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Valspar Door and Trim Enamel Review

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Achieve a flawless finish when you paint your trim with Valspar Door and Trim Enamel!

Painting trim is one of my least favorite things to do. We’ve owned four homes and had to paint the trim in the last three of them because the original trim was dated and it wasn’t in the budget to hire it out.

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After our last move, I promised myself I wasn’t going to buy a house where the trim needed to be painted again…never say never.

While house-hunting, we walked in the door of our current house and saw this.

ladder in large sun room

It was love at first sight. Eric and I both were pretty much immediately sold on the house because of this room. Granted the rest of the house had amazing bones and was exactly what our family needed.

But. Those. Windows.

With those big beautiful windows came a lot of outdated trim. We decided it was worth it. We won’t discuss the ugly wallpaper in the stairwell that had Eric almost changing his mind.

large windows

Obviously we bought the house. Then came the procrastinating. We waited nearly two years to paint that trim because, well, it was really hard to get motivated to do it.

Enter quarantine.

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We had already purchased the paint and it had been sitting there, just waiting for us. For such a time when we would have days and weeks on end where we couldn’t leave our house and needed something to do. Sad that this is what it took!

Valspar paint on countertop with paintbrush

But we got busy and over about a three day period, knocked it out. I’m so glad we did! It’s absolutely beautiful. Keep scrolling for the “after” pics!

With all of the trim we’ve painted over the years comes experience and tips and tricks to make the job easier and go smoother. So today I’m going to share with you how to paint trim like a PRO!

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How to Paint Trim

To start, you need the right tools!

  • Angled trim paintbrush
  • Paint trim edger
  • Drop cloth
  • Damp rag
  • Primer (I recommend Valspar High-Hiding Primer)
  • Trim Paint (I recommend Valspar Door and Trim Enamel)
  • Ladder

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Valspar Door and Trim Enamel Review 3

Painting Trim Tips and Tricks

Trim Edger

When I first started painting trim, I used to use painter’s tape to tape everything off. Then I’d be frustrated when I pulled the tape and the trim paint had either seeped underneath or peeled the wall paint off.

It took forever and then always ended up causing extra work.

Enter a trim edger. This tool is a lifesaver! First, line the edger up against the top of the trim piece so the wall is blocked. Take your angled trim brush and paint the top half of the trim.

painting trim

Wipe the edger clean with a cloth and then flip it, putting it between your flooring and the base of the trim. Paint the bottom half of your trim. Wipe the blade clean and repeat the steps.

The straight blade leaves a nice clean edge with no need for touch-ups when done. This works when painting trim around doors and windows, as well! See my tutorial on how to paint a door here.

Paint Brush

Using the right paint brush is key to a great finish. It needs to be high-quality so you’re not battling paint bristles coming off onto your paint job.

An angled brush works best. I prefer a short angled trim brush, like Wooster, but that’s up to you!

The angle of the brush allows you to easily get into nooks and corners that would be harder with a straight-edged brush.

Three coats

I know it sounds daunting, but three coats are a must for the best finish. I recommend two coats of primer and one coat of trim paint. I’ve tried to get around this because it takes FOREVER.

But trust me. Three coats will give you a beautiful, professional finish.

Ok, let’s get painting!

Valspar High-Hiding Primer

Having a high-quality primer is ESSENTIAL for the best finish on your trim. I learned the hard way that not picking a good primer can add a lot of time and frustration to your job.

If your primer looks streaky, your trim paint will look streaky. You’ll end up adding extra layers to try to get a uniform look and it will never look quite right.

It takes TWO coats of primer if you’re painting over a dark trim. And when that second coat goes on, you want it to pretty much look as if it was the final coat. It should look that good.

The only primer I’ve ever had work that good is Valspar High-Hiding Primer. This stuff is gold. I will never go back to another primer.

It’s specifically made to use over dark stain and it works. Two coats of this stuff and it looked like we were done!

Here’s the trim after one coat of primer.

primer on wood

Here’s after two coats of Valspar High-Hiding Primer. Yep, it’s good.

Valspar High Hiding Primer

Now you’re ready for the final coat!

Valspar Door and Trim Enamel

This was the first time I had used Valspar Door and Trim Enamel. I LOVE it. It goes on rich and smooth with a beautiful glossy finish.

Valspar Door and Trim Enamel

It’s an oil-based primer made to withstand scratches and scuffs. It cleans up easily with soap and water.

The one thing I will say – it claims that you don’t need to prime before using it. I disagree. I tried Valspar’s Cabinet Enamel that also made the same claim and it was NOT true and caused a lot of frustration on our bathroom remodel. You can read my review on their cabinet enamel paint here.

I know now that project would have gone much smoother had I just used a primer first. As it was, I did several coats (and it wasn’t even over a dark wood) and the finish was very streaky.

Use a primer with both of these paints and save yourself some heartache.

I’m very happy with the finish of this paint. I’ve used other paints on our trim and I’ll be going back over it with Valspar Door and Trim Enamel.

Here’s our living room after the trim paint was finished. I may be partial but…gorgeous. It makes the room look even bigger and adds a bright and airy feeling!

large beams in living room
back of couch in living room

Shop the Look

Valspar Door and Trim Enamel Review 3

We ordered the window treatments to complement the new paint. This room is really starting to come together! We’ll be changing out the fans for large pendant lights and Eric is getting ready to build a large TV console that I’ll be sharing when it’s done!

fiddle leaf fig tree in front of blue pattered curtains

As always, thanks so much for stopping by today! I hope this review and tutorial on how to paint trim was helpful! Please leave a comment with any questions or feel free to shoot me an email anytime, as well!

For more pictures of our home, follow me on Instagram!

ACHIEVE A FLAWLESS FINISH WHEN YOU PAINT YOUR TRIM WITH VALSPAR DOOR AND TRIM ENAMEL!

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