If you paint rather than hire someone, you will save a lot of money. You do want your home to look elegant, so if you plan to paint, you must do it right.

Here are some tips to ensure your paint well even if you have zero experience painting.

• Always use a plastic cloth called a drop cloth to protect your floors or carpets from dripping paint. We’ve pointed this out before, but you would be surprised how many people fail to wear proper cloth. You will spend more money getting paint stains out of your carpet than you will paint your walls if you are not careful.

• Cover your paint can with plastic or set it on a cardboard surface so the paint does not drip from your paint can onto your floor. You do not, after all, want to spend even more money buying products to remove spilled paint.

• Cover your shoes and other articles of clothing to avoid paint stains. You can use simple plastic bags or shower caps to protect your shoes and select a tired or worn-out pair of jeans and a t-shirt for painting projects. Be sure to take the covers off your shoes before walking around the rest of your house, so you keep paint from spreading to floors in other rooms in your home.

• If you plan to paint the ceiling, do this first. If you do not, the paint might drip onto your walls.

• When painting, always paint from high to low to help prevent unnecessary dripping. If you make a mistake, do not fret; cover it and try again.

• Tape around electrical outlets (and remove the covering) to avoid paint leakage. You can also place tape around moldings to help prevent accidental spills.

• Fill in any wall holes unless you plan to hang a picture in the exact place you paint over. You can do this easily with a little “spackle” available at almost any home improvement store. You may find you can borrow some from a friend or neighbor if you want to save money and do not want to buy an entire can.

• Use a primer when needed. If, for example, you plan to paint a dark wall a lighter color, use another lighter color to paint over the dark color to prime or prepare your wall so the color you select turns out the way you want it to look.