We wanted to paint our bedroom last weekend. So we took a trip to Kwall house, bought some lovely lavender paint, brushes, etc. and got home. As I arranged things in the room I began sweeping the floor. Sweeping and focusing on all the stains, scratches, unfinished surfaces, and future splinters waiting to happen.
My mom had mentioned before it’s better to sand before you paint, so to the dismay of my husband, I switched up the agenda. We went to home depot, bough sandpaper, lacquer, stain, and rented a ginormous sander. Don’t get me wrong, just because we rented a big fancy sander, doesn’t mean the job was easy. Talk about sweat equity, Brad is a wonderful man. Soon, we had a beautiful smooth floor, so pretty.
Out came the Provincial stain (supposedly one of the lightest home depot has to offer). We tested a corner, it seemed a little dark…”oh well” we thought, it will lighten up and maybe we’re supposed to spread it thinner. Half a room later I stood back and looked at our floor, it was black, and orange. A Halloween floor. After all that work and basically forcing brad to go along with my crazy scheme I wanted to cry. All that work. That money. Black and orange. (This picture doesn't even do it justice, it was hideous.)
Chaos ensued at our household. What to do? We had already returned the sander, and we were burnt out. But the thought of leaving it uglier than it was before, after all that work, confused my soul. Back to home depot, a very nice man allowed me to take the sander again at no cost, and even hooked us up with some free floor finishings. (You might think the following picture is candid, what with the monkey-arm and all, but I actually set this up, then Brad called and I forgot about the timer. Home depot gave me an awesome attachment to a broom handle to make finishing the floor easier.)
In order to lighten the heavy load I had placed on Brad with this project, my mother enlisted as a volunteer to help with the cause. After the experience with “provincial” I became skeptical of stains, and decided to let the natural beauty of the pine speak for itself with a polyurethane finish. A few hours later I was a happy woman. I love our floor. And soon, I will love the whole bedroom. We just have to paint now, hang a few things, and decorate a bit. Thank you to Brad, mom, and Home Depot for making my floor dreams come true!
4 comments:
ah, the joys of wood floors! that's all we've ever known since we've been married. yours look beautiful!
if you didn't have a favorite already, we love using orange glo to help seal / shine the floors regularly. :)
ps. those floor boards are fantastic! old houses have such charm.
thanks for the advise, we don't have a favorite because we didn't take care of our floor before we redid it! i will definitely give orange glo a try. :)
I love reading about your fun life! You and Brad seem like you have so much fun. Even if it was painful..I love the floor. One day you'll have to teach me to be a wife
Kathy,
Is that you? Its just a mysterious "Kathryn" w/ no info... :) You make me laugh even when you don't mean to. I'll let you know when I figure out how to be a wife. We actually both know nothing about homes, so we're learning as we go. If you happen to know any of those crazy talented home decorator jack-of-all-trades ladies, send them my way. I'm realizing I need some help.
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