Showing posts with label putting new blinds up. Show all posts
Showing posts with label putting new blinds up. Show all posts

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Here's My Elephant.....4 Months of Progress


So here are the things that did get done once Daughter left to move back to Louisiana in May.  We've gotten a lot done in the last 4 months. 
It's been a big old game of Dominoes really. ;-)


*  Daughter's old room gets cleaned(clear out furniture/vacuum/shampoo the carpeting/clean walls/trim/ceiling/ceiling fan/dressers she isn't taking.)  Then EX-CB moves in his crap and takes that room.  He was planning on moving out within the next few months but then the new job search happened so that's delayed.

UPDATE-- The room got emptied triple quick(can you guess I was uber motivated?!? lolz
What was left in Daughter's room........


Here it is after I finished cleaning in there.......




Then Ex-College Boy spent the next couple of days moving all his stuff into the room and setting it up like he wanted it.



The only money spent on this room was new blinds on the window.
I figure once Ex-CB moves out we'll have to repaint but he'll have to live with purple walls for now.  Depending on wear, the carpet may or may not need to be replaced so I'll keep that possible expense in the back of my mind for another year.

* After Ex-CB vacates his room, rinse and repeat cleaning that bedroom(clear out furniture/vacuum/shampoo carpeting/clean walls, trim, ceiling, ceiling fan/dresser.  Then I am painting that room(hasn't been painted since 2005).  Once we get the room cleared out we can evaluate whether carpeting needs replacing.

UPDATE--EXCB vacated his room and it looked like this.............



And the closet view..........



After I got done shoveling it out and vacuuming it looked like this........




Then this room got repairs for lots of wall damage...........




 And then a coat(or five for that dark accent wall!)of paint..........



Then the saga of ordering the new carpet and install began with a trip to NH wedged in between this part.

But finally the new carpet was installed in early July to finish off the improvements in here.............



And I could begin to set up my sewing room..........



In July I put the shelving in and started sorting fabric in the tubs



The closet was were the dresser went.  It holds the toiletries stockpile reserved for the family.


A few days later I had the shelves mostly filled(the fabrics I want to use sooner rather than later)and the tub sorting/filling was finished.

And here is how it looks today......






11 tubs of fabric.  2 are stacked by the serger to act as a table for my record player.  I've been migrating my record collection into the room so I can play them finally after having them stored away for 12+ years.
A few of my slug/snail collection sit on the wall shelves too. ;-)



The closet with projects(repairs, alterations, hems, etc.)hanging on both sides of the dresser.  A tub of fabric to sell or otherwise de-clutter sits under neath the to-be finished projects with more projects sitting on top of the tub.  The 2 bins on top of the dresser hold thread, elastic, bindings, etc. for use in my sewing.
Christmas stuff is stored on the high shelf in tubs.



The expense in here were new blinds, sparkle and paint and new carpeting.


*  Once that bedroom(now sewing room)is cleaned out and up I can move all my crap into there-a combination of sewing crap and toiletries stockpile(what doesn't fit into upstairs hallway closet).  

A "before" shot of the man cave holding a lot of miscellaneous crap, books, toiletries and fabric........




And all that fabric now...........


I would have put up a third shelving unit(it's in the garage and was utilized for the stockpile sale)but I ran out of wall space for it so the bulky tubs take up too much floor space. bleh.


*  Once my crap is out of Hubs' room then we clear that bedroom out and rinse and repeat all the cleaning/fixing.  This bedroom will definitely be getting new paint and carpet(original carpet from before the previous owner we bought from in 2000 so very old and nasty rug).
Hubs puts his room back together.

UPDATE--Hubs finished emptying his man cave room and painted it.  I didn't offer to help him paint it because he refused to put a/c in that room and it was August and I wasn't about to do that sort of work in the heat and humidity of August without the benefit of a/c.  So he was on his own.
Hubs DETESTS painting but he manned up with very little whining and got it done in 3 days time(he had a LOT of wall patching to do as well as painting).  We used the same white paint in here as in the sewing room.

Then he went and ordered new carpeting and ordered something in stock so we didn't have to wait ages for it to come in and then get the job on the installers schedule.  It's a tan carpet.......



Here is the carpet we replaced.  This was the original carpet when we moved in circa 2000 and had been the ORIGINAL carpet from when the house was built in 1986..........



It was still "sort of" green in places. lolz  It was like walking on burlap. bleck.

He got rid of a lot of books, the broken blinds and the valance.  One book shelf(which was mine to begin with)relocated into the master bedroom and now holds MY books.  He moved one of the two large bookcases to the wall by the door where my bookcase was and the other one out into the hallway.
Here's the hallway in July after getting rid of a large desk and desk top computer.
Nice dirt spot on the wall where the kids use to put their feet on it while sitting at the desk *snort*.

Here's the hallway in September..........



