My Friend Kelly

Okay, I finished the other half of the room. Ignore the spots on the camera, it’s one of the reasons I’m shopping for a new one.

I don’t know if the baseboards were so much dry as they were impeding my progress on the guest room so I conveniently ignored their state of dryness and began to move in furniture. Fun times! These don’t really require commentary, I hope, because I worked 45 hours this week and I have another 4 to go tomorrow. My brain aches.

I’ll give a tour through my library another day when I’m thinking clearly.  Don’t hold your breath.

Probably the worst part of painting (for me) is the baseboards. It’s great when you’re replacing old ones and can buy a new design – usually primed already – paint them in the garage, on the driveway or another convenient surface.

I would prefer painting baseboards on the surface of the sun rather than the most uncomfortable and ackward position ever: on your knees leaning forward with one hand for balance and the other one to smear paint mere millimeters from carpet and freshly painted wall.

I hate baseboards.

But I hate them more when they’re off white and scuffed. The Mr. Clean Magic Eraser is your best friend for scuffs. For the color it’s Ultra White Premium paint.

Here is the official My Friend Kelly guide to painting baseboards in five easy steps. Emphasis on easy.

Step 1: locate baseboard

That was Easy!

Step 2: cover adjacent wall with painters tape

That was Sticky

Step 3: locate plastic

That was crinkly

Step 4: cover carpet – use spactula

That was Fun!

Step 5: paint

That was Simple!

I know the pictures are a bit blurry but it’s rather easy to use the spatula to edge the plastic between your baseboards and carpet. It’s a little tight in the corner so don’t try to force it. The plastic lets you run the brush along the bottom without worry and the painter’s tape does the same along the top. Once it dries pull off the tape and plastic carefully and discard.

I do declare the new color of my guest room: Smurftastic.  But more on that in a minute. First the natural progression from wimpy pink clouds to blue ass smurftastic!

Saturday afternoon, approximately 3pm – decide to get working on the guest room. Snap before photo for posterity:

That is so a before picture. I’d already moved out one bookshelf the contents of which are now on the floor. The dog bed in the corner is right next to my boxed china (not a great idea in retrospect) and you can see on the wall the color I’ve chosen. Looks pretty next to those pale pink cotton candy walls, doesn’t it?

So I empty the room. Before I paint the walls I want to strip the ceiling of the nasty popcorn texture.  I layer the plastic drop cloths and start spraying. It’s rather easy: spray water on the ceiling in large 2′ x 2′ sections, wait 3-4 minutes, scrape off with a spatchula.  I don’t try to catch the gunk anymore because inevitably my ceiling fans blow it all over the place. Instead I wrap up the plastic drop cloths and toss it in the trash.

prepped for launch

Sunday morning, approximately 10am: I’ve decided that stripping the ceiling in 3 hours is proof that this room can be done in a week. Maybe. I wrap up the gunk and throw it outside:

gunk

Since a fine layer of dust has recently been distributed by the lovely ceiling fan I need to wash the walls with TSP before painting. I also get the corners clear of cobwebs. Now it’s time to start priming the walls with gray gripper so the blue looks fantastic and not wimpy. I continued to work on the gray primer Monday after work removing the plate covers and blinds as I went.

getting grayer

Tuesday afternoon, approximately 4:35- I’ve been at work all day but now it’s time to paint! I started by doing the difficult trim work around the window, baseboards, ceiling and outlets:

Ready to Roll

Finally sometime late on Tuesday I pick up the roller and paint to the tune of Eric Hutchinson’s Rock & Roll. Great song. After only 45 minutes I have the bluest room:

bolder blue

Wednesday afternoon I continued to touch up the paint, covering the thin areas with a brush. I really hate cleaning the roller so I use that sparingly. Finally, a nice mug shot of Jackson chillin’ in the blue room:

Jax

And this is me after all that painting:

pretend that's a paint brush, kay?

See, the color matches! It’s smurftastic!

Left to finish: baseboards, window trim, door trim, closet trim, emptying and painting the closet, replacing outlets and door switch, reinstall mini blinds, move in furniture, hang 2 pictures, buy curtain rods, hang quilt, buy curtains, hang curtains.

I don’t think I’ll be done with all that by Saturday. Maybe Sunday.