4 Tips For Choosing Grays

Gray is a modern neutral perfect for most homes. An update from tan and beige, gray add sophistication and versatility. Here are our 4 Tips For Choosing Grays.

1. Notice that gray isn’t just gray.

Gray paints are mixed with other colors like pink, brown, purple, blue, green, and neutral. You can best see this when you lay grays down next to each other. Don’t pick one that looks pink-ish or purple-ish. It rarely turns out well. For some reason those read even more pink or purple once the whole room or house is painted that color. Stick with brown, blue, green, or neutral undertones.

2. ALWAYS choose paint after you pick fabrics.

Fabrics or textiles include curtains, pillows, bed spreads, and upholstery. Fabrics are designed by professionals who understand how colors work together. If the fabrics you choose have a gray color in them you can choose a paint color close to it but a shade lighter or darker depending on the look you're going for. Consider fabric your cheatsheet for picking paint colors.

3. Paint your samples onto a big poster board.

One color per poster. It's mobile, can be switched around, removed, and placed next to furniture. You want the perfect gray in each space so this is a must for choosing well. Pay attention to how the same poster board looks different in different lighting!

4. Choose one that works with what you already own.

Everyone has a natural inclination toward furniture that has brown warmth or blue-ish coolness. To keep the space harmonious choose either a neutral gray or one with an undertone that matches what you already have in your home.

For gray paint inspiration, check out our Pinterest board!

How Much to Paint Kitchen Cabinets?

We value transparency in our pricing. We want you to know up front how much things will cost given the scope of the work you want done. Painting your cabinets is more economical than replacing them and it can add value to your kitchen quickly, but it isn’t cheap. So how much should you plan for us to repaint your kitchen cabinets?

The average cost of having us paint your kitchen cabinets is about $1,400-6,000* depending on the amount of cabinetry you have in your home. Thats about ⅓ to ½ the cost of having a professional replace them with low end products. A cabinet painting project usually takes an average of 4-6 business days for our crew. Compared to the cost and inconvenience of replacing cabinetry, this option provides minimal disruption and expense for a dramatic transformation.

On the low end, the average cost of replacing kitchen cabinets is $7,000-15,000 and up. And you have to hire a contractor, take measurements, order them, and wait for them to arrive–sometimes for weeks. Then you have to tear out your kitchen and install them. Not to mention the added expense of countertops, flooring, and back splashes. Painting existing cabinets is very attractive when you don’t want to overhaul your kitchen or invest a ton in upgrading the look.

AQPJ painted these cabinets to a smooth finish.

What is the process for painting cabinets with a standard smooth finish?

Remove all cabinet doors
Thoroughly clean all the surfaces with a degreasing agent like TSP ensure adhesion
Set up spray booth and mask kitchen area
Prime cabinets and doors
Paint cabinetry with 2-3 coats using a professional sprayer to achieve gorgeous results
Allow adequate drying time
Re-assemble doors and hardware
Clean up

What do I need to know about painted cabinetry?

Clients are surprised to know that painted cabinets will still show wood grain. What does that mean? Well, the grain creates bumps and ridges on the surface of cabinets. Paint will not fill the ridges completely. A good example of how it may look finished is to visit your local big box hardware store and look at the white painted interior room doors that have a wood grain texture. That is how a painted cabinet door can turn out.

They are very cleanable, especially with the products we use.

Painted cabinets are also popular in high end homes because of the color and finish flexibility. Wood cabinets can be really beautiful, but the truly remarkable ones have a price tag to match. Painted cabinets are more simple to change when your tastes change.

*Reflects cost to paint cabinets in an average kitchen size in Colorado Springs, not a guarantee of prices as they vary. We will gladly provide an on-site written estimate.

Painted Kitchen Cabinets | A Quality Paint Job

Transform Your Kitchen or Bath Without Replacing Anything!

Kitchens and bathrooms are easily the most expensive rooms to revamp. Replacing floors, tile, countertops, appliances, and cabinets can run over $10,000-$15,000…easily.

But what if you’re on a budget and want to elevate the look of your kitchen or bath without replacing anything?

