Wow! Those lampshades are amazing! I wish you had taken pictures all the way through so I could do one someday. Did you keep the basic frame from the old lampshade? I really like the color & fringe. Great job on the drawer refinish too.

I also like the lamps, good classic style.

You are very talented. How did you make the pegboard?

Good luck with your bedding search and flooring. You'll feel like you are in a new house. I'm trying to talk dh into new carpet too.

thanks shasta and marti!

shasta I love burgundy and deep reds so I have a feeling I'd love your living room girly

marti I kept the original frame which had that pleated thing attached and that's what I used to make the new shade. I think the shade frame would just have to be a straight sided style, the cardboard wouldnt work with a curvy style lampshade in my very limited knowledge :) but if you ever want me to do up a post about how I made them just let me know and I'll try to put something together.

To make the pegboard I got a bit of pine and cut it to the length I wanted. Then I used a coffee tin lid and marked out the rounded corners, and then cut them off. I was lucky enough to be able to use someone else's router (we dont have one) and I routed all around the edge to give that raised panel effect.

Then it's just putting in the pegs which you can buy really cheap and I got mine from a woodworking supply store but you might be able to get them at a hardware or bigbox. I didnt think to check there first.

To get the pegs to point upwards you need to secure the bit of wood somehow tilted on an angle to drill the holes. After I measured and marked where the pegs would go, I drilled pilot holes first, and then used a countersinking drill bit the same size as the pegs and redrilled over the pilot holes. Then you just glue the pegs in with woodworking glue, sand it all smooth and put a finish on.

gosh I hope this isnt too much information and I hope Im not boring the pants off everyone. :) you could do it without the router and just use a big drill bit to drill out the holes for the pegs instead of a countersink bit so it really just comes down to what tools you have (or what you can borrow ;) )

Thanks trancegenie. I don't do a lot of woodworking when dh isn't around. He's the pro. But I'd like to try making a pegboard. Do you just buy a countersinking bit at Home Depot?

btw, not boring at all!

hi marti, Im in oz so Im not sure about home depot (we dont have them here) but you should find them anywhere they sell tools and drill bits etc. They're a common bit that you usually use for sinking screws down into wood and I just used a really large one close to the size of the pegs.

That would be great if you make one and I'd love to see how it turns out. Im no woodwork pro either I really just dabble a bit.

very nice

I second the 'not boring' post. :O) I'd love to see more of what you've done!

~Missy

Your lamp shades look wonderful. Your coat rack is great too, and I love how those drawer fronts turned out. You did a great job.

FlowerLady

I would really like to see a backed up picture of the drawers. Are they in a closet or chest with doors on it or??

Would also love to see more of your room if you do not mind up peeking into your bedroom.

Chris

thanks flowerlady and ronbre :)

prairie I havent got much further this week so no updates to show. Our weather is getting really hot now and it's sapping the life out of me. Mojo and hot weather dont mix I think :( I cant even finish the last drawer because it's just way too hot to work with the finish. It's really frustrating

shades the drawers sit inside the wardrobe behind a door so DH couldnt understand why I was even doing them because no one sees them but us, but they looked so bad that it just kept bugging me. I plan on showing more of the room as I go. There's still a whole lot of ugly going on in that room and I dont want to traumatise anyone ;) so I wanted to show the projects as I get them done and then show more of the room as I put it back together. I need to figure out how you take photos of such a small room too because I cant get far back enough to get it all in so if anyone has any tips or tricks let me know!

Here is a backed up pic of the wardrobe, it has 5 large doors but this is all I could get in to the photo from standing in the doorway and show the full height of it.

Oh That is really a lovely wall of storage. I can understand the drawers bugging you even behind the door. You know it is there and faces with it each time you get something out of the drawer.

do not beat yourself over not finishing the one drawer. If it is too hot to paint then it is and do something else until the weather is a better fit for your project. We had to wait one year for summer to get over to paint on our porch. There is nothing worse than paint drying too fast and varnish would be even worse than paint.

Love the bedroom installments Will certainly keep us coming back to see what you have done next.

