A sneak peek...

What project is taking up soooo much of our time that we can't even do other little projects to blog about? PAINTING OUR TRIM & INTERIOR DOORS. Yes, we are painting ALL of our trim and doors. Originally our trim/door color was cream -- definitely not my favorite. It darkens the rooms, and it makes everything look a little dingy IMO. So, Mr. H and I invested in some latex based Behr Ultra White semi-gloss paint to repaint everything. Here's how we got started:

First, we went to Sherwin Williams to pick up a couple of little brushes that Sherry at Young House Love bragged about in this post. They're only $5 a piece, and she's right... they're perfect for painting trim. While we were there, we asked the Sherwin Williams guy a few questions about painting our trim. He said that we should first make sure we didn't have oil based painted trim because if we did, we'd have to take an extra priming step (if your existing trim is latex, then you can just paint right over it with another latex paint -- no priming necessary). In order to check, he suggested putting some denatured alcohol on a rag and wiping it over the trim (he said rubbing alcohol would work too). If the paint rubs off on the rag, then you have latex painted trim. If the paint doesn't rub off onto the rag, you have oil based trim. Welp, guess what. We had oil based trim. Boo.

After a minor pity party, we went to Lowe's to pick up an oil based primer because, after hours of Google searching, it seemed like that was our only choice; however the gentleman at Lowe's suggested Zinsser's 1-2-3 primer that isn't oil based (yay for no VOCs), but it bonds the oil based paint and the latex paint together. And the verdict? It works like a charm.

Working hard on the trim in the pantry

Ever since then, we've been patiently priming and painting all the trim and doors in the house. So far -- we've finished the laundry room, kitchen, and living room (including the fireplace). I know, I know, that's a lot of work to just change the color of your already painted trim. And there are moments throughout the process (especially when my back is aching and my hand is cramping) when I'm like, "Is this worth it?" Oh, but it totally is. I've even found a couple tricks to make it move a little faster (for anyone who's considering painting their trim):

1) Grab a mini roller from the store -- it makes makes painting the doors and other plain, solid pieces (like on the fireplace) go a lot faster.
2) Cut off the flap of a piece of cardboard and hold at an angle against the baseboard to prevent getting any paint on your floors. It also works well on carpet. It helps hold down the little carpet fibers so they don't get stuck in your paint. This was a tip from my grandmother (Thanks, Meme!), and it works wonders. Just make sure you wipe off the edge of the cardboard every now and then so paint doesn't build up and smear all over the place... not that I would know from experience... yea right.

Cardboard Box Method

Anyway, the new white trim is amazing. It makes everything look so much cleaner, and I feel like we have more decorating choices now. I'm ready to have it all finished so I can work on wall colors. But for now, we're working on one room at a time. We're about to start the bedrooms and bathrooms, so wish us luck.

Finally, a white fireplace. Yes, we have to clean up around the edges,
but it's so much easier to me to clean it up than to tape it off.