How do I properly use my paint roller?

Prep the area you want to paint, including using a brush to paint the corners and the wall trim; then, set your paint tray on a layer of newspaper and pour paint into the tray until it fills up the bottom reservoir about halfway. Moisten your roller with water to prevent paint from drying onto the fibers, and then dip your roller into the paint. Avoid placing the roller directly into the pool of paint; instead, load it at the slanted edge of the tray, rolling it back and forth along the paint “shoreline.” Make sure you roll off enough paint so that the roller does not drip when you lift it out of the tray.

 

Next, pick a spot towards the top of the wall, and use your roller to paint the letter “M” or “W.” Start the letter away from you and finish close to you; then go back and fill in the gaps using straight columns. Work gradually down towards the floor, being careful to flatten paint ridges as you go. Lift your brush off the wall as few times as possible. Finally, take your time, but don’t go so slowly that you press down and leave blobs of paint in certain spots.

 

Paint as close to the corners as you can and try to reach the corners before you stop to refill your brush. Use your roller to cover the brushed areas around the trim as much as possible. When thinning results show you that your roller is becoming dry, refill the roller, and roll from the dry areas into the wet edges to eliminate overlap marks. Before you finish, roll one last time very lightly to cover any missed patches and to even out the paint.