Chris

trancegemini_wa, what part of the country? world? are you located in? I thought from your screen name that you were in the USA in Washington state. But if its really hot, then I guess not.
WOW! That is a nice wall of closets and shelves!
BTW, we don't scare easily, lol
Loretta

shades your right about that. I'll just have to leave it until the weather is better. I was hoping to get this done before it got too hot but it looks like it's beaten me.

idie Im in west australia (wa for short lol). We're coming up into our really hot season now and we're already getting temperatures over 100F (yuk) and summer hasnt officially started.

The wardrobe would have been installed back in the 60s or 70s I think, and whoever built this house did a good job of squeezing some fairly good storage in for such a small house. But this place hasnt had a lot of love over the years. We've slowly been trying to fix it up but everything (and I mean everything) is just very tired and worn and a bit battered around the edges lol.

In another week or so I should be able to get stuck in properly and you'll get to see my old carpet in all it's ugliness before I rip it out - hooray! and the whole room with hopefully some more before and after changes.

hi everyone, I had some time off over the last week so I've been working away on my bedroom again with some more progress I thought I would share

Here is a pic once all the furniture was moved out. It's defintely easier taking pics without furniture getting in the way lol

I've taken the quarter round moulding off and DH helped me pull up the carpet and underlay, then we spent the rest of the day pulling out hundreds and hundreds of carpet and underlay staples so we can get some carpet tack strips put in.

Originally when we painted in here I was going to take the moulding off and paint it when new carpet went in but it doesn't sit well on the carpet so I plan on leaving it off now but that meant I had to sand the skirtings/baseboards back and redo them

more to come ....

This tv corner here is a mess and I'm trying to get this sorted too. There is a treadle sewing machine that's being used as a tv stand and that has to go.

There is also a full length mirror which we've just stacked everything in front of but since we put the new tv up on the wall the mirror is reflecting all the workings at the back there

I've taken the old mirror down and patched it all up

a few coats of paint and it's all a distant memory. no more ugly tv bits in the mirror :)

I was planning on making a shelf for that corner but crawling around the floor over these last days has messed up my back so that's on hold for now but at least I can organise the carpet now, woohoo!

one final photo all cleaned up (sorry it's a bit dark)

OH WOW What a difference. Looks great. And do not feel bad about the mirror trick. I did the exact thing once too. Then stepped back and went. "What was I thinking?" Heheheheh

Your room looks brand new and it is so nice you are taking your time to bring it back to life again.

I am up very early. The snow plows are trying to clear off some of the snow we have had all night. There is a great big bunch of it out there. I shoveled over 6 inches to clear a spot for the dogs in their yard after 10PM last night and several inches have fallen since then. So sending you some nice cool snow. Hehehe I'll trade you a snowball for some sunshine.

Happy New Year and the pictures are great. Hoping your back feels better soon.

Chris

You did a super job. Is that a hardwood floor? I love that large window, bet it gives plenty of light. I see you have a cornice over your window. I have been trying to decide if I want to build one for my living room. It's nice.
I can sympathize with you on the back pain. I don't know how old you are, but the older you get, sliding around on the floor doing trim and baseboards is not only a pain in the back, it is a pain in the knees and a pain in the butt too, lol Hope you fell better soon.

shades I cant even imagine what it is like to plow snow. I'll take that snowball thanks :) and you can have this sunshine. We had two days in a row it was over 39C (103F) and I couldnt turn on the a/c or ceiling fan because I was sanding and there was so much dust in there. I was kicking myself for doing this in December! but I had to keep going with it but it was so darn hot in there hehe.

marti yes! that is my beautiful old Jarrah floor. The house has the old suspended hardwood floors throughout (except the bathroom, laundry and mudroom). It's almost a crime to cover these in carpet but DH is always complaining about how long my "projects" take to finish lol, so after I saw them I was thinking, hmmm, maybe I should forget the carpet but I dont think he would put up with moving out of the bedroom so I could get them sanded and polished :(
I love my old wood pelmets/valances too. You know what else? they do a great job of keeping the dust off the curtains so they are really practical especially if you have dust collector drapes. I'm amazed how little dust I get on the velvet drapes in the bedroom and there is never that dusty build up at the top of the drapes. I think you should go for it. The previous owners have painted over some of mine which is a shame but maybe one day I'll get to stripping them back. :0

oh damn it I got names mixed up again! sorry idietolive, that last part I was talking to you not marti :/

