Updating Walls with a Smooth Finish Texture

One of the newest trends in home improvement is skimming the walls with joint compound to create a smooth finish texture. This modern approach to home improvement can take time but can also greatly increase the value of a home which is exactly why I did it. Because I was already considering a new interior paint job this was a perfect time to update the knock-down texture on my walls.

Prep work

For my home improvement project I used heavy duty drop cloths to protect my floors, plastic for covering furniture, a ladder, joint compound, masking tape, a variety of drywall blades (1″, 2″ 6″, 10″ 12″), a drywall pan, fine sanding sponges, a respirator and a shop vac for cleaning up.

Because my walls are fairly new and painted flat I didn’t do much prep to the wall surfaces before the texture. But I did tape off the baseboard and door trim to protect them from falling joint compound.

Wall Texture

For a smooth uniform finish that requires as little sanding as possible, I recommend starting in a top corner then working your way down and then across the wall. After dipping your blade into your drywall pan, wipe the compound off of one side of the blade. Then wipe the excess of off the corners on the other side and smooth the compound onto the wall holding your blade at about a 15-20 degree angle.

As you continue downward and across the wall, check for uniform coverage by holding the 12″ blade perpendicular to the wall and looking at the gap between the wall and the blade to see where to apply more or less joint compound. Using premixed joint compound is ideal for newbies as you have plenty of time to work with it. If you are more experienced you can use “hot mud” (powdered version mixed with water) which will dry within minutes or hours depending the type purchased.

Finishing up

After the newly textured walls dried completely I sanded and touched them up with joint compound as necessary. Then I prepared the walls for paint by sanding the touch ups and priming them with a quality primer, a short knap roller and a quality paint brush. To keep the wall texture smooth, I cut in the edges with a paint brush then immediately rolled the wall afterward to leave as few brush stokes as possible.


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