." Wear old clothes or something you know will be your paint outfit from this point on. NO ONE can paint without some stains on the clothes, regardless of what they may tell us.

and most important - guess how I learned this? - unless you don't mind the dog's tail acting like paintbrush in the rest of the house, make sure he's secure before you open the first can!

Have someone else paint!

I think I have painted to much. I use a small 4" roller. I open the gallon of paint roll the roller lightly on top of the paint (avoid dipping into the paint) and move around the room. If I don't finish I drop the roller in a ziploch till the next day. When I'm done then I wash or toss the roller. The hardest part of painting is cutting in the ceiling corners or up to trim. Use a comfortable brush like a two inch dip into the paint start about an inch below the ceiling and at an angle go slowly up to the corner sliding across. When the paint gets thin on the brush, dip and start your next arc up. Practice, you've put on make up use that experience

prep your room for painting....curtains come down, pictures etc. do one wall at a time. fix any holes or dents, prime if spackled- then start at the ceiling, use a paint pad or brush apply paint about 4 inches down from ceiling- about a hands width , then use a paint roller making about a 2 ft swath of paint vertical on the wall, until you get about an inch away from base board/ window frame etc. then use the brush. brush around the windows, trim, base boards. etc. keep a "wet edge" ie don't stop in the middle of the wall.

Finish painting the 1 wall, cover the paint can and brush/ roller with plastic wrap, go grab a beverage, put your feet up. give the fresh paint a chance to skim over ie dry a bit. then tackle another wall.

keep a damp rag./ paint thinner ready for "Opps!" paint landed on the floor/trim/window. the damp rag is for water based paint. if you are using an oil based paint, keep a can of paint thinner and a rag handy for splatters/drips.

there are a few theories on how to keep an even coverage with paint. some just load a roller and go, others paint a section of the wall with a "w" and then criss cross it.

as others have mentioned pets, if you have a cat or dog put them in another room until the paint is dry. getting an oil based paint off a cat is no fun. the paint remover is toxic, and you will have to use baby shampoo after the paint remover to get the toxins out. I had to give 3 cats a bath after an episode of paint thinner....(the neighborhood brat decided to douse them in paint thinner, tied thier tails together and tried to light them on fire).

the part i don't like about painting......moving the fruniture.

Lot of great tips. Covered all of mine. The only thing I would add is that I got a magic eraser mop that will hopefully get the greasy hand prints off the ceiling. "Boys!" I'm not good on ladders anymore. I like a stool that has the bar to lean against. Oh, . one more thing. Wear a hat or scarf. It is hard to get even latex paint out of your long hair.

Good idea about the magic eraser. I wear my old paint clothes and a hat also.