Painters and Decorators in Godstone (RH9)
Our office is at 27 High Street, in the middle of the village. Decorating is usually the last trade into a house, which makes it the one the whole job gets judged on, and on a job here the survey visit is a short walk up the road.
The last trade carries everyone else's mistakes
A finished wall shows every defect underneath it.
A cable run filled but not feathered out reads as a shadow down the room in low sun. A joint that was not caulked opens as a black line between the skirting and the plaster. Dust still in the air settles into wet emulsion and stays there for good. That is why the making good comes first and comes properly: cable runs filled and sanded flush, plaster repairs floated to the same texture as the wall around them, doors eased and stops reset, joints caulked, and the whole place vacuumed and wiped down before a brush is opened. It is unglamorous work and it takes longer than the painting does. It is also the entire difference between a room that looks finished and a room that looks painted over.
Snagging, and coming back
The decorators are specialists we bring in and manage; the plastering and making good is ours, and either way you ring one number, which happens to be a number in this village. At the end we walk the rooms with you in daylight, because daylight shows what artificial light hides. What comes off that walk is a snagging list: a run on a door edge, a patch of cutting in that needs a second pass, a corner that wants another coat. It gets done before the job is signed off rather than instead of it. Leftover paint from the same batch stays with the house, labelled by room, because a touch-up done later from a fresh tin of the same colour rarely matches exactly.
Cottages near the green, and the conservation areas
Godstone has two conservation areas and a fair number of period cottages and listed homes, and decorating those is hand work.
Walls that curve, ceilings that dip, and no line straight enough to run tape along, so the cutting in is done freehand and slowly. On a listed cottage, external redecoration can need consent and the finish itself may be controlled, so that is checked before anything is ordered. Inside, old surfaces need testing before they are painted, because a chalky or previously distempered wall will not hold modern emulsion until it has been sealed. None of it is difficult work. It is simply work that cannot be rushed, and quoting it as though it were a modern room is how people end up disappointed.
More in Godstone
Everything we do in Godstone is on the Godstone area sheet, and the full detail of how we approach this trade is on the decorating page.
Common questions
Q.01How soon can we put the room back together?
Emulsion is touch dry quickly but takes longer to harden, so we would keep furniture off freshly painted walls and skirting for a few days rather than hours. We will tell you which surfaces need the most patience.
Q.02Do you clear up afterwards?
Yes. Floors and furniture are covered before anything starts, and the room is cleaned and put back at the end. That is part of the job, not an extra on the invoice.
Q.03If something needs touching up in a month, will you come back?
Yes, and we keep matched paint from the job for exactly that. Being on the High Street means it is a short trip rather than a scheduling problem.
Q.04Our cottage is listed. Can it be redecorated outside?
Usually, though consent can be required and the type of finish may be part of what is controlled. We establish that at the survey. The office number is 01883 337 700.
Thinking about decorating in Godstone?
Tell us what you are planning. We come out, look at the job properly and give you a price for it.