Interesting. I’m not a painter. I have a bathroom cabinet to paint so I went to my local paint store and chatted for a while. i chose FPE eco in satin. The sales rep told me I could use Ben moore (primer) high hide to block the oak tannins and then two coats of FPE (blue). I took his word for it. The Ben moore primer worked beautifully after rolling that on. I waited over night to sand it all down. After bathing my FPE can in hot water for 30 minutes to THIN it out I used my new HVLP to spray the doors and drawers. I can’t believe how beautiful this paint it. The HVLP sprayer lays a thin, consistent coat of paint. FPE eco was thick enough to cover white primer with one thin coat. like I said, I’m not a painter. I can spray houses with an airless contractor gun and other stuff but this was my first time doing any detailed painting with high end paint and my first time pulling the trigger on a brand new HVLP gun. I don’t feel like it should be that difficult to get a decent result with one or two coats of FPE. However, I have done plenty of work for self proclamed ”anal” customers and I hestitate to point the finger only at the painter in this case. I wasn’t a part of the discussion about quality, finish product, or expectations. All things must be considred. If he‘s learning then a break should be given on price to learn a new skill. If you’re anal to the point where you don’t allow any blemishes or imperfections then you should be willing to pay for it. Many times I’ve encountered people who say they aren’t too demanding and they act laid back and are ok with a medium grade product for a medium grade price, only to start the job and have their nit pick list turn into a constant tally sheet of ”anal” expectations. If the guy told you that hes never used FPE then you should be aware of this and find a professional FPE painter. From what I understand a person can actuallly get certified by FPE in vermont to spray the stuff. I imagine a true pro would be much much higher than your 3500.00 quote. Its important to know what you're asking for up front and be willing to pay for it. If you want perfection, find a person who isn't learning somthing new and pay them what they ask for.

The best way to do it IMO is to paint the trim first, let the trim dry, tape off your trim and then paint your walls. You should never tape walls off. No, it is not normal for painters to use something that you didn't want them to use. If you wanted BM, they should use BM. If you chose a BM color and they want to use Devoe, they should ask you. However it went down, this all should be decided before beginning the project.

Wow I'm sorry you had such a bad experience with Laticrete Permacolor. I've installed tile and grouted with Laticrete Permacolor in Bright White, Raven, and Platinum and I've been really happy with the outcome in every case in my house. Not so much when I tried to do a quick re-grout of a shower with something from my local home improvement store. (I think it was Mapei.) I installed "white" grout which looked white while I was installing and then dried beige. I was just grouting this weekend with Laticrete Permacolor and read the mega disclaimer on the bag about the grout color not being guaranteed to match the color swatches. Good to know that next time I grout I'll have to mix up a sample batch and try it out on some tile scraps. I'm glad your situation turned out ok in the end.

Cheri I just had to ck in - I am so sorry this is your experience - talk about taking the wind out of your sails - this guy really has done that and then some. I agree w/the above - hold the GC's feet to the fire, as you know I have Kennebec cabs -I had the plumber come in to install the gas to the range - He told me he had to cut a whole in the side or back of the drawer for the shut off valve. Oh, no sorry - no cuts in my cabs - I went to Town Hall to inquire about the code for shut off - So very glad I had a discussion w/the building inspector who said that was actually an outdated code (to be w/in easy reach), the newer code did not require that - if there is a gas leak are you going to search for the shut off? No, I'm high tailing it out In any event - I have a nearly 90 yr old home - My kitchen was gutted - I went through painstaking efforts w/GC, Liz,& flooring subs to get the measurements right - after all we are starting from scratch - clean pallette & have specs on virtually everything going on and in the kitchen - I even made the GC's sub take out the wooden thresholds they put between 2 casement openings - as the old floors & new were even - why the threshold! Do not settle for anything less than what you truly want, which may be difficult to see right now. You have had a long arduous road to get to this point, why would you settle now? I realize you must be getting "get there itis" and would like your home to yourself - but you don't want to be cooking Thanksgiving Turkey in Nov regretting decisions you make now. I hate the thought of the cabs being cut and the floor joists be cut I really think is not wise - I had to change plumbing runs & put in new LVL's sistered to existing joists based on the prior plumbing cuts into the joists Push on the GC - put your thoughts/facts/concerns into writing - have a mtg -Do not give him a red cent until you are satisfied with the "fix" - Keep Liz & KD in the loop - you never know who may come up w/the solution & Kennebec has expertise in old homes Best to you enjoy a lovely weekend -