The Coffee House

jeffashman · Jul 14, 2023

SquarePeg said:
Just finished cutting the grass - what’s left of it after I’ve added all my garden beds! I definitely earned a cocktail or two.

TGIFF! Cheers!

@jeffashman DSU?

Dear Spousal Unit...

Original katomi · Jul 15, 2023

Strong winds just hit here
Just finished tidying the garden before winds came
Waste of time lol

smoke665 · Jul 15, 2023

I think the age at which you stop driving is dependent on the individual rather than chronological age. DW was restricted from driving for 6 months after a health scare (she gets behind the wheel again Aug1). My cousin is 2 yrs older than I and I worry about her driving. A few months ago she sideswiped a big roll off container. Then I know others still driving big rig RVs in their 80s. As we age our health and cognitive abilities change at different rates. So far I'm good, but who knows about tomorrow.

SquarePeg · Jul 16, 2023

Had some tornado warnings near here this morning but they’ve since been downgraded fortunately. It’s been raining all day. Took advantage of the bad weather and Princess being out of town to get my living room ready for some new furniture being delivered on Tuesday.

Gave away the old stuff last week so the room was pretty empty. Rolled up the rugs, washed and waxed the floors, cleaned the windows and blinds, hung up some new curtains (that I bought 3 months ago

and just took out of the box today)…. Need to steam out the wrinkles next but it’s pretty humid today so that may have to wait until tomorrow night. I’ve earned some Netflix tonight! New season of Lincoln Lawyer or the Witcher… we’ll see what mood I’m in later.

CherylL · Jul 16, 2023

SquarePeg said:
Had some tornado warnings near here this morning but they’ve since been downgraded fortunately. It’s been raining all day. Took advantage of the bad weather and Princess being out of town to get my living room ready for some new furniture being delivered on Tuesday.

Gave away the old stuff last week so the room was pretty empty. Rolled up the rugs, washed and waxed the floors, cleaned the windows and blinds, hung up some new curtains (that I bought 3 months ago and just took out of the box today)…. Need to steam out the wrinkles next but it’s pretty humid today so that may have to wait until tomorrow night. I’ve earned some Netflix tonight! New season of Lincoln Lawyer or the Witcher… we’ll see what mood I’m in later.

View attachment 267379

Love the full size windows. I would keep it empty and set up my inhome natural light studio

SquarePeg · Jul 16, 2023

CherylL said:
Love the full size windows. I would keep it empty and set up my inhome natural light studio

Furniture placement in this room is my biggest struggle. There are really no walls. There’s the window wall, then the fireplace wall opposite and then the wall by the entryway. Everything has to float including the tv. Thinking of getting one of those easel stands for it. I’ve resisted putting it over the fireplace because I’m stubborn.

jeffashman · Jul 16, 2023

Love how those windows let light into the room! Most houses seem so dark with their smaller windows. And the hardwood floors!

terri · Jul 16, 2023

SquarePeg said:
Had some tornado warnings near here this morning but they’ve since been downgraded fortunately. It’s been raining all day. Took advantage of the bad weather and Princess being out of town to get my living room ready for some new furniture being delivered on Tuesday.

Gave away the old stuff last week so the room was pretty empty. Rolled up the rugs, washed and waxed the floors, cleaned the windows and blinds, hung up some new curtains (that I bought 3 months ago and just took out of the box today)…. Need to steam out the wrinkles next but it’s pretty humid today so that may have to wait until tomorrow night. I’ve earned some Netflix tonight! New season of Lincoln Lawyer or the Witcher… we’ll see what mood I’m in later.

View attachment 267379

It looks beautiful - love those blue drapes and those rugs really pick up the color.

SquarePeg said:
washed and waxed the floors

I need to get this done. Someone, long ago, put some varnish over my hardwoods, and there are large areas that have literally peeled off. Why didn't they just use wax??

So it'll be a nasty stripping job first. Pita!

I think hardwoods look great just buffed out without a coating.

SquarePeg · Jul 16, 2023

jeffashman said:
Love how those windows let light into the room! Most houses seem so dark with their smaller windows. And the hardwood floors!

The big windows are both the best thing about this room and the worst! They’re south facing and when the sun is lower in fall and winter the glare can be brutal if you try to watch tv during the day. The curtains help but then it’s like being in a cave.

It looks beautiful - love those blue drapes and those rugs really pick up the color.

terri said:
I need to get this done. Someone, long ago, put some varnish over my hardwoods, and there are large areas that have literally peeled off. Why didn't they just use wax?? So it'll be a nasty stripping job first. Pita!

I think hardwoods look great just buffed out without a coating.

Thanks! I ordered a neutral sofa and chair and plan to use the curtains and throw pillows and other items to seasonally change the look of the room so it doesn’t get tired. The curtains I took down are a beautiful raspberry red and they’ll go back up in the fall I think. They’re very cheerful for the winter.

