Caulk, Caulk, and More Caulk

Let's just gloss over the fact that I haven't posted in 11 months, why don't we? I can't promise I'll return to churning out regular blog posts, but there is so much to update. I've painted the living room, dining room, built-in bookcase, and kitchen... then painted the kitchen back to the original color. I've purchased a new coffee table and entertainment center, an under-the cabinet microwave oven for my tiny kitchen, super-duper organized my built-in and closets, painted a fairly gross bedroom room closet, and started overhauling the mudroom.

However, today I did what I've been putting off for three years: caulking. The two big containers of kitchen/bathroom caulk and window/trim caulk have been mocking me for months. I'm not sure what got into me today but I worked for about 7 hours straight. (I work slow, ok?)

During the winter, the master bedroom is about 5-7 degrees cooler than the rest of the house. We have gas hot water heat. (The pipes are in the slab flooring.) Wonderful heat system except that the valve to the master bedroom is turned half-way off. During the last boiler servicing, I asked for the technician to turn it on 100%. The valve wouldn't budge. We have new windows so I figured the room was as warm as it would get. When I held my hand near the trim today, I felt a LOT of cold air. Not good.



I like to tape off to make the application easier. But I'm really disliking the Frog Tape. It would NOT stick to the walls. It was really strange. It worked when I bought it 6 months ago. It's not like I stored it in a hot or cold location. Three windows down and we'll see if the temp discrepancy keeps more at the 2 degree mark rather than 7 degrees! (The "outside" thermometer is keep in the living room.)



After I finished in the bedroom, I dragged my feet to the bathroom. The outside bottom of the tub gets so gross! I can scrub but it never gets clean!

I'm sure there was a better way to do it but I pulled up the old caulk with needle-nose pliers. Then scraped with a tool that looks similar to a flat-head screw driver. It will gouge the shower tiles but thankfully not the flooring tiles.



After vacuuming, I taped the area off.



I applied the caulk and here's my special secret to smoothing out the caulk: my fingers. Dip your finger in water and drag across the caulk. Wipe off the excess on your finger onto a paper towel. After finishing the area, remove the tape immediately.



Do not use this tool:



I had it and never liked it. I don't know why I didn't toss it. It makes it worse than if I hadn't done anything.



It takes a while for me to get the hang of getting it smooth.



But when I do, it gets better.

See, MUCH better!



(I realize my camera isn't the best quality. But trust me, I'm no longer embarrassed if guests see this.)

Since I had the caulk out, I figured it was time to tackle the bathroom sink. I would bleach the heck out of this any time I was expecting company. For three YEARS! Why didn't I do this sooner?



See how gray and nasty it gets? (I am really embarrassed by this.) Don't mind the ick around the faucet. I have no idea what causes this. I can use a Magic Eraser and Bar Keeper's Friend (the sure-fire combo) and it still won't budge. Eventually the caulk scraper removed it.




I taped around the sink. That was easy. A little tricky behind the sink but nothing a bunch of 1-inch long pieces of tape wouldn't solve. I couldn't tape on the countertop and keep the line even.



I decided to just apply a very thin line of caulk and hope for the best. It worked. I barely had any excess to wipe off. Then I carefully wiped around the sink with a paper towel. Viola!





I hope this helps someone that may be putting off caulking because it seems a little overwhelming. It really is fairly easy for beginners and it an important step in keeping bathrooms mold-free and your house more energy-efficient. Now I'll kick back with a beer and watch tonight's Boardwalk Empire. :)

P.S. Anyone have any tips for regrouting? The floor tile desperately needs it and I have no experience with it.

The Vacation Challenge

I am on vacation this week! Whoohoo! (Although taking it in January seems a bit Pam-esque from The Office. lol) My challenge? Complete as many half-finished house projects as possible. Without spending a dime. Gulp. The reason for the second part of the challenge is because letting me loose in Lowes is not wise. I'll come home with an armful of tools (and a couple gallons of paint) for some new project. And the truth is, I have everything I need for these projects that I started one (or two... or three) years ago.

