You've planned your painting project and thought about every room in your house. Not every room! The hallway is often a room that's wrongly overlooked for painting. It's a special room in the house because it connects everything, whether the hallway is large, small, spacious, or narrow, bright or not. As with every other room in the house, decorating the hallway involves painting.
If you're reading this guide, it's because you want to paint your hallway with style and get some ideas for redecorating it. That's great, because we're going to give you all our tips for painting your hallway like a pro, from wall to ceiling, and optimizing this space. This includes choosing the right paint color, the necessary tools, and preparing the walls of your hallway, not to mention our tips for painting the hallway.
Choosing the color of your hallway
Painting your hallway and choosing the right decor will depend on its layout, but also on the effect you want to create. Before giving you our best ideas, it's important to first identify your hallway's strengths and weaknesses: if your hallway is narrow, then it'll be necessary to use pale colors to visually optimize the space. To avoid overloading the hallway, colors like beige or white are perfect alternatives. This observation is also valid if your hallway is limited in terms of natural light, which is often the case in this type of room.
On the other hand, if your hallway is spacious, there's nothing stopping you from using more original colors and having a more decorative style. To give you some ideas, there's nothing stopping you from using sage green or terracotta, for example, to give your hallway character and charm.
Brightness also plays a role in harmonizing the colors and the perception of space in the hallway.
In the vast majority of cases, our clients choose to apply light shades, particularly white, to their hallways: due to its versatility and ease of application. White allows you to enlarge the hallway space while limiting the risk of color choice.
Preparing the walls
To achieve the most even finish possible, we strongly recommend preparing your walls. Wall preparation is a two-step process, the first of which is cleaning the walls.
A busy passageway, over time the walls of your hallway can become contaminated with fingerprints, dust, and, unfortunately, dirt. Repainting this room will give you the opportunity to remove any buildup that may have accumulated over time.
As with all other rooms in the house, take a damp cloth and remove all dirt from your wall.
Once the surface is completely dry, please check the general condition of the walls and identify any imperfections you may notice, such as holes and cracks. Don't hesitate to fill them with filler, then smooth everything with a smoothing compound before sanding to obtain a smooth surface.
Applying a primer is not a myth; we consider it mandatory to achieve a professional result, whether the walls are new, already painted in a bright color, or damaged. Using a primer also means using less topcoat paint since it will improve adhesion.
Think about it, but not everything in a hallway needs to be painted, if of course you're going to paint the walls and ceiling. It's possible that you'll use a different color, or even a different paint, for your doors. This is why it's important to properly protect the areas you're not going to paint so that the paint doesn't bleed through, whether it's on the walls, but also on the floor or ceiling, for example.
The choice of tools and painting technique
A successful project also requires high-performance tools that will allow you to paint the walls of your hallway neatly. To paint your hallway, choose a 14mm microfiber roller with the accompanying handle, and a paint tray that allows you to spread the paint evenly on your roller without leaving excess paint on your walls.
A sash brush is also very important for clearing corners and avoiding overspray. To ensure a clean painting, place smooth masking tape on the edges and corners to ensure proper painting.
Applying paint to the hallway is done in two phases: the first is to apply an undercoat (otherwise known as a primer) to allow the finishing paint to adhere better to the surface.
When your surface is completely dry, apply two coats of topcoat paint, or possibly three if your chosen color is very vibrant. Regardless of the finish, it will not affect the paint's performance.
To apply the paint in your hallway as best as possible, don't hesitate to apply thin, thick layers to help the paint dry, but also to achieve the best possible finish. When applying the paint, don't hesitate to dilute it slightly to make it more fluid. When applying, remember to spread the paint evenly over the entire surface. Rolling the paint evenly will help ensure there are no streaks when it dries.
It is recommended to paint your hallway in 1m2 areas, this will help you define the areas to be painted. When you have finished an area, do not hesitate to go over the entire area without reloading the roller in order to evenly distribute any excess paint.
It's not always possible to repaint a hallway in one day. Here's one of the best time-saving tips: if the paint color is the same, don't hesitate to put your roller in a plastic bag! This will allow you to reuse your roller without having to clean it, and the paint that remains on the roller will always be fresh. This time saving is significant if you have several colors to apply in your hallway.
How do I paint my hallway doors?
Hallways are often the rooms with the most doors, and many customers have chosen to paint the doors in a shade to add originality but also to stand out in the decor.
Painting your doors is therefore an opportunity to harmonize the space and personalize your decor: whether you want to enlarge it or simply to give character to your hallway.
You can use a different color, a lighter or darker shade of the same color to differentiate the space, or paint the doors the same color as the walls. Regardless of the colors you choose, you'll need to prepare the doors in your hallway.
To paint your hallway doors, the process doesn't change much from an interior wall: remove handles where possible and sand your door to remove the varnish layer and break up the grain of the old paint that was applied.
You can then apply a base coat and two top coats for a satisfactory finish. Not all paints are suitable for wooden doors, so be sure to read the manufacturer's instructions before you begin.
Need help painting your hallway? Book a free color consultation with our interior designer, Anne-Sophie, who will give you her expert advice on the trending shades to use in a hallway!
