For those of you who’ve been with me from the first part of the Remodeling Series (ahem…last August), I just want to say thank you for letting me write overly-long posts where I could ramble ad-nauseam about my likes, dislikes, failures, and successes surrounding DIY remodeling.
So, in gratefulness for reading, commenting, and hanging in there with me, I’m offering this (blessedly) short list of the ten things we learned throughout this process of remodeling most of our house mainly by ourselves on a ridiculously small budget during the last 5 years.
Top Ten Things Learned At An Oregon Cottage About Do-It-Yourself Remodeling:
- You can save lots of money. Sometimes you wonder if it’s worth it, especially if it involves tiling.
- On the other hand, you can waste money, too. Case in point: we now have a 4-ft long, 11-inch high window sitting in one of our outbuildings after discovering we needed a 15-inch high window. And yes, 4 inches did make that much of a difference.
- It takes a LONG time. As in months…and years.
- DO buy things in advance as you see them on sale, at thrift stores, or on Craigslist. You will never find it at the time you need it if you didn’t buy it when you saw it. I think this is a law or something.
- Enlist the help of knowledgeable friends and family. Their help will make you think you know what you’re doing (while all the time it was them…).
- Demolition makes a really big mess. And never just in the area you demolished.
- Rule of Thumb: A 20 minute job will take at least half a day.
- The right tools make all the difference. Beg, borrow, or rent and you will not be sorry.
- Just because you hired a professional doesn’t mean the job will be done right. How many hours spent fixing “professionals” mistakes? Countless.
- After successfully finishing a couple of DIY jobs, you start seeing everything as “I could do that,” prompting your children to ask,”Will there ever be a time when we’re not working on something?”
There you have it. The End.
Oh wait. That doesn’t seem like an adequate thank you for all the time involved, so how about one of Brian’s fun videos? I promise this will make you smile, maybe even laugh. And I want to clarify from the outset: It was all my his idea. Especially the title. Yes, he’s weird – that’s one of his endearing qualities.
View this in a larger size on YouTube.
Feel free to leave a comment and make me smile!
This is linked to:Frugal Friday
Remodelaholics Anonymous
Friday Inspiration
Show and Tell Friday
Finer Things Friday
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Shea Ricci says
September 8 at 1:52 pmWe close on an older colonial at the end of September and I’m using your home as inspiration. I love what you have done. I wanted to pass on a tip about wallpaper to you just in case you ever encounter it again. I used to paint and hang wallpaper as a business. There is NOTHING whatsoever that compares to a fabric drop cloth placed under the wall you are working on to catch moisture and then to start at the top and score a bit and then soak the paper in white vinegar and warm water. This mixture breaks down the glue…ANY GLUE used in wallpapering. You then skim off the paper. Some papers have a vinyl coated front. You peel it away and you are left with paper backing. Wet it and it skims right off. I’ve taken wallpaper new and old off just about every surface you can think of. I never had to rent a steamer. Never bought a Tiger scoring tool when an exacto or mat knife works just as well. It’s a bit messy but I’m okay with that. Many blessings to you and your family. You folks did a wonderful job!
Jami says
September 9 at 4:18 pmOh, thanks, Shea! While I hope I don’t encounter it again, you never do know, so I’ll keep this in mind! Have fun with your new home!
Susan says
February 19 at 7:19 amI love your home. Thank you for sharing. Way to go! Great job. Love the videos. You have a great family. Big Smiles!
Stacy says
September 23 at 7:42 pmSuch a funny video! Well done. I think I had a tear in my eye at one point. I heard my husband chuckle, too. 🙂
CherrywoodCustom.com says
March 19 at 4:49 amThe Top Ten Things Learned list, so true. Happy to have stumbled on your site and videos. We desperately need to remove carpet from our bedrooms and we intend to get it all done in less than two hours 🙂
Jami @An Oregon Cottage says
February 27 at 1:50 amThank you, Kinga! We’ve been to Vancouver and Victoria, but would love to see deeper into Canada one day, too. What we have seen is lovely.
kinga @ blueloom says
February 26 at 6:58 pmWhat a fun family! Love your videos, you guys seem so professional 🙂 We have never been to Oregon but would love to visit one day.
Your bathroom is beautiful!
Kinga from Canada
Melody says
April 26 at 4:23 pmHahahaha…Jami, your hubby reminds me of mine. Silly boys 🙂 Loved the video. Nice job, you two!
Cheryl B. says
April 26 at 1:53 pmI have to agree your husband was hilarious at the end. I don’t know how you got him to agree to do all this stuff. My DH used to build houses for a living and he wants professionals to do most stuff. However, we did just purchase the rest of the windows for our house…. let’s see how long it takes him to actually install them.
The Unusually Unusual Farmchick says
April 26 at 10:30 amThat was great! LOL. And I LOOOVE your new tub, too!
I’ll be sure to go over to youtube and rate your video. It left me smiling. So much personality with smiles and laughter.
Terri says
April 24 at 5:11 pmLOL – sounds like some of our projects! 🙂 Thanks for the smile!
Shanzanne says
April 23 at 9:37 pmYour husband is hilarious! Your family looks like so much fun. Great job!
Candi says
April 23 at 10:31 pmYour husband must keep you in stitches all the time! He’s so hilarious! You both did an amazing job on your bathroom! That clawfoot tub is still beautiful, despite the cost, you’ll have it forever!
Stacy says
April 23 at 7:28 pmYour husband totally has the voice of one of those DIY t.v. shows. Hilarious! Or possibly the painting guy…you know…”a happy little tree here. a flower over there.”
Loved it!
http://www.servantsheart.wordpress.com
Cindy says
April 23 at 4:28 pmYour bathroom is really gorgeous! I loved your video, it looked very professional, just as your bathroom does. I found your link over at Romantic Home, so I haven’t watched your story unfold, but i can see you are doing an amazing job.
Hugs, Cindy S