Birch Forest Laundry

 

Going back to the French Country house the next day, we tackled the laundry room. We set up in the bedroom next to it and were glad to have plenty of room to work. We had to paste the back of the 27" wide paper. We admired this light fixture and were happy that we did not have to assemble it.

 

The birch forest pattern and colours in the tree trunks looked spectacular in this work area. The material was great to work with and other than some challenges around a floating shelf, everything went very well.

 

Working in a home like this usually does not bother me at all, except we were told by some of the other trades that the slightest flaw would be seen by the builder and we would have to correct it. It was verified when he asked us to go back to the dining room and correct a mistake. It took us several minutes to find it because he had seen it in the evening with only the chandelier lighting available. It did not show up in the daylight, but I corrected it nevertheless. It was a trimmed piece of paper the width of a hair that was stuck to the baseboard and was catching the light.

 

This one was fun to do and it was very rewarding to hear the reaction of the owner when she came by just as we were finishing. She was over the top with delight.

 

Now we will wait and see if we get paid for all of this work. It was a month ago that we did this and I have not seen a dime.

Nervous

 

Several months ago I contracted to do some wallpaper in this very exclusive house in a gated community on Eagle Mountain. The home is very elegant in the French Country theme and the paper was one of the most expensive I have ever worked with.

 

However, there was a problem. Andrew opened the first roll and unravelled it to see the pattern match and immediately he was bleeding from a cut. No, it was not a paper cut, which can happen. It was a cut from the glass imbedded in the paper. The textured pattern was a sand and glass combination and it was deadly, not only on the skin, but on the cutting knives.

 

The material was almost impossible to trim because the second the razor sharp edge of the knife hit the sand, it would be dull. I had to chop at it, perforating the paper and then tear on the dotted line. Every single piece was a very frustrating challenge.

 

At lunch time we gave ourselves a self-guided tour of the house and found this half-court, state of the art basketball court tucked away in one corner of this massive house. The photo is taken from the mezzanine floor looking down into the court.

 

What should have been a 5 hour job took us all day. The end result was spectacular and the very picky builder, and his client, were very pleased with the outcome.

 

I have decided that I will never hang this type of paper again. My hands were raw, my tools were worn out, and my patience was at an end. Andrew had almost all ten fingers bandaged by the end of the day.

Yuck!

 

My grandson, Chad, turned 14 last week. It was an exciting and eventful week for him, apart from his birthday. He has another school drama under his belt, he performed admirably in an interschool track meet, he turned in an excellent report card, and, we all got to help him eat birthday cake on Sunday.

He loves his mom very much, but he likes to be cool and pretend that this display of affection is not to his liking. Actually it really is.

Make it Like New

 

When I see a house like this, I have to have a lot of confidence in what we do. The walls in the bathrooms once had wallpaper and the stripping of it caused a huge amount of damage, right up into the ceiling line. The original paint job was very poor and inadequate. There were actually a few doors that were only painted on one side. The original drywall was poorly done and there was damage everywhere. None of the trim and woodwork was caulked. It is what we refer to as a 'dog's breakfast'.

 

The 'prep' time on a job like this huge. These photos were taken when the prep was already done and the painting was well underway. Slowly, the transformation took place.

 

This door was not supposed to be painted, but my nephew in his enthusiasm, was almost done when he realised it. The owner was good with it and so we gave it it's second coat and it is now the nicest thing in a room that we were not supposed to work in, even though the colour does not match.

 

This is how we lose tools, using them in obscure spots and then leaving them out of sight. This is a dusting brush to remove dust and lint from hard to reach places. These customers were great to work for and even though the job turned out to be more than we expected, we came within the budget by $10.00. Wow!

Stripping Paper Not so Easy

 

The wonderful folks who live in this townhouse are customers that date back to my earliest years as a paper hanger/painter. I did extensive work for them in the lovely large house they lived in during their early years and then again many times after they downsized to this townhouse. They were going to the Island for a week and gave us a key to the door. "Strip the paper and repaint the living/dining and then repaint the upstairs bathroom" were their instructions.

 

The paper and underlying adhesive were very difficult to remove, but in the end, the job turned out well and my customers were delighted. We recruited my nephew Matt from Sorrento for a week and managed to keep him pretty busy with this and other projects.

Home Grown

 

Here are a few photos of our home grown tulips on this bright spring morning.

 

What makes these photos unique is that they were all taken from indoors!

 

1. I have been limited in my movements due to a bad back.

2. It was very cool and breezy outside and I did not care to bundle up.

3. The flower bed was muddy right here and I did not want to track any mud back into the house.

4. I wanted some close-ups from low down.

 

So I opened the windows in our basement and took the screens off from the inside and there were the tulips staring me in the face with some great lighting as a bonus.  

