The New Year Means New Projects: Do It Yourself (DIY)

Boy, how time flies! January is rushing by and I hardly have time to take a breather! I’m in the midst of preparing for vacation, working on some marketing and PR events for ReDo, and still working a bazillion hours every day to keep on top of the many projects, jobs, and opportunities available to grow my business and brand. I always find that January is the perfect time of year to reflect upon all the many things I want to accomplish, the goals I wish to achieve, and anything in my life and my world that needs assessing, or in most cases, REassessing. I’ve blogged about how I try to make my new year’s resolutions a year-long tradition, not just something I do when the new year strikes at twelve on the first of January. I am generally very good about this. However, in this fresh new month of the year, I do enjoy taking advantage of that feeling I get for a fresh start and a new direction; it’s a change of plans, a chance to have my personal revolution as it pertains to my life and the metamorphosis I (and I dare to say, we) experience from time to time. With that renewed sense of self and bolstered esteem and affirmation, NOW is the ideal time to roll up my sleeves – go on, roll yours up as well – and with pen in hand make my lists of the projects that I really want to do – start, continue, or finish – in the coming twelve months. And with this empowering feeling of self-assurance, how can I fail? Because when you get right down to it, you have nothing to lose by trying, and everything to gain by the experience. So come on, let’s dive in and see if the water’s warm for some DIY projects this year!

First on my list – and believe me, my list is extensive – is a project I started and never finished…well, I didn’t complete it to my satisfaction. And it annoys me every time I look at it… it’s my bathroom wall that I painted and blogged about last October. If you follow the link you’ll see the project wall in mid-completion. The problem I’m facing is that the stripe lines aren’t exactly straight enough for my discerning eye – and to add personal insult to injury, there’s just a tad bit of paint bleeding: the brown on the white and the yellow on the brown. This little annoyance came from an idea I had, thinking I was being oh-so-very-clever; I was seeing if I could use my frog tape more than once when striping out the lines for this and several other painting projects in my loft. Well, now I know that you really CAN’T reuse painters tape after one use…it loses some of it’s adherence and allows more opportunity for the nasty paint bleed. Ugh. But, as I said above, I had nothing to lose by trying and everything to gain by the experience. I now know, DEFINITIVELY, that I cannot reuse painters tape and it’s best to use fresh tape with each painting project. Sure, it’s going to cost me some elbow grease and sweat equity, but I have increased my knowledge base on this and am a subject matter expert when it comes to frog tape! LOL!

Next on my list – oh, you’ll roll your eyes at this one – is to finally, assuredly, convincingly, decisively, inescapably, irrevocably, lastly, once and for all, and beyond any doubt FINISH MY CLOSET!!! Yes, yes, yes… I’m shaking my head in frustration as well. And shame. I’m sure you’re shaking your head, too. But come on, it’s an important room in the house – one of the most crucial spaces in a home. Think about it for just a moment: this is the room that houses all your clothes, what you wear every day – and for some of us, at least twice a day. This is the repository of outfits, gear and accoutrement we access regularly, putting together that certain look, that feeling of self assurance and affirmation. This is one of the key elements in a home organization structure. And after all the bloody blogs I’ve written about it (here…and here), it still isn’t up to snuff for me and my needs. Now some of this might be from the fact I have too many clothes and accessories, or it could be that I’m simply not using the space to it’s best configuration. But the point is simply this: it’s not working as well as it should be and I need to fix the problem so it does work for me. Here again, learning from my mistakes I’m gaining valuable experience in spacial relations, room and area footprints, organizational challenges, and, well, more blogging opportunities (with the sincerest hope that you learn from my mistakes). So yes, back in the closet I go in 2012… no pun intended.

Up next on my endless list of TO-DO’s for the new year is to work on my bathroom, specifically, adding a decorative mosaic tile to the wall between the tub and shower stall. Again, when I blogged about ReDoing this space, I was looking for easy, quick home projects to do that would stamp my make on the new loft space, making it feel more mine and more of my style. The chocolate brown paint I applied and the shelf I installed were just that: a quick fix for a great look, but a temporary solution until the real answer was made clear. I’d always had it in the back of my mind that I wanted to do this, to put up a beautiful glass tile mosaic in that space, but the only things holding me back were time and effort. And, as you know, time is a luxury I simply don’t have. So, as the saying goes, “it takes time to make time”, and I intend to make the time for this great DIY tile project this year, and sooner rather than later. All it takes is the drive and motivation (CHECK!), the time (I am committed to making the time, so CHECK!),the help of good friends (you know who you are! CHECK!), and the supplies (well, not CHECK as I need to sort out what aesthetic look I want for the space). Once all these elements come into play, I shall create the most fantastic, fabulous and gorgeous mosaic bathroom wall the know universe will ever see! Or a close facsimile and approximation of…

On that note, the next project on my list – and yes, it, too, involves a time commitment (see above for my dedication of this concept… foreign and strange as it seems right now in this maelstrom of NO TIME available for anything…) – is to apply a tiled backsplash in the kitchen. Again, in the theme of the bathroom wall, I want to make the entire loft space have a cohesive feeling, so coming up with a look in both spaces that will be identical, similar, and complimentary, requires some time and research, along with the consideration of making two separate rooms feel like part of the same look in a large loft area. This means that when I start the bathroom tiling project that I must consider the kitchen project as well, being sure that what I choose to do in one room can and will carry over into the other. The last thing I want is to create two spaces that feel discordant or disconnected to the whole aesthetic of my modern loft feel. I simply can’t slap up some tile in the bathroom and call it a day, only to find that the look doesn’t work so well in the kitchen – then I’m in a bit of a conundrum as to how to resolve the matter after the fact. Careful planning for both spaces will save me time and hassle for potentially having to correct a design flaw or style mistake. “Measure twice, cut once!” I’ve always said!

To round off this DIY posting, one more project I want to tackle in the new year is lighting in the kitchen, specifically, puck lights and a work light over the sink. I have adequate lighting throughout the loft, but the kitchen can always do with some more spots and bling to add to the existing lighting structure. Work lights and under counter pucks not only provide better work surface exposure but add a degree of mood lighting and ambiance to the open space. It’s really cozy to sit in my living room – part of an open floor plan that incorporates the kitchen and dining spaces – and have a soft glow of warmth enveloping me from behind, sort of like a blanket of effusive atmosphere surrounding all the open rooms. I really think lighting is key to a space, and secondary lighting such as under-mounted cabinet pucks and over-the-sink work lights create the exact mood and feel for your home. Though primary lighting – like direct overhead lights – serve a wonderful purpose, they also can be very harsh and ‘omnipresent’ in a room, open plan or not. Secondary lighting, including table and floor lamps, tone down the mood and provide a soothing, calm, moody approach to the aesthetic of your decor.

So there you have it. As 2012 ramps up so will I with my DIY projects – adding value and appreciation to my loft living space. What are some of your projects for the new year? How will they improve your current space and add substance to your decor? Feel free to share them with me and the ReDo Readers here; let’s all take hold of the new year with projects that will valuate our homes and enhance our lives. So go on, get out there and do it! Or rather, Do It Yourself!