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Young House Love » Our Second House » Finishing Lingering Home Projects

| By Sherry Petersik | January 19, 2012 | 424 Comments

Finishing Lingering Home Projects

We have a new friend hanging out in our kitchen. I found this guy at Hobby Lobby during one of their all-the-time 50% off sales for $12. You know me and faux animals. Faux sho they’re mine.

Horns Before

Then he sat in our playroom for a while (a while = 6+ months) and I recently walked in there and had this moment where I said to myself “Self: you have got to stop hoarding things in this room. Use them or lose them.” Which led to an initiative I like to call “Dude, Get On That Already.” The dude being me. Naturally. So I’ll probably revisit this initiative over the next few weeks and months (at least I hope I will) as I systematically pare down the hoarded playroom clutter and decide whether I’m going to keep things and actually use/hang/enjoy them or craigslist/donate/yard sale ’em. A lot of things end up in there for one of two reasons:

  • I’m not quite sure where to hang them (so I stick them there and say “I’ll get to it later” and later turns into never)
  • I plan to somehow alter things by painting or staining them (so I stick them there and say “I’ll get to it later” and later turns into never)

Well not anymore, folks. I dug in and grabbed my horny little friend and marched his antlers all around the house, trying to find a spot to hang him up and actually enjoy him instead of hiding him away in The Room Of Chaos (yes, that’s its formal name these days, so it gets capital letters and everything). Anyway, after walking around for a while I decided it’d be fun in the kitchen next to the fridge, but the original black color (although very cool in its own right) wasn’t working there. So I dragged my buns outside with a piece of cardboard and some leftover white primer + spray paint.

Horns Three Coats

You know my “thin thin thin and even coats” catchphrase when it comes to spray paint, so I snapped these three in-progress spraying shots to show you how each coat is a nice thin mist. You definitely don’t get full coverage with one thin coat of spray paint – which is a good thing. You’re doing it right if it takes about three of them to slowly accumulate. And always keep your hand moving and hold it 8-10″ away. No thank you drippies. Not on my watch.

Speaking of spray painting tips, this guy’s antlers were still looking dark on the underside, which I knew would be seen when we hung him up, so I waited a full day for his front to cure and then flipped him over to give him a nice deep tissue massage with spray paint on the back.

Horns Backside

John and I actually considered a few crazier colors (plum, navy, yellow) but thought that the white would look nice on our grellow walls- especially with the gold mirror in the laundry room so close by (it’s on the other side of the doorway, so we didn’t want it to have to fight for attention).  But I have big plans for some of the other things lurking in the playroom. Oh yes, plum, navy, and beyond…

Horns After1

Don’t mind the paint touch ups we have been meaning to do for over a month. I’ll get to it sometime. Unless I’m too busy spray painting various faux animals.

Horns After2

Work it, antlers. Work it.

Horns After3

As for how I hung it on our paneled walls, anchors are a gal’s best friend.

Horns 4

Here’s the box we’ve had… oh… maybe a year?

Anchors1

They seem to last, which is nice because it’s so annoying to run to the store for little hanging stuff. Boo to that. Anyway, for those who might not know how they work, this might sound like “health class” in 5th grade, but the anchor is the white thing and the screw is the silver thing you know what a screw looks like. So you drill a tiny pilot hole into the wall, hammer (or push) the anchor into the hole, and then screw the screw into the anchor.

Anchors2

A into B, baby. Oh but just leave a little bit of the screw sticking out for hanging whatever it is you’re hanging on it (the anchor should be flush with the wall, but the screw might stick out half an inch). Das it.

I gotta tell ya, it took less than an hour of actual time (drying time doesn’t count because you don’t have to stand there and watch it). And that not only includes my little spraying trips in and out for those thin coats but also the whole hanging shebang after he was fully dry. So I have high hopes for my little “Dude, Get On That Already” project. I might just keep this up! And if I ever want to pop it off the wall for a fabulous royal wedding, it makes for a great fascinator.

Fascinator

So are you guys with me on this weird little self-imposed challenge? Any items (or an entire room full of stuff) that you’ve been putting off? Wanna tackle it with me as I go? I’d love to get to at least one thing a week but with kitchen/kid/book stuff I’m not sure if I can stick to that, but it’s definitely the goal! Oh and what should I name this guy? Or is naming white faux animals weird when they don’t have faces? Malcolm? I keep getting Malcolm.

