The weather outside was absolutely beautiful today…Sunny, warm, light breeze…almost felt like Spring.

I don’t know about you but I am more than ready for Spring to be here. Birds chirping, bees buzzing, all things made new again, and of course, fishing.

Spring also means time to clean out that garage, plant flowers, and paint…that’s right, paint. Your house probably needs some attention to the paint. Look at the exterior. Paint could be peeling off your chimney or door and window trim. These are typically the first areas to show signs of peeling and fading. Siding with alot of sun exposure will also start to fade quickly, even on homes as new as three years old.

Anyone or any painting company can paint a house and make it look good. The value comes in the lasting quality of the job (which is where we come in). We use high quality paint, prep the job right, and apply the materials full strength ensuring a lasting job.

As Winter winds down and the weather warms look at the exterior of your home. Painting in the Spring and Summer is the time to have it done. We will be adding coupons to our website for exterior painting soon so call or visit our website to schedule a free estimate. Mention this blog AFTER I present your bid and see what happens.

Be sure of this, Winter will end soon and when it does think about adding some color to your life with YourNextPainter.

Tags: exterior paint, fishing, paint your house

Whether you are an optimist (always hopeful), pessimist (always gloomy), or a realist, almost everyone is hopeful that this year will be better than last…

In Genesis 1:14 God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to seperate the day from the night, and let the serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years,” …Why?

One reason is to leave a less than great day or year behind and look to the hope of a new year, day, or season. After all we all have our favorite seasons (come on Summer) and don’t all like the same ones. Who likes Winter? Brrrrrrrrrrr…

So now that one year has ended and another begins try to remain hopeful, optimistic, and looking upward…

Paul wrote in Romans 15:13…
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

Hope this is an overflowing year for you.

So now is the time for what you’re asking.
Now is the time to be “green” and contribute to the movement of bettering God’s “green earth”.

So now you’re asking yourself “How do I do this?” There are a lot of different ways to conserve energy and help but I am only going to offer a few suggestions.

The first is to apply radiant barrier coating in your attic. Radiant barrier reduces temperatures in your home’s attic, which in turn, reduces energy consumption. By reducing attic temps in the Summer you’ll have reduced utility bills since your air conditioning system won’t be running as much and working as hard to keep your home cool.

The product that we use is Sherwin Williams E-Barrier. It is applied to the underside of your roof’s decking and looks like a silver paint. Right now through the spring we are installing it (while your attic is cooler) at a discounted rate. Call to get a free quote. Also, you can get a tax credit of up to $1500 to make your home more energy efficient (consult your accountant for details).

Caulking…check the caulk at all your doors and windows. This can be an area of energy loss and cause your home to be less energy efficient. We caulk all windows and doors on your home when we paint exteriors.

You can also be “green” by using low voc paints when painting your home. We also use these products when requested.

Here are some more tips:
> Recycle
> Reduce your paper trail. Some companies offer invoices online rather than mailing you paper invoices.
> Use low watt bulbs in light fixtures
> Install outlet cover insulators on all your outside walls. Cheap, quick way to reduce cold winter drafts.

There are MANY more ways to be green.
For more tips visit:
http://www.thegreenguide.com/

Thanks for reading and until next time…Be Green.

Tags: Green, radiant barrier, sherwin williams

Who likes a rodeo?

Show me someone who doesn’t and they’ve probably either never been to see one or don’t understand the heritage behind it.
Rodeos started on ranches as a competition between ranch hands. These working cowboys turned their work into a competition which included: Calf and Steer Roping on the range so they could brand them making the cattle easy to identify who owned them.
They also tried breaking the wild horses which evolved into bareback riding.
Back then these were a necessity in the everyday running of a ranch and the chores involved…Nowadays it is a way of living for some of the modern day cowboys.
These nomads travel from town to town paying high entry fees in hopes of winning their event, and in turn, winning some prize money.
On Friday September 18th and Saturday September 19th come re-visit the Old West as the Rodeo comes to Wylie, TX.
It is sure to be fun for young and the young at heart.
And by the way, did I mention we’ll have a booth there? Stop by and say hi and buy a few raffle tickets for a full room paint!!! $5.00 a ticket or 4 for $15.00.
Like Garth sings, “it’s the ropes and the reins, and the joy and the pain, and they call the thing Rodeooooo..woh woh”
How do you write that anyway?
Yee-Haw!!!