LOL, I get mixed up too on names. Your room is great. What I wouldn't give to have that wall of cabinets and a real wood floor in the bedroom! My dh wants carpet in the bedroom and not just because it takes so long for me to do anything (although it does).

Weather...I was in Australia/Sydney during Jan. It is so beautiful there and reminded me of SanDiego....Years ago when water was clear and natural fuana, folage and sea animals still abounded. Certainly didn't have the heat then, it was very comfortably warm. I loved the old buildings and city too. My favorite was seeing all the flowers in full bloom. A far stretch from CO and the snow Shades and I are putting up with.

The trip was a 2 week business adventure. But fellow Aust. employees took me everywhere or steered me to the right places to visit, they were great. I visited some places I dare not share. Art and craftsmen was more than wonderful. Invited to homes too, my memory of homemade Kiwi pie will stick.

hi imagineer, I can only imagine some of the places you visited in Sydney LOL it sounds like it was a great trip. They have a much more temperate climate over there in the east with sydney being subtropical/warm temperate and even people from Sydney comment about our oppressive summer heat when they come over here LOL. Over here in the west it's largely mediterranean/semi arid so the summers are very long and hot. South Australia is similar but their summers tend to be a bit shorter than here.

I would love to do what flargoyle is doing and move to a cooler place with snow and four proper seasons but we just dont have that kind of choice over here :( My BIL spent a year in Canada a few years ago and he said it was fantastic, he was hiking and snowboarding and doing all these great things over there he didnt want to leave and come home.

now about this kiwi pie imagineer, I've never heard of it LOL but *ahem*, kiwis are the new zealanders so there must have been a kiwi in your group :)

marti can you post the link to your blog again? I thought I had it bookmarked but I cant find it and I want to see what you've been up to because I remember you were working on your bedroom too

Sure. I haven't updated in awhile though. Need to do that or put it on my resolution list.

My blog

Trance,
Thanks for sharing the area you live in. Australia is like the states....big and would take forever to visit all the areas. So now I understand why it is so hot where you are, similar to our Arizona and Nevada?

I hadn't thought about a Kiwi being in my group. Have been to NZ twice and never thought about a Kiwi pie to order. I love both the Kiwis and the Austrailians. Treated more than well by both. Although everyone met thought I was from Canada. Sadly, Americans have not traveled there with proper manners.

Trance, you've sure done a lot of work, way to go! It's hard to work hard when it's so hot, so good for you. (We're still very cold here, so our window is not installed as of yet - we're not quite ready to cut a bit hole in the wall, till it warms up a bit hah)

You have some wonderful storage there, and I love all the wood in your room. The floors are beautiful. I googled Jarrah wood, and it seems to be a very good wood. Could you perhaps put in a smaller area rug and just leave the edges showing? That might satisfy both you and your hubby. It would mean less work again down the road if you ever decide to finish it.

What are your plans for the corner under the TV?

~Missy

I also had to google Jarrah wood. It really is a beautiful wood. My floors need to be redone also. I cleaned them really good, put a light coat of stain down and a coat of poly. They look much better, and since I have an area rug on top, all you can see is the perimeter (which usually looks better anyway). This only took a couple of days to make sure it was dry. Maybe if you are nice to your DH, he will let you refinish them, mmmmmmmmmm!