And speaking of projects… surprise!

Electrician Craziness Horiz

Electrician Craziness Verti

My apologies for the crazy lighting (oh yeah and the ladders and the dropcloths) but we’re in the midst of getting new lighting! Hah. So there’s just one floor lamp illuminating the back corner of our windowless interior room. Which explains why it looks like a glowing Katy Perry alien is hiding back there or something. But as crazy as it looks… wahoo, it’s progress! More details about the whole process as soon as it’s a wrap (and it’s all cleaned up, photographed, and written out) on Monday!

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Filed Under: Crafting & Art, Our Second House

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Comments

  1. Eve says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:16 am

    Ha ha! I love it – adorably kitschy that he’s over the garbage can, too. We have our cardboard safari version over the toilet. ;) Might as well make the throne more regal!

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 11:28 am

      Haha, I love it.

      xo
      s

  2. Momlady says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:16 am

    Malcolm.I like it..very dignified. So, Sherry, what’s up with the ceiling in that last pic? You’ve got an angle thing going on. Is it a just in the photo thing or is that really what it is?

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 11:29 am

      Just don’t have trim on the end of that beam so it has a weird shadow that makes it look kinda off there. But it’s on the to-do list!

      xo,
      s

  3. Zoë says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:16 am

    Love the fancy fascinator! I have been obsessively purchasing letterpress prints from Etsy, so my challenge has been to finally get those suckers framed and hung. My day off on Monday was spent frame shopping – success! Now I have to actually hang my lovely new artwork. Oh, and while I was in Target I saw this horse and immediately thought of Sherry: http://www.target.com/p/Decorative-Horse-Head-Figural/-/A-13804488

    Our next big project is to pick out a whole new bathroom. Woot! We’re tearing out our hall bathroom down to the studs and starting over. Well, actually, we’re paying someone else to do it. With two full-time jobs and three kids, it would take us months to do the job ourselves. We’re designing it ourselves though – would that count as a reader redo?

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 11:38 am

      Ooh he’s handsome, isn’t he? I like how he appears to be mid-conversation with the open mouth. As for the reader redo, send us the pics for sure! We’d love to see!

      xo,
      s

  4. laura says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:17 am

    Dropcloths always make me think of Dexter!

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 11:30 am

      Haha- me too!

      xo,
      s

  5. Danielle C says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:18 am

    It bugs me that the antlers are crooked.

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 11:30 am

      Aw I like it! You know me and the whole embracing imperfections thing. Maybe in real life antlers aren’t perfectly balanced so in faux life they’re not either?

      xo,
      s

  6. Pip says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:18 am

    Glad I’m not the only one who thought of Burger’s leash hanging from those antlers straight away. It must feel like a bit of light relief to get some decor-on in the kitchen after all that grouting and cab painting.
    I’m on board for the Dude challenge – piles of pictures to hang and things to repurpose living in our Black Hole / spare bedroom.

    Reply
  7. elaine says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:18 am

    awesome. I love the fascinator… and lighting surprise. Great challenge!

    Reply
  8. Katie says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:19 am

    Totally with you. I have a vase-into-lamp project I started before Christmas…I’m going to make this the weekend I finally get it done!

    Reply
  9. Jules says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:20 am

    Tackle one project a week? Why, that’s what I’m doing on Thursdays! I call it The William Morris Project, based on the quote “Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.” I started thinking about it in June when both of my friend’s parents died two weeks apart and left behind a stuffed house full of useless possessions. (They were shoppers.) Then, in October I lived by the quote every single day. EVERY SINGLE DAY I got rid of something, put it to use, decluttered, etc. Now, I do it on Thursdays. Lots of fun. Keep doing it, Sherry–it gets addictive and you feel good, too.

    xo
    Jules

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 11:39 am

      Aw thanks Jules! I love hearing that. And I love your blog. For anyone who doesn’t read Jules’ blog, she’s one of the best writers out there! Total girl crush here.

      xo,
      s

    • Kristen says

      January 19, 2012 at 12:59 pm

      I’m so glad Jules chimed in because I was going to write that I am following her William Morris project too! And Sherry, I have to agree with you like 1000% – she is one of the best writers out there, ever!

      Anyway, I guess I’ll have to update my blog to say I’m participating in the William Morris project AND the Dude, Get On That Already projecs. I think I have a little follow-through problem…hahaha.