Hubs moved 1 bookcase out here(covers the dirt spot lolz).  At least now ALL the family photos/albums are in one spot now on that bookcase.  They use to be squirreled all over every corner I could shove something into.  Still need to find a place for a few things....a suitcase, a Xmas tub, a wooden chair(Ex-CB took the trumpet next to the suitcase and will teach himself how to play that instrument too).
We didn't paint out in the hallway due to needing a professional to come due it as this also involves the stairwell walls and we can't reach.  So that is still on the Master List of things to do around here.

Hubs' small metal bookcase got moved into the closet in his man cave since the dresser that use to live in there is now in my sewing room holding toiletries.
He bought himself a proper desk, the daybed got moved into this room and we bought a new memory foam mattress for it.
Here is the man cave now.............



You can't see the one bookcase left in the room as it's to the left and I didn't photograph the closet in here.  He's still got a few things to put away.  He opted for no window coverings in here but I suspect he'll put blinds in eventually because the sun comes right in those windows in the morning.
Costs were for spackle, paint and new carpeting, plus a desk in this room.

* Once all these bedrooms are done we can attack the master bedroom, the whole cleaning deal including the furniture.  We will be getting a new mattress and bed frame(adjustable one). 

UPDATE--I don't have any photos of the master bedroom yet as it's not finished.
We have moved some furnishings out(an etagere holding fabric, my serger and table, sewing machine and table, and ironing board)which all relocated into the sewing room so it's fairly emptied out except for night stands, 2 dressers, a large rocking chair, a cedar chest and an old coffee table sitting under the window that Hubs' refuses to get rid of.

We got the new mattress and bed frame and the old ones went to the garbage man.  We weren't planning repainting or new window coverings in here and the flooring is good(having replaced it about 10 years ago).  I would like to hang some paintings on the walls in here but that's it.  If I ever get it looking respectable I'll share a photo or two then. '-)

I am still rejiggering the master walk-in closet.  The photo albums and Xmas stash boxes left but there are more things to consolidate/move around/de-clutter in there so that will be on the next update if I do one.
Expenses in the Master Bedroom were new mattress and an adjustable bed frame.

The expenses for all we got done?
Paint & Spackle.........$16.39*
Carpet & Install.......$1079.46
Bed & Frame...........$1108.23
Blinds(2 Sets)......................$0.00*
New Desk for Hubs............$50.86
TOTAL SPENT.......$2254.94

*All but $16.39 for these items was put on free Home Depot gift cards earned from cashing in credit card points.

What I consider wins........
* Doing the work we could do ourselves to save money on labor.
* Using gift cards to pay for some of the expenses.
* Replacing one bed/2 mattresses for better sleep.
* Having 4 rooms that now function better(or at all)vs. what they were before.

So that's a wrap on this Summer tine phase of the Home Redos at Chez Sluggy.

We're not planning on any other home projects until next Spring as the weather is getting too cold to replace windows now.
I've also got a main bath redo and a den/kitchen makeover on my list for the future besides windows.
But I am tired...very tired of doing this stuff for now.  This was enough.  ;-)


Sluggy

Saturday, June 8, 2019

Home Improvements.....Progress Report #1

Well we started the long slow slog of the home repairs/improvements by first cleaning and clearing out Daughter's old room.

Before what Daughter left........


After, cleaning(walls/window frame/ceiling fan, molding),vacuuming and shampooing the carpet and moving furniture and exercise equipment out.............


Daughter "supposedly" vacuumed in here thoroughly before she left, filling the vacuum canister SIX TIMES with dog hair/dirt.
I filled said vacuum cleaner another SIX AND ONE HALF TIMES before shampooing the carpeting. ugh.

After the carpet dried Ex-College Boy moved his stuff in.............


We also replaced the broken blinds on the window in there.  Ex-CB hasn't gotten around to putting anything on the walls yet but as far as I am concerned this bedroom is done.
Once he moves out, the room will get some more love(new paint and maybe new carpeting)but I am not spending time, energy and MONEY in here until he's moved out for good because well, Ex-College Boy is a slob when it comes to taking care of his room.  Like most 20 something males he is fastidious about his personal grooming but you'd never know it from looking at his room.  It looks not so bad here because he hadn't had time to pigsty-ify it yet.

Here's my new sewing room aka Ex-College Boy's old bedroom after he moved his furniture and most of his crap into his new room.......


Lots of "droppings".

And here's the closet before he emptied that.........


I swear I hauled three shopping bags of partially emptied water bottles as well as cans of unopened soda and nutrition drinks as well as some full water bottles.


Here are what is left of the partially used water bottle collection from his room.  Ex-College Boy has orders NOT to take another water bottle to drink until they are all used up.

Here's my new room after cleaning/clearing all Ex-CB's stuff out and vacuuming it...........



This was also hanging in Ex-CB's old room.

It's a sword belonging to Eldest son.  He got this for a birthday when he was about 16?  I called him and he doesn't want it and Ex-CB doesn't want it in his new bedroom.
Anyone want a dragon headed Game of Thrones type display sword? lol


I doubt Salvation Army will take this so I guess I'll be offering it up on the local FB selling site.
I can just imagine now the sketchy folks I'll be dealing with when I offer this beauty up on the site.
Fun time people, fun times........


