The Challenge

 

I have been asked to install vinyl wall covering in a few strange places over the years. One of the most unusual was one that I turned down after much thought. It was a very expensive yacht, under construction, and the owner wanted real snakeskin applied to a bulkhead above the master's bed in the master suite. I seldom turn down a challenge, but because of the price of the skin and because the surface was both convex and concave in its contours, I decided that the skin was not flexible enough to accommodate both directions of curvature.

 

Motorhomes are also a challenge and I have done a number of them over the years. A few weeks ago I got a call from an elderly gentleman who wanted me to come to his place in Chilliwack with some samples of motorhome wall coverings. I do not carry samples and thought it best that he peruse the local paint and wallpaper stores and chose something, then give me a call. Many phone calls later, he said that he had bought some marine grade vinyl and would I come and hang it. I  was not sure what it was that he had, and told him that perhaps he should get someone local and it would be less expensive for him. I had to charge gas and time because the job sounded quite small, according to his description.

He then offered to drive the motorhome to my house on Sat. morning and I could do it there. I consented as then I would only charge an hourly rate and I would have any tools and materials that I would need, at hand.  

 

 

As it turned out, what he had purchased at great cost, was a strip of upholstery naugehyde. I thought it might hang like any other vinyl wall covering and proceeded to make my first cut. I have razor knives that cut through anything, and eventually my blade did cut it, but I had to exert so much force on the knife against my straight edge, that when the blade jumped over the edge, it came straight at my finger and sliced the tip all but off.

 

I have cut myself many times with these blades and like always the cut was so clean that there was not much pain, and blood only came later. I bound it tightly and continued with the job. The length of his purchase was inadequate so I had to make a few splices, but when all was said and done, it looked very good and he was happy with it.

Since then, I have been discovering the 1000 uses of the tip of my index finger, since deemed irrelevant. It is only Monday and it is healing nicely without stitches and very little discomfort. I now know that I do not like to hang upholstery on walls.