Part two in the Before and After series

Well, the first challenge I ran into for this Before and After project (scroll down two posts or click here for the first "before" shots) was the issue of having enough paint to cover the whole board. I really wanted to paint the whole thing white, but didn't have enough white to go around. Also, the Princess begged for purple. So I found a container and started a-mixin' up some paints. And yes, that is FIVE bottles of paint down there in the photo...

Here's a close-up of the paint, pre-mix stage:

Looks yummy, right?

I later added what little bits were left in smaller bottles of several lighter colors (pink, blue, peach) to try and lighten it up. The purple you see in the photo was a pigment, which meant it basically just laughed at the white I added and stayed a pretty dark purple. I later had to add an entire old 8-ounce bottle of a porcelain blue color to the mix, mostly to have enough paint, but it lightened it up a little, too. I ended up with plenty of paint to do one good solid coat on the board (all it needed - Folk Art acrylic paints are awesome like that) and some touch-ups, with some left over.

Here's the board standing up, pre-paint job (just ignore the pile of papers - that's where the kids stack their artwork, and the Wal-Mart bags of stuff - those are birthday party supplies):
Here it is after I slathered on a coat of purple:

That's it for now, but I will leave you with this... this didn't take nearly as much time as I expected (I'm done already and it's back in its rightful place in the kids' room, so yeah), so I've added another project. I inherited a kitchen table and four chairs from my great-grandmother, but one of the chairs' backs broke off. It's been sitting around the house with jagged edges poking out where the back broke, so I decided to paint it and turn it into a little stool. It's a super sturdy, heavy chair and the rest of what's left is in perfectly good shape, so all it needs is a little love. I'm thinking about doing a tutorial-type or "how-to" post with the chair, so I won't post the photos just yet. I'm still working on it. Depending how long that one takes, I might have to scrounge up something else to do. Too bad I don't have any "before" shots of the bathroom we just finished re-doing. (BTW, who's the genius that decided carpet in a bathroom was a good idea? Because NO, it's not.)

Also, the kids' wall art is still in place. I need a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser to take that off. I could go the whole extra-elbow-grease route, but... why? I've cleaned crayon off our walls before, and the Magic Eraser does the best job. Now, if I could just keep the kids from drawing on the walls in the first place, that would be awesome.

The sticky foot thing is still there, too. I just haven't gotten around to that one yet.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go make sure the house stays in fairly good shape. We're having a par-tay this weekend! My Tiny Man is going to turn FOUR years old next week! Where does the time go?