How to Paint Straight Lines. Where to Use Tape

Having trouble painting straight lines? Jeremy of Super Vassar Brothers is here to help you with what to tape, what not to tape, and advice to get those super duper straight lines.

[@jorgesmith2000]

Doh! Just painted an accent wall over the weekend using your technique. The edges were super hard because of the textured walls. First coat of emerald matte on knockdown was rough. Corona Cortez worked out pretty well, though. Great brush.

[@SuperVassarBrothers]

I’m glad the brush worked out well! Textured walls can be tricky with getting a clean lines.

[@Usonian7]

Tape baseboards always other than touchips. Vertical trim, dealers choice. Freehand the ceiling always. I've taken the time to hold the tape roll, I like it to be able take it up in one shot and less chance of bleeding lol. Tapes balls, one of the small joys of painting. Love it all, great video!!

[@SuperVassarBrothers]

Nothing wrong with holding the tape roll. The one long piece is quite satisfying, so I gotcha. Thanks for watching!

[@mydogabbymoon11]

Love your videos. Thank you for all the good information and observations.

[@SuperVassarBrothers]

I’m glad you’ve been finding them useful! Thanks for watching!! 😁

[@southsidetom]

Great vid! I just keep a damp rag in pocket and wipe off right away if my freehand went a little beyond. Also liked your other vid on brushes. Get the artists brush to free hand the tight corner!

[@SuperVassarBrothers]

Solid moves all the way around 🤙

[@Mr1fingersalute]

Great stuff as always! I used to hate painting but I’m actually starting to enjoy it lately after suffering through painter boot camp lol. Your vids have been a great inspiration and I’ve picked up some really useful tips that work! I don’t have the Cortez yet but for the first time ever I just cut a ceiling in so perfect I could’ve cried😂 I was even able to pull it off jacked up on caffeine but nowhere near as quick as you go through it. The Wooster ultra pro extra firm was the ticket for that ( out of my ever growing brush collection 🤦🏻‍♂️lol ) I LOVE that brush! Runner up is the Purdy XL although I’m not so sure about Purdy anymore with a clear cut elite I picked up to try that shed like a Poodle Keep ‘em comin Jeremy!🤙🏻

[@SuperVassarBrothers]

Thank you kind sir. I like your username by the way. That’s awesome that you’re getting some clean cuts! That’s a keystone skill for painting and it’ll pay dividends if you keep developing it. I’ve found that there’s a tier of brushes that are quite useable for most applications (Cortez is still my jam). Thanks for watching and commenting!! We’ve got lots more content coming. Carry on good sir 🫡

[@Mr1fingersalute]

@@SuperVassarBrothers thank you brother!👊🏻 The Cortez is next for sure, I picked up the Vegas on your recommendation and couldn’t be happier with it, it’s such an awesome quality brush and I’ve gotten some really nice results with it and Emerald urethane thanks to you!🙌🏻

[@danielfeldman7913]

Great video! Among the Frog Tapes, you like yellow. Am I wrong, or is yellow more for sensitive surfaces? I've used green mostly, and works well. Is green the more 'everyday' version of Frog Tape? Thank you!

[@SuperVassarBrothers]

Yes, the yellow frog tape is for sensitive surfaces, but I have found that it makes a better seal to the surface than the green. I get way less bleed through than with the green.

[@danielfeldman7913]

@@SuperVassarBrothers great to know! I may try yellow some more!

[@xbadandy182x]

How "perfect" did you make your new house when you painted everything? Do you ever just let imperfections go? How do you decide which ones to leave be? I'm talking things like drywall bows, or maybe imperfections where only skim coating will solve them. I'm a new homeowner and I'm painting the whole house. Every room has imperfections that I either can't fix or didn't notice until after I've painted it.

[@SuperVassarBrothers]

Great question! The way we go about it is that we look at the room and assess the state of the walls, trim, and ceilings. Then we decide what's a reasonable amount of prep for the room. Generally we'll spend more time on things that are in people's direct line of sight. You've got to be realistic as to the level of finish the rooms are capable of getting to. Take care of the big eye sores and keep it moving. We also will do a round of touch up spackling between coats 1 and 2 of our finish paint. Sometimes you may not pick up something until you've got a coat of your final color on it. Again, you can spend an eternity trying to get stuff perfect, but that'll end up driving you nuts. Be realistic with your expectations and you can always do more prep and repaint the rooms later.