emagineer yep it's a huge country. Im not really sure what part of the US would be the same as where I am here to be honest but I have been told a few times by ex south africans that the climate is just like south africa which sort of makes sense because aparently at one time they were joined together. There are a lot of kiwis living in oz but you probably wouldnt pick up on a kiwi accent so you wouldnt have noticed a kiwi I dont think, to most people it sounds the same as an aussie accent and I think we're the only ones who can pick up on it. :)

aww thanks prairie. DH would be fine with that but I think it would just bug me until I got them sanded and finished because they look good now in their raw state but they really need it and they would look stunning with a sanding and some finish. With the tv corner I want to put a shelf in for the tv accessories and then I want to put the laundry hamper underneath behind a curtain. at the moment it's wedged between the wardrobe and the dresser and it would be so good to hide it in there.

idieto it is a beautiful wood, Jarrah starts out quite a deep red but it turns dark brown with age but mine have a lot of red left in them even on the surface and I'd be dying to see what colour they'd come up after sanding. The main problem is we dont have anywhere to set up the bed so whenever I work in there it means we have to camp out on the couches in the LR and DH hates it.

you ladies are such enablers, hehe, I think I'll wait for a bit and see, maybe he will fall so in love with the floors he'll change his mind about it and see the bigger picture :/

That's the only kind of enabler to be. I wish someone would enable me to go declutter my house.

Hi trance, just wondering how you're doing down there. Any progress in your room?
Hope you haven't melted in the heat you were having. Is it still just as hot?

~Missy

hi missy, the bedroom is on hold right now. I've been trying to decide on keeping the boards exposed vs the carpet so I've just been living with it to see what comes to me.

I think the final deciding factor is going to be my dogs. they're not coping with the boards very well, the old one is a bit unsteady anyway, and the young one has tried tearing in there and fallen on her backside a couple of times, hehe, she's not happy since we took the carpet out because she likes to race in there and crawl around under the bed and she seems pretty put out by it all so the sucker that I am for my dogs, I'm leaning towards carpet again.

It's still hot here and will be for quite a while and the a/c is still broken because the repairer is waiting on parts to come from the east. It's just one of things with our climate, lots of stuff just overheats and burns out in 40+c temps so we just have to wait until we hear some news that the parts are in and they'll come back to fix it. we're going to be happy campers when it's working again though :)

Trance, did you finish the bedroom or is it still on hold?

Well, I'm glad the thread got called to the head of the class, so I could discover it! Nice discussion here.

Trance, now I know you do not live in WASHINGTON STATE, and why you have just now started with cooler weather, am I right?

I planted 3 kiwi vines, have 2 more female vines on order. My parrots love them, and so do I. Will have to look for a pie recipe though.

Floors. Trance, when you said the DOGS would be the determining factor, you are so right. We have two small doggies, and there will never never be carpet in our house! The maltese does not like to get his feet wet, I think he has a grass allergy, so he will pee on his papa's chair leg. And the little girl dauchshund will go for the bath mat, if it is down, but otherwise right in front of the back door. So I always leave a mat down for her, just in case. Putting unglazed porcelain tile on the sun porch was a blessing, love the coolness in the summer, and ease of cleaning. It is also in the new tiny bath, and will go into the new masterbath when we refloor it.

The rest of our house has 1.5" oak hardwood. In all but the back bedroom, the floors were sort of surface stained a dark red mahogany. They made a bad job of it though, because they slopped the sealer all over the baseboards and there was dirt and HAIR in the sealed finish. DH was all for tiling over the whole house, but I nixxed that. Instead, when we get the bath and walkin closet job done, I will be moving out the necessary furniture to let a professional sand and refinish this definitely old style of floor. I've never seen boards this narrow. Once they are sanded, I want a really hard hard water resistant finish applied. I'm open for any ideas as to what might be the best.

And about ENABLING. I have a friend who calls me her MUSE.
She says I am always coming up with things FOR HER TO DO, and encouraging her to keep on going. We are still good friends after 25 years! You might say that I am also my DH's MUSE too, poor man! Heck, it is what I do best. :)

Loretta I havent done a thing in the bedroom in ages LOL. about a month ago I started chipping away at some prep work in the hallway but it is in such a bad state that Im still going with it. once I get it ready for painting Im going to focus back on the bedroom because I know if I stop with the hallway now I just wont want to get back to it. most of the hard work is done and I've just a got a bit more patching to do now and some sanding, fix up some loose baseboards and then caulk everything and then I can take a break from it - woot! :)

moccassin we have had some nice cool days here over the last week and we've even had a bit of rain! I have no idea what's happening to the weather patterns but I love it, everything has already started greening up again and coming back to life since we had that storm a few weeks ago.

