" One of the simplest and most effective makeovers you can do is to add a fresh coat of paint to your room. The secret to a great paint job is in the preparation. The better your preparation, the better the result. Preparing the surfaces carefully before you start painting will make your finish paint job look great. The first step is to ensure that you have as little clean up as possible to do after the job is complete. Protect furniture by removing whatever pieces you can out of the room. Place any furniture that its two bigger heavy to move easily into the center of the room. Cover the remaining furniture completely with drop cloths, then cover the entire floor with drop cloths or vinyl tarps. Cover every inch of the ground and the furniture before you start, so you don't have to move cloths with drips of wet paint on them halfway through the project. With the furniture and floor protected, it's time to prepare the walls. Walls have to be clean to have it painted here properly. Professionals used to use trisodium phosphate or TSP. Now, you often find a substitute. TSP is an industrial cleaner that removes grease, grime, and stains, and sets up to existing paint to bond with a new coat. Following the instruction, apply the TSP substitute with a sponge. Rinsing the sponge as you. Be sure to wear rubber gloves and goggles when you work. After TSP has been applied, it must be rinse off with fresh water. Otherwise, it can prevent the paint from sticking properly. Next look for any signs of mildew, which appear like black smudges or dots. To remove mildew mix one part of household bleach with three parts of water and wipe down the stains. The bleach will kill the mildew preventing it from growing back through your new coat of paint. This is a short-term fix however. You should determine the cause of the mildew to keep it from returning. Eliminating mildew in your home is not only good for your decor but good for your health as well. Now, it's time to go after the bumps and cracks that mar a good finish. Fill the picture hook holes, cracks, and dents in the wall with compound. Press premixed spackle into the holes and dents using a putty knife. Smooth the spackle until it's just slightly higher than the surface of the wall. It will shrink slightly when dry. Spackle like this are colored and turn white when they dry. If you don't have a sanding block, staple a piece of fine sandpaper to a flat piece of wood, and holding it flat against the wall. Lightly sand the surface. If you're painting gloss or semi-gloss surfaces such as doors or window trim. You should sand the gloss surfaces to ensure the new paint can bond to the surface. Edges need to be carefully masked off. Apply masking tape right up to the edge of where you're going to paint and press it in place. Apply a coat of primer paint to all the surfaces that you spackled or sanded. The primer seals the wall and establishes an excellent bonding surface. Any area that you repair or any new wood trim should get a coat of primer as well. And now it's time to paint the room. Apply the paint smoothly with a roller starting first by making it W and then spreading the paint evenly across the wall. Edges are cut in with a good quality brush, sweeping the brush up to the edge. With practice, you'll end up using a lot less masking tape. Depending on the wall and the color your covering, you may require a second finish coat. But the result will have a smooth even professional finish."