I am finished the bedroom. My aunt Wanda will be pleased to note that painting does indeed go a lot faster when listening to the Scissor Sisters. My aunt Brenda will nod wryly when I mention how all week, I mostly keep moving and keep working and try not to sit down lest I not get up again for a few hours.
But before you cheer about the bedroom, I have to tell you the kitchen is next. We are going from a dark green 90′s teal to a brilliant happy yellow. (Feel free to take bets or guesses in the comments as to how many coats of primer and/or paint it will take to cover.) Being Emma’s favorite color, she is understandably beside herself. Being the kitchen, this means I have to wash the walls really good beforehand. TSP here I come.
Carl says, “TSP? Man, you are serious.” Did I mention that Carl’s official job is a paint inspector? Yes, he gets paid to watch paint dry on things like bridges. He comes over every so often, peers closely at the walls, scratches them a bit, and declares we did a good job.
Anyway, here’s an older shot of the kitchen when you come in the back door.
While I was waiting for some things to dry upstairs in the bedroom, I came downstairs and figured out where I could start in the kitchen. I am leaving a couple areas untouched for now – behind the stove, the fridge and the wall Ron needs to fix. In talking to Ron, we decided we would take off the backsplash around the counter.
It is wood. Our backsplash is wood to match the cabinets, white formica or melamine-like countertops with wood edges. This is especially not good around the sink area, but I digress. I took off the first chunk of backsplash over by the first wall I will do, near the microwave.
It came right off. It was “glued” on with clear caulking. Don or Christine, is that right? Cuz that don’t seem right to me. And the trim all around the room is not white, but an off-white that is closer to a putty grey. It’s really quite awful. The kitchen was redone about 10 years ago, and is all modern. Which is nice looking, but it doesn’t quite fit with the rest of the house.
Ah well, day’s a-wastin’.
Actually, I don’t know on the backsplash- we’ve always used the prefab counter w/backsplash, but at this point, why would anything unusual surprise you, Andrea?
TSP- I’ll have to remember that when we do our kitchen. The previous owners loved cigarettes and greasy food.
My dad says to make sure to use a primer that is also a SEALER to prevent bleed through of the old color.
I’ve discovered the best painting tool ever!!! It’s an ipod. You can keep on going like the Energizer bunny because you never have to stop to change a CD or skip through songs you aren’t crazy about. I’ve got over 300 songs on it now with room for 7,000 more. We live in amazing times.