My current project: the built-in bookcase.



I never finished painting the bottom half when we moved in. It might not be noticeable, but some of the older paint is looking pretty dingy. I never touched the interior and it smells musty. So far one coat of Kilz primer is drying and it already looks (and smells) better. Now the trick is keeping the nosy cats out while it dries.

The picture doesn't do justice to how "blech" it really is.


With one coat of primer up, you can start to see the the old flat color was really a dull beige. I can't wait until I slap on some semi-gloss bright white and organize it all nice and pretty. lol

It's the Little (Lame) Things that Make Me Happy

When I replaced the medicine cabinet, I worked on some new ways to organize. It... worked. But wasn't ideal. It got messy fast. I originally purchased the Ikea Semvik tumblers to store cotton balls, cotton swabs, and other miscellaneous items.



You would think it'd be pretty easy to remember which tumbler contained which items. However, one household member just couldn't retain that information. I thought I was smart when I printed up some clear labels. But the tumblers show fingerprints and get dirty fast. When I'd wipe down the containers, the printing would slide right off. Another clear label on top of the printed label and viola! Problem solved. Until the tumblers started to look... rusty.

Enter the unbreakable acrylic tumblers at Target for $2.50 each. Normally I'm not a fan of clear storage. I don't like looking at clutter. But really, who is going to be looking in my medicine cabinet except for me and Matt, and uh, I guess my blog readers? (Unless you're one of those snoopy guests. lol)



Basically, everything has to fit in my medicine cabinet. Nothing is stored in 21 inch wide vanity because it is pretty yucky under the sink. It's old and needs to be replaced. And this is good practice for when we replace the vanity with a plain old pedestal sink. So I tell myself, anyway.

Banjo Countertop, Be Gone!

I've decided no new projects until I finish the ones I have started. That is my biggest downfall: no follow-through. I usually give up when projects are about 80% done. "Oh, I'll get back to it later" and then I never do.

Do you know how long the bathroom has been missing its wallplates on the lighting and fan switches? Yeah, about a year! That's a safety issue too. :( It's not that I haven't tried. I just could not get the screws to line up for some reason. But today, I conquered all! Or at least the wallplates.



Now let me show you around the rest of the bathroom. When we bought the house, we were blessed with this beauty of a medicine cabinet. Even better, the shelves were practically rusted through.



Don't mind the paint swatch on the wall. At one point, there were seven different patches of colors up on the wall. For a year. We ended up with Sherwin William's Kilim Beige. It was just leftover paint from the hallway. It's best represented in the wallplate picture above.

Please also don't focus on my nemesis: the banjo countertop that extends over the toilet. We'll eventually replace with a pedestal sink.



I still have some tile edge pieces to finish. See what I said about unfinished projects? I'm not in love with the light fixture but we were really limited by the space. Our ceilings are too low to fit in something pretty like this:



Trust me, we tried. The light doesn't reflect right. It needs to shine out, not down. But we'll keep looking. In the meantime, these $18 lights work just fine for now!

Stay tuned for when I show you around the rest of the bathroom in two follow-up posts: organizing the linen closet and organizing the medicine cabinet. Who knows, maybe I'll even treat you to more of the banjo countertop, complete with the cut-out for a box of tissues. Lovely.

Project Cost Breakdown:
Lighting: $18
Medicine Cabinet: $88
Paint: free (leftovers)
Lightswitches and plates: $4

Total cost: $110

A Day (Or Months) Late

I should have posted a follow-up to my 2009 resolutions yesterday. But I guess today is as good as ever! Last year, I posted a very loooooong list of things to do around the house. But we'll get to that in a second. Let's first talk this year's resolutions:

• Finish 2009's list
• Blog once a week!

I used to love it then it began to feel like a chore. I made a concentrated effort to stop spending so much time online. It was nice! But I do miss updating with projects and I'm very behind on my Google reader. Like 2000 blog posts to read! lol


Ok, so let's see how well I did with the 2009 list, considering I pretty much did NOTHING to the house in the last few months.