      Oh and the “that’s what she said” opportunites in this post were endless. Just know that we are all sitting at our desks at work snort-laughing at the entire post! :-)

    • Jules says

      January 19, 2012 at 4:29 pm

      Oh my goodness, Sherry. You are too much!

      xoxo
      Jules

  10. Ashley says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:21 am

    We absolutely have a room full of stuff for “later”. That room also has no plaster/drywall right now, and is bare lath. We ripped the old horsehair plaster out last February…it’s still sitting in big buckets. Sigh.

    Reply
  11. Sarah H. says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:21 am

    We bought an old hutch from a garage sale a while ago with the intention of painting it white (it’s very 60’s ish, in a bad way right now), but I haven’t gotten around to it yet. Can you paint laminate furniture? At first I thought it was veneer, but now I don’t think so…

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 11:40 am

      I would take a door or drawer to a paint store (like Ben Moore, so they know a lot) and ask them what they recommend. Paint and primers get better and better so hopefully you can!

      xo,
      s

  12. Moni says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:22 am

    RECESSED LIGHTING! It feels so real! Looking good. And Malcom fo sho.

    Reply
  13. Teresa @ wherelovemeetslife says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:23 am

    You may need to make a special banner for this challenge (just do that in between your book/kitchen/life).lol I do the same thing, I see it, buy it, then have nowhere for it, but I KNOW it will come in handy when I do need it. Of course, my problem is I have no storage for this stuff.
    You can see that I can’t pass up a deal, even if I have no place for it..lol

    I couldn’t just buy one… they were both cheap and cute.

    http://wherelovemeetslife.wordpress.com/2012/01/19/goodwill-finds/

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 11:36 am

      Haha, I love them!

      xo,
      s

  14. Paola says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:23 am

    Dude, those last two pictures just got me so geeked!

    Reply
  15. natalie says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:24 am

    we purchased the deer & moose from Z Gallerie and mounted them onto stained pre-cut wood “crests” from Michaels!

    http://www.mintlovesocialclub.com/2011/11/new-wall-decor.html

    you can never have enough white ceramic animals in your life!

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 11:26 am

      I love how you mounted them on dark wood! So much fun.

      xo,
      s

  16. Natália says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:25 am

    Hello!!!

    I have a room full of things that “I’ll get to them later”, since I moved into our home… that was 3 years ago…
    From time to time, I’ll try to get something done… And sometimes I really do… but the room is still full…

    Here we don’t use yard sales…

    By the way, your friend hanging out in your kitchen is very nice!

    Reply
  17. Ryan says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:28 am

    Love it, especially as a hat! This year I am going to BUY furniture :D we have an embarrassing collection of stuff acting like furniture – rubbermaid containers filled with sweaters as nightstands? Check. So this year I want to buy actual pieces either new and at reasonable prices or old and in good condition that we can refinish and enjoy in our home. I would say the “refinishing bug” is something I caught on your website : )

    Reply
  18. Jennifer B. says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:28 am

    I think I love your challenge! We have a junk room (future nursery, whenever that happens) that desperately needs some cleaning and organizing. It’s turned into our Room of Chaos like yours. I’ll take your challenge! My goal is to get one thing out of there a week until I think it’s where it needs to be to organize it! Thanks for the challenge $herdog!

    Reply
  19. angela says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:28 am

    Karen, who writes the blog http://www.theartofdoingstuff.com issued a challenge to toss 50 things and for readers to send her the before and after pics. it started with her cleaning out her desk drawer and she was going to move on to other drawers and her makeup. I think it’s a great thing!

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 11:35 am

      That’s so much fun! We did an “100 Things” Challenge before we moved last fall. It was crazy how much better we felt!

      https://www.younghouselove.com/2010/11/before-we-move-a-semi-crazy-goal/
      https://www.younghouselove.com/2010/11/100-things/

      xo,
      s

  20. Krystle @ ColorTansformedFamily says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:30 am

    Even though you haves chaos room, at least it’s free when you go shopping in it! I love your love of white animals/ animal pieces.
    Oh, and I can already tell the lighting is going to be great.

    Reply
  21. Merideth says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:33 am

    Our ‘noffice’ (office, future nursery) is just like that! I had it all cleared out last fall and now it’s mysteriously full again…drats.

