We all know it: a flurry of cleaning, shopping, wrapping, cooking, and baking is absolutely de rigeur in the weeks leading up to Christmas, especially when as you work a houseful of family will cheerfully climb onto airplanes, arrive with rosy cheeks and full suitcases, and cram into every cranny. But cleaning out closets, going through all of our clothes, and painting an entire LEVEL of the house? A bit over the top.
In the end, Christmas now a happy memory and the silver-bark tree on the curb (always a bittersweet moment for me, I must confess), I'm delighted with all the streamlined drawers and fresh paint. It's like my own personal Christmas present, but one I get to keep opening even after all the guests have flown home and the butter and sugar are set aside for kale and salmon. Goodbye, dark brown painted trim and random, trashy jumble of paint colors! Hello, cool clean white. Halls of white and sea blue and pale grey brightened with pops of hot color and fresh green growing things: heaven.
The trim and doors were by far the worst. They were painted a depressing dark brown and sometimes a random shade of dark blue. They took 3 coats of primer/paint. Ceilings weren't too fun either.
Maybe my favorite project. I wanted a huge bulletin board for the boys but they're so expensive. Then I found this tutorial online. $5 and 20 minutes later, we have a huge bulletin board for the kids' art. I used dropcloth for the material (which you can't even see).
Daniel built this lego table to top an old, small, brown Ikea table. I painted the dressers, shelves, and the table/chairs white to try to unify the furniture. I painted the staircase and the landing, too. I love that the trim and walls in the kitchen and downstairs are now unified.
Even our bathroom got fresh paint. Why do bathrooms always take so much longer than you think they will? This color is called "glass of milk." Don't you love that name? The color didn't turn out quite as creamy as I was aiming for but puts me in a good mood regardless.
The trim and doors were by far the worst. They were painted a depressing dark brown and sometimes a random shade of dark blue. They took 3 coats of primer/paint. Ceilings weren't too fun either.
And then, to top it off like icing on a cake (preferably lemon or coconut): a new headboard. This did not get finished in time for the relatives. Daniel and I were both on our last leg by the time they arrived, between his hideous inpatient rotation of 23 days of nonstop work and my wild cleaning/painting spree. After everyone left, we needed a project and it was time for the headboard. I had the vision, and as usual, Daniel brought the execution. And then some!
We used a couple of online tutorials, the rest of the Home Depot dropcloth (a nice linen-y texture and only $16), plywood, foam, batting, and special decorative upholstery tacks. The whole thing cost less than $130. The tacks were by far the most expensive element ($55 including shipping) but I love how they look. Not too shabby, eh?
I kind of wanted a wild feisty print along Grace Bonney lines, but in the end the drop-cloth was cheap and neutral and soothing. And I didn't want to compete with the blue afghan that Grandma knit for our wedding. I imagine her beautiful long fingers working for hours to make it for us and think about her passionate, faithful marriage to Grandpa, and I know I always want that treasure on our bed.
Yes. I'm ready for a new year.
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