Julian Cassell's DIY Blog

Choosing exterior paint is a task that shouldn’t be taken lightly, as not only are you making a decision from a decorative view point, but you’re also picking products that will actually protect your home. Paint really doesn’t like rain, and extreme weather conditions, so buying quality exterior paint that deals best with these issues will give you the most longlasting, and hardwearing finish. For instructions on application see my guides ‘Painting exterior masonry’ and ‘Painting exterior wood’ read more »

Brushmate is a convenient storage system for paint brushes that have been used for applying solvent-based (oil-based) paints, or other decorative coatings such as varnish or woodstain. Basically after using a brush, you simply hang it on a little brush hook inside the Brushmate, and days, weeks, or even months later, you can simply take it out and it’s still moist, and ready to use. If this doesn’t sound exciting enough, the guide below explains why this system not only saves an incredible amount of time, read more »

Wayne de Wet is quite simply one of the nation’s finest decorators. He was the Grand Winner of the Dulux Select Decorator of the Year in 2011, and runner-up in 2008. He also hand picked a Team of Dulux Select decorators, and they painted show homes and room sets at the 2011 London Ideal Home Show (Swedish house open plan living) and 2012 (The Santiago Town House and Dulux Design Service room set) – the same team produced great results at London’s Exel Grand Designs Live 2012, decorating multiple room sets, and Kevin McCloud used one to open the show. read more »

Choosing paint for interior wood generally comes down to a decision based on brand reputation mixed with affordability, as it is normally the case that the big brands have the higher price tags, and you as a consumer end up thinking ‘Can I get away with using the cheaper stuff?’ The other main consideration you need to make is about the paint system you want to use on your wood, which is a subject that I cover in greater detail in my guide – ‘Which paint for wood’. read more »

Decorating fillers occupy row upon row of shelf space in most DIY outlets, which I always imagine provides a very confusing message to most experienced DIY enthusiasts, let alone some poor soul considering their first decorating project. I appreciate that there are different manufacturers, and different package sizes, but that aside, the overwhelming choice seems to encourage buying a different filler for every occasion, when in fact you can do every decorating job you’ll ever come across with a far, far smaller range requirement. read more »