Phoenix Finishes

Sep 2015

This job was especially enjoyable, because my clients wanted my best work and didn't spare any expense. It was the first step in a whole house renovation of a home built in the early 80's. We started with the entry, dining room, great room and hallways. There was a little concern about the cost, but when they learned that I offer 0% financing, that allowed them the freedom to choose the results they wanted, without having to worry about pinching pennies to pay for it. I prepared the space with great detail, patching and sanding every square inch of the walls, trim and floors. It took 4 days just to detail everything before painting/finishing. On this project we opted to do all of the wood finishing last. Try as you might, you cannot get all of the dust off of the fresh sheet-rocked walls and ceilings, so we covered the floors and masked all of the raw wood. We primed and painted the walls, 2-coats of PVA and 2-coats of the Valspar Signature series eggshell and flat on the ceilings. We like to use 2-coats of each because it helps to create a very even finish with no flashing or sheen differences. All of the trim was spray-finished with the semi-gloss in the same product line, which turned out beautifully. We prepared the wood with Zinsser CoverStain primer, mainly because it builds and sands really well. Your surface has to be as smooth as possible to provide the luxurious finishes you see in magazines. Once all of the painting was done, we cleaned up and uncovered all of the raw wood. We achieved the dust-free environment we needed for the floors, because we knew they had to be absolutely perfect. After a quick vacuuming and some touch up sanding, we taped off all the fresh paint with 3M 60-day clean release tape (pro tip: 15-day isn't safe to use on fresh paint, we've had it lift paint before). We then applied a thin first coat of Varithane Floor Finish semi-gloss on all the floors and stairs; on the hand railings we used the gloss formula. The modern products have no-VOC's and no odor, so there were no noxious fumes like there would have been years ago. After 3 coats, the woodwork shined and really set off all of the painted trim and walls. We're very happy with the results and look forward to a continued relationship with the owner for future projects. Next in line are the bedrooms, then the kitchen cabinets next year.

$11k

Roseville, CA