Im pretty sure Im going to go with carpet in the m/bedroom but all of the other carpets are going to go and I'll get the boards sanded and polished in the other rooms. we do have a carpet cleaning machine but I agree with you about dogs and carpets and the boards will be a much easier option and any accidents can just be cleaned up without having to lug the machine into the house. For now the carpets are protecting the boards but that's the only good thing about them :)

gosh what a shame your boards were refinished so badly :( If you figure out the best finish for your floors, let me know! I think it's great that you and your husband work together on your houses, mine has no interest at all although if I dont push him too hard he will do a few bits and pieces but mostly I have to figure out how to do things for myself hehe, but I dont mind that much because I get a lot of satisfaction out of it.

Well at least you will be going into Fall weather (don't have to deal with that intense heat you had).
--"but I dont mind that much because I get a lot of satisfaction out of it. --"

I also understand that. When I was working everyday on the kitchen, friends would ask if my son was helping me. I explained that the only way I could get it done the way I wanted was to do it myself. (He is a very messy painter - drives me nuts)! He was perfectly willing to help - but I politely and sweetly refused any help!

Idie, that is the way I feel about MY projects too. I know how I want it to look, and it is definitely NOT like a bomb shelter! That is the way my DH tends to build everything. In our small houses, every inch of space COUNTS, and sometimes you cannot do a project simply because there is just a few inches too little room. But DH will insist on using the heaviest wood, putting a new subfloor atop the OLD floor instead of removing it, and then adding another wood layer above that. Do you know what it means to lose almost 2 inches of ceiling height when his ceilings are already down to 7 feet? Of course, the Alabama cottage has 8'2" ceilings so we are good to go here. Then there is the matter of the doorways, and trying to make sure there is enough wall space between two doors to place a bed with tables on either side. Well, I could not get him to move the walkin closet door over even TWO INCHES, to give enough room for two bedside tables with a fullsize bed in between, much less the queen I wanted, so I ended up using two plant stands--like the things you set fern pots on. It works, they are tall enough, and I mounted the swingarm lamps on the wall over each plant stand. Now he does have room for his clock and his glass of water, with a book and his glasses on the shelf below. But only room for a full size bed.

Now here we go in Alabama, with the same bed location problem--or situation--coming up. I am determined to get my queen size bed since he lies crosswize of the bed. I want to relocate the door of the bedroom when we extend the back porch all across the back of the house, making the future master suite a larger bedroom area. For now, I will leave the door alone and not fight that battle until the time comes, because it will eventually be apparent that the door relocation is the logical thing to do. In doing it, we'd be able to locate the bed on either of three walls, with room for bedside tables and even a comfy chair and an easy trip in the dark to the bathroom. And, where the old door is closed off, that end of the hallway, beside the tiny bath, will become a very roomy utility closet for the vacuum and cleaning supplies. And linens. Essentially, the front bedroom would become a whole suite by itself, able to close off the arched doorway from the hall by using round-topped shutter doors, and making that little bath good for company, but also the domain of anyone residing in the front bedroom.

When this house is sold, one day way down the road I hope, it would be a nice feature for roommates to have a private setup and equal access to the common areas. One roomie could have the sun porch, the other the outside back deck.
This little cottage is so adaptable, and I just love it.
It is already feeling personalized, but not in a way-out fashion. Just comfy and cozy, and pretty private too.

So Trance, do not fret yeself about getting the bedroom done. You are following a long tradition of taking your time and enjoying the process of getting to your end point.

I know what you mean Loretta, messy painting is one of my pet peeves - it almost makes me twitch. I think if youre going to go to the trouble of painting you may as well take your time and do it the best you can.

"You are following a long tradition of taking your time and enjoying the process of getting to your end point."

