Wood paintwork – no licking

My obsession with stained glass is accompanied by my meticulous approach to paintwork. I soon learnt that it would have to be a hobby as no one would pay for the amount of time I spend on my techniques. The photos here were projects on my house.

I don’t do “a lick of paint”. I despise that phrase. I think it undermines the amount of work which is, in my opinion, mostly in the preparation*. I properly prepare the surface (stripping paint if necessary) which is the most time consuming part of my method.

For wood which will be exposed to water my method consists of five layers of oil based paint. I strip (the old paint that is) then: primer, two coats of undercoat, two coats of gloss.

I lightly sand in between coats to ensure the paint will not flake (see example in one of my door restoration projects). I leave at least 24 hours in between each coat to enable the oil to dry – more for the gloss.

I also apply low tac masking tape around edges to protect glass from splash-back and to ensure a crisp paint line (click here for stimulating video demonstration).

I have always liked the simplicity of my original windows. My favourite feature being the green trim in-between the toplights and the lower section. I imagine this is designed to shelter the inner part of the sill from direct rain. The previous owner had painted it white but dark green is my favourite colour and I like the contrast against the white.

I last applied a new layer of paint to my windows in 2021. I did not lick the window sill, I used a good quality paint brush.

*Other phrases which get on my wick, always pronounced with a cheery carefree tone but usually imply limited understanding of the job:

• “do it up” – (the American equivalent is “a doer upper”) why up? I prefer “restoration”.
• “the house will look great once we put our stamp on it” – sometimes I’m tempted to advise people where they might insert that stamp – particularly if their ideas involve removing period architectural features. This phrase is predominant in the narration of low budget daytime television “makeover” programmes.