How do you make decorated surfaces stand up to everyday wear?

[Bubblewrapart]

Is there a trick to getting painted things to look nice long term?

Have been steadily redecorating my home, including upcycyling furniture, wallpapering and painting rooms. First time DH/my kids went into the latest freshly painted room they've knocked a bit of furniture against the wall and marked it. I did 4 really thin coats of supposedly wipe clean paint and a primer. I painted over a few days/weeks so absolutely left enough time between coats. Have gone to try and carefully wipe the scuff mark off and the paint has come off 😭

Other places in the house seem to manage with us you know, living here. So I can only assume it's something I've done/not done despite following the instructions to the best of my ability!

Have wallpapered the downstairs loo with panelling effect wallpaper, then painted it. But it's sticky and I don't understand why. Have tried wiping it with a warm cloth in case it was excess paste or something but it's still sticky. It didn't seem sticky before it was painted. It's been about 2 months. We've tried having a dehumidifier in there. The toilet paper and hand towel keeps sticking to the wall. I genuinely think it's going to have to come off and just be painted instead.

Another painting example, I've painted a kallax unit and added a top and a door. I used frenchic paint which says you don't need to prime, and opted to finish it with a coat of tuff coat/sealant as it's in a high traffic area. Did 3 coats of paint, even though 2 looked sufficient. Left about a day between each coat and then for multiple reasons it was a good week before I moved it into place. It was scuffed back down to the original colour before I even got it upstairs and the first thing I slid onto the shelf took the paint off.

Wtf am I doing wrong?!

The secret is always preparation. Paint not adhering properly is usually because the surface had residual grime and grease on it - wash a couple of times with sugar soap, then clean water, and/or the surface it too smooth, you need to lightly sand it before painting. As to your downstairs loo, no idea, have you tried painting an offcut of paper, that's not on a wall, does the paint dry properly on that.

Oo no, good idea. Will try that.

I did wash with sugar soap, but only once 😭Is there anyway to rescue the bits that have been painted/not adhered to or do I need to strip and start again?

It's not good painting weather due to high humidity.

But a good wash down a couple of times with sugar soap next time will help as pp said, and keying the surface. I did an ikea hemnes unit from black to white and it took 5 thin coats.

Is it possible you put the paint on too thick? I use ASloane and always thin the first coat, then add a second thin coat after at least three hours. I also always use a small roller rather than a brush, as you get a better finish.

With the wallpaper issue, it may be poor quality paper, and again may not dry due to high humidity, or poor paste, or poor quality paint or a combination. I'd look at getting better quality everything and trying again in the Autumn.

Hope this helps.

What kind of paint was it that you tried to wipe clean? We've used Dulux Trade vinyl on our walls and I have successfully cleaned it plenty of times without paint coming off. You lightly dab/blot soapy water on with a sponge, leave it for a few minutes and then blot it off with a damp clean sponge.
You can get tougher paints than the standard vinyl if that's not cleanable enough for you. Diamond is the next one up I think, for Dulux anyway. Good for bathrooms etc.

I French Chic painted a Kallax too - even with preparation the paint didn't stick to some of the shelving surfaces - it looked fine when I put it on, but when it was dry it just fell off.

Some paint finishes are just more durable than others too. But I agree that the secret is preparation. Usually - I've no idea what's wrong with my Kallax!

@Vroomfondleswaistcoat well that's validating thank you!
Honestly I was so crushed when it happened. I'm usually slapdash with my DIY and decorating but I tried extra extra hard with these projects so to see them have little to no longevity was most disheartening.

It was the Dulux tough easy care washable range. I usually don't bother as I'm not one for wiping the walls, but I went for it this time. Felt so smug when I saw the mark on there as I thought ah ha! I can just wipe it! Gave it the most gentle passing over with a damp cloth and the paint just came with it. Grrrrr.

@PrincessofWills thanks for the reply. All the projects were done back in April, so definitely not the humidity. I did very light coats and multiple of them (kids were away for a week so I went to town and did a proper job!). I was decorating all 3 things at once so each one only got about 1 coat per day, sometimes managed to do a coat first thing in the morning and another in the evening but there was more than enough time between coats.

Most baffling.