January 29, 2007
we need to list the house soon, before you all die of boredom
Today is the only day this week that I don’t have some kind of appointment that requires showering and dressing in clean clothes and leaving the house. So of course, today was the day I would paint the bathrooms!
Or at least prep and prime them.
Or maybe just prep them.
Or perhaps just swear a lot.
I figured that the easy place to start would be with the master bath, which is so small that Wade and I can’t be in it at the same time without someone taking an elbow to the head (me) or the groin (Wade) (height difference, see). Most of the wall space is covered in tile or cabinets (I’m paying someone to paint those because woodwork! aaaahhh!) so I really would just have this one wee space to paint.
Except.
The teeny weeny strip of wall, at the corner, next to the medicine chest, has to be painted. I have no idea how to do that. Suggestions?
Also, the light fixture really REALLY should be taken down. Again, no idea how to do that.
Solution: I’ll let the professional do it! What the hell. Too bad I didn’t decide that until AFTER I had taped all the tile off. Argh.
So then I figured, okay! On to the boys’ bathroom! After a break, of course. (Kidding! Just kidding! Especially if you are my husband and you’re wondering what the hell I do all day!)
The boys’ bathroom is also mostly tile (good!) but because it is bigger there is more paintable wall (bad). There were also some holes in the wall that needed to be filled (meh, not really good or bad). So I got right on that, and while I was standing on the toilet filling the no less than two dozen tiny nail holes (how many pictures WERE hung in here?) I realized that there were some cobwebs on the walls. And some other stuff, too, that I still can’t identify and don’t want to think too hard about.
Because seriously, what COULD that be on the wall over the toilet? Oh dear god.
So I patch and I sand and I wipe the walls down and I take down the shower curtain rod and the mini blind and I start taping and I think, “I can TOTALLY get this primed before the boys come home!”
Except that the primer is oil-based, and I’m not doing that.
I take another break (no, not really!) and drive to Sherwin Williams where a very bitchin’ paint guy with LOTS of hair gel and a pair of sunglasses artfully perched on his head and a fleece pullover on OVER his required Sherwin Williams uniform shirt helps me find a LATEX primer for the bathroom (on sale, even!) and then I drive home and eat some lunch and then I realize that by the time I track down the paint brushes and roller and trays and drop cloths and get everything set up in the bathroom, it will be time to go get the kids.
Dammit.
Fortunately, this primer appears not to be entirely composed of toxic chemicals, unlike the Kilz primer which will KILL YOU if your house isn’t properly ventilated (which this bathroom totally isn’t) so I’m thinking I can do the priming tonight after the boys are in bed. And then tomorrow I can start the actual painting.
And then we can SELL THE HOUSE. The end.
Posted by Susan @ 1:11 pm • Uncategorized
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January 29th, 2007 at 2:15 pm, Jamie Says:
We just had our first showing Saturday. Looks like even with four small children in a 800 sq ft condo, we CAN have a good showing. Not sure she’s interested enough to buy though.
Best of luck to you getting your house ready!
January 29th, 2007 at 2:38 pm, Karyn Says:
This is the way it ALWAYS is when you take the kids to school! No matter your intentions, there are countless impediments to get in your way and before you know it, you’re trudging back to get them, nothing is done (at least not the way you’d like to have done it) and you are getting dark looks and snarky remarks about perhaps getting a job since you don’t DO anything.
Ahem.
In case you didn’t pick up on it? I can relate. Five o’clock yet?
January 29th, 2007 at 3:21 pm, mausfrau Says:
I just realized over the weekend, while painting the trim and moldings in our upstairs hallway, that not only do I not really LIKE painting, I’m not very good at it, either.
I hope yours goes better.
January 29th, 2007 at 6:15 pm, Joel S Says:
So my Mom is deathly allergic to the smells from paint. So she decides she needs her kitchen painted, which means she has to leave the house, and while she is gone the whole thing (cabinets and all) have to be primed painted, and painted three more times because she likes rich dark colours. So I do all this, finally crashing at 5 am. She comes back a few days later to state that “oh dear, these colours just won’t do!” Luckily she had nowhere to stay, but the next summer? same thing all over again!
