What I've Been Up To

This morning it took me a little longer to get out of bed.  One, because I'm tired.  Two, because I'm just a bit sore.

My time alone is rapidly ticking down, though, and I've just a few more things I'd like to get accomplished before reality hits tomorrow.

While I didn't get nearly as much accomplished in the week (I was gifted by my sweet in-laws) as I wanted,  I was able to get many, many projects completed that had been languishing away around the house.

Just a couple more things to check off my to do list and then the kiddos will have to join in the fun {and then reality will hit them, poor babies! :) }.

Kids' Bathroom Painted 

Anniversary Dinner

Project Started 3 Years Ago

Copious Amounts of White Paint Used

Original Art Work Discovered

Projects Multiplying Like Rabbits

Hard Labor

Heavier Than It Looks

FINALLY!!

For My Husband

Moving Sticker From at Least 2 Moves Ago

Over Night Storage

More Stuff....

Rearranging and cleaning my kids' bedrooms wasn't originally on my long list of things to do.  Having it out of the way so it's one less thing hanging over all of us this summer was soooooo worth the work.  I'll either be 'Mom Of The Year' or 'Mud' when the kids see the changes.

Either way, check back in next week to see the completed projects revealed.

Have a great weekend!!

Painting Tips & Tricks: Clean it Up

The final step in your painting project is going to be cleaning it all up so you can enjoy your new prettied up space.  There are a couple of things you can do along the way to make the end job easier.

1.  Keep a rag handy for those little oops's that happen along the way.  I know some people like to have a dry rag and others who say have a wet or damp rag.  I think it's a personal preference.  Me? I use my shirt.  Why?  There is a lot of space I can use to clean with and it is always with me as I go around the room.  I'm already looking for all my other tools, keeping track of a rag is not something I want to do.

These are a couple of camp shirts I've had since high school.  As you can see, I've had to clean up a few times over the years of painting.  I either wrap my finger in the material and wipe the area that needs cleaning or I use my finger and then wipe it on the shirt.  For me, it works.

 2.  Learn what NEEDS to be cleaned up right away and what can wait.  Drips on hard flooring can often times be left to dry and clean up later.  Just make sure they are out of the way and not in a place that will be tracked.  After that little drip has dried, just scrape it up gently with your fingernail.  If the drip gets smeared or is in the middle of your space, go ahead and clean it up.

Before

After

When final clean up time rolls around, it doesn't have to be a big production.   This can actually be done very easily.  Here are a couple ideas to help you get to the point of finally being able to put your feet up and relax after a job well done.

1.  Remember latex paint is water based and your paint brush can be cleaned almost all the way using just water.  For the last little bit, use a gentle cleaner.  My Dish Wash is gentle on everything except the dirt I need to get rid of.

 Honestly, I can't believe my favorite brush came clean.  Please remember to clean your brush soon after finishing your project.  I ended up waiting a month and thought I was going to have to throw the brush in the trash.  So glad Shaklee works!

2.  Don't worry about cleaning out your paint tray immediately.  If you have the time, just set the tray to the side somewhere and let it dry.  Once it's dry, the paint can just be peeled up with very little effort.  Even better.  Hand the tray off to one of your kids and let them do the job.  My kids actually fight over who gets the privilege {ahem} of peeling the paint.

3.  While I don't have a picture of this, I think you will get the point of this last idea.  Just go ahead and throw the paint roller in the trash.  Yep.  Just toss it.  New rollers aren't that expensive and it's a lot of effort for not a lot of return.

Those are my little pearls of wisdom.  Let me know what helped you and any ideas you have that would help me and others.  I'm always looking for great tips and tricks to use in my life.

Want to read the other Painting Tips & Tricks posts?  Here are the links to all of them!
Prepping Your Space
Protect Your Throne
Put it Under Wraps

Painting Tips & Tricks: Put It Under Wraps

How often do you get to do a big project start to finish?  I always have to allow time for unscheduled breaks.  Always.

This can be difficult when painting a room.  Not only is there a paint brush for doing the trim work, but you have a wet roller once you start the main area of the walls.  Leave either the brush or the roller out for too long and both will start to solidify and be impossible to work with.

Here's a tip I learned from my mom when I first started painting.

Put a plastic bag around a wet roller when not in use, and plastic wrap around an idle paint brush.

The paint will stay fresh for several hours and sometimes even a couple of days.  Just try to get the plastic tight with little to no air around the paint.  Next time you are ready to paint, just pull one of them out and get to work.

Once the project/room is finished, then you can wash everything up one time.  Much easier than washing  everything up multiple times while working.


Here are links back to the other tips and tricks posts:
-Prepping Your Space
-Protect Your Throne

Painting Tips & Tricks: Protect Your Throne

So, what's up with the big delay between posts?  I decided to head out of town for several days and left my laptop behind.  Such a typical thing for me to do, but I'm back now to reveal my next post in my painting series.

As I stated in my previous post, I've been painting for years.  I started helping my parents when I was a teen, and that was several years ago.  I know there are lots of people out there who would rather do anything BUT paint - my husband is one of those people.  (And, to be completely honest, I would rather he not paint.)  I'm not one of those people, though.  I actually really like to paint!  It's a relatively cheap home improvement that can change the look of a room in a short amount of time.

Here's a little secret for you, though.  Ready?

I HATE painting bathrooms!

It's my absolute least favorite room to paint - I try very hard to avoid it.  All those corners and tight areas!  The fixtures that have to be removed or meticulously painted around!  There are also all those spots that a step stool or ladder just don't fit in to allow easy reach to the top of the wall.  Total frustration!!

