Wow, the DIY She Shed is almost complete! This post will show you what I used and how I painted the interior AND exterior. I will show you the exact tools and paint so that you can feel confident in painting your DIY projects. This post covers the DIY She Shed Painting.
If you want to start from the beginning of the she shed design, If you want to start from the beginning of the shed build, check out the planning post. Then the foundation build, DIY brick floor, wall framing, siding, roof framing, roofing, exterior trim, and the wall mounted garden closet.
Before Photos:
Here is the She Shed all trimmed out on the exterior and ready for paint.
I will also be paining the interior, so let’s take a look inside before we start. Do you like how the lofted ceiling framing turned out? Kinda cool yeah? The blue tape you see is to help cover the skylights so they don’t get paint on them.
Here’s a close up of the skylight cover with blue tape and construction paper.
Painting Prep:
See all those nooks and crannies and angles in the ceiling framing? That would take FOREVER to paint by hand or roller. So I opted to use a paint sprayer for the DIY She Shed painting. I’ve used cheaper hand-held sprayers in the past and don’t recommend them for larger projects like this. I used a more pro-version paint sprayer that was worth the splurge! It allowed me to paint the whole interior in under one hour as opposed to literal DAYS by hand….
Here is my paint sprayer at work. I’ve started using it for almost all my paint projects because it makes painting much easier and faster.
BUT, one thing about using the sprayer is that you should expect to get it EVERYWHERE. Lol, especially if you’re painting a ceiling. The spray will settle all over the floor.
So, before I started, I laid out a bunch of painting tarps and plastic sheets. You want something with a plastic backing or thick enough fibers so that any spilled or dripped paint won’t soak through. For instance, old bed sheets might sound like a good idea, but they might not stop dripped paint soaking through the fibers.
DIY She Shed Primer:
If you’re painting raw wood, you want to use a good primer to keep tannins and coloring of the wood from showing through the paint. This is especially important with a light color paint!
I used two coats of Kilz Interior/Exterior Primer on both the interior and exterior of the shed. I know, two coats is a bit overkill, but primer is a lot cheaper than paint so….
Here is the interior after one coat of primer. You can still see some of the wood color coming through, so that’s why I opted for a second coat.
Here I am tired and covered in paint after spraying primer on the exterior. Like I said, the paint gets everywhere! I forgot to mention, make sure to wear a good mask when using the sprayer, especially if you’re spraying inside where ventilation just isn’t as good as painting outdoors. My nose isn’t painted here because I wore a good mask, lol.
I got wise and started wearing a full painter’s suit after this photo.
DIY She Shed Paint:
I had a 5 gallon bucking of good-quality BEHR exterior-grade paint from Home Depot on hand from a paint sale. I used a statin finish in Ultra Pure White. Instead of using a specific interior paint on the interior, I just opted to use one coat of exterior paint. Exterior paint is generally tougher against wear so I figured that would be good. However, exterior paint is higher in VOC’s and off-gasses, so it’s generally not recommended for interiors. I’ll be using this She Shed mostly as a storage shed (but it will look CUTE!), so exterior paint is fine.
Here is the back wall with the DIY Wall Mounted Garden Closet all painted and looking sharp!
The multi-position, adjustable ladder you see really came in handy on both the interior and exterior. I actually bought two from Home depot and would recommend getting the largest one. They fold down to a small size nicely, but it’s great to have to have the reach when you need it.
Here is the exterior with a fresh coat of paint. Looking good yeah?
We’re so close to done for this DIY She Shed! Next post I’ll show you how to build DIY She Shed Doors from the same material as the walls that look cute AND function with a lock. Stay tuned….
