How to Touch Up a Wall Invisibly

A touch-up only disappears if it matches the paint, sheen, texture and plane around it. Clean first, and paint only if the mark stays.

What you need

Clean the mark first with a soft cloth and the mildest cleaner the paint allows. If it comes off without changing the sheen, stop.
Repair a chip or hole first. Remove only loose material, fill, and prime the bare spots and a feathered halo.
Read the label of the original can. Color name alone does not give you the product, base or sheen.
Stir the reserve from the bottom until no sediment drags. Do not thin it.
Test on a primed scrap or hidden spot. Judge it dry under room light and raking light.
Copy the original application. Use a 3/8" nap short roller on a rolled wall, or a fine brush for a pin point.
Load almost nothing. Place paint into the defect, not onto the good paint around it.
Let it dry and check from straight on and from both sides.

The 3/8" E-volution cover (47353 or 47354) has a 4" footprint that keeps the patch small on a 3/8" rolled wall.
Stir a tiny pot with the 3/8" spatula, a quart with the 5/8", and a deep can with the 1".
Do not brush a rolled wall. The brush direction shows against roller stipple.
Higher sheens show every difference. Flat and matte forgive a small feathered touch-up.

A badly faded, sooty or burnished wall will not match with a spot touch-up. Repaint to a natural break, like corner to corner.
Primer over dust bonds to dust. Clean first.
A hollow or ridge is a plane problem. Paint cannot fix it.

Questions about the right tool for your job? Email cs@hydestore.com or call 508-916-6442.