Living Room/Dining Room
1. Replace all outdated electric outlets
2. Hide the cords in the entertainment center
3. Paint the baseboard
4. Replace damaged floor boards
5. Attach quarter round
6. Replacement blinds for backdoor
7. Decorate entertainment center
8. Rug to help anchor the space
9. Organize entryway closets (one for hanging items, one with shelves and baskets)
10. Paint interior of entryway closets (Um... one down, one to go)
11. Finish painting exterior of built-in
12. Prime and paint interior of built-in (and start using it to store things!)
* Wish list: flat panel TV (come February!), new couch and chair, more grown-up coffee table

Kitchen
1. Replace GFI outlets with matching ones that I bought a year ago
2. Replace damaged floor boards
3. Attach baseboards and quarter round
4. Replace ugly fluorescent light above sink to something more modern
5. Hook up the garbage disposal that was installed nearly 18 months ago
6. Start planning for new Ikea kitchen cabinets and countertops in 2010 Now I just need the funds! lol

Laundry Room/Mud Room
1. Prepare walls for painting (sanding area where cabinets were removed)
2. Paint ceiling
3. Paint walls (same color as living room)
4. Install tile Halfway there!
5. Organize space for shoes, coats, hats, etc.

Hallway
1. Replace outdated eletrical outlets
2. Repaint with satin finish
3. Paint baseboards
4. Hang pictures

Master Bedroom
1. Replace all outdated electric outlets
2. Repaint
3. Purchase comforter and duvet cover for new bed
4. Install closet organizer (already purchased) Decided against this idea
5. Purchase matching lamps for nightstands
6. Paint doors and baseboards

2nd Bedroom
1. Replace all outdated electric outlets and light switch
2. Install new carpet
3. Remove 50% of items and give to Goodwill Hah! Removed close to 90% of the items!
4. Install shelves (already purchased) What the heck was I even talking about here??
5. Paint doors and baseboards
6. Prime and paint interior of closet
7. Find a better way to hide litter box
* Wish list: Bed for guests (Hmm, guess I'd have to move the litter box then!)

3rd Bedroom (a.k.a. Man Room)
1. Decor for walls
2. Paint baseboards and doors
3. Give 75% of stored items in closet to Goodwill
4. Paint interior of closet

Bathroom
1. Finish flooring in linen closet
2. Paint walls
3. Recaulk tub Hallelujah! Silicone caulk is the guaranteed way to go. Even the bathroom-designated latex caulk isn't worth it. Silicone is a little messier but WAY better.
4. Replace toilet Wasn't on the 2009 list but was on the Ultimate list. The leaking toilet just forced us to do it this last year. And I love it! Well, as much as you can love a toilet.

Exterior
1. Plant grass in bare spots
2. Add additional ornamental grass to front yard
3. Plant ground cover on side of house Changed this to hosta and halfway done!
4. Finish weeding and mulching retaining wall
5. Clear overgrown weeds from back fence LOLOLOLOL No longer on the list. It was just groundcover but I'll PAY to have someone do this.
6. Dispose of the ginormous tub of river rock
7. Paint exterior of workshop
8. Scrape and paint all trim
9. Replace both water spickets One down, one to go!


Whew! I got a lot done but I feel like I failed because there's still so much to do. (I know I'm just too hard on myself!) But the house improvements are never ending anyway, right?? :) I hope everyone had a great holiday and you'll be hearing from me soon!

The Dust Bunnies are Multiplying Exponentially

There is a reason why my house is a mess and I haven't posted in ages. We have a new addition to the family. No, no babies. I am becoming the crazy cat lady.

