My Sanity...????

It's an obsession....a sanity-saver....a 'high'....a hobby. Projects. I love them. I crave them. I cannot do without them. Yes, I have six children that keep me busier than I ever imagined, but I will always find time for sewing, decorating, redecorating, painting, all sorts of crafty stuff, building, knocking out, creating, etc. no matter how busy I think I am. Mind you....while doing these things, my little monkeys are right by my side with their little tools helping me in their 'special' little ways. Projects make me more calm, yet at the same time they drive me crazy. Possible? Yeah, I guess. I adore my children and they make me immensely happy...but at the same time they make me feel insane sometimes & they can take 100% credit for my gray hairs (covered with blond hi-lights of course). So I suppose projects can have the same effect...?? Even Curt recognizes that I am a happier person when I have a project of some sort.

After this last project, I swore I would never refinish another piece of furniture (yeah right). The prep work alone KILLS me! I found this amazing 9-drawer-dresser and cute desk a few months ago. I was actually almost willing to purchase a nearly identical dresser from Pottery Barn Teen for $999 to match my girls most beautiful new splurge---French beds...until I happened upon this one in my morning searches. I couldn't resist. I bought the once-red dresser and desk for $250 which is a bargain! I found the mirror separately for $50--can't beat that! And it looks like a perfect set. These are really quality pieces. I did love the red, but the dresser needed to be shabby French rubbed white for the girls room. I kept the desk red for the family room laptop, but I'm not sold now that it's home-it's a little too petite for an adult.

Back to the dresser...I applied a de-glosser and then by hand...in every crack, crevice, and detail, applied a primer. My mistake, I should have used my spray gun. It took WAY TOO long. So after that sat for another oh, 6 weeks, I got around to the big kahuna and used my handy dandy spray gun to paint all the furniture. But no, I couldn't just do the dresser. I did the beautiful mirror and my Grandma William's dainty antique dressing table also with a mirror. It was oak...blah--and it needed to be freshened up and updated to make my girls room look like a set. And then there's this night stand I bought forever ago. It was the wrong color white, so it had to be done too.

My big tip of the day. I found this Deft clear satin finish spray in a can..rather than painting on polyurethane which yellowed my hard work with my childhood bedroom set I refinished a few years ago for Kenz. Perhaps it's not news to you wood/furniture refinishers...

My girls now have a beautiful set they can forever cherish! Now I just have to figure a fix for the icky wainscoting 3/4 of the way up the wall in the girls room. I don't like it--only because I had a different design in mind for the girls room. Only one problem. The previous owners GLUED, yes glued, the paneling on the wall. Not only that, but they didn't finish it and the paneling they did finish was done either in their sleep or while they were drunk. No kidding. It's covered by the beds but should I rip it down and fix the drywall behind the glued-on paneling or should I just hang the last panel and call it a day? I don't know...can't decide. I apparently do like to make things more difficult and complicated sometimes. But I'm tired and there's a gazillion other projects I want to move on to. I know those beautiful beds would look so striking against that soothing wall color rather than the white wainscot! Maybe I'll paint the wainscot lavender too....hmmmm. I'D LOVE ANY IDEAS for dealing with glued-on wainscot!

I did install closet shelving, hanging & laundry baskets for my boys last week. It only took 2 years to get to theirs! My backyard needs a pergola and about a thousand beautiful flowers....the fireplace outside needs a stone face...my dining room needs to be transformed into a library....The kids need their study nook...the the turret needs some molding...the kitchen and master bathroom need major updates...and the list just goes on and on....because we had to stop for over a year with our Vivie. Is it no wonder I'm TIRED with all that goes on in my brain?

I better get busy! When I have a vision of what needs to happen--especially when it comes to design and our home---it WILL get done...even if it kills me! And I wonder why I don't make much time to pleasure read? There's my answer.
Family + Projects = Happy Mommie.