Getting Better All the Time

Once I was completely moved into my house, and had received and paid my first of many house-related bills, I kind of took it easy. I would piddle here and there on small projects—like replacing weatherstripping around the doors and hanging decorations on the walls. One very proud moment was when I hung my first chandelier. I bought a decent looking chandy on sale at the home center, hoping my dad would come over and help me hang it. But I got anxious, it came with directions, and I had assisted Dad when he hung my ceiling fans…so how hard could it be?

After unscrewing the fuse for the dining room in my electrical sub panel (Older houses have fuse boxes—really weird and scary!), I disconnected the existing light fixture and followed the step-by-step directions to install the new one. Stepping back, re-engaging the fuse, and flipping the switch was probably one of the proudest moments in my life. It worked! And I did it all by myself! I really felt solidified as a homeowner. Even better, a Do-It-Yourselfer! Ahh, then began the feeling that I could do anything!

I decided to tackle one of the spare rooms, my office. Since it was an addition the previous homeowners commissioned, it was not entirely made to blend in with the rest of the house. The floor was lower than the adjoining living room, it had 70’s Celotex ceiling tile, and the classic and lovely wood paneling. The paneling didn’t bother me, I could paint it and it’d be good to go. The floor could easily be raised by adding some 2×4’s and plywood. The ceiling tiles, needed to come down, but the wild card was in what was underneath.

Nervous to uncover something even worse, I began pulling down a few tiles. Boy, was I pleasantly surprised when I saw beadboard! Who would want to cover that up?! I continued tearing the tiles down, hoping it was all in as good shape as the first bit I saw, and it was. Once I removed all the staples from the Celotex and the old ceiling fan, I lightly sanded and primed that beautiful wood. A little caulking was necessary to fill a few small gaps before I applied two coats of the white paint I’d been using around the house for trim.

I was wanting to cut off the top half of the wood paneling, add chair rail, and paint the lower half to create a wainscoting. Then enters the home improvement guru, Dad. Since the paneling had been installed without drywall behind it, it had dips and was less than ideal. So he decided to remove it all, install drywall on top and bottom, then reattach the paneling to the bottom half.

The drywall made the room look so much better! And after paint, some closets, and crown molding, the room was ready for occupancy!

Can’t wait to blog about the exterior makeover of my house in my next post!