 

And that is how you get outdoor photography from indoors.

Grass Cloth

 

We have been doing a lot of work in Chilliwack lately. We are the only paperhangers working out of the Chilliwack Paint and Decorating store.

 

 

 

This homeowner was going to attempt to hang this grass cloth on her own but was strongly advised against it. Grass cloth has a weak paper backing and when it is soaked, it tears easily. Also, it expands greatly when wet so the edges are not so easy to keep clean and adhesive does not wipe off the surface at all because it is real grass.

 

Many years ago, I devised a simple and effective method for hanging grass cloth and for me it is actually fun. I make sure the customer realised that grass cloth gives a panelled look as there is much discrepancy on the seams. It cannot be helped, although after seeing these photos, I realise we could have reversed every second panel. This shading effect was not evident as we were hanging it but on these photos is quite obvious.

 

We did this for a young couple with a family on the way and she told me that that their winter beach vacations were on hold for a long time and having a beach theme in their master bedroom would have to suffice until they could return to sunnier climates.

 

Besides the ocean blue walls surrounding the wallpaper, she had other beach accessories in the room. I hope this works for them.

Rosedale Feature Wall

 

When given an address for a small job, I do not go and look prior to installation, but look it up on Google Maps and 'street view' and find my way there. I also ask a lot of questions so I do not have any surprises when I get to the job. This one, in Rosedale, close to the bridge, was a long drive but was worth the time and effort. It was an elegantly restored farmhouse, very spacious and in a beautiful setting on a dairy farm. The 'paper' was commercial grade fabric backed solid vinyl, overkill for an application such as this when you only want a decorated wall, and not something you can drive a tank into.

 

 

 

The lady of the house was gracious and friendly and even served us a cup of coffee with some awesome strawberry cheesecake. The finished result was exactly what she had been after and we left another very happy customer in our wake.

Townhouse Package

 

This is the kitchen/dining area of the townhouse project we have been hanging paper for, in Cloverdale. Each unit has the option of a wallpaper feature in the master bedroom and main floor washroom. Apart from the two show suites we have done, this is the 5th unit that has chosen this option.

 

All fixtures have been previously installed so we have to work  around everything. The mirror is fastened to the wall with adhesive and the vanity is heavily silicone to the wall. Not fun. The seams do not come in good places no matter where we start and finish so these are frustrating units to do, and do well. It is always a cost/plus job so I do not mind the time spent, but it is not easy to do the best work possible.

 

Going around toilets is not a problem when they are clean and new.

 

This company pays on time and is happy with our work so we will continue to go back as long they need us.

 

Feature Walls

 

I purchased the paint by colour number only and did not see the actual colour until I opened the can. Wow! This was one of the brightest blues I have ever worked with and the above photo shows it in natural light. The lower two had some incandescent lighting and it softened the colour quite a bit

 

There was a feature wall in the living room and the whole kitchen done in this colour. The place was being renovated and now that the cabinets are in and some other features are installed, this actually looks really good. This job has been ongoing for at least three months now, and tomorrow, I am going to complete it.

 

Blocking, whether with a wild paint colour or some exotic wallpaper, is a very popular thing to do these days. I really enjoy using colour and drama in my work.

Call Back

 

I have found over the years, that if you do something right, you do not have to do it over. We did this job 'by the book' and it backfired on us.

The house is more than 100 years old, built by a pioneering family in the Bradner area of the Fraser Valley. We have re-decorated this home a number of times, for the Grandmother, and when the granddaughter took over the house, we re-wallpapered in a bit of a country theme. The grand old house is on a farm so that is OK.

The walls had multiple layers of wallpaper from way back, so instead of stripping the multiple layers, we decided to apply a super-adherent primer which is recommended for such things. We let the paint cure and then proceeded to hang the latest paper.

Over the next year or two, with fluctuations in temp. and humidity, the paper began to loft off at the seams. We were called back and I was surprised. We get maybe one callback every 10 years.

We discovered that the paper was not hanging on anywhere, but would flick off with the greatest of ease. The worst paper was the bottom below the border chair rail. Andrew peeled it back and taped it to the wall. He then applied a different primer, re-glued the paper, and we have not heard back, but I think it worked.  

It is disheartening, to say the least, when you see your hard work falling to the floor of its own accord. I still think there was a problem with the manufacturer's adhesive on the pre-pasted wallpaper.

'Best Before Date'

 

As I took my truck in to get it serviced the other day, I was grateful that it was still in such great shape, and everything was working so wonderfully. However, it still needed maintenance, and its regular check-up.

 

How much like a vehicle we are. Most of us are born with a reasonably healthy body and the latest technology to help that body function. (liver, kidneys, stomach, glands and other organs) OK, here is where the analogy breaks down. Vehicles have ever improving technology built on board, whereas, our bodies have amazing technology that has been around forever and it never changes. Back to the metaphor.

