Frequently asked questions

Yes of course. You do need to sand the surface first to remove any loose or flaking paint. For a durable and long lasting finish, a coat of primer is a good idea to create an even layer for your top coats to adhere to.

In our shift away from a throw away culture, we really recommend investing in a few decent brushes and a good quality roller (we love Purdeys). You will get a great finish, never find stray hairs on your walls, and if you wash them thoroughly, they will last you for years of decorating. As all the paints are water based, scrape off as much paint as you can before washing them thoroughly in water. Wrap the brush in old newspaper overnight to absorb the water and allow them to dry.

If you are using the same paint colour, it is fine to wrap your roller in cling film or a plastic bag nice and tight. It will not dry out and will be good to use again tomorrow. Mick suggests cleaning your brushes properly every evening though.

You should use our Chalky Interior Matt – 9 parts paint mixed with 1 part water as your ‘undercoat’ so the paint will be more easily absorbed and create a better base for your top coat. Then 2 coats of full strength Chalky Interior Matt should give you a beautiful smooth finish.

All our paints are water based and have low VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds).

Interior Chalky Matt should be used for internal walls.

Our Interior eggshell is perfect as it is easy to wash and keep clean. We recommend many thin coats to give a perfect finish rather than two thick coats, this will give a smoother finish and be more resistant to chipping.

Our Interior Eggshell will be suitable for standard water filled radiators. A coat of primer will provide the perfect base for both of these finishes. Oil filled radiators can heat up to much higher temperatures than conventional water radiators and these require a specialist heat resistant enamel paint.

Absolutely, our Eggshell has a slight sheen similar to satin. The sheen level is more pronounced in the darker shades.

These types of bricks , and ‘Fletton bricks’ are characterised by their “kiss marks” caused by them sitting aside each other in the kiln. They are very hard and dense and have sealed surfaces meaning it is difficult for masonry paints to directly adhere to them. You can paint this brickwork, but preparation is key –  it should be cleaned and any loose material should be removed, then apply 2 coats of M&L Primer before using M&L Masonry paint.

In an unopened tin and stored ideally between 5°C and 25°C, paint will last at least 2 years but we have seen examples lasting in excess of 5 years and beyond. Once the tins are opened there are no hard and fast numbers as it will depend on how well the tin is resealed after use and the cleanliness of the application equipment used.

Leftover paint will last longer if the tin is sealed tightly. To reseal a tin of paint so that it is airtight, wipe the rim of the tin clean, replace the lid, place a block of wood over the top and tap it down with a hammer. Once the lid is on tight, tip the tin upside down to create a seal, this will prevent a skin on top of the paint.

Whilst we still make some of the original colours we can only guarantee the match to the colours on our current paint chart. Please request a paint chart, these are painted with the M&L chalky matt and all orders are tested against this.

By all means email us to check. If we have the recipe we can mix this for you but we won’t be able to check the colour for accuracy if it isn’t on our current paint chart.

It is not likely, paint colours do fade over time and whilst we check all the orders we mix against our current paint chart we cannot account for how they may change over time.

We hope so but the temperature and humidity can have an effect on the paint so we always recommend using our paint calculator to make sure you are ordering enough paint for your project so that it is all mixed at the same time. If you do run out half way along a wall or skirting board and need an additional tin we recommend you paint the full surface corner to corner as this will disguise any slight shade variation in the new tin.

We have a helpful guide to hanging your M&L Paint & Paper wallpaper and murals (PDF, opens in new window). All of our wallpapers are paste the wall products.

Wallpaper is printed in batches, all of our wallpapers are printed specifically to order, meaning our batch numbers will be specific to your order. This is usually a 4 digit number. Please ensure that you order the correct amount as we do not guarantee that rolls printed in different batches will be an exact match in colour.

We’ve made it really easy to calculate how many rolls you will need for your project with our wallpaper roll calculators. Once you have chosen your wallpaper please select the ‘How much wallpaper do I need?’ in the product page and add your wall dimensions, and we will calculate this for you. Please note the pattern repeat of the wallpaper does determine this so please check the requirements against each individual wallpaper you are ordering even if the walls are the same size.

For our wallpaper murals, these are supplied on one roll and will cover a wall space specified on the product description. These are supplied in rolls of panels. Depending on the product some of our murals are in repeat meaning you can add further rolls to extend the size of the mural, although others are set size so please read the product description for further details.

We always recommend ordering a sample of wallpaper before making your final selection; this can help you with selecting the perfect design and colour for your interiors. Our wallpaper samples can be ordered on the product page by selecting the ‘Order a sample’ option. All samples are dispatched via Royal Mail and these will arrive within 3-5 days of placing your order.

We offer free delivery on both paint and wallpaper in mainland UK. If you are outside of the mainland you will be prompted to fill in your postcode on the order page and we will be in touch with a shipping quote for you.

We will aim to get your orders to you as quickly as we can. Our couriers collect from 10am so we usually send orders received the following day on a next day service but during busy periods this can take 1-3 days for dispatch. In some areas a next day service may not be available and can take slightly longer.

As all of our wallpaper is printed to order, please allow up to 7 working days from placing the initial order for your wallpaper to arrive.

Our products are shipped from different warehouses meaning they will be sent in separate shipments. You will still be able to track each item’s delivery.

Sadly not, unfortunately the couriers will not let us book overseas paint deliveries as they can’t guarantee its safe arrival.

Regretfully we are unable to accept returns due to the bespoke manufacture of our paint. If you wish to dispute this, please contact us directly.

Regretfully we are unable to accept returns due to the bespoke manufacture of our wallpapers, which are printed to your order. If you wish to dispute this, please contact us directly.

M&L paint is sold exclusively on our website.