Thanks to interior designers and TV set designers, painted cabinetry in high end, luxury homes is now commonplace.

Painted cabinets brighten an otherwise visually dark room, can add an infusion of color and personality, and set the tone for one of the most important rooms in your home. Painting also effectively masks inexpensive cabinetry and can give the illusion of a custom installation.

Reasons to transform the look of your existing kitchen or bath cabinets with a little paint.

Because you can use any color of paint you’d like, you can work with your existing flooring, backsplash, tile, countertops, and fixtures.
Choose light colors to brighten up a visually dark space. White or cream colored cabinets are the most versatile and valuable for resale. Gray or gray blue colors are also very common and elegant.
They are just as cleanable as any other standard cabinet finish
Have you noticed how orange “golden oak” looks? Yikes. Builders all over Colorado still use it. It limits your paint, flooring, tile, and counter options.
You can choose a standard smooth finish. Or add personality with an antiqued or slightly distressed finish.
You have flexibility in how to use color. You can paint your kitchen island a different color than your main cabinets. You can paint the bottom half of your cabinets one color and the top half another. You can highlight an architectural feature with yet another color. You are limited only by your preferences and imagination.

Check out our Pinterest board for painted kitchen cabinets and painted bathroom cabinets for inspiration.

Exterior house painter in Colorado Springs, A Quality Paint Job, is the best value for your painting dollar. We do proper prep work on your paint project.

How Much Does an Exterior Paint Job Cost?

In Colorado Springs, painting costs for exteriors vary greatly depending on the size of the home and the current condition of the exterior.

All prices mentioned in this article are actual prices paid prior to 2014 or very rough estimates and should not be viewed as an estimate on your property. This is for informational purposes only. We will gladly provide you an accurate estimate on your specific residence when you are ready to paint.

A full exterior paint job on average sized homes can range from $2400-6,500. We want to help you narrow that down by providing a few specific examples of pricing to help you know what to expect. Prep work is the biggest factor in pricing with home size being second. Our most recommended coating and top homeowner choice is Sherwin Williams SuperPaint®. It is a upper middle grade coating that will last about 10-12 years in our harsh climate.

Exterior house painter in Colorado Springs, A Quality Paint Job, is the best value for your painting dollar. Our paint work is warrantied and made to last.

1200-1700 Square Foot Two Story

^1200-1700 SQUARE FOOT TWO STORY HOMES
This home had builder grade (cheap) light tan paint almost a decade old so the finish was badly faded and there was some siding board replacement needed. It is two stories all the way around. This homeowner would have paid $2600. This price includes just over a day of prep, 2.5 days to paint, materials, and SuperPaint.

Homes this size range $2400-2800.

This homeowner also chose a $300 product upgrade to Duration® which, with annual use of our maintenance program, would extend their paint job by 5-7 years.

Exterior painter, A Quality Paint Job, is the best value for your painting dollor. Painted trim, railing, garage, body, downspouts and doors.

2500-3500 Square Foot Two Story

^2500-3500 SUARE FOOT TWO STORY
This home had extensive prep work needed because maintenance had been deferred. And the color change was dramatic from bright green trim and yellow body to this sage green with white trim. This home is two stories all the way around. This homeowner would pay around $3300 and it includes 2 days of prep, 3 days of painting, materials, and SuperPaint.

Homes this size range $2900-3300.

Exterior house painter in Colorado Springs, A Quality Paint Job, is the best value for your painting dollar. We do proper prep work and great painting on your exterior paint project.

3600-4600 Square Foot Two Story with Walkout Basement

^3600-4600 SQUARE FOOT TWO STORY WITH WALKOUT
This home started with dark trim and a very badly faded paint. This home is two stories in the front with a walkout basement making the back 3 stories high. This homeowner would pay around $4650. The price includes 3 days of prep, 3.5 days of painting, materials, and SuperPaint.

With a walkout basement (3 stories in back, 2 in front) homes this size range $4650-5,000.
Homes this size with only two stories all the way around $3900-4300.

This homeowner opted for a trim upgrade (painting the outward facing trim and the soffit the trim color) which added $600 to their original estimated price.

