Painting the Inside of an Exterior Door

Sorry for all the project posts, Carson had his first business trip this last week which left me and (not-so-baby anymore) James home alone by ourselves! This was seriously the first time spending even ONE night away from each other since we've been married...yeah in 5 years.  But since we joined the real world of adults, I guess it was bound to happen.

Since I knew I would have a lot of time on my hands I convinced Carson to let me do another diy project from my list (I have a rapidly growing list...which may or may not be turning into a crazy obsession...HELP. ME.).

I figured I'd go with one I for sure could tackle in one week.  Also, most important, I wanted to go with something that fit into our budget...remember we still have blinds and a yard to put in.

Oh, by the way, we bought a water softener and blinds for the master bath!  So we're slowly nicking away at that daunting new home-owners task list :)

I've seen people paint the inside of their exterior doors black and really liked the look so I decided to give it a whirl.  I originally decided I'd just do the door leading to the garage just in case I didn't like it (are you kidding?) but I LOVED it so I did my front door too!

Supplies used (and why I chose them....I am definitely a "why" girl and always have to know the reason behind what I am doing):

• 1 quart Behr "Black Suede" semi-gloss finish paint/primer in one-   In this case, I found using a paint/primer in one works just as well as priming then painting in two different steps.   I'm all about eliminating extra steps if possible!  I also used semi-gloss because it's good with hiding fingerprints (must have with a toddler). And one quart is plenty!
• Wooster PRO nylon/polyester 1 1/2" angled paint brush-  Definitely splurge on a good angled brush- this ensures a smooth application and doesn't shed bristles.

• 220 grit sandpaper-  The larger the number, the finer it is (less rough). You don't want to gouge holes in your door ;)
• Painters tape- definitely a no-brainer, you don't want to make a mess 
• Small paint roller with a roll that is shed resistant and indicates it gives a "smooth finish"- like the angled brush, this is very important for quality! But you can find these for far less expensive.

The How to:

1. Clean the door and let it dry
2. Remove doorknob hardware and using painters tape, cover door hinges (and around door frame if you feel the need- I did on my first door but felt I didn't need it all that much around the frame so with the second door I didn't)
3. Lightly sand entire door using a 220 grit sandpaper and wipe with damp cloth to remove debri.
4. If you are painting a door with grooves, use angled brush in grooved portions of door first (see pic below)
5. Use small roller to apply paint to raised areas of door and let dry for at least 2 hours before second coat.
6. Use 220 grit sandpaper to smooth out any blemishes caused by first coat paint job and wipe away debri with damp cloth.
7. Apply a second coat of paint following steps 4-5

here is a pic of step #4

Seriously, SO easy!  The hardest part was getting the dang doorknob and dead bolt back on!  Seriously took me over an hour just for that part.  I'm so not handy :)  And I believe it only cost around $35 with paint and supplies. 

And of course the before and afters...

The door leading to the garage

and the front door

yeah...I forgot to remove the painters tape for this pic :)

I absolutely LOVE it!  I think it gives a more classy and sophisticated look. It was a little hard to get used to at first, sometimes in the evening I would catch a glimpse of it out of the corner of my eye and think the door was wide open!

I guess I was overly anxious with this project.  I gave myself a week to finish it and actually finished it in two days (both doors) and that's with a toddler...woot!  So other than this last minute project that I also did this last week, the rest of the week I just sat and twittled my thumbs until Carson came home :)  Oh, not entirely true, I shoveled a boat load of snow a couple of times.  Geez, Carson timed going out of town just right ;)  Good thing I have awesome neighbors who helped.

Doily Wreath

I am not a huge Valentines fan so naturally I don't really care to decorate for that holiday

 but I ran across this project on this blog and really liked how easy it seemed and how cute it was so I thought 

ok, I will decorate a little :)

I had THE HARDEST time finding doilies (possibly because Valentines Day is two weeks away?) but finally found some at the Dollar Store.  They were a different shape and size than the ones in the blog I had seen but they were going to have to do so I just had to use a little more of my own creative senses.

DIY Doily Wreath Tutorial:

Supplies:

• Doilies (lots!)
• Styrofoam wreath form
• Hot glue gun

The How-To:

First, I folded the bottom up just to shorten them a little.  These were pretty big doilies, I didn't want my wreath to be all floppy.

Then I folded one side in to touch where my thumb was and then folded the other side the other direction to touch where my other fingers were.  To look like this.

Then I put a dab of hot glue to hold the sides in place and started gluing them onto the styrofoam wreath form.  By the way you can use a 40% off coupon from Hobby Lobby or Michaels on the wreath form making it only just a couple bucks!