[@Mirel_RO]

Another problem with taping the ceiling is that if the corner is not perfect, the tape will make it worse while freehand cutting in can adjust the line. Also while you remove the tape small parts of ceiling paint can fall off. Corona is a great brush, I have an Excalibur for the past 5 years, this brush won't die anytime soon.

[@SuperVassarBrothers]

I agree. Brush skills are the way 🤙

[@stephencave187]

After years of using cheap crappy brushes i've finally enjoyed the benefits of a half decent one for cutting in. Makes the world of difference. (Although i'm still no expert ☺️)

[@SuperVassarBrothers]

It does make a huge difference! Thanks for watching! 😃

[@jimmykeller1348]

Thanks for the great video!

[@SuperVassarBrothers]

You’re most welcome good sir! Thanks for watching 😃

[@DAMON409]

The key principle of cutting is having the tip of the brustles in the inside corner of whatever you're cutting. Ceiling is no different. Best to use ladder backwards to get closer to wall.

[@SuperVassarBrothers]

There are lots of ways to do it. You’re welcome to put the ladder how you wish, but having it backwards can be slow. We’ve never had an issue reaching the walls with ladder straight on or sideways.

[@DAMON409]

@@SuperVassarBrothers slow? Not getting you. The steps are closer to your work area with the ladder turned around.

[@klongyss]

Pull tape when paint is dry or wet for baseboards ?

[@SuperVassarBrothers]

For the products we use, it doesn't matter. Usually we're doing 2 coats so the base coat is definitely dry when we pull tape. The top coat is usually dry to the touch but hasn't cured all the way.

[@DAMON409]

Best to pull when still wet. I have seen dry paint pull off a wall with blue tape, which isn't supposed to happen.

[@jorgesmith2000]

Oh and the corners were very tricky. Couldn’t figure them out! Had to wing it on the corners.

[@SuperVassarBrothers]

We freehand those as well. Treat them like the ceiling line.

[@jorgesmith2000]

@@SuperVassarBrothersYeah I think I need to add more tape or something on the baseboard so that I have more room to make a brush stroke. Otherwise, I guess I’d have to make a stroke from bottom up for the baseboard corners.

[@alexandrepiche5609]

You guys should do some close-up slowmo shots of cutting with a brush with some Barry White as music. That'd be sexy as hell.

[@SuperVassarBrothers]

I’m sending this to Josh. I’m down like a clown 🤡

[@photographer128]

I was in the painting business for 50 years. I've never seen a real painter use a little 2 or 2 1/2 inch angle brush for walls. It's designed for small window trim. I can see he's getting paint on the ceiling and has irregular lines which is unacceptable. He says if you get too much paint on the ceiling it's no big deal to touch up the ceiling. I would hate to have to do that. His best advice is to paint the trim first and then the walls. I never used tape but using it on the baseboard makes sense. But I would just paint the base last.

[@SuperVassarBrothers]

I get the draw of a squared off brush. I've used the Monterey quite a bit and I like it for some applications. I've seen painters use all kinds of brushes and get both good and bad results. It's a matter of what you get good with.

[@photographer128]

@@SuperVassarBrothers When I was a teenager and working for my dad, one of his customers had not yet accepted rolled walls but wanted it brushed like in the old days, using slow drying oil paint. I could make a straight line along a ceiling with a 6" block brush. On the other hand if a brush is too small I would find it taxing and take too much time.

[@Mirel_RO]

@@photographer128 small brush means small mistakes, big brush means big mistakes. With a 6" brush you can make 12" mistake. However I use a 3" Corona Excalibur and I cut in 1 meter with two dips.

[@photographer128]

@@Mirel_RO If you are skilled, a large brush will not cause you to make mistakes. The problem with a 2 1/2" sash brush is that you have to stop and start too much because it doesn't hold much paint. That makes it difficult to make a straight line and is time consuming. A 3" squared brush is a good choice, especially for a dys. I would use a Purdy because it is thicker than the Corona. In my later years I got to using a 3" Purdy Nylox Nylonia. It is build differently and has long bristles and a thick stock. The long flexible bristles make precise cutting in easier. It probably holds twice as much paint as your 3" Corona.