All the homes in this article were built after 1978 and thus free of lead. If your home was built before 1978 and a lead test comes back positive you can easily add $2000 to an average estimate.

Homes with stucco need trim repainted and those projects range from $1200-3000 depending on the size of home.

We will gladly provide you an estimate for your project when you are getting ready to paint your exterior. You will find that we are not the least expensive painter; we usually fall somewhere in the middle. Check out our article Who is the Best Colorado Springs Painter? to make sure you are comparing apples to apples when gathering estimates for your project.

House painter in Colorado Springs, A Quality Paint Job, answers the most frequently asked questions.

Who is the Best Painter in Colorado Springs?

Who is the best painter in Colorado Springs?

Search engines pull up dozens of results for painters in Colorado Springs. Every year new painters come to Colorado Springs but very few stay more than a couple of years. You’re trusting a company to not only deliver a quality paint job, but also be trustworthy with your home and belongings.

Even during the bidding process we find homeowners feel unsure they’re comparing apples to apples. Some painters are good, some are good to avoid. So how do you choose?

Homeowners hiring a contractor of any type needs to understand there are three primary job factors to choose from: price, timeline, and quality. You have the ability to choose up to two, the contractor is then able to have flexibility with the remaining option(s). The most important thing you can do is know which two job factors matter most to you. This will help you know which of the following painting company types to go with.

Fly By Night/Temporary Painters
As in any industry, fly by night and temporary businesses pop up seasonally. This is especially true during the exterior painting season (May-October) in Colorado Springs. These people are looking to make a quick buck and see a landscape full of houses when they arrive. They can set up a Web site in no time and appear legitimate. They will often be the lowest price bidder. They may ask for more than 30% up front. (Up to 30% upfront is a reasonable request to cover materials.)

Stay away from this type of painter. Always.

While they can appear legitimate there are a few ways to investigate: How did you find out about them? Are they accredited with the BBB? How are they dressed when they do your estimate? Where will they buy their paint—Home Depot/Lowes or a professional paint store like Sherwin Williams, The Paint Gallery, or Kwal?

If you feel uncomfortable around this person, listen to your intuition! Stay away from this type of painter!

Handyman
Handyman painters usually promote that they can do everything for you from building to painting. Yes, anyone can slap some paint on a wall but unless they are a painting specialist they won’t know the best product/brand for each project and the finishes may not be the quality a small business/specialty painter can deliver. The types of projects that are great for handyman painters are small single projects like closets, small bathrooms, a single small bedroom, touch up, or a shed you’ve added to the property.

Franchise/High Volume Painters
There are painting franchises available and several large companies independently owned in Colorado who do a high volume of work. Both are known for fast work and a cattle chute approach to getting jobs done. They will price themselves competitively and can be the lowest bidder. The person who bids your home may not be the owner or someone closely involved in quality control.

Apartment buildings, track home construction, and others use these types of painters because the work gets done quickly and meets minimum standards of quality. Quick and dirty paint jobs are the best for these types of painters. Price will be the ultimate deciding factor. Timeline is dependent on their ability to crank through every job and how full they can fill their pipeline.

Small Business/Specialty Painters
Highly referred painters that fall in this category are usually great to work with. You will find a company that cares about quality and doesn’t put you through a cattle chute to get your project finished. They are rarely the lowest bidder, but are competitive. They are highly communicative and reachable. They enjoy educating homeowners on projects and processes for each project. They will do homeowner repaints, custom homes, and small commercial projects.

Small business painters are your all-around best painters in Colorado Springs. Interior projects are especially good for this type of painter because the level of quality needed is higher. Exterior projects are also great for this category because they bring attention to detail to the exterior of your home, doing the job right the first time while delivering a fair price.

Specialty painters are those who do jobs that require lead certification or artistic faux finishes and murals. We have several specialty subcontractors we’ve vetted and work with regularly to meet the needs of our clients.

Who is the best Colorado Springs Painter for you?

The answer truly depends on what is most important to you. Think through your current paint project. What do you value most? Timeline, cost, or quality?

Do your research. Check with the local Better Business Bureau. Ask pointed questions. When you know what you’re looking for you can find a painter suited to your needs and make a decision quickly.

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