I swear, I only went to PetSmart to pick up cat litter! Deceptively, they have kittens from local shelters in nearby window cubbies. I recognized one from a couple months ago. She was very needy and would rub all over the Plexiglas window if you held your hand up. After I read the description that she'd do best in a household with another active cat, I knew she'd be right for us. And roughly 15 minutes later, I was bringing home a kitten. lol



The transition had me quite worried. We separated her in another room and were slowly acclimating the other cats with her. Linus guarded the door 24/7. Lucy would just hiss. But after some time, everybody just loves each other!





Maybe now I'll finally get to hanging my dining room light fixture. (Three months after I was anxiously awaiting it to be delivered.)

Flipping It Around

For the last year, I've debated flipping the living room with the dining room. The current layout, which is L-shaped, isn't very efficient. There's a LOT of wasted space in some areas and very tight quarters in others.

Current layout:



(Click to enlarge)

Layout via floorplanner.com.

See that space behind the loveseat? It needs to be somewhat open to access the built-in. I couldn't push the furniture against the adjoining wall due to TV placement. Overall, the current set-up was making the best use of the space. I even tried moving things around via Floorplanner and even the graph paper method.

After we had some new (smaller) living room furniture delivered last week, I decided to try the living room/dining room switch. Perfecto!



Here's a sneak peak of things to come (in its initial stages):





There's still a lot to do...

1. Change ceiling light fixture.
2. Purchase white coffee table, end table, and paint entertainment unit.
3. Decor for end table and back wall.
   
4. Add texture and lighten up the area via throws and rug.

No pictures of the dining room yet until I get my new dining room light. I found the perfect one for us, considering that the electrician won't be coming out any time soon. (It can be easily converted to hardwire.) So purty, isn't it?



I was unsure of entering into the house into the dining room. But it doesn't feel that way at all. And it's soooo much more open and airy with ample space to walk around. Much more entertainment-friendly!

The Hopeless Garage Door

What do you do when the previous homeowner decides to put in this beauty of a garage door?


(from our initial walk through)

Yes, you are looking at that right. It is one of those yellow plastic rolling commercial garage doors. It was such an eyesore! To replace it would have set us back about $300. I have more important projects to spend that money on so what's a girl to do? Grab a can of paint, of course!

I thought painting it was out of the question because it was plastic and because it rolled. The light bulb came on once I realized the sections didn't actually bend. (Can you tell how often I actually go out to the workshop? lol)

I picked up a quart of enamel paint at Lowes. I took a deep breath and then just started painting. What I should have done was tested out a spot. What I should have done was tested its durability. Instead, I just went for it with this uneasy feeling that it might be peeling by next summer. No worries though! I scrubbed, scratched, and pressure washed after the first coat was up. It's not budging!



I hung the planters a little too low. (Tip, don't attach them without the planters nearby. For some reason I thought the chain was much shorter.) But overall, I LOVE LOVE LOVE it. Why have I been living with this ugly door for so long??

Some more before/afters:





I'm undecided about the side door color. I really think it would look better white but Matt pointed out how dirty it gets. Who knows how long it will stay this color. :)

Project Cost Breakdown:
Enamel paint: $10
Total: $10 Yep, that's it! Ugliness erased with only $10. If you count the paint for the entire workshop, it only set me back about $40. But that is a whole 'nother post where I cry about the scraping and sanding.

Ask and You Shall Receive

But it might take me three weeks to get to it! I've been a busy little bee around the house (lots of new posts to come) so I haven't gotten to taking a full picture of the new bedroom lamps. Finally, here they are:


(It's a dreary day so the lighting is terrible!)