    Reply
  22. Wrenaria says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:34 am

    My home office is currently the mysterious dumping ground for things I don’t want to deal with. Though I did bury the mess in sheets and plastic so I could paint stuff this week, so at least for now I don’t have to look at most of it. ;)

    Love that picture of you using Malcom as a fascinator. So cute.

    Super stoked to see pics of your kitchen with new lighting in place! Eeeeeeeeee proper lighting!

    Reply
  23. Emily says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:37 am

    You should do giveaways with the stuff you’re not going to use . . . then we could say “this pillow was used in John and Sherry’s living room” when yall are famous :) Besides, who wouldn’t want to snag a part of yalls awesome style? Cheers!

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 11:41 am

      Haha that would be fun (and we actually have thought about that a few times) but shipping stuff might be hard/pricey if we had a lot of stuff to move. And you know we’re cheap, so we love the whole craigslist/yard sale thing. Just come on down for a road trip! Haha.

      xo,
      s

  24. Jessica says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:38 am

    I love project “get on it already!”
    that is what has been going on in my life too – why is it so easy to get the supplies for projects (?!), but then all that stuff just sits in piles on my desk (at least it is neatly organized into piles, right?)
    good luck! can’t wait to see the lighting process
    xx

    Reply
  25. mckenzie says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:39 am

    My husband and I purchased 3 sets of the antlers when they were on sale as well! We got ’em nice and white and now they’re mounted on the wall in our living room! I also got a gazelle/antelope bust from Hobby Lobby (on sale of course)for my husband for Christmas! He looks awesome in our lime green office!

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 11:43 am

      I love it! Three of those guys lined up sound awesome!

      xo,
      s

  26. angel p says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:40 am

    I just finished my challenge. Back in October I decided to go through the house and pull anything that had not been used recently. I had a HUGE garage sale and priced it all to sell. What didn’t sell I just donated to another cause. It felt so nice to get rid of so much stuff. It was a LOT of stuff too. I think it took us nearly an hour just to drag it all into the driveway from the garage. It makes you wonder how so much stuff fit in your house in the first place. I finally don’t have a “collection” room any more. yay!!!

    Reply
  27. Riva says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:41 am

    I love the “Dude, Get On That Already” challenge idea. I’ve been doing this already to help my husband move his buttsky on our house without even knowing it was going to be a thing! I’ve given him a challenge every weekend this year – Weekend 1 was a do-or-die pick-the-last-light-fixture-for-over-the-kitchen-sink, Weekend 2 was to select/procure all the wood hangers we told people we were using their Christmas money for (haven’t gotten clothes on them yet, but at least we bought them!), Weekend 3 we found homes for the nice kitchenware we got for Christmas and get rid of the icky stuff it replaced. This weekend’s challenge will be to select decorative/privacy film for the window over the door – right now it’s got clear contact paper on it which lets in more light than the wood blinds did, but is all bubbly and not very nice looking. I wish we could accomplish more stuff faster! But amazingly this one-baby-step-per-weekend pace is actually much faster progress than we have made in 2 years living in this house.

    Reply
  28. Debbie says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:42 am

    Love the challenge to use the items in the playroom. I’m so over these antler things that everyone is putting up in their homes, though. :-\

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 11:44 am

      It’s a good think Malcolm doesn’t have ears so he couldn’t hear that. Haha, it’s definitely one of those personal preference things though!

      xo,
      s

  29. Rebecca says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:43 am

    How do you spray paint in January? Isn’t it too cold?

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 11:45 am

      We’re having the most awesomely mild winter. It was 65 and sunny when I sprayed Malcolm!

      xo,
      s

    • Teresa @ wherelovemeetslife says

      January 19, 2012 at 12:51 pm

      I was wondering the same thing! I live about 2.5 hrs west of u guys and we have been having good weather as well…but how do you guys spray paint in the cold months? Do you just hold off on those projects till the spring?

    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 12:59 pm

      Yeah, I usually wait for a day above 50 degrees like the can says (which isn’t too hard here in VA, thank goodness – we usually have one of those a week even in the winter).

      xo,
      s

    • Meredith says

      January 19, 2012 at 1:05 pm

      That’s it, I’m moving! One day a week above 50? Our high here is 10. TEN. This does not make things like, oh, getting gas or walking to your car fun at all.

  30. Alice says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:47 am

    I am so glad to see that oh so ugly brown ceiling fan gone! I couldn’t live without my bedroom ceiling fan here in Arizona, but at least it is white and blends with the white ceiling (I try and pretend it is a gorgeous chandelier!)

