You could win ABRANDNEWCAR! if you can you name what these pictures have in common?
Anyone seen the You Tube video “Ain’t Nobody Got Time for That?” If you haven’t you should. It’s funny. Make sure it is the original report, not the remix. So essentially it is an interview about a lady who had to climb out of a burning building and tells the interviewer…”Ain’t nobody got time for that.” LOVE it.
Well that is how I feel about projects. Everything is a project. I’ve got so many real time things happening that projects turn everything upside down. If I’m doing a project then I’m not cleaning, cooking, driving, washing, drying, sorting, home working, taxiing, paying, searching, organizing, calling, finagling…and then those things start to pile up. The life of a busy person.
My approach to projects is how many corners can I cut? This kind of makes my husband cringe a little. He is not a corner cutter. He is thorough. He is deliberate. He follows procedures. I don’t. I try. It’s hard.
I have two projects I am tackling. One is painting a dresser and the other is horror upon horror sorting pictures from, gulp, 2005. I’ve been putting that last project off since, umm, 2005. The painting project I’ve got down pat. I am the Queen of how to paint a piece of furniture fast. The other project, well, it’s taken me since 2005 to come up with a plan.
Here’s how to go at rocket speed through two projects you may be putting off.
The painting is easy peasy. I do it in stages and use disposable everything.
I get a box. A small roller if it is a small project. A disposable roller pan liner inside a heavy duty paint roller tray. A disposable medium to large leftover container with lid. A brush. Disposable paper tarp–it doesn’t blow/move around as easy as plastic, is cheaper, and is made from recycled materials (Ecodrop). A paint key or flat head screw driver to open the can. Paint stirrer. Paper towels. Spray cleaner. And most importantly–saran wrap. Oh and paint. And while I’m talking about paint. If I can get paint that says one coat coverage I do. Usually I still need to do touch ups but it is worth it for saving time. And if I am painting something glossy or dark buy the paint with the primer built in. IT IS AWESOME.
You need all these things so that you can do the project fast. Trust me.
So I throw all these things into a box. I take out only what I need. I cover the floor. I pour some of the paint into the disposable container (easier to paint out of). I save anything that involves rolling for when I really have time–like more than 30 minutes. I paint in stages. I might do all the trim or edges one night. The next morning I could squeeze in a base coat. A few hours later some touch up. In between I wrap the brush/roller in saran wrap–NO WASHING. It will keep like that for days. I keep everything in the cardboard box. If I’m rolling I paint until the paint in the tray is used up and then wrap the tray in saran wrap.
I’ve painted multiple rooms/ceilings/pieces of furniture countless times with small kids under the same roof and a husband on deployment. The key is keep it simple. Paint in stages. Don’t get a lot out at one time. Save the big stuff for after the kids are asleep. You can still bust that box out mid-day and cut in some trim–pull up the lid, use the brush, wrap the brush, put on the lid. Easy peasy.
So here’s me painting my 8 year olds dresser with 4 kids in the house. I put dresser on BIG tarp and painted in stages. I didn’t pull every drawer out until I had to. And when I’m ready to stop it takes about 5 minutes tops to pack it all up. Saran Wrap! It’s your best friend when painting…and paper towels.
I painted the drawers with the clothes still inside. I pulled the drawers out a few inches and rolled the paint on as if it were a large surface.
The dresser is almost done. I had help, clearly. I’ll show you the finished product in the Conclusion of Decorator Translator or John Mayer is My Muse.
As for the Picture Project…stay tuned til tomorrow.
I’ve got another project calling…
This is going to be one of the most riveting posts you will have ever read. It is about how to hide electrical cords. Yes.
Amy Volk over at Amyvolk.com showed us how to Organize Cords on her September 9th blog posting. I’m going to piggy back on hers–make sure to read it–and add an aesthetic version. Amy, my lovely friend who is very wise, makes my job easy. I can’t make your house look good if it is a disorganized mess. She will clear your chaotic piles and cure your where-are-my-car keys-woes.
She is your glue, and I am your glitter. Yes.
Cords are ugly. Functional but ugly. Hide them. Buy Command Cord Clips. They come in small, medium, and large. I bought the large on Amazon for the first project.
