We have been hard at work at the new house, making changes so that the house will work for us.
One of the things I wanted to do was turn the library into a playroom for Son. This is what we started with:
The darkest room in the house. Seventies dark wood paneling. Dark wood shelving. Did I mention that it was dark? Still, I knew all those shelves would be terrific in a playroom, and since it’s on one side of the family room and the kitchen is on the other, I knew it would be a great place for Dan to play uninhibitedly while I could still keep an eye on him. And, I could close the door so I don’t have to see the clutter. A win-win!
It wasn’t easy. To save time and energy, Husband first caulked all of the paneling seams. Then he began to primer. It took 2 coats (3 gallons) of one of the best primers, and the oil from years of polishing paneling was still seeping through in areas.
Big fans of Behr’s paint, we decided to try their new Premium Plus Ultra paint which is primer and paint in one. It’s more expensive than the standard Behr’s, but it was so worth it for this project. It only took one coat, and it dries really quickly. I doubt we could have used just one coat if we hadn’t primered first, but I’m positive it saved us at least one coat of paint. And it only took a half gallon to paint the entire room – the same room that sucked up a gallon and a half for each coat of primer!
Once the shelves were painted it was easy to see gaps between the shelving and the paneling – something you didn’t notice when they were dark brown. Husband used L-brackets to lessen the large gaps, then took out his handy caulk gun and filled in all of the gaps. What a difference!
Here is what we ended up with:
I am so very thrilled with the results! It’s just as I pictured it!
And, um, perhaps Husband will get me a wide angle lens for Mother’s Day…
Are You Going To Be This Way The Rest of The Time I Know You? 