I always stir unless I bought the paint the same day. Usually giving the can a quick shake is enough though if it was recently shaken or mixed by the paint store. There is really no reason to use a cheap brush for any of the coats including the primer because any brush marks made by the cheap brush may telegraph through the finish coats. The true sheen of the paint will show after the second coat. The first coat will soak in unevenly and may look flat in some spots. Satin is a pretty low sheen though compared to semi-gloss so don't expect it to be really shiny.

You really shouldn't be getting any paint to pool up inside the hinge cut-outs. Just brush up from the bottom and down from the top. If things are hard to remove you can just cut around them or tape them off instead of removing them.

Thank you paintguy...I will shake it & not use a cheap brush on the sealer coat. After looking at the area again, I think it is the base showing through that is keeping it from having a nice even look. I will re-sand it and re-paint it.

I have to practice my cutting in...I knew that would be the answer, if I could do it well enough. I was also thinking that since I will be putting in all new hinges, maybe I should use the old hinge to fill in the area until it is dry and then switch it out.

A painter said that I should paint the doors standing up. I was trying to do them horizontally, but had trouble with them drying enough not to peel off the new paint. I gave it a long time inbetween ( a few days ) but still had the trouble. What is your opinion on this?

Thanks, Margie

Latex paint may take up to a month to fully cure. That means that even though the paint will be soft and may not seem adhered well, it will be much harder after it is fully cured. There still could be an adhesion issue though if you are not prepping the doors good enough. They need to be clean and dull and dust free or your paint may not stick as well as it should. I would paint the doors standing up too but that may be because I paint for a living. If you paint the doors horinzontally on horses or something you will have less of a change for drips and sags. Do not stack the doors or let painted surfaces touch each other before the paint is cured.

If you decide to paint over the old hinges, and then want to change them for new ones, try not to get paint on the screws. It's much easier to take them out if you don't have to scrape paint out of the heads to get the screwdriver in there. And take something sharp like a utility knife and carefully cut around the edge of the hinge, through the paint, so that the paint doesn't pull off when you pull off the old hinge.

Paintguy...the paint is covering better and with less sagging now that I am putting it on thinner and an additional layer too.

Thank you Irislover...those will be good tips to have!

Looks like we have something in common! Flower lovers!