It amazing how much can change in 12 months. If someone had told me that in a years time I would be thinking about renovating a house or how to paint a room I would have told them they were mad.
But that all changed 2 months ago. You see, I made the best decision of my life and married an absolute angel, my beautiful bride Meagan. And it wasn’t long after (we were on our honeymoon in
I knew I had always wanted to be a Dad, and even though I am now 33 years young, I had decided to put this off until the time was right.
My best friend Craig has just had his second baby. I had been telling him about what Meagan and I had been thinking about, and how I though it was best to wait until everything was in order.
As crazy as it seems now, in think somewhere in the back of my mind I was thinking that at some point in time I’d have the right job security, the right home, the right financial backing, I had travelled enough and felt mature enough (know what I mean guys?) to start a family.
Guess what? This day is never coming. It will never be the right time when all of the planets and circumstances will align and be perfect. If you’re already a parent you’re probably going, Mike, tell me something I don’t know.
Well for me, I just worked it out, so cut me some slack OK!
So here’s the news – WE ARE HAVING A BABY!
Ok, so we aren’t pregnant as yet, but we are now in preparation mode. That means medical tests for Megs, learning about all sorts of things you can and can’t do (mostly can’t) while you’re pregnant.
I’m also looking for a new job and we are buying a house on the central coast north of
And I’ve noticed an amazing thing has happened to me since we decided that NOW was the right time to start a family (I still giggle when I say that). I notice that I am the world’s biggest DIY (Do it yourself) home handyman. I think it’s a man’s version of nesting. Instead of moving around all the furniture in the house every other day, I want to renovate every room, put of floorboards and make the back-yard childproof.
But the big project that I have been obsessing about (yes I obsess now) is the nursery. How can I make this room the most wonderful room in the world for a princess or a prince. AS a kid I have great memories of my first bedroom, and I want to create the same for my kid.
Talk about the circle of life!
And as a new home owner this is my first chance to have so much freewill with what goes on the walls.
So now I’ve read a stack of websites and books on the subject and I’ve distilled that all down to these simple steps.
Time
First, how long is all this going to take? There’s no simple answer to that, but from what I can see from other people, make an estimation of the time it will take and double it. Being a brand new weekend DIY warrior, my 1 day job will probably take 2. So I’ll plan to start Saturday knowing that I have until Sunday night to finish.
Preparation
Now If I hadn’t read up on the subject, I would have just gone straight into painting without thinking (I do that a bit) about the walls. If your walls have been painted in the past, then you need to look out for rough peeling or chipped areas. Here are the action points:
1.Remove all of the furniture from the room if you can
2.Remove the plates (plastic covers) from the electric switches
3.Take down all of the curtains etc.
4.Look for the areas that need attention, and get to work. There are a number of ‘filler’ products that you can use. Your local hardware store will be able to guide you for what you need.
5.After fixing any flaws wash down the walls with warm soapy water (not dripping wet) to remove dirt, smoke or what ever may be there.
Here’s a tip that I love. If you find that you have something unusual that you’re not sure the best way to fix it, take a couple of photos with your digital camera and take it down to the hardware store with and ask advice from the staff there.
They will have an expert of painting that will know exactly what to do. Yes they are going to sell you something (that’s their job) but that is much less expensive in the long-run that having a dodgy wall finish, don’t you agree?
The thing to do now is tape around the surface along floorboards, ceiling trims, and any area where two colours meet. Remember that if you are measuring the height of a horizontal line always measure twice and draw once. Wonky lines are going to be very obvious.
Now we’re ready to paint.
Painting
Now there are a couple of trains of thought on this one. From this great DVD I saw from a pro, the best way to go is paint all of your floorboards, window sills, lights and switches along the edges of the walls first, then fill in the gaps with a roller.
Walls
Paint an entire wall before taking a break so the wet edges stay wet the whole way across. Maybe paint around the edges first, normally clockwise from the top left corner, and then use a roller in a zig-zag pattern across the wall. When you get across a wall, stand back and scan for the bits you may have missed.
Ceilings
Again, go around the edges first and the light fitting first and then fill in the gaps with the roller.
BUY AN EXTENTION POLE FOR YOUR ROLLER. Don’t try standing on a chair and keep moving it. It will take too long and it too dangerous as you can loose you balance.
Doors and Windows
Guess how I do this one? You’re right! Do the edges first, and then use a roller on the doors. On Windows you will use a brush a the whole way around.
Decorative Painting
Now if you’re anything like me, you’ll want to do something really special to make a bedroom become the best place in the world for the new addition to your family. I thought this was going to be hard but it turned out to be much easier than I had thought.
Stencils
Now I don’t have an artistic bone in my body, but using a stencil even I can make a bland wall into a masterpiece. Now if you are artistic and creative you can make a stencil yourself using thick cardboard and a
You can use them about 1m up from the floorboards to make a cool pattern and break up the solid colour of the wall. Or you might want to use them as an edge along the ceiling. When painting, you need to dap your brush and not use strokes so the paint doesn’t bleed past the edges.
With a little bit of the thought and preparation you can make be very effective in bringing the walls to life.
Texture
I’m going to give this a go in the dining room or lounge room to create a feature wall. This is also very good if you have a wall that is a bit rough and normal paint isn’t going to cover it up.
First, there is special paint that you need to buy. It is thicker and is can create a cool weathered or Stucco look. You apply it using a texturing roller, a wide brush or even a towel. It is best to work in 3 feet square sections to get the consistent effect.
So that’s what I haven’t learnt about how to paint a room. The whole process has been a lot of fun and as soon as it’s finished I’ll post some photos so you can have a look at how it looks.
I know what your thinking, this guy’s a nut. His not even pregnant and he is already painting rooms in his house. Maybe you’re right!
I’m just really excited and looking forward to being a Dad and really hope he or she really loves the room and has great memories of the special space I’ve made for them.
If you’re looking at getting some more info on how to paint a room for yourself, I found this really cool DVD that was the most valuable and worth the money.