Painting sucks.
January 29th, 2007 at 6:22 pm, Susan Says:
Joel, I PROMISE that if you painted for me, I would NOT complain.
Seriously. Are you free this weekend?
January 29th, 2007 at 8:49 pm, Karly Says:
Sounds like all my days. My husband asks how my day was/what did I do and I tell him that I thought about doing such and such, but…and he just looks at me like I’m a horrible lazy housewife who doesn’t deserve to live. Ok, that last bit may just be my guilt speaking.
January 29th, 2007 at 8:56 pm, Susan Says:
Don’t feel guilty, Karly. DO NOT.
Because god knows what I do all day, and if the rest of you start Doing Stuff, then I will have to as well. And we can’t have that.
January 30th, 2007 at 4:47 am, Mamacita Tina Says:
After doing some house projects, I’m thinking it is best to just hire professionals. I always take way too long and end up spending too much money trying to do it myself.
January 30th, 2007 at 7:39 am, daysgoby Says:
How teeny? Artist paintbrush size? Or even a Q-tip?
January 30th, 2007 at 8:31 am, MJ Says:
We just sold my father-in-law’s place and hired people to do everything. From paintnig to new floors to hauling away the junk. It was a beautiful thing. I’d highly recommend it. (Could we have done it ourselves? Some things maybe. But we’d still be getting the house ready for sale.)
January 30th, 2007 at 8:50 am, Meredith Says:
Getting the house ready to sell has been one of the most stressful and gruesome experiences of my life so far. Even with all we did, we ended up having to hire all sorts of people, landscapers, stagers - it has helped a lot.
Painters are even easier to find!
Good luck with it all! I hope it goes well for you.
January 30th, 2007 at 8:55 am, Susan Says:
You should all go read Meredith’s latest post about prepping her house to sell, if only for this line: “I can’t tell you how much I am looking forward to actually selling the house so we can let our guts hang out and wear the granny panties instead of thongs like a newlywed bride.”
I love that.
January 30th, 2007 at 12:02 pm, Anne Glamore Says:
I CAN paint, but only latex. It always ends up being so much harder than it looked before.
January 30th, 2007 at 5:10 pm, Velma Says:
Ah, Killz! I have a long and sordid history with that stuff. FYI - they actually do now make a latex Killz version which works pretty well at stain blocking.
If you people start actually Doing Stuff, I’m going to spiral into a horrendous depression. An artists flat brush will give you more control than a q-tip, if you need to keep a clean line without taping. And you don’t actually have to take the light fixture down if you are careful - just loosen it and slip painters tape around the edge to protect it, then slop paint around on the ceiling with a foam brush.
Don’t forget about a St. Joe statue! I am so lapsed I think I must be a prolapsed Catholic, but our realtor brought one over and we had an offer 2 days after listing, after a huge turnout for our very first open house!!
January 30th, 2007 at 5:16 pm, Susan Says:
Velma, we will totally be burrying St. Joseph in the garden. And sprinkling him with holy water stolen from Charlie’s school. (Ha ha kidding! Especially if you’re a parent at Charlie’s school!)
January 30th, 2007 at 8:23 pm, Lisa Says:
a small, angled brush is great for small spaces… say 1.5 inches or so..
January 31st, 2007 at 11:22 am, An Iowa Mom Says:
I’m late on the posting … LOL! I am assuming you’re painting RIGHT NOW!
How did it go? Pictures?
Just think of it as 1 step closer to having the For Sale sign in your front yard!
January 31st, 2007 at 11:25 am, An Iowa Mom Says:
I’m late on the posting … LOL! I am assuming you’re painting RIGHT NOW!
How did it go? Pictures?
Just think of it as 1 step closer to having the For Sale sign in your front yard!