Progress

I’ve made a little bit of progress on a few different projects, here are some pictures of my addled process...

• First, is our new dresser!!! Yay, I finally found one for a great deal. I paid $50 for it at His House. It is made by House of Mebane and this thing is SOLID. Here are a couple of before pictures…I smell potential!!!

I don’t have any pictures of it with the one coat of primer I managed to get on it this week…but just being sanded and painted with primer to cover the yellowish, greenish, brown pure loveliness, is a big improvement!

Tip: If you’re ever thinking of repainting a piece of furniture like a dresser, I highly recommend using oil based primer and paint because it will hold up better with everyday wear and tear. If you’ve ever used oil based paints, you know that it’s a little more difficult to paint with than latex paint. You have to paint quick and try not to make too many brushstrokes. If you mix PENETROL with your oil based paint, it will make your life soooo much easier. It conditions the paint and gives you a little more time to brush a good coat on the wood without it getting too “gooky” and leaving all kinds of jacked up brush strokes in the paint. I tried it with and without penetrol on the drawer fronts and I found a very big difference. When I asked the guys at Lowe’s where to find it in the store, they looked at me like I was crazy and said that it was mainly for commercial use. I’m so glad I didn’t listen to them. You’ll still need to sand a little before you put the top coat of paint on but it will make your furniture so much more professional looking…and that’s my tip for the day.

•  I am using bamboo from my neighbor’s yard as curtain rods for the master bedroom. I bought brackets so they are ready to hang…pictures will be posted soon.

•  Getting rid of my kids’ artwork and other memorabilia is heart wrenching but after going through pile upon pile of notes, artwork, cards, etc., here is what is left for now…I’m sure I’ll eventually have to toss more but as long as I can keep it all in these nicely labeled bins, we're keeping what we've got for now. I am such a sucker, I keep things that NOBODY should keep in these bins. Think I'm kidding??? How bout body parts? Like, um, the umbilical cords from 2 of my babies'? and Liam's teeth?! Should I even admit this "outloud?" Well, what DO you do with them? Ok, now everyone thinks I'm weird. But really, what DO you do with them?

• Ok back to more "normal" things. My enormous picture collection is in one temporary “home” for now. They’re completely unorganized, and most of them are still on the computer, but once I get the majority of these rooms finished (probably a week before we decide to move) I’ll be spending my free time (yeah, you know, allllllll this free time I have on my hands) on doing something with these. There's even more pictures than what's shown here. Try 5 more photo boxes worth, ugh. Hey, the biggest hurdle to overcome was getting them all in one place. Check!!!! 

•  Boy's Toy Closet!!! With a label that has words AND pictures, everyone will know where everything goes. So that means every toy now has NO excuse to be out of place, right? Right?

•  Play Area in the kitchen (not the best spot but it is what it is). Again with the labels. All the building blocks are together and labeled; Legos, Lincoln Logs, Wood blocks, Playmobil, Tinkertoys, Trio and Mega Blocks. Sheesh, that’s a lot of blocks. I'm starting to think that this might not be considered "normal" like I suggested.

• New dresser/armoire for the boys room! I found this at His House for $50! I looked online and although I can’t find the exact piece, I found the furniture line was made in 1962 and based on some of the other pieces I’m guessing it’s worth at least $1000 as it is. I’ll take it! All we had to do was clean it up. Love! 

 

I'll post my updates soon. I’m going to do my best to stick with one room, at least until my next post. I have a tendency to get all over the place with my projects. Ya think?