Painter & Decorator in East Dulwich
Warm, process-led painting and decorating across East Dulwich, Dulwich Village, West Dulwich and Herne Hill.
I'm Imer. And for the last five years I've been painting and decorating homes across East Dulwich and the surrounding patch, one job at a time, with real care for the prep, the paint and your home. Send me a few photos and I'll send you back a clear, fixed quote within 24 hours.
Meet Imer
I'm Imer, the painter and decorator behind Dulwich Painting Co.
Where I come from
I grew up between two places. Albania, where I was born, and South London, where my family landed when I was small and where I've lived ever since. East Dulwich is home now. My van's parked two streets from Lordship Lane and I can walk to most of my jobs.
How I got into this
Painting found me early. I grew up around brothers who were working in construction, and I used to love being given a brush and told to cut in round a window frame. All my brothers went into trades in the end. One of mine has been a builder for years and really knows his stuff, and the other qualified as a plumber. Between us we can just about fix a house on our own. But decorating was always the one I loved.
The thing that hooked me wasn't the painting itself, it was the transformation. A tired, grey, magnolia room gets properly prepped, properly primed, properly painted, and suddenly the whole house feels different. Lighter, warmer, more like home.
Five years ago I decided to do it properly for a living. I've never wanted to do anything else since.
What I believe the job is
Most people think a decorator's job is painting. It isn't. The painting is the last twenty percent. The first eighty is prep.
If the walls aren't flat, if the filler isn't sanded back properly, if the cracks in the caulk haven't been redone, if the fresh plaster hasn't had a real mist coat, then no amount of lovely Farrow & Ball is going to save the finish. You'll see it six months later. The roller stipple won't flatten, the cracks will come back through the paint, the woodwork will show every nib you didn't sand out.
So I work slow on the prep. I fill everything. I caulk every edge. I sand every surface. And I do all of it dustless, using a Festool PLANEX and an M-class vacuum, because there's no point being willing to sand properly if the whole house is going to be covered in dust for a week.
Then, and only then, I start painting.
The bit I love most
The walk-through at the end. Handing a room back to someone who's lived with cracked magnolia for ten years, watching them realise what the space was actually supposed to look like.
If any of this sounds like your kind of decorator, let's have a conversation.
What I Do
Learn more by clicking on any of the titles below. I’ve detailed my painting an decorating approach thoroughly for each service on a dedicated page.
Interior Painting
Rooms, hallways, ceilings and whole-house repaints, done properly start to finish.
Exterior Painting
Preparation and painting of rendered and brick exteriors, soffits, fascias and garden walls.
Woodwork & Sash Windows
Sashes, skirtings, architraves, doors and built-in joinery, stripped back and repainted properly.
Wallpaper Hanging & Removal
Careful strip-outs, wall prep, and clean hanging of paste-the-wall and traditional papers.
Kitchen Cabinet Spraying
HVLP factory-finish for tired cabinets, in-situ or off-site.
Period & Listed Properties
Victorian and Edwardian homes, Grade II listed, conservation-area sensitive.
How I Do It
Prep first, every time.
Roughly 80% of a good paint job happens before the first coat goes on. Fill, caulk, sand, repeat. If the wall isn't flat, smooth and dust-free, no paint in the world is going to save it.
Dustless sanding.
I use a Festool PLANEX long-reach sander hooked up to an M-class vacuum. It means I can sand a full room of walls and ceilings with almost no dust escaping into your home. No white powder on your sofa, no film on the kids' toys, no cleaning up for a week after I've left.
The right paint for the job.
Farrow & Ball, Little Greene, Mylands, Dulux Trade, Tikkurila. I'll talk you through what makes sense for your walls, your light and your budget. Honest advice. I'm not on commission from anyone.
What to expect when I’m in your home.
I'll arrive when I said I'd arrive. Usually 8 or 8.30am, earlier if you need it.
I'll bring dust sheets for every floor and I'll lay them properly, not just throw them down. Your furniture will either be moved into the middle of the room and covered, or taken out entirely if that's easier. Masking tape goes on every skirting, socket, switch and radiator valve.
I work quietly. Most of my clients are still in the house while I'm painting it, a lot of them working from home. I like to play music on a small speaker, but I’m very happy to use headphones or work without music if that’s your preference, I don't make calls on loudspeaker, and I don't eat lunch in your kitchen.
At the end of every day the site gets cleaned down. Tools go cleaned away, dust sheets get rolled up out of the way, the floor gets hoovered. On the final day I walk every room with you before I call it done, and we fix anything you're not happy with then and there.
Areas I cover
I work across South East London, based in East Dulwich.
Just outside these areas? Ask me anyway. If it's within a few miles of East Dulwich I'll usually make it work.
Frequently Asked Questions
About Painting And Decorating In East Dulwich And South London
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A typical single bedroom in good condition is £450 to £700. A larger living or dining room is £650 to £950. The price is driven by the condition of the walls (how much filling and sanding is needed), the ceiling height, how much woodwork there is, and whether you're going for a big colour change. I'll always send you a written, fixed quote before any work starts.
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A single bedroom is usually 2 to 3 days including prep. A living room with woodwork is 3 to 5. A whole 3-bed house repaint takes 2 to 3 weeks depending on condition. I don't rush, and I don't drag it out.
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Fixed price for everything. You know what you're paying before I start. If the job runs into unexpected problems (e.g. we pull a bit of lining paper and the plaster underneath is a mess), I'll stop and show you before anything changes.
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Whatever's right for your job. Farrow & Ball and Little Greene for colour-led work, Mylands for rich woodwork finishes, Dulux Trade as a brilliant, cost-effective workhorse, Tikkurila for hallways and high-traffic rooms that need to last. Happy to use a brand you've already bought.
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Yes, £1m public liability and I'm happy to send the certificate before I start.
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Easiest thing is to send me a few photos on WhatsApp or fill in the quote form. I'll come back within 24 hours with a proper written quote.
Ready for a Fresh Coat?
Send me a few photos and I’ll send you back a clear, fixed quote within 24 hours.
How a quote works
1. Send me photos.
WhatsApp (07933 509672) or fill in the form opposite. A shot of each room, anything tricky (mould, peeling, damp, wallpaper, water stains), and the rough size if you know it.
2. I'll send a clear, fixed quote.
Usually within 24 hours. Written down, broken out by room, no surprises at the end.
3. Optional, I'll pop round.
If it's a bigger job or there's anything unusual, I'll come and see it in person before we commit. No charge, no sales pitch.
4. Book in and paint.
Agreed start date, agreed finish date. Tidy site every evening, final walk-through at the end.