# Help - using masking tape to create stripes while painting **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 21, 2010, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-using-masking-tape-to-create-stripes-while-painting/529850 "2010-02-21T04:51:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![rainy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c2a13f/32.png) [@rainy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rainy)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2010, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-using-masking-tape-to-create-stripes-while-painting/529850/1 "2010-02-21T04:51:07Z")
Okay, so what is the proper technique for doing this? I’ve seen people on TV use masking tape to delineate stripes while painting. Whenever I try to do this, the paint creeps/seeps under the edges of the tape resulting in a very fuzzy line. -rainy ---
**Author:** ![phouka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c5a1d2/32.png) [@phouka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phouka)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2010, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-using-masking-tape-to-create-stripes-while-painting/529850/2 "2010-02-21T05:55:10Z")
1. Make sure the wall is very clean before putting the tape down. Seal it if need be. 2. The bumpier the wall surface, the more problems you’re going to have. 3. After you apply the tape, use a paint scraper to press and smooth it down. 4. Let the paint dry all the way. Seriously, wait a day or two before taking up the tape. 5. Before taking up the tape, use an X-Acto or box cutter to cut through the latex pain along the edge of the tape. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2010, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-using-masking-tape-to-create-stripes-while-painting/529850/3 "2010-02-21T06:12:49Z")
Make sure you’re not using masking tape. Even blue painter’s tape is “out” now. Green [Frog Tape](http://www.frogtape.com/) is the thing to use. I also don’t think that leaving the tape on too long is the right way to do it. In my experience, you want to remove it when it’s wet so that the paint doesn’t dry to the tape and then come off when you take the tape off. You want to take it off right away. From the [Frog Tape How-To](http://www.frogtape.com/FrogTape%20How-To.aspx): “Remove the tape immediately after you are finished painting. This will help prevent paint from bridging over the tape and tearing when you remove it. When latex paint begins to dry, it becomes rubbery (like a rubber band) and has a tendency to pull.” ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2010, 7:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-using-masking-tape-to-create-stripes-while-painting/529850/4 "2010-02-21T07:19:02Z")
I’m an artist who does acrylic paintings, and occasionally I need to use masking tape on canvas . . . which is even more difficult than on a wall. After I lay the tape down I go over the edge with my thumbnail, to close off the edge as much as possible. Then I paint over the seam with a colorless paint medium (it dries clear). This is the important step, because this is what will sometimes seep under the paint. But it doesn’t matter, because it’s clear. If the canvas has a rougher texture I sometimes use two coats of the colorless medium. After it’s totally dry, I then use the actual paint, and wait for it to dry somewhat before removing. ---
**Author:** ![turner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/22d042/32.png) [@turner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/turner)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2010, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-using-masking-tape-to-create-stripes-while-painting/529850/5 "2010-02-21T16:14:38Z")
On textured surfaces, I use a scrub brush to push the tape into the texture so the paint doesn’t wick into valleys in the texture. press the tape down, then scrub it hard. If you take the tape off when wet, make sure you pull straight back or slightly favor the side of the tape with the wet paint. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2010, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-using-masking-tape-to-create-stripes-while-painting/529850/6 "2010-02-21T22:28:08Z")
Important to note about painter’s tape, don’t put it on the wall until you’re about ready to paint it. If it stays on a wall for too long (ie. over a week or two) it becomes really hard to remove and will probably leave residue behind. ---
**Author:** ![DanBlather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f4b2a3/32.png) [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2010, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-using-masking-tape-to-create-stripes-while-painting/529850/7 "2010-02-22T03:18:55Z")
Back in the day we would use scotch tape and then partially overlap it with masking tape. Scotch tape has a crisper edge, ---
**Author:** ![rainy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c2a13f/32.png) [@rainy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rainy)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2010, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-using-masking-tape-to-create-stripes-while-painting/529850/8 "2010-02-22T17:53:47Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > Make sure you’re not using masking tape. Even blue painter’s tape is “out” now. Green [Frog Tape](http://www.frogtape.com/) is the thing to use. That looks like good stuff. Thanks for the recommendation. > [@ZipperJJ](#): > > I also don’t think that leaving the tape on too long is the right way to do it. In my experience, you want to remove it when it’s wet so that the paint doesn’t dry to the tape and then come off when you take the tape off. You want to take it off right away. That has been my experience too. ---
**Author:** ![rainy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c2a13f/32.png) [@rainy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rainy)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2010, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-using-masking-tape-to-create-stripes-while-painting/529850/9 "2010-02-22T17:56:30Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > I’m an artist who does acrylic paintings, and occasionally I need to use masking tape on canvas . . . which is even more difficult than on a wall. After I lay the tape down I go over the edge with my thumbnail, to close off the edge as much as possible. Then I paint over the seam with a colorless paint medium (it dries clear). This is the important step, because this is what will sometimes seep under the paint. But it doesn’t matter, because it’s clear. If the canvas has a rougher texture I sometimes use two coats of the colorless medium. After it’s totally dry, I then use the actual paint, and wait for it to dry somewhat before removing. This is a great sounding method. Do you have any of the trouble you can get into with latex letting it dry on the tape – the bridging over and pulling off paint you wanted to stay? ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2010, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-using-masking-tape-to-create-stripes-while-painting/529850/10 "2010-02-22T19:42:06Z")
We’ve done my son’s room a couple of times with stripes. Once vertical and another horizontal. I’ve used the frog tape which is nice stuff but the blue painters tape from 3M seemed to work fine also. Just press along the edge of the tape with your thumb to make sure it sticks good. I go along with the tip to remove the tape as soon as possible. Once the tape was removed and it was completely dry we also went along the line with a very fine tip paint brush to touch up small errors. We do get a lot of comments from visitors “how do you make your lines so straight!” ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2010, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-using-masking-tape-to-create-stripes-while-painting/529850/11 "2010-02-22T20:31:40Z")
See the thread **Painting the Trim with Perfection?** over in General Questions. A couple of mentions of “backfill with caulk” and comments. The caulk seals the tape/wall interface to stop the leaking under the tape condition. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2010, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-using-masking-tape-to-create-stripes-while-painting/529850/12 "2010-02-22T21:41:25Z")
> [@smithsb](#): > > A couple of mentions of “backfill with caulk” and comments. I bet there were a lot of comments about “backfilling” with caulk. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![sachertorte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sachertorte/32/3727_2.png) [@sachertorte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sachertorte)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2010, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-using-masking-tape-to-create-stripes-while-painting/529850/13 "2010-02-22T21:49:40Z")
When I did my walls I used very little paint along the tape edge, almost a dry brush. That way the paint couldn’t seep under the tape. I didn’t have any trouble peeling the tape off. The paint broke along the line cleanly for me. I would guess this method might not work as well for strongly contrasting colors. Mine was a shade difference, so a dry brush got enough color on the wall. ---
**Author:** ![redtail23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/3e96dc/32.png) [@redtail23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/redtail23)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2010, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-using-masking-tape-to-create-stripes-while-painting/529850/14 "2010-02-22T22:07:51Z")
My painter friend says to run a bead of caulk along the edge of the tape to seal it. He can do this perfectly and easily. I can not. I have peeled off big globs of latex before when I let the paint dry before removing the tape. I’ve also had the tape stick to the surface when I left it too long.