 

My truck needs regular fuel-up and oil changes and we could call that proper nutrition. As the vehicle ages, new brakes, a muffler, some gaskets or filters, together with belts and hoses will need replacing. Fluids are vital to proper functioning, as are our bodies. But, as more time goes by, what happens are what we call major breakdowns which translate to expensive repairs or maybe scrapping of the vehicle or at least trading it in for a newer model.

 

These thoughts were going through my head as I marched from one doctor to another, the x-ray clinic to the blood clinic, and the eye doctor to the allergist. I have reached my 'best before date' and some semi-major maintenance and repair is required. As wonderful as the human body is, it does wear out. We can neglect or ignore the signs of a breakdown, or we can be preventative or proactive when there are danger signals. If we are not, a catastrophic event could be in our future.

 

Apart from the usual blood work that is requested with a physical check-up, I also went to the clinic armed with a requisition for an x-ray to determine the extent of wear and tear on one of my knees. The two clinics are in the same building so I got the imaging done first. The bio-medical lab, where they take the blood sample, was just upstairs, so I took a number and prepared myself for a 45 minute wait. I was 10 minutes away when I began to read the requisition for the blood work. What I did not realise, or perhaps had forgotten, was that one of the tests was a glucose test, meaning that I was required to fast for at least 10 hours before giving a blood sample. The waiting room is very crowded and there is nothing to do but observe other people and see how slowly the numbers are coming up. So how do I exit gracefully, or in such a way as to save face?

I began looking at my watch frequently, while checking the electronic number read-out on the wall. I began to look and act impatient, and finally in a huff, got up and walked out. Why did I do that? I suppose I did not want anyone to see that my mental faculties are also wearing out. We get very creative when we are covering up for our deficiencies.

 

This morning (after my fast), I was checking in at the counter of a different blood clinic (there is that effort to creatively cover-up again) and was asked if I wanted to register with the service and receive my test results on-line. "Yes", say I, and after being told that I could register at the .com address on the form, I told her she would need my e-mail address. Duh! These clinics are frequented by mostly middle and old aged folks so she did not miss a beat. She probably thought, "Oh boy, another one."    

How to Buy a Bed

 

     We decided, one day in December, that our bed needed replacing. I was all for a new bed, but not up to the daunting task of shopping for it. I checked the sales flyers and eventually went to the internet to do research. I wanted a good deal, a good bed, and good testimonials.

 

     I learned a lot, but mostly that shopping for a bed was a bit of a crap shoot. And what can you learn about a bed by laying down on it for a few seconds in the show room of a Sleep Store? I dug deeper and started to head in the direction of high quality memory foam beds. I had wanted a Tempurpedic last time but the 5K price drove me off.  Then I found a bed that was as close to Tempurpedic as you could get, but the price was 1/5 as much. Moreover, it was a Canadian Company and was skyrocketing to success.

Not only was the price good, but it included shipping, 2 memory foam pillows, and a 120 day guarantee with free return shipping if we decided to send it back.

We could not lose so I ordered from the website and a few days later it arrived in very heavy box. We opened the box near the bed with the old mattress already removed, and flipped the squashed contents onto the bed. It was icy cold and flat like a pancake. The instructions said it would take about 6 hours to 'fluff up'.

 

As it warmed, it slowly started filling out the baggy mattress cover. The two pillows were almost cardboard thin. In fact, one of them took three days to expand.

 

We slept on it that night and knew there was big difference from what we had. We no longer rolled to the middle as if magnetized, and we were lying straight, and level. It took getting used to, but in a few days we loved it and my back ache that had come late in the year was now gone completely. The 120 days are soon over, but we decided some time ago that it was a keeper. This bed has our complete endorsement.

You can check it out here if you are in the market for a new bed.

Cleaning Out the Memory Card

 

Between Christmas and New Year, I posted a few photos of this puzzle as it was in progress. Then I photographed it when it was completed and forgot that I had done so. I took a few spring flower pictures last week and as I exported them to my computer, there was the puzzle photo. It was a very difficult puzzle but very beautiful when completed. The scene was taken from somewhere in the Colorado Rockies. I am done with puzzles until next Christmas.

 

These Daffodils are very early this year, but because they are in a sheltered location close to the house, they should weather anything a late winter storm will throw at them. It is amazing how a splash of brilliant yellow will enhance the mood after a winter of nothing but gray and dull greens.

 

Our front lawn is infested with these Sweet Violets, but we do not mind. They are very pretty as the early morning sun hits them at an angle that sets them among diamonds and jewels as the light reflects off the morning dew. I set my camera right down in the grass to get this worm's eye view.