It’s a little-known fact that the period between Haloween (spray-on spider-webs and flourescent aerosol shoestrings) and Christmas (cards, trees and stockings) may have been invented by super-intelligent mice in Victorian London as a winter ritual to keep them safe from the cats of Chelsea. These mice used subtle mind control techniques to force house-owners into…
5 minutes ago it was summer. But we’ve all been around long enough to know that Christmas is lurking in the shadows, sellotape and wrapping paper in hand. Santa Claus is rubbing his hands, cackling at your state of unpreparedness. This year, there’re no excuses to keep the relatives away – not ULEZ or COVID…
We were shocked to learn about items from the British Museum going missing last week. But just in case you’ve been offered some old marble statues for your garden, we thought we would suggest a better way to bring timeless classical beauty to your humble home. I refer, of course, to the classical exterior painting…
Ready for Summer? Whatever the weather and the news throw at us over the next few months, the Parvin headquarters is already a hive of activity. Our minions are already dancing up and down ladders, mixing paint by the bucket-full, and chomping through gallons of tea and mountains of biscuits. If you want to see them…
I decided to donate my front-row seat for the Coronation to someone more in need. Perhaps you did the same. Imagine trying to find parking in Central London on May 6th. But we will be gathered around the wireless, eating the new quiche from Charles and Camilla-styled plates and cheering them on. My old Grandma would…
On a quiet trip round Homebase I noticed how easy modern paints are supposed to make our lives. One Coat, No Preparation, Perfect Finish…. If only. My workmen disagree. They’ll happily tell you – in great details – how long it takes to sand down a wall, fill the holes, fix the woodwork, prime the…
For a while there it seemed like summer would go on for ever, just like an old Beach Boys record. But here we are, back to earth again, and Christmas heading straight for us like a drunken reindeer. Wherever Christmas cards go, relatives are never far behind. Relatives, it must be said, who will be sure…
I asked an online painting app to imagine a robot painting the living room. It didn’t miss a beat, and came back with an image that looks every bit as intelligent as I feel at the end of a long week. Not bad, I thought. There’s potential here. Fortunately Mrs. Parvin intervened before I tried…
If walls could talk! I’ll swear that one of my walls mutters and curses under its breath, and keeps threatening to sue me for negligence. Nobody likes a whinger, so not even the other walls like that one. I just hope it can’t talk english. The remedy of course is a new coat of paint. Unemployed government scientists now think that…
Dog owners tend to look like their pets, so I was wondering whether houses and their owners also look alike. A quick glance down my street made me think there might be something similar going on – houses expressing their feelings to anyone who cares to see. It’s scary. Would you sleep well if you…
Smaug, the dragon made famous by JR Tolkein, famously slept on a massive hoard of gold in his cavernous cellar. Tolkein’s writeup of Smaug is somewhat unflattering. It suggests he was the kind of dragon who had another room full of toilet paper, not to mention several jerry cans of petrol out the back, and even some pasta that went out of…
Paul Simon got all the news he needed on the weather report, and he has a point. If too much Carbon Dioxide wasn’t bad enough, not enough of it seems to be even worse. Armageddon! And Estate Agents were reporting a few months ago that Londoners were in mass flight to the country, heading out…
They say it’s easy to mock. And, in the words of comedian Steve Wright, maybe that’s why we enjoy it. I came across these home decorating examples that add new meaning to the word ‘unique’. They should have an award. I’m sorry, but the temptation to share them was overwhelming. How about this brilliant idea to capitalise on unused…
Might as well face up to it – the closest we’re likely to get to a South Sea Island this summer is a trip to Southsea (picture below). But if you’re lucky enough to own property in London, you’ll be staying entertained as you watch your house price go up. In fact you’re probably considering…
We hear a lot about the value of a fresh coat of paint to raise property resale price, but according to survey we value artistic expression above mere profit, and only 4% of homeowners paint for that reason. Fifty-five percent just want a different look, and the main reason homeowners decide to paint is a…
