right now

right now

Mar 7, 2011

Living Small - Update #1

I am currently drowning in paint and it feels like we are just moving in!  All the stuff has been pushed out of the living room into the bedroom, then vice versa - we could barely walk in here this past weekend.  Things are moving a little more slowly than I would like, but I do have other things to tend to, like children... 
Oh, paint is expensive!  This isn't even all I will need.
5 gal "Ultra Pure White" satin:  $115
2 gal "Sterling" satin paint+primer in one:  $32 each
misc supplies:  $17

Total this week:  $196


Luckily, I don't need to tape off when I cut in (yeah, I'm that good LOL) so that saves a bunch of money.  I did make a big wasteful mistake, however.  I planned on painting the entire house Ultra Pure White to open up the space and have 2 accent walls in the pale gray.  After painting the entire living room white I then painted the accent wall and fell so completely in love with the way it showed off the white trim that I had to repaint the whole thing!  I'm still doing all the ceilings in white to raise them visually, so all is not lost, I will still need the 5 gal, I just hadn't planned on buying it all at one time.  I found I just couldn't go without color - even though my version of color isn't really a color at all - my favorite color is gray and any shade of it ranging from pale to a stormy blue-gray.  The blue is out though, I really needed BRIGHT!

Below:  "before" colors:  I liked them, but needed brighter


In the photo above, the Nordic blue on the walls really looks light to begin with, and I thought so for years, until I put the Sterling Gray up - below you can tell the difference on the ceiling!  It really gives the impression that the ceiling is further above you than it is (our ceilings are 9 ft).


below, the living room is finished, but not re-assembled yet


Party Foul!


I'm not sure who, but either Marley or Sprocket threw their ball into the paint!  They thought paintball was the next new sport, I guess.

The bedroom was painted too, but everything is still in massive disarray.  I spackled & patched every single nail hole everywhere and now I hesitate to commit to new placement of artwork and photgraphs, I think I'll wait until I get a huge "whole house pile" of wall decor, then redistribute it into different places and throw things out that I don't absolutely love anymore.  That's the best way to stick to budget I've found, just not buy anything decor-wise until you've had the chance to try out the old stuff in new places!

So... I'm a couple steps closer to finding my sewing nook, just like this gal...  okay, maybe I don't resemble her all that much.  


 Remember, that's what started all this nonsense, I need a place to channel my inner domestic diva!

15 comments:

  1. Love your new colors! Silly dogs.

    I can't wait to see how it all turns out. Hurry! LOL

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  2. I can smell the fresh paint all the way from your house to mine! I know, wishful thinking on my part....I do so want freshly painted rooms. And new floors and counter tops and bath fixtures and, and, and.

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  3. Aw, come on, Erin. We know you posed for that picture. You thought you could fool us with the new hairdo and those shoes, but we're wise to ya! (HEE-HEE!)

    Everything is lookin' good! Isn't it amazing what new paint can do to a place?

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  4. Looking good! But I don't envy you, that looks like a lot of work. I have a dog that puts that ball in everything too. Very cute.

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  5. Paint is expensive! Everything is looking good!!

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  6. Looking good Erin! Well at least one of the dogs didn't step in the paint!!

    When you are all finished....I think that you should pose with your machine just like the picture :) Maybe a little more Madonna Modern???

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  7. You've been really, really busy! The new paint color looks great, makes the room so much brighter. Can't wait to see the finished living room and bedroom.

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  8. This is my first look at your blog so I'll always picture you as that diva with the sewing machine. At least you caught the dog/ball scene before the ball was carried all through the house and perhaps onto your bed.
    nellie

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  9. I've talked to women who used to wear those kind of bras, they hated them. Can't remember what they called them, but they referred to making a "point". No wonder our moms (well my mom could not go with out one) burned their bras.

    Great job on the walls and ceiling, and yes paint is expensive, and is going up, it's petroleum based and when oil goes up, paint is one of the first to go up too. My husband is a master painter and handyman, so I too paint.

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  10. I, out of pure laziness and frugality tried to do a Behr color match to the Ben Moore paint I had picked out for the bathroom. Well I put some of the color match up and it is so far off from the BM it is not even funny. That'll teach me, now I need to go buy another gallon- the real deal this time.

    I can't wait to see what comes next!!

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  11. I've been shocked at how much paint has gone up in price over the past few years. But, it still is a great bargain when you think just how big of a change it makes in a room.
    Your place is looking great.

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  12. Beyond My Garden, welcome! And thanks for the visual, sadly I'm usually found wearing a baggy sweatshirt and yoga pants LOL, definitely not the diva! Oh, I can't even imagine if those dogs had started bouncing that thing through the house!

    Kelly, that'll teach you! I've done the same exact thing with the super cheap Glidden years ago... what a waste of $ that paint was horrible and needed 3 coats so it ended up being MORE expensive! Live and learn, I guess!

    Everyone else, thanks! I admit I might have underestimated how much time this would take me being that I have beds to weed, seedlings to pot up, it feels like I'll never get everything done!

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  13. Erin, if anyone can do it, you can!!

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  14. I've said it before and I'm sure I'll say it again...YOU ARE AMAZING!!! I'm hoping to tackle some painting this summer. Hope my results are as spectacular as yours! :)

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