It's really the indecision that slows me down, I get so far with something and then I get stuck on what to do next so I just have to go do something else and let it rattle around in my head for a while or else I just get frustrated

well it's only taken me 6 months hehe but I finally made a decision on the bedroom floor. The chilly nights we've been having and I realised it's a bit cold down there at floor level for the dogs, they have their beds and blankets but I think it gets a bit draughty through the floorboards and they keep trying to sleep in the bed. I've been giving in to them because I know they just want to get cosy and warm but I dont want them getting used to it because I just like the bed being a dog free zone.

so I went looking for carpet, I'd decided on a stainmaster nylon because of the dogs, all I need to do is pick a colour, simple right? of course once I get to the carpet store confusion starts to set in and then the saleswoman says if you want a soft nylon what about *this*. oh my, she showed me the softest nylon you can imagine (turns out to be the highest end solution dyed nylon available), it's pricey but I cant stop touching it!

The only problem is the colour range is a bit limited, all neutrals in white, off white or a few browns. I took some samples and narrowed it down to two. On the one hand I like the lighter one because I think it could really brighten up the room, but the brown one is warming on me too, and it wouldnt show up every bit of lint or dirt.....

what do you all think? or do they both look horrible? It's a twist pile so wont show up the foot prints too much and so so soft but how will it look? unfortunately it's really overcast so the light in the room isnt great.

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where there are three samples, it's the one on the left and the one on the right I'm considering

I like the darker one too. It looks like it won't show dirt or vacuum track marks like the others. Unless you like those vacuum track marks. ;)

Trance, did the salesperson mention whether dog toenails would create "pulls" or snags in the soft carpet? Just had to ask. Footprints are one thing, snags are another, which of course can be trimmed off before the vacuum rollers snare it.

And I'm always partial to bringing LIGHT into a space, and I thing in the bottom photo the sample on the LEFT is the one I like. It brings out the burgundy dust ruffle better than the one on the right, which is browner.

I'd say the LEFT sample is more a solid tone. The RIGHT sample is more like under a tree, where you get dappled shade. There is more movement in the RIGHT sample, and obviously less prone to showing debris.

But this is for your bedroom, right? By the time any person or critter gets that far into the house, most of the dirty stuff will be walked off...hopefully.

I like the carpet. You'll enjoy having it on your floors and getting your bed privacy back! After you get this project completed, does it mean you'll be working on the fireplace again? I'll head on over to that thread and check. Not trying to pressure you, mind you! :)

Trance, discount everything I say because I've never had any W2W carpet, lol But I like the darker one too. Seems like it would disguise stains better.
Now, for advice you did NOT ask for - can you get it bound like a large area rug? That way you could show some of those beautiful floors! Do you have the same wood in the living room? They really are beautiful.

i think your lamp is beautiful! the shade fits the lamp base now. that plaid pleated just didn't! you did a great job on it.
putting your hook board behind the door was genius! otherwise wasted space.

i like the darker carpet best it doesn't contrast as much with bedding. if you change bedding and go lighter the carpet will still work. Sometimes i think too much contrast is jarring to the eyes. It will work with bedding a bit darker or a bit lighter.

take your time on things, otherwise you'll be so stressed. that isn't fun!

I am no help at all because I really like both of them. We will be removing the carpet from our living room and replacing it with vinyl. Then an area rug. The carpet we have now is a constant pick job. The dogs are shredding it with their nails.

Lovely bedding.

Chris

marti that's what I was thinking too. The twist pile looks like it would hide a lot of things like that

Idie I could get it bound as a large rug but the floor would really need to be sanded back and finished. There's a few spots where it looks like there's been damage from water or something spilled on them. I will be getting the hallway and living room floor sanded and polished though *sometime* in the future lol. I'm really looking forward to that.

