Afraid of Bugs – Tales from the Homestead of Casa Chihuahua

Going for it…

I would be lying if I said I didn’t second guess my choice of colors about 100 times during the process.  I love color and to have to “commit” to a single one was really tough.  After looking through over a dozen different books on Mexican, Moroccan and Indonesian architecture – i settled on a palette that when subtly lite, looks alot like the glow of an amber candle.  At least that was the idea.

When the first coat went on, i panicked – because the colors vibrated like a bad halloween store…but after the second (third and yes, forth) coat the room looks great and welcoming.

the “omg” moment – did i really pick these colors?

the “okay, that’s more like it” moment….with the accent trim and the second coat it started to come together.

looking back at the entrance – through a very dirty camera lense

a better look at the 2nd coat on the ceiling…

the window molding installed and waiting to be stained

trying to imagine what the stain color will look like against the paint…this was a deceiving way to figure this out.  Luckily our contractor has extra trim, test stained up 4-5 options and i picked from that

the guest room window installed, trimmed and ready for staining.  Check out the crudy, dingy floors….because the next time you see them they’re going to be gorgeous!!

step by step…update from a few weekends ago

The media room got its base coat put on and I have to say, i really liked how it looked in white – this would have been fine if we were using the room as a bedroom or studio space – but white makes for a poor movie watching room, especially when you’re using a projector and screen.

I also decided to remove all the door hardware in that room to see if i could polish them up a bit.  They were in really bad shape, having been painted over so many times.  Most of the pieces of hardware weren’t even screwed in anymore and were held on by decades of paint.  I wanted to clean them in the most eco way possible…and not use Jasco or the like….and thanks to google, i quickly found out how to do – Vinegar! It was incredible how well it worked.

the tools you need to clean off old hardware – fine steel wool, dental picks, soft cloth, brasso.

Make sure you cover your surface as it gets a bit messy.

toss the hardware into boiling vinegar and let simmer for less than a minute (longer will damage the metal), scoop it out and rub off the paint and dirt, lightly sand with steel wool and use the dental picks to get into the detailed areas.  I used a bit of brasso last, to shine it up….make sure you let everything dry really well, so it won’t rust.  I also gave it all a good spray of WD40.

here’s a little side by side comparison -the one on the right still the paint and the left is the cleaned up one

The developing room….

Its been a long while since i’ve posted anything – so this is long overdue.  We’ve almost completed the media room – just a few minor things left to touch up and the cabinet is due to arrive next weekend and then the Cinema Chihuahua will be up and running.

The photos here are from over a month ago – showing the mudding and finishing up of the drywall.  I also included a shot of my color epiphany – where i realize i was physically incapable of painting a room taupe, beige, sand…whatever you want to call it.

a ghost room

the old windows.  i’m saving them for the backyard – maybe a greenhouse or some other strange yard structure.

the landing window area getting prepped for the new window

the last window heading up the stairs…

and in it goes…

i went from trying to choose from 13 different shades of beige to going with deep copper on the walls, butternut squash on the ceiling and bittersweet chocolate on the baseboards, doors and beams….