First we had to clean everything out from the ceiling. You know the trim, the pipes and whatever else had been tucked up there out-of-the-way. It was very dusty but sure made a difference to have that stuff moved. We primed the walls and prepared to repaint. Part of that preparation included filling some of the dings and dents that have accumulated over the years.
The new paint looked wonderful. In fact, the first wall that we painted used up one part can of blue paint that I have been storing for a number of years. Using up old paint has its hazards though. I found a second can of paint and shook it, and then opened it. I was working over a painters blanket and to my puzzlement, I discovered a pool of paint growing underneath the paint can. It turns out that the paint can had cracked and was leaking. This can also was put to use in the basement as our project continued.
Next we started putting up sheets of drywall on the ceiling. Chad had a fair bit of help. Brandon helped a little and Myles helped. As for me I wasn't much help because I haven't build up the strength in my left shoulder yet enough to hold up a sheet of drywall. I did try but I couldn't do it for long enough.
The changes were subtle and slow but they were making a big difference. The first thing we noticed was how the light began to fill the room differently.
The room was quite a mess throughout the process, mostly because all the furniture had to be pushed into the center of the room to get at the walls. As each wall was finished the furniture had to be moved from position to position so we could get at the different parts of the ceiling. We tried to keep the room as clear as possible. A lot of the furniture was moved into the spare bedroom to be out-of-the-way.
We decided that if we were going to do this room we are going to do it up right. That meant that we also finished the area over the deep-freeze in the back corner and around the back door. It looks so good all finished up, painted and fresh.
As the project progressed I painted the walls and Chad and Myles worked on the ceiling. They installed new track lighting into the room which we thoroughly enjoy. That new lighting adds a wonderful feel to the room that makes it cozy yet bright. The colors I chose for the walls is a pale blue and the ceiling is a light taupe. I didn't want the room to be too dark being in the basement. I love having light colors brighten and freshen the space.
We decided we needed to have access to the center portion of the ceiling and so we put in a track ceiling in that area. I wanted the color to match the rest of the ceiling and so rather than buying ceiling panels, we cut quarter inch hard board and painted it. It went in very nicely and matches the room beautifully.
This is a panoramic picture facing the north wall. It shows the progress to that point. The drywall portion of the ceiling is painted. The new lighting is on. And the walls are all painted. The furniture still needs to be put back in place though.
Here's me doing a little more painting on the other end of the room. As the ceiling progressed the girls and I mopped, swept and then move furniture back into place. This opened up the room a little more and cleared out the center area but it also allowed us to achieve I finished feeling. It is wonderful having everyone involved in a project, working together and feeling good about the things that they are doing.
And there you have it the room finished, and mostly put back together again. We even used some trim that had previously been stored in the ceiling and used it to finish around some of the unfinished doorways and windows in the basement. I think we also finished off about 3 gallons of paint that we have been storing for an indefinite number of years.
This project was actually started to use up some of the resources we have acquired that have been sitting idle in our home taking up space and needing stored. It felt so good to work together to use these resources to beautify our home. The thing that I love about these kinds of projects the most though is the excitement I feel coming from everyone as we work together with a common goal in mind. When we accomplish that goal there are many happy faces and smiles and laughter that fill our home. I can't help but think that this is much like what it will be like when we return to live with her Father in Heaven. Of course this experience is much smaller in scale to that of what it would be like in heaven, but our common goal as a family is to live such that we can return to live with our Father in Heaven. As we work together, encourage one another, extending love and compassion and understanding, and do all those things that good families do the day will come when we will gather around our Father in Heaven with many smiles and laughter filling our faces and hearts. I love the little glimpses I get of heaven through the things that we do here in our family. We are so blessed.
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