All the talk is about coming out of lockdown. When that happens, beware: house guess can’t be far behind. Stock up on biscuits – and what about the paintwork? We’ve all had it easy for a year but golly – with foreign holidays off the agenda, redecorating looks like the thing for 2021. Beat the…
I may or may not be still in the running for Parvin Household Husband of the Year. but if you like to follow the annual awards, this one’s for you. Colour of the Year is always a controversial contest, with rival awards from Crown and other paint-makers. But, like McVities and the Digestive Biscuit, there…
It’s probably not going to solve the worldwide coronavirus problem overnight, but it’s good to see some developments that look as if they will help. In May of this year some of the world’s leading coatings specialists gathered (virtually) at the Royal Society of Chemistry, in collaboration with the British Coatings Federation, to discuss how…
I hope you managed to enjoy some summer holiday, and got back safely. We put a world map on the wall. I gave Mrs. Parvin a dart and said: “Throw this – wherever it lands, that’s where I’m taking you this year.” Yes, we enjoyed our two weeks behind the fridge. But I like to…
he UK property market is breaking records since the end of lockdown. ‘Sales agreed’ across the country from mid-July to mid-August add up to more than £37 billion. In London, instead of the usual summer slowdown. we’ve had the highest number of homes being put up for sale since March 2008. Rightmove say they are seeing a…
As part of the Construction Industry we are still able to carry out certain types of decorating work during the Lockdown. This includes much exterior work, and work on empty buildings and premises. But we’re coming into decorating season and there’s already a lot of work booked in. So the scientists at GD Parvin have…
Painting and decorating won’t kill viruses – although that might not be too far off: the International Space Station currently has it’s toilet doors covered in a special paint that’s supposed to kill off superbugs, which apparently thrive in space. In the meantime, I could probably quote all sorts of science about how being happy…
All this water can cause endless problems, and it can be a real headache to get rid of the effects. I hope you’ve escaped any flooding, but even without that there can be plenty of issues to deal with. Leaving aside the exterior problems that come with the cold and the wet and the winds…
Landlords and Property Management Agents sometimes ask our advice for maintaining paintwork in apartment blocks. This includes in-between tenancy commercial decorating as well as regular cyclical maintenance of common spaces and exteriors, as well as Section 20 and JCT decorating work. Durability We’d always recommend focusing on practical and durable finishes, whether the buildings are for…
This is the time of year when you might start to notice any defects or problems with your external decorating. Cold weather, high winds, frost and heavy rainfall are going to expose any frailties in the protection that external paintwork is supposed to give to wooden window and door frames, and the soffits beneath the…
Already the phones at Parvin Towers are ringing off the hook. Can you park a van outside our house until the election’s over? Or lend us a “Wet Paint” sign for our front door? There are serious questions to be asked of all parties: for example is Dulux’s “Striking Cyan” washable paint an anti-Labour or…
It’s a question that comes up frequently. With Farrow & Ball paints often costing twice or three times as much as comparable Deluxe and Crown paints – both good quality brands – is it really worth paying the extra? Will you be able to tell the difference? From a professional decorator’s viewpoint, here’s what I…
You heard it here first. Before even the first sighting of a Santa, before a single sparkle of tinsel in a shop window, I can reveal next year’s Colour of the Year. Akzo Nobel – Dulux to you and me – must have their colour elves on piece-work, because according to my watch it’s only just…
I tried DIY brain surgery once. My very good friends have pointed out that perhaps I should have saved up for a professional job. But British Gas, while waiting for their kettle to boil, have been doing some calculations on the back of a reply-paid envelope and now tell us that British home-owners spend £34 billion a year fixing…
For once I’ll be serious. At least for a bit. If you own property in London you probably keep a close watch on property price trends. If not you must have nerves of steel. Latest figures from the ONS suggest a 4.4pc fall in London house prices over the last year (compared to a rise…