I wiped out the Dollar Store (and I even checked other $ stores and they were out) so I went sparse at first and then filled in holes after I had gone all the way around.  I really would have liked it a little more full but what can you do?

I really liked how the blogger from the site I saw this on put it on her vintage window.  I have been looking for something to put on mine and so it was a no-brainer that's where mine was going.  Plus my window sits on my mantle shelves so why not decorate them a bit for the holiday?  And I decided to get more into the spirit of love and bought some pink flower and heart piques and made a few Valentines arrangements :)  You'd think my heart was changing but not entirely, that's going to be all the decorating I do for this wretched holiday ha!

Here's an up close all finished 

(the doilies are white but I couldn't get the lighting right so they look off white here, but I think I like it.  Sort of goes with the vintage feel)

And the whole ensemble.  

The two pictures on the lower shelf have just been there as a sort of filler.  Not quite the look I'm going for but I'm working on something :)

 This cost me about $10 to make!  It could have been even cheaper but I had to use my 40% off coupon on my hot glue gun (can't believe I've never bought one until now) instead of using it on the wreath form.

I also like that I potentially could keep this up 

even after Valentines.  

It really isn't an "in your face it's Valentines!" decoration.

Testing Colors

I have just found the greatest invention of all time!...Ok I guess it's not the greatest but I've sure been having fun with it lately.

It's a website, mycolortopia.com by Glidden.  You can test out paint colors on your very own walls by uploading a picture...GENIUS!  Why didn't someone think of this before?

I have to warn you though, this is a definite time-waster.  It's so fun!

When we built, we just chose an overall color for the whole house.  It's called Sprite and no, it does not resemble the drink in any way ;)  It is like a yellowy, creamy, beige color.

I have this large vaulted wall in my living area that definitely needs some tlc.  I have plans to put a picture collage up but am still collecting frames and what-not.  Long term we have major plans for this wall- it's going to be fantastic and I can't wait till we can do what I really want with it but that probably won't be for another year or so so for now I am thinking maybe throwing some paint on it and making it an accent wall.

Paint is one of the best ways to make a dramatic change to a space and it's so inexpensive too!

I know I want a pop of color and am really drawn toward the blues but there are SO many shades.  So I narrowed it down to a bunch and I need help, what color blue do you like?  I understand some of these are pretty close but I can't choose!

You will notice the paint color is typed on the wall in white.

This is what the room currently looks like

Thanks for your input!

Life as a Toddler

James is now 21 months old...Carson hates when I tell people he is 21 months.  He thinks I should say almost two.  He wonders how long we will tell his age in months.  Makes me think of that Adam Sandler movie, Grown Ups.  Haha if you've seen it you know what part I'm referring to. My argument- he still has 3 months till then and A LOT changes with a toddler in that amount of time, but I am now humoring him.

James is now almost two.

This kid has a lot of personality.  He is so fun!  Buuuut I'm afraid the terrible two's have hit the Cullimore house hold.  I know, I know, you say 3 year olds are much worse.  Well I like to cover my ears and pretend I can't hear you ;)

Ignorance is bliss, right?

James has quite a high vocabulary for his age.  Strangers even comment on how well he communicates.  I guess that makes up for his not crawling (on hands and knees) till he was 10 months old and not walking till he was 14 months.  One day I was singing  loud and he put his finger up to his lips and said "Shhh Dada's ni-night." Carson wasn't even home from work yet. He cracks me up.

He is obsessed with trains, more specifically Thomas the Train.  He even knows all the characters names!  Maybe he watches it too much...  Though he is really good at remembering and saying names especially family (and Thomas characters).  He loves to look at pictures of our family and go through and name everyone off.  He also a few times a day will ask, "Where's so-and-so?" to which I'll answer, "Probably at school, or work, or home."  and then he'll move on to the next person and ask the same thing.  This kid even talks in his sleep...no surprise there :)  He is definitely his mother's son.

He for some reason does not like to wear his shoes (and sometimes his socks) in the car.  So we just don't ever put them on until we have arrived at our destination.  Now that it's cold outside, we get comments asking where his shoes are, to which I have to explain I'd rather not put his shoes on twice.   Speaking of shoes, he loves his snow boots and will often be found wearing them around the house.  Yes, he helps himself to this.

He is so sweet and loves to give kisses.  He often kisses his books, his stuffed animals, gives kisses toward something on the tv.

He often tells us "I pee" or "I poop" after he has gone, maybe even before sometimes.  He also has tried sitting on the toilet- he does that all on his own.  Now, I am definitely not saying he is ready for potty training.  We have a lot longer to go for that but it's interesting seeing him become more independent and aware all on his own!


