There are new painters in town, but you might just feel like they’ve been here all along

When Becky Bonnstetter knocks on your door, you just might feel like you’ve known her your entire life. Pair her Midwestern charm with an eye for color and a sharp-as-a-tack knack for business and you’ll agree she is exactly the person you’ll want creating the backdrop for your home décor.

Becky and her husband John own ProTect Painters of St. Petersburg and Palm Harbor. ProTect Painters is a full-service interior and exterior painting company with a philosophy of helping others fully realize the pride and joy of home ownership, and treating customers like family. Perhaps this is why the business is such a perfect fit for the Bonnstetters. They make quite a dynamic team, and in addition to Becky’s ability to put people instantly at ease, John can’t say enough about his wife’s eye for design.

“Becky has had realtors ask her to go into business staging homes for sale,” he said. “She has a real talent for choosing color and home décor. She is very good at it!”

Not every customer knows exactly how to begin the process of polishing a room. Sometimes Becky starts from scratch and says a person can take real cues from what is around them. “First I need to get a feel for what they like,” she said. “It’s a good idea to go to open-houses, cut pictures out of magazines, take note of what you like.” From there Becky will guide those once undecided customers to a color choice that suits them and their lifestyle.

“A lot of people can’t visualize change,” John said. “Becky can help them through that.”

It’s no secret a fresh coat of paint can do wonders for any space, but it is more than that. “The color of a room is what makes your home comfortable,” Becky said. “It makes people proud of their home. Everybody wants to feel that way.” Not only does the wall and ceiling color of a room reflect light and create mood, it also reflects one’s personality.

At ProTect Painters, the experts know that aesthetic appeal is only part of the equation. The paint must perform well too. Painting a home, inside and out, is a craft that combines beauty with skill and technique.

For example, John and Becky explained how a customer with a home filled with young children will want the most durable, washable paint she can get. Making that choice doesn’t mean she has to sacrifice a beautiful and pristine finish that lasts. Whatever the technical aspect of the job, the experts at ProTect Painters know how to handle it. There are sealants that can be used to prep walls where smokers have lived to prevent tobacco odors from ruining a brand new paint job.

There are specific paint types for different kinds of surfaces, and countless other tips of the trade known by the experts.

For John and Becky Bonnstetter, bringing their business to St. Petersburg and Palm Harbor is really just another way of being good neighbors. Stop in and say hello. Whether you’re looking for a fresh new way to brighten up your kitchen, or need to increase the curb appeal of a home for sale, one conversation with the Bonnstetters and you’ll feel altogether more confident in your decision to have them help you with your project. After all, haven’t you known them your entire life?