Touching up paintwork the lazy way...

[BlardyBlaaaaa]

Am trying to sell my house and wondered if I could touch up scuff marks on my walls without doing the proper preparation, i.e. Sanding down, base coats etc. The walls are pale cream colour so will they show up random dabs here and there (dh says it'll look stupid.)? I thought it might be worth it (haven't got time/energy to do it properly). If nothing else the smell of fresh paint is good if you're trying to sell, no? Also, one of our outside walls (party walls) could do with freshening up. Can I just slap some masonry paint on as it's not raining today?

thanks, in advance. My DIY knowledge is non existent really....

Try cleaning the marks off inside instead - just go gently in case you remove the paint. Unless a wall has been recently painted, it is likely that touch ups will show, depends how minor they are. Some marks won't cover with emulsion anyway so worth trying to get them off.

You don't need to sand painted walls - the only thing I would sand would be woodwork to provide a key for a fresh coat of paint or to smooth out a chipped area which needs touching up. Woodwork you can often get away with touching up, providing gloss hasn't yellowed.

It is quite likely that someone will recommend you try a Magic Eraser on the marks and scuffs: they are abrasive so if you do decide to use one, go carefully. I learned the hard way.

Finally, outside, brush the wall down to remove any loose bits and paint with masonry paint. But do paint the whole wall or it will be obvious which bits you have painted.