So if you were undecided before, what do you think? I think they are growing on me so they are here to stay. Until a cat knocks one of them over and breaks it. I've already come home to a lamp crashed on the floor. Speaking of which, they seem to be drawn to the camera. Out of 7 shots, they were in all but 6. lol



I think I need to do a less stark white color on the "art" above the bed. Those are actually ceiling tiles, believe it or not! I purchased 5 of them for about $40 (free shipping) and gave the other two to a friend. They are perfect for above the bed due to the lightweight material. If they fall off, no one's teeth are getting knocked out in the middle of the night. But let me tell you, they WILL scare the beejebus out of you if they fall on you while sleeping. So don't just stick them on top of the headboard for the night and think you'll hang them up tomorrow. Unless you want to give yourself a heart attack! lol

Falling Out of Love in 8 Seconds Flat

I'm organized, analytical, and a planner. Everyone IRL jokes about how predictable I am. However, I can be impulsive. Really impulsive, especially with big decisions. My job, my hair (goodbye brown, hello blonde), even moving in with Matt. So far, all those decisions ended up being even better than expected. :)

I made an impulse purchase on something pretty insignificant: bedside lamp shades. Albeit, an expensive impulse buy. From a store with a sign posted, "All Sales Final". I had been eyeing a similar lamp at Target for ages:

I was picturing some drum shades with them but wasn't sure. See, I'm very lamp/lighting stupid. Then I saw a similar set up in Freckles Chick's blog and fell in love with the lamp combo and her style seen here:



Here's the bedroom so far:



(I now have three of those tiles above the bed to hang. Although they'll be lower this time. I'm just too lazy to get to it. And maybe put the duvet IN the duvet cover.)



The sales associate found a pair of shades, put them on the lamps, and I gasped. They weren't at all something that I would normally pick out. I was in love and it was unexpected. The price tag made my eyes bug out. But who cares! These are beautiful! Sign on the dotted line!



(Don't mind the cat toys. lol)

I got them home, set them up, and immediately started second guessing myself. Are they too feminine? Too frilly with the shape? The fabric too... rich? I loved the very subtle pattern. But I'm not sure if they go with the rest of the room or my style. Are they unexpected in a good way or a bad way? Let me know what you think.

Edit: I'll post a whole room view tonight. I guess I'll have to make up my bed first. ;)

New Year's Resolution Revisited

I had this insane idea to make a ginormous to-do list as my resolution this year. There were 50+ items on that list! Fast forward to July and I knocked out maybe half a dozen items. I decided to have some friends over for Matt's upcoming 30th birthday so it was time to get my butt in gear.

Here's where things stand so far:
(Many pics to come!)

Living Room/Dining Room
1. Replace all outdated electric outlets
2. Hide the cords in the entertainment center
3. Paint the baseboard
4. Replace damaged floor boards
5. Attach quarter round almost there
6. Replacement blinds for backdoor
7. Decorate entertainment center
8. Rug to help anchor the space
9. Organize entryway closets (one for hanging items, one with shelves and baskets)
10. Paint interior of entryway closets
11. Finish painting exterior of built-in
12. Prime and paint interior of built-in (and start using it to store things!)
* Wish list: flat panel TV, new couch and chair, more grown-up coffee table

Kitchen
1. Replace GFI outlets with matching ones that I bought a year ago
2. Replace damaged floor boards
3. Attach baseboards and quarter round
4. Replace ugly fluorescent light above sink to something more modern
5. Hook up the garbage disposal that was installed nearly 18 months ago
6. Start planning for new Ikea kitchen cabinets and countertops in 2010

Laundry Room/Mud Room
1. Prepare walls for painting (sanding area where cabinets were removed)
2. Paint ceiling
3. Paint walls (same color as living room)
4. Install tile 50% there
5. Organize space for shoes, coats, hats, etc.

Hallway
1. Replace outdated electrical outlets
2. Repaint with satin finish
3. Paint baseboards
4. Hang pictures

Master Bedroom
1. Replace all outdated electric outlets
2. Repaint
3. Purchase comforter and duvet cover for new bed
4. Install closet organizer (already purchased)
5. Purchase matching lamps for nightstands
6. Paint doors and baseboards

2nd Bedroom
1. Replace all outdated electric outlets and light switch
2. Install new carpet Installed tomorrow!!
3. Remove 50% of items and give to Goodwill
4. Install shelves (already purchased)
5. Paint doors and baseboards
6. Prime and paint interior of closet
7. Find a better way to hide litter box
* Wish list: Bed for guests (Hmm, guess I'd have to move the litter box then!)

