A Hole Lot of Trouble

My laundry room painting project has not been an easy one.  It became pretty clear to me early on (say, when I moved in) that this room has seen a lot of damage in a previous life.  Poorly patched holes, cracks, and shabbily repaired water damage were everywhere.

Having lived in a number of apartments, I was used to patching small nail holes as part of the move-out process.  But when a hole is too big for simple patching, or repairs continue to crack, how does one take care of the mess?  I found my answer in drywall tape.

Drywall tape is a material that helps cover uneven surfaces that would be difficult to patch by using joint compound (aka "mud") alone..  It comes in two versions:  paper (most often used) and fiberglass (which is adhesive-backed and the kind I used).  Using and applying dryway tape only requires a small number of steps and materials.

You will need:  drywall tape, a pair of scissors, joint compound, and a putty knife.

1.  As always, wipe down the surface you are going to be working on.  Things always stick better when there is no dirt in the way!

2.  Drywall tape can be easily trimmed to the shape you need using household scissors.  Apply the tape to the hole or crack you are patching.

3.  Next, cover the tape using joint compound and smooth the surface with a putty knife.  If a second or third coat is required, sand in between each application to ensure the smoothest surface possible.

4.  Do a final sanding with fine-grit sandpaper, and the wall is ready to paint!

Even though the laundry room has required more preparation (and more patience) in order to paint, it feels pretty good to have learned something new!  Each new task I am facing in this house is only making me more confident that this is something I can do.  And as an added bonus, I get to pass these tips on to others, so that someone else may be able to benefit from these experiences.  Win-win!

How Do You Hue?

One very troublesome thing I have encountered during the "decor phase" (the fun decorating part that begins after you've painted all the walls) is matching the color.  Too often, the lighting in your house versus the lighting in a store is so different that you wind up thinking it's the same color, purchase the beautiful accent piece, and then return home to find that it's too yellow/pink/blue/etc.

As a perfectionist (detail-oriented/OCD/whatever you want to call it!), I have devised a way to keep organized out of the home while not hauling a massive binder around or taking up too much room in my purse (thank God humongo purses are all the rage, right?).  Behold, my (now not-so-)secret weapon:

In my purse, I have a small accordion folder that holds all of my necessary items for shopping trips.  Places like Walmart and your grocery store sell these as "coupon folders" but you can still find them in office supply stores too.  They are just the right size for holding paint chips, countertop samples, and of course, coupons (the bulky Bed Bath and Beyond ones can be folded to fit).

Each pocket is labeled for a room in my house, and the endless possible paint choices are dumped in as they catch my eye while browsing my local hardware store.  For rooms that are already painted, I keep only the paint chip that is on my walls and will sometimes throw in fabric swatches or samples of metal finishes (such as a silver/pewter chip that reminds me of my nickel finish in my bathroom).  In the rear pocket, I keep miscellaneous items, such as receipts, room measurements, etc.

The purpose of this (besides quelling my obvious perfectionist tendencies) is to have the exact items on hand when I need it.  If the store's lighting is different than what I have at home, it's less of an issue if I've got the paint sample right there to compare.  I can make sure that the fabric that's already in the room will match the throw pillow I'm looking at.  I can also make sure that if I decide to stop on my way home at a furniture store, the item will fit where it needs to go thanks to the measurements I've already taken.

Some of these things (such as the measurements) one can easily store on their phone to be even less of a space-hog, which is likely what I'll be doing shortly.  Regardless, I can honestly say that having these items on hand makes the decision process much easier for me when I'm looking at a gorgeous rug "that just miiiight" go in my living room - because as fun as it is to shop, returns are a huge time suck.

An additional timesaving feature of my folder is paint matching.  For my living room, master bedroom, and craft room projects, I have used Valspar paint colors but matched them to Behr paint (see this post to know why).  If I were to need more paint of the same color, I would have to do color matching again.  No matter how good matching software is, there is always a chance that the hue will be ever-so-slightly off.  To solve this potential problem, I mark the back of the paint chip with the code I find on the label of the paint can (I tried simply peeling the label off with no success).  By giving this code to the clerk, I can ensure that they are creating the same mixture as last time.

One more tip:  I'm sure most people already do something like this, but fabric stores (and Walmart) sell measuring tapes that are compact enough to fit conveniently in your purse without adding the weight of the ones you'll find in a hardware store.  They are a lifesaver when picking out furniture, or even when making sure that the baskets you like will fit on the shelves back home.

And now, I turn it over to you:  what do you do to make sure that you don't have to return everything you just bought?  What tools do you carry around with you at all times?  Spill. :)