Renovation Hell - Day 6 and counting
I want my house back to normal. I want my bed back. I'm bored with this now.
Painting has never been one of my favorite things. I'd much rather build something than paint it. Hammers are so much more fun than paintbrushes. On Saturday we tore Dave's room apart and started pulling off trim. We even removed the wood around the windows that had swelled from condensation. It's all going to be replaced. We've got the primer coats on and are ready to start on the color now. I can't wait for it to be DONE! Not only is the rest of the house cluttered with all the stuff from the bedroom but I've had to share my bed with Dave and Holly for the past 5 nights! *grin*
Confession time...my home started out as a mobile home. Yes, I'm trailer trash. When we moved here we needed a place to live (our other home sold quicker than we had anticipated) and there were no homes for sale (unlike now when every second home is for sale). We decided to order a brand new mobile home and live in it for the winter until we could build a full size addition in the spring and make it into a non-mobile home. I had reservations about it at first until we found one that was really well built and had it built to our specifications. None of that tacky flowery wallpaper for us, no sir. We ordered the entire house with off white, non-patterned walls. The people at the factory dubbed our house the "White House" because we were the only people to ever order one in all white. To me, it seemed to be the ONLY choice. Maybe I'm not true trailer trash after all.
So that was 15 years ago and the vinyl covered drywall is looking very tired. We've heard horror stories about trying to paint over the vinyl and the only other solution was to remove it and put up all new drywall which would be a very big job. I decided that it was time to give it a try and attempt to paint it. After much research we decided to go for it and if it didn't work we'd bite the bullet and change the drywall. We did the small bathroom first and it turned out great so now we're working on a bedroom. After that we'll have the laundry room, my bedroom and ensuite, and the kitchen/living room. So much painting and I'm sick of it already.
On Saturday while we were tearing the room apart we were remembering all the living that's been done in our home over the past 15 years. Jamie grew up in that bedroom. He had the walls covered in posters. Guess he didn't like the plain off white walls. There were a ton of pin holes that had to be filled with plaster as well as a couple of "dents". We saw him tonight and I mentioned them to him and he said they were likely the result of some of our "debates" when I sent him to his corner to cool off. He had a habit of taking his frustrations out on his walls. *grin* It was very nostalgic thinking of all the stories those walls could tell. Probably a good thing we're painting over them.
It's so hard to believe we've been here for 15 years already. This is the longest I've ever lived in one home. Sometimes I wish for a different house but other days I can't imagine living anywhere else. On the days that I want a new house I think about having to pack all our shit and suddenly I love my house and never want to leave it. We've got lots of plans. Laminate flooring, new paint, new decorating. If only we had the money to do it all quickly. It seems like we've been neglecting the house since we bought the cottage. I'm sure in about 3 months it will be neglected again when cottage weather arrives again.
Enough rambling for now. Talk to me about your home renovation woes. Misery loves company.
posted by lights | 5:15 p.m.
11 Comments:
Well, I don't like the color I painted my kitchen accent wall, so I am going to repaint it next week. But it is only one wall.
Good for you drywalling! That is a freakin pain in the rear. Not that I've ever done it. Stuff like that should be hired out if at all possible. Oh wait - I just reread your post and you are NOT dry-walling. Smaht.
On April 2nd we will have been in this house for 20 years - the longest I have ever lived anywhere too.
I would say you have a pre-built, modular home. My Lights could never be called trailer trash!
You shoulda waited until i come to visit. I love to paint. Love it. :)
We haven't done much major renovating. Our townhouse was built in the 70's and had all of the original decorations when we bought it. So we repainted, pulled wallpaper, re wallpapered the kitchen, faux painted the walls in the other bathrooms, texture painted a wall in the living room, re carpeted, refloored. You name it, we re did the entire inside. Most major construction was having the tile floor put in. I'm not even going to get into that misery. Oh, we did have all new doors and windows put in. Hmmmm, some ceiling work. I think that's it. It was all a pain in the ass now that I think of it. LOL
Yikes, my egg timer just went off. I'm making low cal onions rings.
*puts brushes and rollers in holster* I love painting!
Sounds like you have a set of major projects on your hands! Good luck!
I just painted last night and anticipate painting our 4 season porch this weekend. Hopefully the bedroom next month. Chris doesn't want too much change at once.
My dad appears excited to come and put our cabinet crown moulding up this month. We have lots of other trim work to do, but baby stepts. This spring, it will be the deck and patio landscaping project from hell.
I like to paint. We recently had dry wall and paint work done after getting a new section of roof after it leaked from the rain. Then we painted a bathroom. It looks great!
We also had openable windows put in on both sides of our bed. Previously, we had windows that didn't open.
I'd like to gradually start renovations all over the house.
Good luck with yours!
I want crown moulding in our bedroom and in the family room. I want a coppered tile ceiling in our living room. These things will not be happening soon. Especially the ceiling, even though Tom has accepted the brilliance of my plan.
sounds like you're doing a great job. lightsy!
we added on to our house back in 1999. We expanded our bedroom upstairs, added a bath in our room and a half bath in the family room, and downstairs built an office and a luandry room.
to this day, there are still no doorknobs in the doors downstairs--only deadbolts-and one of the lower light fixtures outside needs to be hung.
Impressive, eh?
*sob* My hands hurt so much it hurts to type. Dave got a day pass today and left me to paint the entire room by myself. Seven hours of painting and I'm toast.
My Dad, BIL and nephew had tickets to go to the Senators/Bruins game in Ottawa today on a bus trip. Yesterday my sister emailed me and said Dad wasn't feeling well and couldn't go on the bus trip and wondered if Dave wanted to go. Of course, he jumped at the chance, knowing that another day of painting lay ahead. Being the good wife I am I paid for the ticket and off he went. He headed out at 7:30 this morning and will be home around 11pm tonight.
Both of my paint-loving GFs were busy today so I ended up doing it all myself. I do, however, feel a certain amount of pride that I did it all myself.
Tomorrow I'm planting my butt in a chair while Dave puts the room back together and gets evicted from MY bed! *grin*
The worst part about painting one room is that it makes the rest of the house look so bad. We have to do the other rooms now. The original living room and kitchen have vaulted ceilings with beams. A ton of taping and edging to be done. Kims? Carey? Swami? Puffy? When's a good time for you all to come for a week?
I hate painting too. However, I've finally ripped down all the bloody gawdawful wallpaper from the stairway, so we have to do something. First we'll have to cover all the cracks - it's actual plaster, that's how old this house is.
The kids both want fresh paint in their rooms and DH wants to rip the wallpaper in the living room off because it's peeling too.
I need Bravie and kim to come visit me.
I feel your pain. I, too, live in a ... ummm... double wide trailer. The painting and such over the vinyl covered drywall shit isn't too bad. And I desperately need to do the kitchen. *sigh* I am not motivated at.all.
Count me in the "like to paint" group.
I have to do it myself because I'm super critical of others when they get paint on the ceiling. If I get paint on the ceiling I cover it up - they tend to leave it.
I hate painting. Hate it and never want to do it again.
I go back and forth about loving and hating our house. I guess for the most part I really do love it.
Since buying it almost four years ago we have:
Enlarged the deck to include a hot tub.
Replaced the faux French doors with real ones.
Replaced the vinyl floors with new vinyl.
Replaced the living room carpet.
Painted the living room, dining room, and Conner's room.
We have a lot to do, perhaps the subject of another blog entry.
Good luck. I know it's a pain, but you'll be so happy when it's done.
And my biggest pet peeve is having to walk around all the stuff. Especially Michael's tools.
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