My biggest problem with painting in a bathroom?  The Toilet!!

How are you suppose to get behind that without making a mess?!  You could always just get as close as you can without actually painting behind it, but then you will always know that there is this big white spot behind the commode.  Or, even worse, someone might see said big white spot and question your mad painting skillz.  Nope.  It just won't do!

What to do?  I've already avoided painting the two upstairs bathrooms for the past five years. However, with the walls looking like they do in the kids' bathroom, it was time to suck it up and get it done.

Then a moment of genius struck.  I can cover the back of the commode with a  kitchen trash bag to keep it clean!  Sweet!

So quick. So easy.  Plus, my type of trash bag was stretchy with a draw string so it really hugged the tank and stayed out of my way.

I used an extra little piece of tape to get the bag a little tighter around the tank.

I also put a hole in the bag so the toilet could be flushed.  With all my interruptions, we never know how long a project will take.

The whole thing worked out perfectly!  I didn't have to be careful when using the paint roller - even though I had a much slimmer profile roller, it still got paint on the bag.  The toilet was still functional until I was able to finish painting.  And... clean up was a breeze!

Other ideas:

• split open a paper sack and tape it to the tank so the back is protected.
• use wide tape and use several strips to tape the back of the tank
• do nothing and just be really careful
• put pre-painted panelling on the wall behind the toilet  
• hire someone to do it for you 

Those are my ideas.  What do you do when painting in tough spaces?  Share here in the comments or on Facebook.

Did you catch the first Painting Tips & Tricks post?  If not, or if you want to read it again, here's the link Painting Tips & Tricks: Prepping Your Space.

Painting Tips & Tricks: Prepping Your Space

Welcome back!  How was your long weekend? Ours was filled with lots of family time and trying to get a few projects done around the house.  Not something a lot of people would necessary think is fun, but I love DIY projects.

My latest projects have been painting a couple of rooms in our home.  I'm hoping to have reveals to share with you soon.  In the mean time, I thought I would share some of my tips, tricks, and lessons learned from my years of painting.

The first little nugget of wisdom for you is:

Prepare Your Space

Clean the Baseboards:  How you prepare your space is going to be somewhat dependent on what room/area you are painting.  One thing that will almost always be the same is baseboards.  This may seem like such a minor thing and a waste of time, but it could make all the difference in the finished product.  It doesn't have to be a big production.  Usually all that needs to be done is a good dry wipe down to remove any dust.  Failing to do this before taping will allow paint to seep between the tape and trim (since the tape would rather stick to the dust) and give you something like the picture below when the tape is removed.  Not so pretty.

"What if I don't tape my baseboards?", you ask.  Well, you will still find it beneficial to give a quick swipe to the room.  Dust picked up by the paintbrush is hard to get out and can make the new paint look bumpy and dirty.  Not the finished look anyone would want after working so hard.

Clean the Walls: Most of the time this isn't a big deal.  Paint today does a really good job of covering all the little smudges and such.  However, if your kids are like mine, you can always have some interesting surprises.  Needless to say, lip balm and gloss do not allow latex paint to adhere to a wall.  It's best to just do a quick once over on the walls and take care of anything before you start.  Otherwise, you will be scraping areas of the wall and having to repaint.  No fun!

Tape:  Next thing you should do after cleaning up those baseboards is tape.  There are several options out there now.  I still use the blue painters tape by Scotch 98% of the time.  This time I ran out of my supply (thanks to my youngest making a trap for bad guys in his room) so I used some of the Frog brand to finish a doorframe.  No big deal.  Just find one that you like and feel works the best.

The amount of tape you use, in my opinion, is a personal comfort thing.  What does that mean?  Each person has their own level of ability when painting.  A little secret here for you - I rarely tape.  Almost never!  But that's because I've been painting for years.  Would I recommend not taping to a person doing their first painting job?  Absolutely NOT!!  Even if a person has been taping for years and still wants to put blue tape on every piece of trim in the room, so be it.  Each person needs to do what makes the job easiest for them.

That being said, there are places that I still have to tape.  Tight corners are a place that still has me getting the tape out and meticulously placing it on the trim.  I don't want to have to worry about where the paint goes even if no one will ever see the mess.  I'll know the mess is there and it will bug me even after moving out of the house.

Take Care of the Floor:  Sometimes you will need a tarp down, sometimes you won't.  If working over carpet, it's a great idea to have something down under where you are painting.  It doesn't have to be much and it can be moved as you progress around the room.  Working over a hard surface like wood, tile or linoleum are a little more forgiving and small 'oops's can be cleaned up rather easily.  Always put your can of paint in a safe place with the lid on no matter what surface you are on.  Accidents do happen.

Corral the Kids:  Now, if you don't have kids, this won't pertain to you.  Go on and enjoy your painting solitude.  If you have young kids (or pets), put a barrier up at the door.  Baby gates are great at keeping the kiddos out of the mess but still allowing them to see you.  Have kids that are a little older?  Get a movie going or get a game out for them to play.

Regardless of what you do, you will have interruptions.  Be ready, and don't be surprised.  It's easier to leave your area when you are needed than to have the kids constantly coming into the room and getting too close to a wet wall, a full paint tray or tripping over a can of paint.

Do you have some tips or tricks you like to do when painting?  I would love to hear them!  Comment here or on Facebook.  I'm always looking for new and easier ways to do things.