That’s a shame that someone put varnish on a hardwood floor. Yikes! I just wash them with vinegar and water and only when they really need it. Mostly just spot clean and use a dry mop and a microfiber pad to shine them. A couple of times a year I’ll use that Quick Shine wax. We have a lot of scratches from 23 years of kids and dogs and my constant furniture rearranging.

I wish it had occurred to me to have someone come in and refinish the floors while the room was almost empty! A missed opportunity. I’d love to do a slightly darker, cooler color.

jeffashman · Jul 16, 2023

SquarePeg said:
The big windows are both the best thing about this room and the worst! They’re south facing and when the sun is lower in fall and winter the glare can be brutal if you try to watch tv during the day. The curtains help but then it’s like being in a cave.

It looks beautiful - love those blue drapes and those rugs really pick up the color.

Thanks! I ordered a neutral sofa and chair and plan to use the curtains and throw pillows and other items to seasonally change the look of the room so it doesn’t get tired. The curtains I took down are a beautiful raspberry red and they’ll go back up in the fall I think. They’re very cheerful for the winter.

That’s a shame that someone put varnish on a hardwood floor. Yikes! I just wash them with vinegar and water and only when they really need it. Mostly just spot clean and use a dry mop and a microfiber pad to shine them. A couple of times a year I’ll use that Quick Shine wax. We have a lot of scratches from 23 years of kids and dogs and my constant furniture rearranging.

I wish it had occurred to me to have someone come in and refinish the floors while the room was almost empty! A missed opportunity. I’d love to do a slightly darker, cooler color.

Murphy Oil Soap is supposed to be amazing for hardwood floor maintenance. We have faux wood floors that I would love to replace with the real thing.

SquarePeg · Jul 16, 2023

jeffashman said:
Murphy Oil Soap is supposed to be amazing for hardwood floor maintenance. We have faux wood floors that I would love to replace with the real thing.

I have faux wood in the kitchen and it has held up well but is ready to be replaced. I like the porcelain tiles that look like wood with some radiant heat under them. That’s what we used when we redid the garage to make a suite for my mom. The heated floors really keep the rooms warm. Highly recommend, especially if it’s a slab foundation.

jeffashman · Jul 16, 2023

SquarePeg said:
I have faux wood in the kitchen and it has held up well but is ready to be replaced. I like the porcelain tiles that look like wood with some radiant heat under them. That’s what we used when we redid the garage to make a suite for my mom. The heated floors really keep the rooms warm. Highly recommend, especially if it’s a slab foundation.

Our kitchen has horrible travertine tiles, even more so because 1) they didn't lay them down properly, and 2) they put mop and glo or something on them. Our housekeeper is slowly recovering them to what they should look like. I would love to replace them with porcelain or terra cotta (it is a kitchen, after all

).

terri · Jul 16, 2023

jeffashman said:
Our kitchen has horrible travertine tiles, even more so because 1) they didn't lay them down properly, and 2) they put mop and glo or something on them. Our housekeeper is slowly recovering them to what they should look like. I would love to replace them with porcelain or terra cotta (it is a kitchen, after all ).

Ha! Travertine tile is exactly what we had in our kitchen when we lived in The Woodlands, TX! I thought they were pretty, but not great for a high traffic area. A couple were chipped and, in a couple others, the grout was chipped. Not impressed.

We were only there for 3 years - if we'd decided to stay, that floor was going to have to go.

limr · Jul 17, 2023

When I moved in, we ripped out the horribly boring beige carpeting and re-did the floors. I couldn't afford full-plank hardwood, and I also thought I was going to have to save up for it and do it later, but the engineered wood flooring was much more affordable than I realized, so I was able to do it before I moved in. So it's a layer of real hardwood on top, and the rest of the plank is a different kind of wood. Tongue and groove installation, so it wasn't hard, but it still took us a little over a week.

One other benefit of knowing that I was going to do the floors was that I didn't have to worry about drop clothes when repainting, since I was going to rip out the carpet anyway.

One of the smaller bedrooms, before and after:

terri · Jul 17, 2023

limr said:
When I moved in, we ripped out the horribly boring beige carpeting and re-did the floors. I couldn't afford full-plank hardwood, and I also thought I was going to have to save up for it and do it later, but the engineered wood flooring was much more affordable than I realized, so I was able to do it before I moved in. So it's a layer of real hardwood on top, and the rest of the plank is a different kind of wood. Tongue and groove installation, so it wasn't hard, but it still took us a little over a week.

One other benefit of knowing that I was going to do the floors was that I didn't have to worry about drop clothes when repainting, since I was going to rip out the carpet anyway.

One of the smaller bedrooms, before and after:
View attachment 267393

View attachment 267394

I remember you doing all this! It worked out great. Totally agree about painting a room when you know the carpet is coming out next - I've been in the same situation and it's very freeing!

I love interior painting. Paint isn't as cheap as it used to be, but it's still the least expensive way to change the look of a room.