Holy Roller

I have heard rumors that some people have used mini 4" sponge rollers to paint rather than brushes. I have always painted furniture with brushes, I can get the paint fairly smooth, but not perfect. Now that I am on a furniture painting kick again (I think it is a nice simple way to update a room's look) I decided to try a roller. Well, then I forgot and painted a table with a sponge brush...

It turned out pretty well. The top could be smoother but, oh well, it wouldn't have been a great use for a roller project.

I was visiting my sister a couple of weeks ago and she and her husband had recently inherited many different pieces of furniture. Some pieces are beautiful, stained antiques and some are nice and sturdy painted pieces. I thought I would help her out by painting some of the not-so-pretty pieces. I will share pictures later, but we chose to work on the dresser and bookcase in her newborn son's bedroom. Her husband had everything I needed (and more!) including a palm sander and sponge roller, neither of which I had ever used before! The belt sander made quick work of sanding, it was fan-tastic. Then I used the sponge roller, can you say a-maz-ing? It took WAY less time, and covered more evenly. I am now rolling away on a new end-of-bed table and will share pictures soon! Any other painting secrets I should know about? Please share :)