SPRING CLEANING (sort of)

With time on my hands and even more time to look around the house and mentally list all of the projects that need to be done, I should be more motivated…. noooooooope.

Our linen closet on Block Island is at full capacity. Busting at the seams. Old sheets and towels migrated up to Rhode Island, some as old as our wedding day. Cleaning and organizing this should have been done years ago, so I begrudgingly dragged myself up the stairs to tackle the project.

It was easiest to dump everything on the floor. Anything that had a stain or a rip – in the trash. If there were missing sheets or pillowcases, dead elastic in a set, goodbye. Everything that stayed, got washed in hot water and put back (kind of) neatly.

My organized sheets (below) on the right, look messier than they did before. I take a whole set of sheets and put them into one pillowcase so it is all together and easier to grab. Even though it doesn’t look so great.

Not perfect, but good enough!

Project #2 was our guest room.

I have tweaked it over the years, but it was looking very TIRED. I was over the yellow walls and the twin beds. I wanted a nice queen platform bed with a cushy mattress. New bureau, new lights, new rug. New white coat of paint.

Since I was the “painter” for this project, I picked all of the supplies. A good brush, my favotrite pink spackle and Benjamin Moore “White Heron” eggshell paint for the walls.

Here is the yellow wall color up close. These are old horsehair plaster walls, so there are a lot of imperfections, which I like. But, they absorb paint like crazy. One coat of primer and one coat of paint should normally cover it. We shall see.

The BEFORE.

First, fill all nail holes with DryDex. It goes on pink, but dries white. Give it a quick sand and you are ready to paint the walls. Benjamin Moore “Fresh Start” primer next.

Primer done AND first coat of “White Heron” going on. You can see the yellow bleeding through the primer on the wall by the window. Now I know two coats are necessary. I always paint around the edges first with a brush so it is easy to use a roller and neatly paint the rest of the wall.

Rut Row!

Second coat of “White Heron” has to go on. You can see how the walls, when dry, absorbed the first coat so it almost looks like a primer coat now.

Time for a break!

The finished bedroom reveal will be in a few weeks.. I forgot to take a picture of the room with both coats of paint on the walls. It looks really fresh and pretty. The new bed, bureau and rug are ordered. I’m using existing table lamps with new shades and artwork that we already have. If anyone wants two twin beds – let me know!!!!  FREE.

Rhino is sick of me doing these projects too. Stay well everyone.

the wry home