Project House Update: Painting the Gym - Days 2-8

So, where did we leave off? I didn't like any of my paint colors, I had a ceiling fan that refused to be removed, and had two days to work before Dan returned home.

To be honest, without removing the ceiling fan, there wasn't much I could do so I called it a wash until Dan came home. Instead, since the first three colors didn't work, back to Home Depot I went for three new colors. I know they all look the same, but the subtle, little differences were driving me insane.

Six different colors on the wall and nothing stood out. One looked better in natural light on one wall, but not the other. Another one looked the best at night in the artificial light from the sconce.

And, because I am the worst at remembering to take pictures, there aren't any. (Ok, Dan rolled over the paint samples before I realized I hadn't taken pictures.) With all six shades, I still couldn't make a decision by myself, so I used the remaining time to patch the nail holes in the walls.

Once Dan returned home, he made quick work of the ceiling fan, although he did say it was much more difficult than he imagined. And we were finally able to pick a color. We ended up with 'Dreamcatcher', the lightest shade from the first batch of colors.

Without the ceiling fan in place anymore, I was finally able to give it the coat of clean white paint it needed. All by myself, too. I'm not good for much when it comes to house stuff, but I was going to do this one on my own.

There were two reasons I didn't jump in and paint the walls at the same time. One, Dan hated the window sills and ripped them out. There were like a fake granite countertop type of material. The window sills needed some clean up and we needed a strategy going forward before we tackled the surrounding wall. Why paint the walls if we were just going to need to tear them up to install new sills?

Secondly, the windows themselves. Dan had been pushing to replace the windows and I had been fighting him on it. The windows are originally to the house, meaning they are not at all energy efficient. And dated. I fought him on adding yet another cost to working on this room, but I was quickly converted. When I was painting the ceiling, I was brutally aware of how much heat was radiating through them. I may have only survived the process by talking myself through it, like my own little motivational speaker. Also, the ventilation in the room probably the worst of any room in the house and the windows aren't helping anything. Replacing them made a lot of sense.  However, we've never replaced windows. Is it something better to do before you paint or after? Would it bang up the walls in the installation process?

So, a week in and all I've really gotten done is painting the ceiling, my original task for Day 1. Geez. Hopefully, by Wednesday, I'll have the complete 'After' ready to go, as well as a more detailed breakdown of the little things that make the whole process turn into a two week affair. I'm honest. None of what these other bloggers do and say they painted a room in an afternoon.

Stay tuned...