This is a cable cord that will not lay flat. It drives me crazy.
You are suppose to press the 3M removable tape for 30 seconds, then add the hooks and hold that onto the tape for 30 seconds. AND then wait an hour until you use it. I didn’t wait. So it took more time than it should have trying to “fix” it. If you are using these for heavy cords like I was I would follow the directions.
This is the after. The cord needs some time before it is ready to lay flat.
This is a much better after. It is an average lamp cord and I used the small clips. You can’t see it at all.
I know you need to catch your breath after all this excitement. Laugh all you want but when your friends and family ooohhh and ahhh remember your pals Glue and Glitter.
I’m a house tweaker. That is really exactly what I do. I prefer it vs starting from scratch. Handy dandy Google defines tweaking as: Improve (a mechanism or system) by making fine adjustments to it.
I kind of want to make up a song about me. “I’m a house tweakerrrr…yeah yeah…I’m a house tweaker”. Anywho.
I did some tweaking to my own house.
Fireplace felt bare. (Click here to see before.) And I was intrigued by how Starbucks always makes their chalkboard signs look so nice…turns out they use chalkboard markers. So I went to handy dandy Michaels’s and bought some.
Here’s what I made:
Can you find the cat?
http://youtu.be/dG6A71py9nE
If you are from Detroit and you are a product of the 70’s and 80’s then you know this song. It’s. Classic.
It’s a commercial for the Detroit Institute of Arts. They’ve got art, but do you?
I don’t mean Museum Quality Collector ART. I just mean some scraps of paper mounted on your wall that speak to you. Something that lifts your soul. Something that reminds you of a faraway place or time. Or maybe it doesn’t remind you of a darn thing and that’s why you like it. But you gotta like it. And you gotta have art.
Art is what separates our homes from furniture show rooms. Art is what makes a home look collected over time. Art is what gives our rooms personality.
Remember Ode to a Green Purse? Or Making Art Out of Objects You Love? (I know, who can forget those oldie but goodies.) Art can be ANYTHING as long as YOU like it and it makes YOU feel good to look at it.
So are your walls still blank? Do you have framed pictures you hate shoved in the closet? Rip those bad boys apart and use the frames for something else. Hate the frames? Buy some spray paint. C’mon I’m giving you NO excuses on this.
Have you visited Etsy?? Etsy.com is a handmade marketplace online. To use Etsy’s words…”Etsy is the world’s most vibrant marketplace. Etsy celebrates individual creativity in design and craftsmanship by connecting unique people, stories, and items in a playful and meaningful way. Etsy provides a marketplace for crafters, artists, and collectors to sell their handmade creations, vintage goods and crafting supplies.” You can look for just about anything handmade and you will find it on Etsy.com.
Here are some examples–most of these pieces are available now and almost all that I chose as examples are under $50
Remember those frames full of the ugly art in your closet? Measure the frames first and then order something unframed that will fit into the old frames. I always make sure I can find a store bought frame…meaning I can go to Michael’s and buy the frame off of the shelf and THEN I buy the art. NEVER get art and then get it custom framed. Unless you have a lot of money. Then go ahead.
Aside from Etsy.com there are a gazillion other places online to find inexpensive gorgeous art. My friend from Jenny on the Spot got me hooked on Whatever… aka megduerksen.bigcartel.com. The Globes print is calling to me. Jenny does a spot on (get it? Jenny on the Spot?), anyway, Jenny does a spot on (still laughing about this) blog post which you can check out here. Please do. And check out Jenny’s blog–she’s as fun as Meg’s art.
And just because I alllllllllways like to come full circle on my posts…Remember The Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) from above? Well, maybe you heard that Detroit is bankrupt? And maybe you heard about the poor DIA being sacrificed of its art to pay this debt!? Well when Winston Churchill was asked to cut arts funding in favor of the war effort he simply replied, “Then what are we fighting for?”
Save the Art! (Do that! Click on it!)
And save your house from looking like a furniture store.
Pockets of Sunshine in the Mud Room.
My Favorite Watercolors.
Hallway love.
His name is Leo (the lion).
Can you find the Starbucks?
Cat.
Some snapshots from my day.
Jen
