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Just wondered how hard it would be for us sr. citizens (who HATE to paint) to tackle this job in our bathroom. I love the look of striae stripes (I think that's what it's called), but that looks too tricky and would seem to involve too much measuring and taping.

I think I could be satisfied just doing a sizable stripe, maybe 6 or so inches wide, every 6 or so inches, using a slightly darker shade of the color that already exists on the walls. I want to have a very "subtle" result, almost barely visible.

It seems to me that applying the masking tape would be the toughest part of the job. The one wall that I want to do is about 12 feet wide and wainscoted so it would only be about 47.5 inches from the wainscoting to the ceiling, and then I'd like to take it around the corner to the wall over the tub/shower, which is only 24 inches above the tile to the ceiling; and that short wall is only the width of the tub, about 54 inches wide.

The beauty of this little project is that we wouldn't have to get down on our knees. The third wall is pretty much taken up with the toilet and double sink (over which is the long and high mirror, topped with the long 5-bulb light bar; so I don't think it would look funny to not stripe that wall. The fourth wall is the doorway into the room and there is a 21-inch short wall on the right, which houses the light/fan switches under a decorative plaque.

Any comments? If we hired someone to do this small job, I assume the best source would be our local paint store, right?

This message has been edited. Last edited by: CA Lori,

Depending on your health, I think it would be manageable for you to do. I did a 12x13 dining room but I was only 65 then. Seven more years makes a lot of difference.LOL. I didn't do the striae stripes but my stripes were about 8 inches wide and I did painted the room a cream color and then put a darker paint on the stripe from the same color card but I also very subtley sponged watered down light color on the darker paint. Everyone thinks it is wallpaper! I used a level and when I marked, I did it with the water soluable fabric pens that you can buy at the fabric store. That really worked well. I just took a damp cloth to take off the marks. Good luck! There is still a little kick to us senior citizens!

For a VERY subtle look, You could paint the room one color in eggshell, and then just do a clear glaze on the taped stripes to create a sheen. The light hits the shine/duller areas and looks to be a different shade.

Borrowing a laser light level could make it very easy to set the tape in place along the laser beam.