Your Painting Guide to Cutting In | How to Cut in With Great Results Every Time

Your Painting Guide to Cutting In: Clean Edges Every Time When Painting

Painting can transform a room, giving it a fresh and vibrant look. However, achieving professional results isn’t just about choosing the right colour. One of the most challenging yet crucial parts of the process is cutting in – the technique of painting clean, sharp lines along edges where walls meet ceilings, skirting boards, or other surfaces.

Cutting in refers to the process of painting a straight line without masking tape. It’s often used where a roller can’t reach, such as corners, around trim, or along the ceiling line and under the cornices. If you use the correct equipment, you will have great results every time you paint.

In this blog, we’ll share essential cutting in painting tips, teaching you how to cut in paint around walls, ceilings and along other edges like window sills, door frames and skirting boards.

Before diving in, ensure you have the right tools and your paint preparation area ready. Consider purchasing these tools before you start painting:

1. Angled Brush: A high-quality, angled sash brush (50-63mm) offers better control and precision compared to a flat brush.
2. Paint Tray or Bucket: Allows for easy loading of paint onto your brush without overloading. Consider a paint pot with a handle for ease when climbing ladders and to avoid wrist or hand fatigue
3. Drop Cloths: Protects floors and furniture from drips.
4. Stepladder: Provides safe access to high corners or ceilings.
5. Clean Rags: Handy for wiping excess paint or correcting mistakes immediately.

Clean Bucket of water: Handy to have nearby to rinse and dip your rag into for speedy drips or spillage clean up

Follow these easy steps for perfect edges every time:

Step 1: Preparation is Key

• Prepare a “paint preparation area” eg a large drop cloth with all of your stirrers, paint tins, trays etc that you move so that it’s away from the painting area. 
• Clean the Surface: Dust and grime can prevent paint from adhering properly. Use a damp cloth to clean walls, edges, and trims.
• Tape Off Where Necessary: While cutting in reduces the need for tape, you might need to use tape in areas that are hard to get to with the brush eg in a tight corner. Sometimes you can’t hold the brush on the right angle and tape is your safety net for these situations

Stir Your Paint: Ensure consistency by thoroughly mixing the paint with one of our paint stirrers.

Your paint preparation area..away from the work area



Step 2: Load Your Brush Correctly

• Dip your angled brush into the paint, loading about one-third of the bristles.
• Gently wipe the brush against the side of the tray to remove excess dripping paint. Just wipe one side of the paint brush so that you don’t remove most of the paint

Step 3: Start Away from the Edge

• Begin painting a few centimetres away from the edge to avoid excess paint pooling at the starting point.
• Slowly work back in towards the edge, guiding the brush with a steady hand.

Use a quality angle cutter like this one



Step 4: Use the Right Technique

• Hold the brush at a 45-degree angle for optimal control.
• Paint in short, even strokes, pulling the brush along the edge. When the paint brush is wet with paint, the bristles should become narrow and hence will create a sharp line
• For walls meeting ceilings eg under the cornice, aim to keep a steady line where the colours transition. Cutting in on these edges with a quality angle brush will help you gain confidence and eliminate the need for masking tapes

Step 5: Feather the Paint

Once you’ve painted the edge and cut in, blend the paint into the rest of the surface with light, back and forward strokes. This prevents harsh shadowy paint lines and  when you move to the roller.

Step 6: Correct Mistakes Immediately

• If you drip paint onto an unintended surface, wipe it off immediately with your clean water and damp cloth.
• For dried paint drips, consider using Lift Off Acrylic Paint Remover for water based paints

1. Practice First: Test your technique with your angle brush on a piece of cardboard or an inconspicuous area. Under the window sill is a good area to test your brushing skills out
2. Work in Sections: Focus on small areas at a time. Eg cut in one wall at a time and then roll up to the area you have just cut in
3. Maintain a Steady Hand: The correct brush will help, and once you have tested out for technique, try to resist hesitation. A good brush will be your best friend
4. Don’t Rush: Take your time cutting in around the tricky areas and try not to place time limits on your painting project. 

Even experienced painters can slip up. Here are some pitfalls to watch out for:

• Overloading the Brush: Too much paint leads to drips and uneven application and shadow lines that are made obvious depending on how the light hits the surface
• Skipping Preparation: A poorly cleaned surface will affect future adhesion
• Using the Wrong Brush: Cheap brushes shed bristles and will frustrate the user. Spending a few dollars more will save time and will give you the best results the first time. Ask our team to show you the best paint brushes for cutting in

While cutting in eliminates the need for tape, there are scenarios where a paint trimming guide or masking tape is beneficial:

• Around light switches, electrical outlets, or intricate mouldings.
• If you’re a beginner still gaining confidence in your cutting-in skills.
• On textured walls or ceilings where maintaining a straight line is challenging.
• Along carpet edges along skirting boards for higher pile carpets. You could try our carpet protectors or masking tape for these situations

Once you are more confident with the basics, remember with these advanced tips:

• Achieve a professional paint finish: Work in manageable sections to prevent paint from drying before rolling the remainder of the wall
• Have a paint edging Tool handy: A paint edging tool or a hand-held trimming guide can help if you find that your hand is tiring and becoming unsteady
• Use Natural Light: Painting during the day ensures better visibility and you will see where you have been with your paint. Especially if you are using lighter paint colours

Cutting in and rolling should go hand-in-hand for seamless and professional looking paint finishes and results. Here’s how to coordinate the two:

1. Cut In First: Paint along edges and corners before rolling the larger surfaces.
2. Work Quickly but Don’t Rush: Don’t let the cut-in paint dry completely before rolling, as this helps blend the two sections.
3. Overlap Slightly: Ensure the roller slightly overlaps the cut-in areas slightly for a uniform finish. This is why we suggest cutting in with a good brush that holds just enough paint to ensure you get a smooth finish. Roll over the wall and up to the area you have just cut in and overlap slightly. Be careful not to go too far that the paint roller hits the cornice or ceiling! If this happens, grab your damp cloth and wipe it off while the paint is still wet.

We hope this blog on how to cut in helps. If you have any questions, please be sure to contact our team!