I’ve been painting… and painting… and painting. Denise is back at her house. I am finishing up all the painting, and I will glaze the little dentil pieces. Then, she will be back to do the final wood graining on all the remaining larger expanses.
I paint for a few hours every day. It’s actually kind of relaxing — zen-like. That said, my neck hurts from looking up at the dentils for hour on end. And, my right pointer finger cramped up yesterday because one of the brushes (in photo below) I use for tight spots isn’t very ergonomic.
Some tools that have come in handy — note, all links to Amazon are affiliate links, part of how I keep the blog boat afloat:
I’m loving the Louisville Ladder Platform Ladder that I found searching ladders and scaffolding on Amazon. I didn’t know such as thing as platform ladders existed until I went searching for something besides a regular ladder to help me do this dentil-painting job. The platform ladders come with the platform at a variety of heights. Using info from the company’s website, I measured before I ordered, and the 3′ ladder has the platform at pretty good spot for me to reach the dentils comfortably. I still crane a bit, though — hence my sore neck!
Denise and also have become #1 fans of The Whizz paint brush, which we saw in the store and tried for this project. And, I’m digging my Pelican pail.
After the graining is complete, we will then coat all the woodwork with two coats of Varathane, which is a nice top coat because of the way it self-levels. I think that early next week, I’ll jump ahead to this step with the bookcases, which already are grained. Once the Varathane cures, I can then start styling the bookcases. Doing some decorating-in-progress keeps my juices flowing.
Meanwhile — a little a break — I’m headed to Louisville on Friday night for the weekend. My family is getting together to celebrate with my dad, who is having his 80th birthday on Monday. Happy birthday, Dad!
I love the art of faux…on a trip that included a stay in a German abbey, I visited the church on the grounds. It was heavily, gorgeously embellished by many previous generations of nuns and my tour guide was apologetic that it was faux; to her mind it would be better if it was plain and simple. NOT to me, though!
Your dentils are looking so amazing! The book shelf is terrific!
Just an fyi, when I clicked on the link for the Louisville ladder, though, it did not take me to an Amazon page.
hmmmm, Amy. The first link is to the ladder for sale on Amazon. The second, to the company’s website, which is where I found detailed info and measurements. I think you can buy directly from the company, too. Possibly elsewhere, too, as LL seems to be a big company.
That’s the drawback to vintage, elaborate wood detailing. It’s why most people ended up just painting over it.
HA! Look Pam, your kind of humor! 😉
The progress is looking great!! I’m missing our time together, but know I will see you again soon. Wishing you the best of times celebrating your dad! xxoo
That is true dedication to perform a tedious job like that for hours on end . The reward is it looks awesome!
Pam, I am so happy to learn you got a really good quality ladder. I guess you learned your lesson from the fall–last year, was it? Happy painting!
Oh, and I forgot to say that with a retro-design room and your fireplace, I find that the flat-screen TV kind of disappears into the wall when it’s off. A friend of mine makes cloth “TV cozies” to cover the TV when not in use.
But the whole idea of our retro-deco-mania is not to live life in the 1950s but to have fun in our houses, right? Can’t wait to see it all together.