Tags: Painting, Rodeo, Room Painting, Wylie

Freedom. Is it really free?
Just a question to ponder…

Anyway, last weekend we had a booth at Rowlett’s “Fireworks on Main” event. Great turnout, people, food, and fireworks.
And of course being the 4th of July weekend we were there to celebrate our freedom (by the way, thanks to anyone who served in our military to maintain that freedom).

While we were there at the YourNextPainter booth we met many great folks and vendors.

The next event we will be at is “Sachse Fallfest” which will be on October 10th from 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM behind Sewell Elementary on Hudson Dr. in Sachse.

Last week in Rowlett we were selling raffle tickets for a full room paint which included materials and labor. We will be extending this to the Fallfest weekend due to low ticket sales.

Tickets are only $5.00 for a chance to win a full room paint (walls, ceilings, doors and trim).
Even if you don’t need it, think about what a great gift it would be for a friend. Or…thinking way ahead, even a Christmas gift.

So to those who purchased tickets, just wait, the drawing will be held soon after the Sachse fallfest on October 10th…Hope to see you there.

Tags: Room Painting, Rowlett's fireworks on Main, Sachse Fallfest

So, Father’s Day is only one week away. Are you ready?
Let me set it straight for you Mom’s who don’t already know. We don’t like ties, socks, shirts or any type of clothes or colognes (we can get that stuff when we need it).
Tools, fishing or hunting stuff, Grilling accessories, or gift cards (yes gift cards) are your best gift choices.
A gift card from Dick’s Sporting Goods or Bass Pro Shops is great…we get a cool gift and we might even take you with us to pick it out. Hope this was helpful.
Happy shopping Moms.

Who came up with these terms? It’s crazy nowdays to see all the crazy terms for things that are associated with the internet. Don’t you agree? Facebook. Myspace. Twitter. Google. Yahoo. Blog…
I’m sure that in our high tech world we will likely encounter more in the future that will become household names as well.
What a crazy world of high tech…

Memorial; a word defined as a monument or holiday, designed or established to serve as remembrance of a person or event.
Memorial Day; a U.S. holiday to honor members of the armed forces killed in war.
So today is a day that we should honor the men and women who served our country and were killed in war. How?
In thought, in memory, in prayer possibly…
I think that we should also honor the living members of the U.S. armed forces today also. After all, it is easier to tell someone who is alive and with us how much we appreciate them.
So today as you spend some time with your family cooking out or having a picnic or whatever…tell your children what today means. Tell them to thank someone who served or currently serves. Tell them how much they mean to you. Don’t look back in regret, wishing you’d have said that to a friend or family member after they are gone. Tell them now. Make every day a Memorial Day. (Matthew 8:18-27)

How about that rain today? We really needed the rain to get those spring flowers blooming. Along with the rain comes rotted wood on houses…How long has it been since you stepped outside and did a thorough inspection of your home?
First…look up. Get on your roof or look from the ground at your chimney. Inspect the trim boards (they are the first not ony to show wear but tend to start rotting at the bottoms where they touch the roof).
Next…Look at the trim around the windows. These start to peel and will start rotting at the joints or ends where they meet each other. Lack of primer and/or poor caulking attribute to this.
Also, check the bottoms of your door jambs, these are also prone to rot. Reason: Lack of caulking to threshold, etc.
Garage door jambs almost always rot at the bottom because of the way they are installed. Most of the time they are installed against the ground which causes water to damage them.
The best protection against rotted wood is a coat of high quality paint like Sherwin William’s Duration. It has a lifetime warranty and is by far, above and beyond all other paints. Before the paint goes on make sure your home is thoroughly caulked, clean, and all the peeling is sanded and primed.
Prep is crucial to a lasting job.
So… Along with the spring rains and spring cleaning, step outside and do a spring inspection on the exterior of your home.
And remember, if you need help, do not hesitate to call YourNextPainter !!!
Matthew 5:45

Tags: do it yourself, exterior painting, sherwin williams, wood repairs