In November 2024, I completed a full interior repaint of a fully furnished, two-bedroom holiday apartment at Harbour Lights, Cairns, a prestigious waterfront apartment complex overlooking Cairns Marlin Marina.
At the time, the business operated as Painting and Maintenance FNQ Handyman Service, which has since evolved into Painting & Maintenance FNQ, continuing under the same ABN.
Unlike projects involving a dramatic colour transformation, the objective was to refresh the apartment while maintaining its existing appearance. The new colours were closely matched to the original scheme, with subtle differences to provide a clean, fresh finish.
The project included repainting ceilings, walls, doors and door frames, with particular attention to protecting the furniture and existing fittings.
FINISHED LIVING AREA
Careful Planning Around Holiday Accommodation Bookings
One of the biggest challenges of this project was scheduling the repaint around the property's high occupancy.
As a popular holiday apartment, the property had limited availability between guest bookings. This meant the painting work needed to be carefully planned and completed within a strict timeframe without interfering with upcoming reservations.
As an owner-operated painting business, I personally carry out the painting work, making accurate scheduling and time management particularly important.
The project required careful coordination of surface preparation, priming, painting and drying times to ensure everything could be completed within the available window.
Working within these restrictions while maintaining a high standard of workmanship was an important part of successfully completing the project.
Painting a Fully Furnished Holiday Apartment
Repainting a fully furnished apartment requires additional preparation and care compared with working in an empty property.
The Harbour Lights apartment contained beds, lounge furniture, dining furniture, kitchen cabinetry and other existing fittings that needed protection throughout the painting process.
Furniture was covered with protective plastic, floors were protected with drop sheets, and kitchen cabinetry and fittings were carefully masked where required.
These precautions helped protect the apartment's furnishings while allowing the interior painting work to proceed efficiently.
The living room ceiling had also been repainted earlier in 2024 as part of the property's overall interior refresh.
PREPARATION AND FURNITURE PROTECTION
Interior Surface Preparation and Priming
As with any interior repaint, preparation was an important part of achieving a consistent, professional finish.
Areas requiring patching were repaired, and the repaired patches were spot-primed using Taubmans Maximum Adhesion Water Based Undercoat before painting.
The same undercoat was also used on the doors and door frames to prepare these surfaces for their new enamel finish.
Using the appropriate undercoat helped prepare the repaired areas and existing woodwork for their finishing coats.
Interior Painting Products and Colours
The apartment was repainted using Taubmans interior paint systems, with different products and finishes selected for ceilings, walls and woodwork.
Ceilings
The ceilings were painted using Taubmans Pure Performance Ceiling Flat in Ceiling White.
The flat finish provided a clean, uniform appearance across the ceiling surfaces.
Walls
The walls were repainted using Taubmans Pure Performance Low Sheen in Lexicon Quarter, using the Taubmans colour version.
This shade was slightly lighter than the original Lexicon Quarter colour, allowing the apartment to retain a similar appearance while subtly refreshing the interior.
The low-sheen finish provided a practical surface for the living areas and bedrooms.
Doors and Door Frames
The doors and frames were prepared using Taubmans Maximum Adhesion Water Based Undercoat and finished with Taubmans Water Based Enamel in untinted White Gloss.
The gloss finish created a clean contrast against the low-sheen walls and complemented the apartment's existing colour scheme.
FINISHED LIVING ROOM AND KITCHEN
The Finished Result
The completed repaint refreshed the two-bedroom apartment without significantly changing its original colour scheme.
The light wall colours, white ceilings and gloss-finished doors and frames worked together to maintain a bright, consistent interior.
With large windows overlooking Cairns Marlin Marina, the Harbour Lights apartment already benefited from natural light and impressive waterfront views. The freshly painted surfaces complemented the existing furnishings and helped maintain the property's presentation as holiday accommodation.
Despite the limited timeframe and the additional preparation required for a fully furnished property, the repaint was completed within the available schedule.
This November 2024 project demonstrates how careful planning, appropriate preparation and efficient work practices can help deliver a quality interior repaint in a busy holiday accommodation property.
FINISHED BEDROOM
ADDITIONAL FINISHED ROOM
Residential and Apartment Painting in Cairns
Today, Painting & Maintenance FNQ provides professional interior painting and repainting services throughout Cairns, the Northern Beaches, Port Douglas and surrounding areas.
From furnished apartments and residential homes to strata properties and commercial premises, the business focuses on careful preparation, suitable paint systems and quality workmanship.
As an owner-operated, QBCC-licensed and fully insured painting business, Painting & Maintenance FNQ provides free, no-obligation painting quotes.
Planning an apartment or interior repaint in Cairns? Contact Painting & Maintenance FNQ to discuss your project.