I feel like I’ve been trapped in a bad episode of “Trading Spaces”. I’ve spent the last three days working on the house. And while the results are good, the process has been exhausting and filled with little mishaps. I don’t know how the professionals do it. Surely they must edit all the mishaps out of TS! They can’t work as long and as hard as they do on a project without making mistakes. Can they?
Day One- I decided to hang the drapes in the living room. Sounds easy, right? Well, the three-part traverse rods that had been in my old house for four years were in bits and pieces in a box. That means it took me a good fifteen minutes of trial and error just to remember how to put them together! (Three-part rods have a rod for a drape, one for a valance, and one for a sheer- all neatly rolled into one gizmo.) Got the ladder, an assortment of tools, and began with a positive smile. First I had drill bit problems, which Gary corrected. Then I dropped a screw- from the top of the ladder. That meant an extra trip up and down. Then I realized I had the wrong screwdriver- again. Gary had pointed that out before he left for work and handed me the correct one, but I left it in the window sill when I moved the ladder. Up and down. Then it started storming outside and a torrential rain hit the house and a drip started just above my ladder. Another wasted trip up and down to get a bucket. Lost my positive smile in the process. I have to point out that my knees, along with the rest of my body parts, are wearing out and they do not like ladders. They especially do not like going up and down ladders a dozen times! Anyway, I moved on to the third and last rod and had the left bracket in place when I realized it was actually the right bracket. Had to take it down, put the left one up. An hour later I finally got the brackets and rods in place.
Then I discovered that cleaning the drapes had loosened a seam in one, so I had to drag out the sewing machine and repair it. While I had it out I got the bright idea to make two new pillow covers with the extra fabric from last week’s chair project. Couldn’t find my sewing box in the chaos of boxes still strewn around the spare room. After I stubbed my toe and dug around a bit I finally located it. Made one pillow cover and realized it was an inch too wide. Snip, snip, sew again. (Made a note to self to measure more carefully next time.)
Spent the afternoon painting. Each afternoon I’ve been painting the dining room. It’s a tedious process. There is carpeting and furniture in the room so I have to be very careful. I could use a roller, but I don’t have a good history with rollers so I’m using a wide brush. I have to use a ladder, and stand on the third rung because I’m so short, and I have to be very, very, very careful because if I have one more accident my family is going to trade me in for a new model. (I once forgot I was on the second step of a ladder and simply “stepped off”. Trust me…painful.) Each wall of the dining room has to have two coats of paint because just one coat of pale guacamole green over baby blue looks odd. I know, I know…I should have used a primer coat first.
Day Two- Started the day with Tylenol so the knees would cooperate. Pressed all the drapes and hung them. Unpacked a dozen boxes. Spent the afternoon painting.
Day Three- More Tylenol. Cleaned the patio. Threw out lots of odds and ends of stuff that was soaked and ruined because the rain actually blew sideways and under the patio roof. Cleaned the back porch. Spent the afternoon painting the dining room. I’ve finished all of the first coat and half of the second coat. Tomorrow, if all goes well, I’ll finish the other half.
Next week- hang the drapes in the dining room and paint the bathroom! Where is that TS crew when I need them?