    And the “Olivia side table” you have over at the right side of the page under “We’re Digging”, well I bought that table a while back from Ballard Designs on sale for $99 and just love it!! It definitelyl has the look of a much more expensive table.

    Reply
  31. Jessica says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:48 am

    I am usually not a fan of the antler rage currently haunting the blogoshpere, but I can totally see a fabulous apron hanging from it so I approve. Carry on…

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 11:50 am

      Haha thanks Jessica!

      xo,
      s

  32. Alanna says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:49 am

    don’t you just love not having a garage? we don’t have one either, so the large bonus room on the back of our house has been turned into our workshop/storage area/dumping ground. it’s like trying to make it through an obstacle course every morning when i go through there to leave for work.

    on another note… can’t wait to see your new lighting all finished! that’s one of the projects that i think can make the most difference in a space! we were so thrilled when we upgraded the lights in our kitchen (http://alanna-wendt-to-tennessee.blogspot.com/2011/05/let-there-be-light.html and http://alanna-wendt-to-tennessee.blogspot.com/2011/08/let-there-be-light-again.html)

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 11:50 am

      Wow- such a difference!

      xo,
      s

  33. Kari E says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:51 am

    I’m so in on this – I’ve vowed to do 52 projects this year – one for each week of the year. Most of them are little things that we’ve been meaning to do forever – example: fill the empty picture frames that have been hanging on the living room wall since we moved in… a year and a half ago. So far, so good. Most are pretty small projects in the scheme of things, but the sense of accomplishment fuels a can-do-it attitude for the next project.

    p.s. I am SOOOOOO envious of the deer antlers. I have been drooling over the paper mache animal heads that keep popping up all over the place, but can’t do the price of them. Wish I’d stumble on something like this!

    Reply
  34. Tina Bland says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:51 am

    My pile is so big I get un-motivated just thinking about it! I have about 50 black frames that I keep collecting (good will, IKEA, Target, painting old ones) to make a gallery wall up our stairwell…I keeping buying and not doing and my hubs is like, “Um, sweetie when are we actually DOING the gallery wall??” and I just look at the growing pile of frames and think…later! LOL. Plus the pile of stuff to spray paint. And the artwork to hang. and the kitchen to reno…i’ll have a great, put-together, stylish house…someday! Maybe I’ll turn it into SOON if I do this challenge!

    Reply
  35. Caity says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:52 am

    This post was like the last episode of this season of Dexter. Total cliffhanger!! haha Excited to see what happens with the lighting (And with Dexter!)

    Reply
  36. Emily says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:54 am

    $herdog, you totally got your mojo back on this post….not that it left really, I just have a feeling the book and holidays and being a mom and wife and genius had you super tired for a while. Wow this is not coming off well, ok, um, what i’m TRYING to say is, this post sounds like you. Funny, inappropriate, and awesome. Like I want to sit next to you in class and get in trouble. I feel like we need a Petersik state of the union post…like, are you guys still exhausted? Did you get some rest? I’m not doing a very good job of saying, “I hope you’re doing really really well.” :) K…kloveyoukbye.

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 12:13 pm

      Haha thanks Emily! I’m giddy and weird as ever! Still not sleeping very much (book stuff isn’t over until the end of May so we laugh and say we’ll sleep in June). Maybe we’re just on that hyper-happy thing that you get on when you’re tired yet wired and everything is hilarious? It’s all worth it though. We’re so excited about all of the secret book projects and the kitchen stuff and the book shoots coming up! Life is crazy but we wouldn’t have it any other way!

      xo,
      s

  37. Marilyn says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:54 am

    do you know of a way to get the anchors out of dry wall? Have some in places where I don’t want to hang things and I don’t want to tear up the wall.

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 12:10 pm

      This might not be the only answer, but I have found that hammering them into the wall (not so they’re flush, but so they’re banged in) and then spackling around it to flatten things out is easiest. Digging them out can often make a bigger hole that’s harder to spackle. Hope it helps!

      xo,
      s

    • Jenny says

      January 19, 2012 at 1:01 pm

      Another tip is to use a razor blade to remove the ring of the anchor. Simply slide the razor blade back and forth between the ring and the wall until the ring is completely removed then simply push the anchor into the wall cavity using a screwdriver. Spackle and paint as normal. ‘Course this only works on plastic wall anchors.