He has become mama's little helper.  He says, "I help" all the time for everything.  He loves to help me cook and clean which was such a hassle in the beginning but now I embrace it and put him to work!  Before he was sort of in my way and I felt I couldn't get anything done around the house.  Now I give him a rag when I'm cleaning and he follows behind me, helps me load the washer and dryer, and stirs things for me while I'm cooking.  It takes me longer but at least I'm getting it done and I'm keeping my toddler happy while I do it.

Every day isn't always a good day.  We definitely have our struggles, but we are enjoying each day we are given.

New Years

As we say goodbye to the year 2012 I can't help but think back on what myself and my little family has accomplished this year.  We had some major events happen this year.  Just to name a few:

• January: Carson started his job working part-time at Anglepoint 
• February: Busy busy with school
• March: hmmm celebrated St. Patty's day?? haha
• April: Carson and I graduated- Carson with his Masters in Information Systems from BYU and I with my Associates in Radiography!  We also celebrated James turning one! 
• May: I turned 26...really?  I'm closer to 30 than I am 20... I also took my Radiology Boards and passed!  Carson was offered a full-time position with Anglepoint.
• June: I started working prn at The Clinic doing Radiology and Medical Assisting.
• July: As we were building our home, we were blessed to not be affected by the Saratoga wildfire.
• August: We bought our house! 
• September: SWe ran our first half marathon- the Big Cottonwood Half Marathon.  Our community was hit by a devastating mudslide but we were fortunate to not have been personally affected.
• October: Took James trick-or-treating for the first time.
• November: Payed close attention to the election- we were bummed about the outcome but know the Lord is in control.
• December: Grandpa Pulver passed away. We celebrated our 5th Anniversary.  We also celebrated Carson's 27th birthday- he's getting old.  

Now, I am not one for New Year's resolutions but I will say that I am going to strive to be an overall nicer person and be more service oriented this year (and really, hopefully for the rest of my life).  I would like to make a difference in the world, my community, my family's lives.  To have a more Christ-like attitude.   

We are looking forward to what 2013 will bring us!  We hope everyone else has a great year!

Whoa December

Yes, December is a crazy month for everyone but it is even more crazy for us with celebrating Carson's birthday on the 17th and our Anniversary on the 29th.  We have the privilege of throwing those into the mix of parties, shopping, etc!

For Carson's birthday we actually attended his work party at Ruth's Chris Steak house.  This was our first time there and it was phenomenal...I can not even describe how good it was.  It was a delight getting to know Carson's co-workers better.  All are such great people and we enjoy being in their presence.  Before going to Ruth's Chris Carson opened his presents.  I surprised him with a really nice chess set and a vintage BYU shirt that he has been wanting.  We have played a couple games of chess and I will just say I am not a good contender against Carson.  There is definitely no challenge for him ha.

James was so fun this year with Christmas.  He is kind of starting to get it.  He knows who Santa is and can say his name (don't ask him to sit on his lap) but he doesn't quite understand what his role is in all this Christmas business yet. He loved seeing all the Christmas lights and decor.

Opening presents is hard work

For our Anniversary to celebrate our good ol' wooden 5th Anniversary we decided to do a little over-nighter get away up to SL.  This was the first time I left James overnight.  I have been kind of paranoid to ever do this- I know he would be fine I was just always worried about how I would do.  I can't believe I didn't do it sooner!  Ha, I handled it just fine.  It probably helped that it was just one night and I did miss him but the fun and freedom we had outweighed it :) We saw Les Mis (meh) and went to Ruth's Chris (it was so good the first time, we had to go back a week and a half later for more).  Actually we had already planned to go there and made reservations before Carson's work decided to have their party there.  Oh well.  It was delish.  We tried to stuff all that we could into our bellies but when we finally gave up we decided we would have them pack the left overs up and we'd find a homeless person in need of a good meal.  We gave it to a very appreciative homeless woman outside the temple/city creek area.  It felt good to do something nice for someone else and by giving a meal rather than giving cash, I knew my money was being put to good use.

We did a little shopping at City Creek

They had ice skating right outside our hotel.  It was beautiful with the rink and the lights on all the trees.

This month we also squeezed some time in for some Jungle Jims.  Laurie had a Groupon that she needed to use before the year was up.  Carson grew up going to this place and it was kind of fun taking James on all the kiddie rides.  He enjoyed spending time with his cousins.  And it was really funny watching Carson try to fit into the rides :)

James didn't like this one

And to end this post, I also went to a beading party this month and it was so much fun.  I was in heaven putting my creative senses together.  I came up with these two beauties.  I kind of like them :)  I gave them as gifts for Christmas but I think I need to make some more for myself.  So fun!