There's much more to Nostr than straightforward social media. And all the facilities are accessible from one "password and username". This is how the internet you now use would work if it hadn't lost its way and been corralled by mega tech companies each creating a walled garden with their own rules, own dictators, own centralised mindset. View quoted note →

I'm OK with the sound of crickets when posting on Nostr about #paint, #kitchenpainter #decorator... In 2009-10 I spent 12 months religiously writing 3 blog articles a week describing the work my company was doing. Nobody read them. I was on Twitter and had very few followers or interactions. Then the following 6 months interest rose very slowly, picking up a few regular readers. By 2012 I "owned" all the search terms I wrote about and I had quite a vibrant Twitter account. The business took off. Online contacts became real world contacts. And being successful online looked so easy once it had that momentum behind it. But we all know it's not easy, even though the strategy ( for those not willing to buy success) is simple. Keep on keeping on being helpful. At some point every post I have published on Nostr will get read, a lot, which is why I put effort into them now for nobody to read. Nothing wasted but. #marketing is hard.

Had the privilege of #painting base colours for models in a large scale nativity installation. This is one example ready for the #artist to #decorate with motifs and symbols inspired by indigenous civilisations. Once completed they all get as many coats of clear lacquer as possible

Brush hand painters - pintores de brocha grande - they can paint fast with brushes and rollers. In my view the best technical painters are working in automotive. The level of discipline and product knowledge in spray painting is awesome. Even more than kitchen cabinet painters, they have nowhere to hide because everybody has a good idea of what a good car paint job looks like and how it endures. They have lots to teach the #decorating brush hands. This is where it pays housepainters to be open minded and adaptable. #Sata HVLP and RP guns, the most used in high end spray shops, are just the ticket for applying a super fine #paint finish on doors and trim. It takes practice and forever learning. That's me!

Heads you win. Giant figures for some procession or other. #painting #Spain

There is no limit to what can be painted. Even fish get a coat if they hang around long enough. I'm painting basecoats on plaster of Paris fish ( latex based stabilising solution plus 2 coats of acrylic wall paint). Once prepared an artist with a brush comes along to do their stuff. Then I protect it all with 2 coats of clear exterior satin varnish. About 40 of these will be on poles, minus masking tape, as part of a huge art installation #fish #paint

Posting on #olas and a couple different nostr clients, I'm afraid it's crickets for #painter and olas is buggy for me on android.

This video is full of half decent #painting tips. I can add a little extra guidance. The first one, don't use silicone, instead use a decorator caulk - interior/exterior 12% flexible acrylic that is designed to be over-painted, unlike most silicone. The second "bag" trick is really clever, by which I mean I never thought of that! It would be great on a load of deep screw holes. If you used "non shrink filler", it is best to do two passes. In that case the bag trick would be a fast way to do the first fill. Let it set off, then whizz by again for a second fill with a palette knife. The tape on the new sleeve to remove lint, good job. Vaseline to protect surfaces, not a bad idea, but a) I would use it on something you cannot remove - unlike 99.9% of door handles! and b) artists use a masking fluid that Im sure is more compatible with painting than vaseline. Cant think of anything at the moment to try it on, but worth remembering. The lid to catch drippy paint running out the stock of the brush is a bit silly. In that instance use a mini roller with a microfibre sleeve. Much faster and cleaner. When you wash out brushes, give them really a good flick and always leave them hanging to dry, or if not hanging, laid down on the angle with the handle higher than the bristles so water naturally rolls out the stock. The trick to force max paint out the brush is clever too. Combine that with a DIY paint roller cleaner! You convert a litre bottle by cutting the bottom open and screwing the lid to a fixed surface. Put the roller (on a frame) inside the bottle. Screw the bottle into the lid so it makes an upside down "flask. Put a hose on it, so the roller spins. There used to be a patent version of that idea where you span the roller inside a flask with a drill, literally 5 seconds and any roller was centrifugally cleaned perfect. The last trick is silly. Either use a bigger version of that brush to cut straight lines, or an artist type brush. In either case, the trick to painting a straight line is to keep the bristles turning. Slowly turn the artist brush between your fingers, or use your wrist to turn the bigger brush so you always have fresh loaded bristles in contact with the line. Easier to do than explain, so you can do it. Good luck #painting #decorating #artist haha

It's all in the preparation. Sanded new plaster or filler? Apply a clear penetrative water based sealer before latex/emulsion paint..Saves on paint, improves adhesion and coverage.

#color #colour genius

Painting outside in winter, take note of the dew point. And work that into the drying times of the #paint you are using.

Any views on reliability of diaphragm v piston pumps for airless spraying?

Can't beat a bit of #colour on a façade. Or in a room. I'm counting 4 colours on walls in a small space and it looks very right and easy on the eye.

Always do the tricky part of a paint job first. That's the tip for the week! #askahousepainter #askakitchenpainter

Decorators caulk is the flexible filler in a tube that you apply with a gun to fill cracks along the tops of trim and between ceiling and wall lines. It is a super time-saver compared to fillers and fingers, but it can often cause more problems than it solves. This is due to incompatibility between mostly latex (ie low acrylic content) paint and the caulk where the surface tensions are different and on drying the paint cracks. The easiest way to reduce issues is to find a decorator caulk where it literally says on the tube: acrylic, over paints in 1-2 hours, and the important parts: interior and exterior use and +-12% flexibility. If it doesn't say all that, especially the flexibility, it almost certainly doesn't meet those criteria and avoid it. #askahousepainter #askakitchenpainter

Watching #paint trade tips on YouTube, not much has changed in 10 years.

Are there any house painters posting on Nostr? #asknostr

For a primer coat on chalky and new porous surfaces there are a few paint choices. This is clear latex IE a PVA based clear sealer formulated to be over painted. This latex is a different beast to PVA as in glue or the sealer used by plasterers. I have seen so many issues where builders and DIY try to get away with this option to seal porous surfaces prior to painting. Don't risk it. By far the better choice of primer is 100% acrylic based. PVA is the poor relation to acrylic resins. Acrylic primers tend to be white but clear versions are available. And once you start delving into "best primers" you will discover a whole world of sealers formulated for damp, or smoke damage, lime or mould. One space age option is from Clasidur which penetrates deep into a substrate, binds down chalky surfaces and seals back stains. The painter's job is to match the correct paint to the substrate. 40 years on it is still not obvious how to treat some jobs.

Hard to beat oiling natural timber. Casual scratches and knocks do not show compared to a coloured door. #paint #decorate #restoration

What to do with the #paint on a door like this? Strip it off back to bare timber. For a translucent finish to highlight the grain, while maintaining the current colour, use oxalic acid to remove the stains, and finish with tinted hardwax oil from Osmo. If the woodwork turns out to be ropy, which is often the case for painted doors, the quick answer is a solid finish again with primer, undercoats and top coats. For super flat finish check out gras à lacquer linseed oil filler. The secret to. 10 Downing St door before it was bombproof metal.