    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 1:26 pm

      Oh that’s smart!

      xo,
      s

  38. Rachel says

    January 19, 2012 at 11:57 am

    I can’t wait to see what your kitchen looks like once it’s lit all pretty! It’ll be a show stopper.

    My mother bought me two gorgeous pieces of photography for Christmas (my first pieces of real art!) and even though it’s windy and snowy today (in Toronto) I’ve made it my resolution to finally go to the hardware store and buy the proper hardware to hang them so I can get them out of my closet already and enjoy them.

    Reply
  39. Newlyweds on a Budget says

    January 19, 2012 at 12:00 pm

    What have you guys been doing for cooking while the kitchen has been renovated? like–how do you make food? or do you just eat out all the time?

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 12:14 pm

      We really really try to have the majority of things working within 24 hours. We never were without a working fridge or stove (just moved it across the room and plugged it in with an extension cord until the electrician came and added a plug) but were without a sink for about three weeks (which stinks, but when you have a stove and a fridge you can still cool). Oh kitchen looks crazy in the pics, but by the end of the day the drop cloths will come down and we’ll be able to cook dinner in there believe it or not! And we’re cereal for breakfast and peanut butter and jelly folks for lunch, so we don’t need to cook stuff until dinner on days like this! Hope it helps.

      xo
      s

  40. KM says

    January 19, 2012 at 12:02 pm

    This is a RANDOM question, before you found out you were pregnant with Clara did you slow your roll on painting/spraypainting because you knew there was a possibility you could be pregnant? Would the fumes harm a baby that early in the pregnancy? Like I said, totally random but you’re my go to gal!

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 12:09 pm

      Yes! I’m a freak about that stuff. I actually spray paint now with a mask on. Not a paper mask, an industrial gas mask that contractors wear. We got one from Home Depot years ago and it’s not too bad to wear so I definitely recommend one. They’re around $35 and can come in handy for painting and staining and spray painting and even using fumey glue and markers (you know I’m the paranoid person who wants to wear it when I crack a sharpie).

      xo,
      s

  41. Annie Swift says

    January 19, 2012 at 12:02 pm

    Have been a silent reader of YHL for a long time but it really needs to be said again….You really like white animals huh, Sherry!? Another wonderful quick-fix and your kitchen is coming along really nicely. (I must admit when the penny tiles were up without grout I cringed at the colour of the walls in comparison – but now it looks fantastic!) OH! Two more things a)I had a dream I was a guest in your house (random I know, thank you) and you were very hospitable hosts! and b) Random fact! In the UK Anchors are called Rawl Plugs! – I prefer anchors but doubt I’ll get away with calling them that! (Alu-min-um or Alu-min-ee-um?)

    Anyway, randomness over and I shall shy away back into my browsing corner – but lastly thank you both for being such an inspiring couple. X

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 12:15 pm

      Haha, never heard of rawl plugs! So funny!

      xo,
      s

  42. heather says

    January 19, 2012 at 12:02 pm

    My get on with it wasn’t an object, but a post. My husband informed me that I apparently don’t follow up with projects well since I’m all over the place haha (he is entirely accurate). I *thought* I had posted about planting our trees in The Orchard (it sounds so grand for something so small), but I hadn’t. So, I did the other night.

    http://www.likeacupoftea.com/untimely-orchard-update/

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 12:15 pm

      Haha, I totally do that too! All Over The Place is my middle name.

      xo,
      s

    • heather says

      January 19, 2012 at 12:42 pm

      That’s one hell of a perceptive middle name from your parents. High Five to Team Sherry. Hahahaha. Mine is “stop talking.”

    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 12:53 pm

      Bwahahahahaha.

      xo,
      s

  43. Sayward says

    January 19, 2012 at 12:03 pm

    I think everyone has a secret stash of ‘I’ll do it later’ stuff. I have an unused bedroom that’s my shameful junk room too. It’s full of things I want to salvage or spray paint when it gets warm again. I think a one thing a week goal is genius – totally achievable and maybe even a change for you to sneak away from everyday life for some relaxation and creativity time. Now that I can (sort of) use my sewing machine (the tale of my rocky, emotional start is identical to Sherry’s plus some blood) I have a whole bin of clothes I want to alter or mend or repurpose. I set a goal to do three things a weekend. Nothing says Saturday fun like losing 35 pounds and turning your old dresses into throw pillows.

