Wednesday, July 01, 2015

Prep, Prep, Prep -- and Knitting, Too

In life and art, there is always preparation...

To whit:  in July 2014 I painted my kitchen cabinet doors.  In July 2015, I'm painting the walls on which those cabinets are mounted.

In between the cabinets and the windows, those walls were covered with wall paper -- typical of mobile homes built in the '70's.  In the case of my kitchen, there are two layers of wall paper.  The plan was to wash with TSP, sand lightly, and prime the heck out of 'em before applying the paint -- likely two coats, too.

Prep #1 - wash, sand, wash
-- and try not to peel wall paper off

My Handy Neighbour, John, and Dave, the fellow who installed my new kitchen counters last fall, both recommended that I not try to peel the wall paper off.  Just wash, sand, prime and paint.

Well, I didn't try.  I didn't have to.  The effect of the TSP wash, the sanding, and the wash-the-dust-off-after-sanding was such that the newest wall paper (likely a good 20 years old) began to lift off by itself, often in swaths.

What to do?  Peel it off, of course, and sand again to be sure what was left was smooth.

My "other" mouse

Did I mention last year how much I loved my mouse?  The sander, that is?  I do.  It's a great gizmo and perfect for both small hands and small spaces!

Prep #2 - painters' tape!
Once the washing-sanding-washing was finished, I taped up what I could with my role of wide painters' tape.  Next up?  Priming...but that's for another day.

Time to get in to the sewdio.

Prep #3 - Materials for MOB II

Some of you who follow my other blog, Mark on the Body, know that I've developed a second part to my initial project -- one in which people can participate.  I've posted about it twice on that blog, and on Facebook and in the SAQA Yahoo Group.  To date I have a baker's dozen volunteers...and I'm hoping the numbers will increase.  Meanwhile, I'm going ahead with this group.  Today I prepped the materials for the project.  All that's left is to assemble the parts into tiny quilt sandwiches, cut lengths of thread, cut out the labels, and package the lot so I can get them in the mail to the volunteers.

I'm very thankful for the people who've agreed to help thus far.  If you're interested, you can find out more information on the MOB blog HERE (first post) and HERE (second post).

On the knitting front, June was a case of "so near, and yet so far" with respect to the Socks From Stash Challenge over on Ravelry.  I made it only to the heel flap of the second sock -- and only half-way through that -- by the end of the day yesterday (June 30).  Still plan on finishing though, as these socks are a gift for a friend.  She's a physics and calculus prof at the junior college level, so I'm hoping that this pattern -- "Angular Velocity" by Rich Ensor from the Spring-Summer 2015 edition of Knitty -- will tickle her fancy.  Here's what the right sock looks like:

Yarn: Arequipa Solids Collection
(discontinued) in colour #228


As today is July 1, it was time to cast on for the July challenge -- using a purchased stash pattern.  I've chosen "Hummingbird" by Sandi Rosner from Clara Parkes' The Knitter's Book of Socks, and stashed yarn I bought eons ago at a Lucy Neatby workshop in Calgary:

Cast-on photo - July 1, 2015
Yarn: Celestial Merino! (discontinued)
from Lucy Neatby - in "Fiesta" colour way

It's so pretty that I worked up the ribbing and first 24 rows while enjoying the early evening in the Outdoor Studio.

And so...to bed!  Before I go, I'm linking this with WIP Wednesday over at The Needle and Thread Network.

All for now!

6 comments:

Maggi said...

The prepping is always the part that takes the longest, be it in art or whatever else you're doing. It makes what follows so much easier though, Good luck with the MOB project.

Nice sock too. The last few days have been too hot for knitting here unfortunately and even too humid to be outside for long - like walking into a furnace as you go outside.

elle said...

Those socks would drive me nuts! lol Ah, kitchens. I painted over my wall paper and it turned out pretty good. But the kitchen, like yours, needs more work! Happy Day!

Pam @ Quilting Fun said...

Painting is always so fun! Once the prep is out of the way! Love seeing the clean mark free walls emerge. Have fun.

Laurel's Stitches said...

I'm glad we're no longer pulling down wallpaper. I'm afraid to move now; I'd never want that project again!

Your socks look great. The pattern looks complicated; wonderful job!

Thanks for posting to TN&TN.

rtquilter said...

Wow Margaret! You are a regular human dynamo!! I am soo impressed!! That's very cool and will look great when you get finished. Be careful and take care of yourself.

Judy Warner said...

You are so ambitious, Margaret! I love following your renovations every summer. Little by little I am starting to visualize your home. Hope your weather is allowing you to spend some time in your yard too! And, congrats to Canada on the third place finish in the Women's World Cup. Canada has been a great host!