Most of our family and friends know
by now, but we did keep it a secret for quite some time. And now it's
finally time to let everyone know...
We're moving!
Dave
has lived in our little old house for over 7 years (since he graduated
college) and I moved in 2.5 years ago. It was a perfect spot for a
bachelor and then a young couple plus a pooch. But now that we're
married and our 30th birthdays aren't so far away anymore (yikes), it's
time to move on.
Photo cred goes to Megan!
Our
new house is about 10 minutes away from where we live now. Although
Valley Forge National Park won't actually be in our backyard anymore,
it's still super close and we have a creek that runs along the edge of
our yard, so we can pretend. The house is huge with 5 bedrooms and 3.5
baths! The storage space is unreal. We have a wood stove and a
fireplace. There's a huge back deck. The school district is awesome.
There's a nice park and a local trail right down the street. It's an amazing house (minus the often soggy backyard and super steep driveway - yes, we'll be investing in a snow blower)!
Courtesy of googlemaps - hence some of the weird glitches in the photo. I owe you a better one!
The
house belonged to Dave's grandparents. His grandfather moved into a
gorgeous retirement community about 2 months ago. Although the grief
from his grandmother passing in February is still present, I know that
her love will live on in the house. I think of how unique it will be to
create memories with our own family in the same house Dave grew up
spending time with loved ones and celebrating holidays in. Although I
can't say we're sticking with the ivy wallpaper themed kitchen, there
are plenty of details and decorations in the house that will continue to
remind us of Dee for years to come.
We're slowly but surely prepping the house for our move in, but we've been so busy that it's sort of been on the back burner. We're currently removing wallpaper, picking out paint colors, and doing lots of cleaning. We're also working on meeting with a contractor to redo the master bathroom (goodbye tile & stand up shower). Our goal is to move in sometime in October. It sounds so far away, but there's plenty of work to do and my weekdays are currently consumed with cheerleading! Did I mention I've never painted a room before?
At some point I'll have to do a house tour, but in the meantime...
Do you guys have any painting tips? What's your favorite living room wall color?
Congrats! How exciting.
ReplyDeleteMy painting tip is one I read on Young House Love a while ago. If you're going for a color (something other than white, cream, grey, etc.) grab the swatch of the color you think you want and then go a shade more grey. It'll tone down the color so that once it's all over your walls it's not as overpowering AND you'll still get the impact of the color you're going for. Does that make sense? It's worked for me and my sea foam, minty living room walls. Sounds weird but it works. :)
Thanks! I just recently started reading YHL and it can be overwhelming haha. They are so handy... I am so NOT haha.
DeleteColor selection hint that helped me, look in your clothes closet. Predominant colors in there are likely ones you already like.
ReplyDeleteHmmm that's interesting! I never thought of that. Sounds good except I'll just have to avoid all the black that Iike and all of Dave's Flyers gear haha.
Delete*First, figure out who is better at edging and who is better at rolling. I have more patience so I always edge. They have awesome edging tools now if you don't have a steady hand.
ReplyDelete*Buy your tools: rollers, roller handles, roller sticks, tape, paint can opener, stir stick (free), drop cloths, edging tool and pads (if needed), paint trays, tray liners, paint brushes (angle brushes are great for edging, especially those with short handles), bucket /cup to put paint in while edging/molding (or just use an old cup)
*Clean your walls off of dirt and dust.
*Tape off molding before you start. When you're done painting, peel down and away. IF you have a steady hand, you don't have to tape.
*Obviously, either remove all furniture or move to one side of the room and cover for protection.
*Lay down something to protect the floors.
*Make sure you have everything you need before you start so you don't have to leave the room to get anything else.
*If you do need something, check the bottom of your shoes before you leave so you don't track paint anywhere in your house.
*Also, remove outlet covers before you paint. Then paint!
Here's the order. 1. Edge the ceiling with primer 2.prime the ceiling (if needed) 3. edge w/ceiling paint 4. paint the ceiling 5. edge each wall with primer (edge around all windows, along baseboards, and around outlets) 6. Prime walls! 7. Repeat step 5 with paint color 8. Check over walls for bare spots and to see if you need a second coat. 9. Second coat! 10. Paint window, baseboard, and ceiling molding. 10. Apply second coat to molding if needed.
Make sure you allow ample time to dry. If you roll over paint that's wet still it gets funky!
Thats all I got for now! I'm sorry I'm preggo now and can't paint. If the doc says I can, but with certain paints, I'll let you know!
-Kimber
My steps got screwy. Step 8 should be paint. duh!
