Paint prep... For Board and Batten... And why you need to do it!

Oooooh ok, I know, I KNOW! You finally have all your wood up for the board and batten, and you have your paint, rollers, and brush and you want to get it DONE. BUT you know what's more important than the paint? The prep work................ it's also the kind of the worst part. Hahahah! So bear with me as we get the crappy part done so that we can move on to the BEST part!

First things first, here's what you're going to need.....

• Wood fill
• Sandpaper
• hand sander
• Paintable caulk
• caulk gun
• cloths

This is my favorite wood fill and you can get it at Home Depot. Fill all the little nails holes from nailing the boards to the wall. Also fill all the joints where the boards meet. It will look like the picture on the top right before you begin and like the picture on the bottom when you're done. Let the wood fill dry.

Sometimes, walls aren't very square or straight... and lining up the boards isn't going to be perfect. Soooo you'll have to get your sand paper and hand sander and make things are nice and smooth. Anywhere you have boards that aren't lining up correctly, sand it! The photo on the left is showing the uneven boards. When you sand, make sure you pay close attention to the joints where the boards come together.

The better you sand, the better your paint will look when complete. so make sure those joints are nice and smooth! Then take your cloth and wipe everything down really well.

Next, caulk all the gaps! Here is Court's favorite caulk and you can also get this at Home Depot! Cut the tip off your tube, and load it into the gun, Angle the gun on the wood, like the photo on the right and squeeze the trigger until the caulk starts to come out and then apply just enough to cover the gap. (See video below.) After you get your caulk on there, then wipe it off with your finger! (See other video below!) Always have a cloth handy so that you can wipe the excess caulk off. Allow caulk to dry!

           

After you have done all those things THEN you are ready to paint!! Woohoo!!! But wait... Next week is coming all the tips you will need to know to get your paint on and get the best finish ever! 

It's been so fun documenting our loft remodel for the One Room Challenge! You can also find lots of daily home updates on INSTAGRAM. Come hang with me there!

Happy prepping!! And as always, I want to see your projects! 

xoxo, Sharee