Porch Love

Photo credits: Sonja Lovas via flicker(l) ; apartment therapy (c); Doug Garner via flicker(r)

 

Photo credits: Canadian House & Home (l); Martha Stewart (r)

I am definitely a porch person.  I mean, what's better than  chilling out on a porch on a hot summer day?  Exactly!  An outdoor front porch was a must-have on my house hunting list.  No boxed in porches for me thank you very much.

And on any given evening  you are likely to find me out on my  porch  reading with a  cold beverage and eating some variety of cheese (probably Havarti).

Ah, but if only my porch looked like the pretty ones  above.  Sadly my porch was looking more shabby without the chic.

"Before -  Ugggly!"

I had recently ripped up the filthy carpet to discover a battered mess of ugly green chippy paint.  This porch would have  to  be seriously sanded  before I could even think about painting.












   Step #1:    before sanding,  I  gave the whole porch a good power wash and scrubbing with my hose and TSP (trisodium phosphate) which is great for  getting off grease and serious dirt.

After the big scrub down,  I let the porch dry for 24 hours then I was off to  The Home Depot to rent my sander and get er' done.   Now have I used a belt sander before?  No.  But how hard could it be?   Plus, thanks to  youtube you can learn  how to do absolutely anything by watching a video. 

For a mere $28.00  plus the cost of  belt sandpaper (60, 80 & 100 grit) , I picked up  a 24 hour rental on one of their standard  belt sanders.   There I was, first time  in the tool  rental department surrounded by a sea of men all covered in  paint and drywall dust.   When it was my turn at the counter I was  actually too embarrassed  to ask the guy how  to  use the thing.

 Again, thanks   youvtube , specifically you Kevin at Expert Village for your step by steps on belt sander threading!  Belt Sander Tutorial.

 Step #2:  With my dust mask on (actually it was a bandanna), I spent the next hour  on my knees moving the belt sander in circular motions up and down the grain, all while applying pressure to keep it from taking off or kicking back. IT'S HARD WORK!

When my knees tired, I made the big mistake of  sanding standing up but bent over in  a back breaking  inverted V  position.



So what did I learn for next time?  Four simple words:   walk-behind  orbital sander! 

Step #3:   Finally, I chose a latex paint specifically made for porches  and decks.  I thought the colour would be more beige grey,  but in fact it's more off- white.   And after two coats over two days I was done. 

"After"

So it's far from perfect but it  looks much better than before.  All that's missing now is a  cold  Mint Julep (I've never had one but it sounds appropriate)  and a nice plate of cheese.

Photo Credits &  links:
 Sonia Lovas via Flicker
http://flic.kr/p/79R15s 
Doug Garner via Flicker
http://flic.kr/p/5Cov29

apartment therapy:
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/dc/my-great-outdoors-2009/my-great-outdoors-carma358s-front-porch-087703
Candian House & Home
http://houseandhome.comhttp://houseandhome.com/

Follow the Yellow Front Door!

I heart yellow doors!

I have always wanted a sunny yellow front door.  Long before I even owned a house, I wanted a  warm welcoming door colour that reminded me of summer cottages, life in the beaches and Martha's Vineyard even though I've never actually been to Martha's Vineyard!

But with so many yellows to choose from, the margin for error was huge.     I didn't want Parrot yellow nor did I want neon electric yellow.   And here's a bit of advice:  DO NOT  assume the yellow  in the magazine is the yellow you want in person.     Case in point, Benjamin Moore's Yellow Raincoat which I loved in a magazine but in reality, it looked more like the colour of a Blue Bird School Bus.  Not the look I was going for.

So, this past Canada Day weekend I set out to liven up my boring green door.


Step 1:  Pick your yellow 

 I  chose CIL's Cheers Festival 529.  But I had it colour matched by Benjamin Moore

Step 2:  Prime before you Paint

   I started with a green door, and instead of doing 6 coats of yellow,  priming  it white made the yellow go on easier.  I highly recommend Zinsser  Bin Primer which coats everything easily.

Step 3: Panic! 

 After the first coat  I realized just  how sun blazing bright my yellow choice was.   I was  half expecting some backlash.  After all, this ain't Bermuda or Lunenburg!


I decided to live with it for 48 hours but admit I had my doubts.   And sure enough, after living  with the bright hot sunburst for 3 days, I caved and headed back to the paint store to add more white and bring down the intensity.   So my final colour is now custom -  Cheers Festival with some white thrown in.

left: before   right:  after

Step 4:  Breath, relax, embrace.

After 3 coats,  it's definitely still bright but I'm  really digging it.  It says,  fun friendly nice person lives here.    After all, you have never met a mean person with a yellow front door right?

Photo credits:

Canadian House and Home via photographerLauraArsie

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