DeleteYou are a pro! Thanks for all the tips!!!! What do you usually use to clean your walls beforehand? Neither of us are very patient, so we'll see how that goes lol. When is your due date? I'm pretty sure we'll still be painting various parts of the house haha ;)
DeleteI saw Devon mentioned patching up the walls. She's totally right. Do that before you prime. IF you paint over spackle it will stick out like a sore thumb. Make sure you cover it with primer afterwards. Believe it or not, I read on pinterest that some people have even taken a bar of soap and rubbed it over a nail hole to fill it. -Kimber
DeleteAmber, I always thought paint was paint. It's not. When you decide which color, buy a good paint. I usually go to Benjamin Moore. It's definitely worth the extra money for the actual paint. They also sell trial jars if you are unsure about a color. Prep is key ... take the extra time to prep the walls before you begin painting. and CONGRATULATIONS!! It looks like a beautiful home!
ReplyDeleteThe house is gorgeous! Congrats to you both again!
ReplyDeleteWhen I was growing up, I painted everything in my parents' house from the walls to the trim to the garage floor (at my parents' request I even threw in those little paint chips that make the floor look like this: https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRhabCNObXGIycr4ceFBtJtfqmS-SDA99HoeAby8phTV2GWBCzP). If you need any help just let me know (preferably after I take my PE exam on Oct. 24th though haha).
Tips: Be careful not to put too much paint on the brush or roller before you use it or you won't get as even of a coat as you would like on the wall (this is more important for staining, but also applies to painting). Also, the rollers are awesome for covering a lot of space quickly, but if you put too much paint on the roller and/or roll it really really fast you can end up sending little paint flecks everywhere (I learned this the hard way when I ended up with hundreds of tiny dots of paint all over my newly painted ceilings and floors!). Basically, as with all things in life... try and find a balance. Too fast and/or too much paint on your brush/roller = messy and uneven coats and possibly repainting. Too slow and/or too little paint on your brush/roller = painting will take foreverrrrrrr.
You'll learn a lot more about the house as you paint it because you really get up close and personal with all of the little spaces you don't normally pay much attention to.
Also, when you use the painter's tape, make sure you go along and seal the edges with a putty knife or you can end up with paint bleeding under the tape like this: http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-U2Emy3Ghy1o/UjnjNdt-YhI/AAAAAAAAAig/hi9M52DN4n4/s1600/crooked+lines.jpg
I usually recommend getting a decent brand of painter's tape just because it does a better job of keeping your lines clean.
Lastly, Kimber's post is pretty much spot on with the order in which you want to do things, but I would add: if you want to patch any holes in the walls with wall patches and/or joint compound, do it before you paint so you don't end up repainting that area after patching! And make sure to sand/wet sand any patched holes before painting or you will be able to see the patch and it will make the wall look rough/uneven.
Also, I usually just used soapy water and a sponge to clean the walls.
Good luck!
-Devon
Dang girl! Thanks for all that advice, I have so much to learn! We'll definitely still be painting after your PE, so get that studying done and then come visit :)
DeleteOne last thing, make sure to thoroughly wash paint brushes out with warm water after using to avoid having to buy new brushes every time you paint (same as when you paint on paper).
ReplyDelete-Devon
I wrote a whole long comment and never saw it show up. First and foremost- Congratulations!! he house looks beautiful. As for advice- Just finished a huge painting project here in my LR/DR and went with a light tan (called hopsack by valspar- took advantage of a sale with $10 rebate for every gallon). I painted over a few walls of wood paneling (because pulling them down to discover what the wall underneath looks like just isn't in the budget right now) and the best advice I can give you is to take advantage of the $3 sample jars of paint if you're not 100% sold on a color based on the swatch (which will ALWAYS look different on your wall). Paint a whole bunch of small areas in different locations with different lighting and leave it there for a day or so- check it out morning, noon and night to see how it looks. Best of luck with all your projects. I'm looking forward to watching the progress and swapping tips and tricks.
ReplyDeleteI HATE when that happens. Sorry, I have no idea why. Thanks! We'll definitely be utilizing those sample jars. And yeahhhh... one day I'll have tips & tricks to give... one day ;)
DeleteSo I have zero painting tips since I've lived in our current house almost 6 years and every single wall is still white, but CONGRATS on the new place and the new chapter! :)
ReplyDeleteCongrats! The house looks gorgeous! My painting skills consist of pouring a glass of wine and "supervising" Ed while he paints, so I'm not much help there lol!
ReplyDelete