    When I declutter I pretend I’m getting ready to move and ask myself “if I was moving into my dream house, would I pack this and take it with me?” It makes it way easier to part with things. I also once heard a freakishly organized mom on Wife Swap chant “do you love it? do you need it? does it make you money?” If you couldn’t say yes it had to go. She was a little scary, but I liked her motto.

    Who remembers Clean Sweep? I loved that show. Like Hoarders, but more light hearted and without all the dead kittens and mold.

    This comment is all over the place like Sherry on that Radon interview :)

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 12:17 pm

      Wahoo! 35 lbs?! That’s awesome! And I love the question you ask yourself when you declutter. So smart. And yes, Clean Sweep was totally the lighter version of Hoarders without all the scary stuff!

      xo,
      s

    • Sayward says

      January 19, 2012 at 12:26 pm

      Yeah, I’m only 5’2″ (ok, 5’1 1/2″) and I developed a really bad thryoid problem right out of college during that ‘no health insurance phase’. I got REEEALLLY sick. Then I got a job and insurance and a great doctor. I’m totally fine now, but I gained 30 lbs in the process. It took me about 3 years to get myself back – I got really interested/informed about healthy natural foods and proper portions, and have a Biggest Loser DVD that I do at home. That’s it. It was a slow and steady and (so far) permanent change. Now I’m way more fit than before I got sick, so I don’t really mind having to give up all my clothes, and it gives me something to hone my sewing machine skills on. I joke that I’m like Maria in the Sound of Music making clothes out of curtains, but I’ve been making pillows out of clothes.

    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 1:00 pm

      That’s amazing Sayward! Congratulations!

      xo,
      s

  44. Liz says

    January 19, 2012 at 12:05 pm

    Love this challenge! Maybe it will motivate me…maybe.
    Name vote: Winthrop

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 12:07 pm

      Oooh. Winthrop is very refined indeed!

      xo,
      s

  45. tracy a says

    January 19, 2012 at 12:10 pm

    i’m just glad all that plastic in your kitchen has to do with lighting and not Dexter! :) love the antlers & i’m seriously looking forward to seeing some plum/navy madness!

    Reply
  46. maria says

    January 19, 2012 at 12:17 pm

    Haha, I TOTALLY have a hoard room – the basement, and my husband HATES it, he always says he’s gonna enter me to be on the Hoarders show! I’ll reassure him that I’m working on it by showing him your post :) Let’s do this!

    Reply
  47. Nikole says

    January 19, 2012 at 12:21 pm

    Ooooh, lighting! I can’t wait to see the finished product. I mos def have a bonus room full of random stuff that desperately needs to be cleaned out and organized. The most shameful part is that the room is half painted. I woke up today with a mind to finish it, as well as the various projects laying on the floor in said room, so here goes nothing!

    Reply
  48. emily @ the happy home says

    January 19, 2012 at 12:26 pm

    jealousy! we don’t have any room for knickknacks in the house, so i don’t every buy stuff that doesn’t have an immediate purpose. which kind of drains the fun out of the house– there’s not a whole lot of frivolity going on in our place.

    that’s one epic fascinator.

    Reply
  49. Helen says

    January 19, 2012 at 12:27 pm

    *GASP!* You sneak!!! :-) That lighting is going to be amazing!
    And it’s incredible you did this post, we’re working on our office/library and have adopted this VERY SAME philosophy! It feels great to be doing something, doesn’t it?

    Reply
  50. Kim J says

    January 19, 2012 at 12:27 pm

    It is probably just me, but when I look at your site on my iPad the background is the adorable picture of the four of you at the back tiled over and over and I can’t read any of the content. This hasn’t always been the case…it’s something that just started yesterday. I am super bummed, and I have no idea how to fix it :(

    Reply
    • YoungHouseLove says

      January 19, 2012 at 12:55 pm

      Oh yes, that’s just a smart phone glitch. If you clear your browser’s cache or cookies or data (whatever they call it) it should be solved. Wish it was something we could fix on our end!

      xo,
      s

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John and Sherry Sitting On Woven ChairHey, we’re John & Sherry. We’ve fixed up 7 homes, written books, designed products, started a podcast, and then downsized & moved to the beach! Here you’ll find over 3,000 DIY projects & home updates. More about us…
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