Here is some of what we hauled out of the closet in Daughter's old room(not the things on the coffee table but in front of it)that were either going to Salvation Army or will be sold.


I found my long lost pullover sweaters that I got for free at K-Mart about 4 years ago.  I forgot they got stored in the back of her closet(which I didn't have access to while she was living here)and now they are too big. ugh.  I guess I'll try to sell them locally come Fall since they all still have tags on them and haven't been worn.


The living room has become the staging area around here.  I gained 2 Rubbermaid tubs from Ex-CB as now he can fit all his clothes in the 2 dressers in his new room.  I also uncovered 2 shopping bags full of  plastic clothes hangers.

A mysterious shopping bag of food appeared in the garage shortly after he moved his belongings/furniture into the new room.  It was full of boxed/canned/bottled food!  This was stuff he was given when he moved into the friend's apartment almost 2 years ago at the beginning of his Senior year of college.  He hauled it all home and shoved it under his bed and apparently it stayed their for the last 1.5 years when he moved everything home to do his internship his last semester of school.
When Daughter took his bed frame(her grandmother gave it to her and she took it to Louisiana)Ex-CB no longer had space under his bed/box spring since it now sits on the floor instead of the bed frame, hence the sudden appearance of the bag of food.
Mystery solved! lolz


Here's the first load we took to Salvation Army(everything in front/to the side of the green chair on the floor.(Except that lamp, it will be re-purposed.)


We uncovered two boxes of electronics that belonged to Daughter's fiancé-one in the bowels of her closet and one in Hubs' room's closet.  Some of it got saved and will find it's way to Louisiana in due time, Ex-CB scavenged  some screws and cables for his use and the rest got dumped in the trash or taken in for recycling at Best Buy and Staples.

New blinds were bought and hung in my new room, Ex-CB's new bedroom and the hallway main bathroom.  All these windows sorely needed them.


Then I set to repairing the walls in my new room before painting could commence........


Two walls done.  I couldn't believe the extent of the wall damage in there!
Well, really, I shouldn't have been surprised since two different adolescent to early twenties aged sons had lived in there.


Under the window was torn up good with what looked like stab wounds. lolz
Ex-CB told me that during a phase in high school he and his one friend had played with throwing stars up there.  Yah, now I know where their targets were...........

Hubs went and bought enough paint to do this room and his spare room.  We used another free Lowe's gift card to buy the paint plus we already had 2 cans of ceiling paint leftover from when we had the downstairs painted so no money was spent on that either.

Not being able to find a competent painter who didn't change an obscene among of money to paint this smallish room I contracted with Ex-College Boy to help me paint the room.  He is only working part time right now and can use the money and I can't climb ladders and do some of this sort of work anymore so this was a good arrangement.  I let him do most of the actual painting(I did the cutting in work that I could reach)and I supervised and reloaded the paint tray, moved step ladders for him, etc.
We got the ceiling done and the first coat of paint/primer on the walls on Tuesday...............


It was determined(by me)that the room would need a second coat(plus the dark blue accent wall needed a third coat)and that the carpeting was too far gone with stains to be saved.  So on Wednesday since I was out at a doctor's appointment down the valley I went to Lowe's to arrange for carpet measuring and picked out which carpeting to get.  They are coming next week to measure and I am hopeful I'll have new carpeting in there by the end of June after we get back from our trip.  So for now it's a lot of hurry up and wait going on. I can't move anything in here until the floor is finished. 8-(

Hubs still has to touch-up the crown molding paint as I can't do it(the ladder thing)and Ex-CB is not careful enough to "stay in the lines". lolz  Hubs has been having to rest his shoulder/neck for a few days as he overdid something earlier this week so he is attempting the molding painting later today.

So the only cost associated with getting this room done will be the cost of the carpeting and what I paid Ex-CB for his work.

In other news......
I have taken all my clothes out of the dresser and the walk-in closet and the pile over by the étagère holding a load of fabric yard goods on a coffee table we have stored in our bedroom plus clothes I dug out of Daughter's huge closet.
And I have gone through it all.
Two bags of worn out stuff got tossed, another 3 bags got taken to Salvation Army and some dresses(4 I think?)as well as previously talked about sweaters will be sold on the FB local site or eBay.

Everything is now back where it needs to be in the dresser or closet...........except this pile of pants on my ironing board.


All these are a size too large now but I need to try them all on to double check if they still fit and/or if they need to be kept for wearing around the house/yard for work, trashed or taken to Sallie's.
This trying on of everything will happen today and the pile will be dispensed with.

Progress Report #2 will probably happen the end of June or early July.
It is killing me that I can't get anything finished yet and it's taking waaaaay too long to complete stuff.
Since I've been in a holding pattern for THREE YEARS on most of this stuff I am chomping at the bit to get it all done!!!


Impatient Sluggy