3rd Bedroom (a.k.a. Man Room)
1. Decor for walls
2. Paint baseboards and doors
3. Give 75% of stored items in closet to Goodwill
4. Paint interior of closet

Bathroom
1. Finish flooring in linen closet
2. Paint walls
3. Recaulk tub

Exterior
1. Plant grass in bare spots
2. Add additional ornamental grass to front yard
3. Plant ground cover on side of house 50% there, but planting hosta instead
4. Finish weeding and mulching retaining wall
5. Clear overgrown weeds from back fence
6. Dispose of the ginormous tub of river rock
7. Paint exterior of workshop 50% there
8. Scrape and paint all trim
9. Replace both water spickets 50% there

Yowzers. I can't believe I've gotten all of that done! Of course, I could have done it without my sidekick: coffee. Eh, and maybe Matt. :)

My Very Own Hell's Kitchen

I FINALLY have kitchen floors! Let's throw a party! Actually, we will be having one next month because I'm so happy that my house is finally presentable enough to have company over. Why wasn't it presentable before?

Original peel-and-stick tile (and PINK paint from the previous owner):



Looks decent in the photo but awful in person. Dirty was caked in the crevices and the tile was blech. To match the lovely border, I suppose.

The new floor:




(Wall color is Dutchboy's Roasted Tomato)

Then the ice maker leaked and wasn't discovered until two days later. I lived with the concrete floor for too long as we worked on other projects. And thank goodness we didn't replace right away because the water heater leaked a couple months later and would have ruined it again.



The kitchen was finished Thursday night. I walked into the kitchen about 8 times yesterday and giggled every time. lol It makes the room look so much more airy! It feels twice as large.



I still need to add baseboards but it looks pretty good so far doesn't it? :)

Project Cost Breakdown:
Paint and supplies: $40 (WalMart's Color Place and tinted gray primer)
Light fixture: $40
Light switches: $12
Floors: $76 (Ikea's Tundra laminate in maple)
Total cost: $168

The next step is to replace the kitchen cabinets. The existing ones aren't very functional and they are OLD. Original to the house so that makes them 60+ years old! I've been eyeing the Ikea ones in Adel White.





The only great thing about having such a small kitchen is that it's not that expensive to replace the cabinets!

When Big Projects have Little Visual Payoff

It's an awful feeling when you slave away for 2 full days and have very little to show for your work. :( I've mentioned before that we had some water damage to our floors a while back. The laminate started to separate at the seams. Most cracks were the width of a penny.

We've made a lot of progress but the change isn't huge. It's not like when we went from pink carpet and walls to laminate and warm taupe walls:





Two days later, we're about 75 percent done. We just have to do the two entryway closets, a small portion of the dining room, and the kitchen. My knees are bruised, the tendons in my wrists kill, and my hamstrings are so tight! Oh, and I have a couple oddball cuts and dings. (I'm a klutz!)

In the thick of it:


I've had to be super organized when we pulled up the flooring. (While it might not look like it from the above pic! lol) Most of the boards weren't damaged. The ones that were just happened to be in the MIDDLE of the room so everything had to be pulled up. I marked which boards to toss, which ones could be reused if the end was cut off, etc.



See those cracks?!





I marked the underside of the good boards with numbers so we could lay them back down in the same order. It was all about efficiency and reusing what we could. Matt thought I was crazy! But I'll have more than half of the 10 boxes leftover.

I even marked the quarter round (which we had never gotten to installing) so I'd know which room and area the pieces belonged when we put it back together. I have no idea what EW stands for though! lol Entryway? Or East-West and I forgot to mark the room??



Our disarray of a living room as we had to move everything from one side to the other:



(At least I was able to coral those cords nice and neat while they were exposed.)

There are no "after" pics because, well, it photographs exactly the same. lol But it will be nice to have a real kitchen floor instead of a concrete one!