Assuming the original dark gold paint was just a high gloss latex, I scrubbed, sanded, and primed before adding 2 coats of a white paint for the base coat of my crazy stripe plan.
It was only after I drew all the stripes out and started to adhere the painter’s tape that I realized the original coat was a different beast altogether.
Paint shouldn’t bubble up and peel off.
It especially shouldn’t do that when I took so much time and effort to make sure it didn’t do that. Grrrr.
Come to find out it’s an oil-based paint. I used a simple test to find out. It never occurred to me – never even crossed my mind – that the high gloss was oil. Who puts oil-based paint on their dining room walls? It makes no sense.
How do I fix this problem? My local paint store advised me to sand the 2 coats of latex paint and 1 coat of latex primer off. Take it back down to the ugly gold oil-based paint. Then, prime it with an oil-based primer. It’s similar to the advice found here except for the sanding part. Afterwards, I can finally add my stripes in latex paint.
It sounds like a lot of work, doesn’t it?
Yeah. Despite being stuck indoors yesterday due to the rain, I made no progress. I dread the first step even though I have an electric sander.
The Life, Designs & Crafts of Marie Haigh 
Ouch. So sorry for this stumbling block! But you will prevail; I know it!
Thank you for the encouragement. I need it. =)
[…] First, I sanded, primed and painted them. […]