Ok....this looks so easy on the decorating programs...steady hand, and just paint....I have a steady hand, but by the time I was done painting a dark wall vs a white ceiling, it looked awful....what's the trick

They sell an edging tool that has wheels on it with a pad that you can change after every use. That straight line used to drive me crazy too. The only problem I have found is that it doesn't lay down a thick enough coat and it often does not match the rest of the wall. However, covering twice seems to mostly alleviate that problem.

the trick for me has always been in the brush... a very good, angled brush about two inches wide or 2 and a half if your hand won't get tired.... I load the brush half way up the bristles.... wipe off what will be the bottom side.... then make the first run across the wall just a little bit down from the ceiling, not up against it yet... then go back and spread the bristles of the brush out kinda flat and push the paint from down on the first run up, kinda, to the edge and draw the brush to me from there... I don't do more than maybe a foot in length before reloading the brush.... another helping hand is to be UP THERE.... if you're high up and not reaching, but right there where you're working, it's lots easier!...

Just this week, I was attempting this in my daughter's new apt. I was using a little brush and being very careful, but not very successful. A neighbor, who happened to be a professional painter, stopped in and gave me the following tips: (1) Use a thick 3" brush. He loaned me one, giving me a choice of straight or angled. It holds lots of paint and allows one to paint a longer distance. A good brush forms a sharp edge, which you angle right into the corner where you're drawing the line.(2) It is better to lap a bit up into the ceiling rather than leave a lighter ceiling edge on the vertical wall. He said that when you walk into a room you look at the wall, not the ceiling part of the edge.

I hope I made that explanation clear. It's harder to write than it is to visualize.

An angled sash brush is made for...well..just that..Sashes and trim. Not to discount Toot's good success but also consider a 3inch block brush. Holds lots of paint, has a good weight and helps you cut a straight line. And....practice practice

"not to discount Toot's good success..."

that's ok, I understand completely... but if you had to do this with hands that are the size of a ten yr old's... and weak from old age, you'd find the three inch brush a little hard to handle.... my method works for me... I shoulda qualified that advice... sorry...

Hey if it works it works. Nothin wrong with that

I use a 2 1/2 inch angle brush, works for me.

For years I always used a good quality brush for cutting in. The younger female adults in my family swear by the new inexpensive trim paint tool with wheels as SammyJo described - even the major paint stores sell them.
After the many gallons of paint I applied to save money, I now take pleasure watching a professional painter wiggle on a ladder

This message has been edited. Last edited by: dogs&kids,

The edger didn't work for us!! We have a mess also. Looking for help too.

Good replies everyone. Ceiling color is more noticable on the walls than wall color on the ceiling..paint the ceiling first. Toots is right on..2, 21/2, or 3 inch angled sash brush starting on the wall with the bristles flat. Lead the brush up to the edge and then straight across. Your eyes need to be close to the work. Hold the brush between your thumb and first two fingers and drag your last two fingers on the wall for support.