Thanks desertsteph! I was pretty happy to see the plaid go too and that hookboard is so handy for all those things that used to end up on the chair or tossed on the dresser. I get so impatient sometimes to get things finished but I have a hard time making decisions and then I get frustrated and it stops being fun. If I had more of a clue to what Im doing I would enjoy it more but this decorating things is so hard lol

shades do you know what type of carpet pile it is? what a shame that the dogs have shredded it :/ I really hope mine dont ruin mine but I am a bit scared for the new carpet :)

ML the saleswoman started out by showing me the different carpet styles and said if I had pets to stay away from this and this type because they could unravel big long threads if they scratch at it so that left the plush or the twist style. The plush has a more solid look but I just know there will always be footprints from the door to the bed and the door to the wardrobe where we're always tracking back and forth. It's a bit of a trade off I guess because I do like that more solid look but the twist piles all seem to have that hazy colour movement.

"After you get this project completed, does it mean you'll be working on the fireplace again? I'll head on over to that thread and check. Not trying to pressure you, mind you! :)"

ok I "fess up" lol, I did get distracted again and started doing some other fix ups around the house over the last few weeks but it made me see that Im trying to do too many things at once so no more new projects until I finish the ones I started (and this time I mean it :) ). Im hoping to sort out the carpet and the little shelf in the bedroom then Im back to the fireplace hehe

trancegemini, I'm with Loretta--I love those wooden floors! I know you have good reasons for using the carpet, but I'd take wood any day, no matter what the condition! OK, I wouldn't want holes in the floors... :(

Mama Goose, we are doing our best to wear off the ugly stain on our wood floors so we can soon have them refinished. It is hard to be patient, but necessary. If we redid them prematurely, they'd be ruined all over again when we redo the kitchen. It is one thing after another.

My DH seems to plod along, when I want to FLY. I believe in multiple projects at once, or in coordinated stages of completion. Before we finish the bath and closet, for instance, we should (IMHO) knock out the walls of the kitchen so that dirty job won't muck up the end projects elsewhere.

I know how you feel, Trance, you get one project going and then you are distracted by another. Or, you reach a decision point, and need a breather. Somehow it does work out.

Trance,
We bought the upgraded carpet with this house but I still do not thing they use a real good quality. I have not had this problem before. Maybe a few twists pulled in time but this carpet is really breaking down way too fast. It is only two years old. I do not know what brand it is/ I have heard Berber is one that will pull and make a run if you get a loose thread. Always to clip them off and not pull. But we had it in three houses and loved it. But we did get the commercial quality.

Chris

"I know how you feel, Trance, you get one project going and then you are distracted by another. Or, you reach a decision point, and need a breather. Somehow it does work out."

ML I tell myself the distractions are things that need to be done sooner or later anyway but Im just feeling like nothing is getting finished and Im starting to see myself as one of those people who leaves a trail of half finished projects in my wake lol.

Thanks to everyone for your input on the carpet, I really appreciate it and I finally decided on the brown one because I think it will hide things a bit better. I had the room measured yesterday, now Im just waiting for the saleswoman to ring me so I can take it from there and get it happening. All of the carpets come from over east so it's going to be a few weeks away, and I just might get that shelf done in there before then lol.

Yeah, Trance, go for the shelf before you have to worry about soiling new carpet! Sounds like a good plan coming together.

I'm also thinking about replacement carpet for the house up north, the one we'll sell next spring. We could do other type of flooring, but I don't want anything that my DH feels he has to install himself. So after we get the bathrooms done, I want him to call the carpet guys to finish the rest of it.
And I will choose the carpet. When I go up there in mid July, I plan to finish the family room slip covers and the curtain panels. So that room will be done and ready for the carpet any time after that.

ooh I hope we get to see some pics ML? I would love to make some slipcovers here, maybe one day I'll find the time to get some fabric and make it happen. :/

Slip covers take a lot of fitting unless your piece is very plain. I've even make repairs to some fabrics with a hot melt glue gun. There is a fabric grade of the hot melt glue, and it is even washable.

I also made curtains out of oatmeal colored (natural?) canvas?? cloth, what do they call it..........drats.
Anyway, I did the hemming and the rod pockets for these curtains with hot melt glue since I was at work and had no sewing machine there. The curtains were used on the work boat that I captained for 12 years, and they stood up very well.