Ty Pennington Recommends Splurging On These Essentials When Painting Your Home

Painting your home can be daunting and time-consuming, and anyone who doesn't know where to start can look to the painting tips that HGTV stars swear by, such as Ty Pennington. The HGTV star advises against cutting corners regarding materials, and he suggests that you splurge on reliable synthetic brushes — both square and angled — as well as a trustworthy roller. In a now-archived blog post, he wrote, "Now, good brushes should be part of your basic painting tool kit ... start with 2-3 good synthetic brushes and I recommend sticking with brushes that are 2 or 3 inches wide. Now, square tips are good for flat surfaces. Angled tips work best on windows, corners, and nooks ... And another tool I want to recommend is my old friend the paint roller."

Some well-liked brands that offer synthetic brushes include GoodHome and Hamilton. A well-received paint roller cover option is the 9-inch by ⅜-inch High-Density Fabric Wooster Pro White Woven Roller Cover Applicator, available in a 3-pack for $11.48 at Home Depot. Promising to provide a smooth paint job, the product has 4.6 stars and a 92% recommendation rate with over 2,000 reviews. Even if you don't use that specific item, it's always a good idea to look for something well-liked regarding quality rather than just purchasing whatever's cheapest.

In addition to spending on high-quality brushes and rollers, Ty Pennington suggests doing the same for paint. "Now I know how exciting it is to change colors or add finishes, but when it comes to painting, remember that the tools of the trade are as important as the right paint," he wrote in the same blog post. Pennington says that good-quality brushes, rollers, and paint are all equally important, so you should be just as willing to splurge on the actual paint as you are to invest in the tools. In addition, a comparison video by TikToker @testingthisvsthat shows how more expensive paint appears cleaner and smoother than a cheaper option. 

Some great-quality paint brands worth the money include Sherwin-Williams, Benjamin Moore, Behr, Rust-Oleum, Farrow & Ball, and PPG. You shouldn't apply any paint to your home's interior or exterior until you're 100% sure that you're in confident the paint you chose. Imagine having to redo your paint job because you used a bargain brand instead of a good-quality one — after all, you get what you pay for regarding paint and materials. 

Every homeowner knows that full-on renovations can get super expensive super fast. So, you shouldn't have to spend on all those costly and time-consuming upgrades and repairs involving new items if you don't have to. While Ty Pennington advises splurging on your paint materials, he does not suggest expensive upgrade projects when you can opt to freshen up a space with paint instead.

Giving advice on beautifying a home without breaking the bank, Pennington told The Seattle Times, "Do a fresh coat of paint in the main living areas. The kitchen is always a huge selling point. Refresh cabinets with a new coat of paint if you can't afford to renovate ... clean up the outside of the house as much as possible. Use a new color on the front door." Thus, it's worth it splurge on the necessary brushes and rollers for good paint jobs, and those successful paint jobs can save you a lot of money that you may have initially thought you would need to drop on more drastic and pricey renovations.