Tuesday, January 12, 2021

Notes from the Atelier - 1/12/2021

   at·el·ier

/ˌadlˈyā/

1: an artist's or designer's studio or workroom


With the close of the semester and finishing my Bookstudies Capstone Project
I assumed I'd take a break. 
Nope. 

After completing the semester, I jumped right into holiday presents and then began to tackle the projects I'd put off until after finals. 

When we bought the house, there was an enormous front-load washer sticking good six inches into the bathroom from a closet. What was actually there of the closet walls was painted bright blue.

We moved the dryer out of the living room (??) and into the space where the furnace had been (we switched to ductless mini-split heat pumps) and after the front-loader died, we moved the replacement washer next to the dryer. Seriously, what's with not having laundry appliances adjacent to each other? This isn't the first time we've moved them together... 

When the downstairs bedroom sliding/pocket door came off the track at the back inside the wall,  I had to tear the wall apart to get the door open.


Demolition: Easy AND fun!

...except for discovering things like how they skipped actually framing in the door... 

 Here's the obnoxiously bright blue closet without complete walls: 


Three coats of primer and one coat of paint, two of the blue shelves to complete the back wall, additional shelf supports, and four shelf boards later: 


As I was working on the closet, I kept thinking about how updating closets is kind of like buying new underwear for your house. Almost no one sees the closets, but we do. We don't need to live with janky closets or ratty underwear. Nice closets can be just for ourselves.


Pro tip: If you're cutting boards in an 18f degree  garage, wear your mask. Not just good for pandemics! Good for keeping out sawdust and keeping warm.


Framing in a new door that locks! It turns out I can install a new door on my own.


Adding drywall to close the gap


Mud, tape, and some primer. 

Bit by bit, around homeschooling, outside time every day (no matter the weather), mid-year reports, and life during a pandemic and deployment in general, I'll get it done.

In more exciting news, here's a sneak peak of a big project I'm working on and excited to share with you all soon! 


What are you working on? 

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4 comments:

  1. Hanging doors is a PAIN!! Impressive that you were able to do it yourself. Last time I did one I think I started to contemplate if life was better lived without doors.

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    1. Thanks! This one is my husband's and my bedroom door. I'll take the trouble. Bonus - this one (unlike the one I replaced) actually latches and locks. :)

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  2. Okay, that's pretty awesome, Myrrh! Looking forward to seeing it in person some year.

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    1. I'm looking forward to it too! Soon will come the days where we can open wide all the doors and windows and fresh air will sweep away the winter.

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