I was just reading about the chalk paint, love the look of it. We watch Salvage Dawgs on tv, they use it a lot and have a few pages dedicated to it on their website. l picked up a flea market style magazine and so many of the stuff in it were done with the chalk paint.
http://www.blackdogsalvage.com/

Here is a link that might be useful: chalk paint

Young lady, you have Spring Fever! Enjoy it.

My Spring Fever is striking tomorrow. A helper is coming tomorrow to wash the living room walls and woodwork. Next Tuesday I'm painting the room "Key Lime Pie," a soft sagey-green.

The ceiling has already been painted; the old baseboards have been removed.

I've delayed painting and furnishing the Living/TV room because we have to replace the front window. I want a smaller window; I need a smaller window; I will have a smaller window - or none at all. DH thinks we should replace the window with one just like it.

Nope.

An area that is 17 ft. long does not need a 9 ft. wide window. It must be smaller to enable me to hang the blind with the proper over-hang on each end and still have room for my much-used writing desk to fit between the window and the door, the only possible place to put it.

Anyway, I delayed painting the room, waiting for the window I want. I've decided to go ahead, paint the room, install the hickory baseboards, and convince the carpenter to build the coat closet before doing the window.

By the time spring comes DH should have come around to my thinking; I'm not backing down on this one. When the window is replaced with a more narrow one, I can easily retouch - or repaint - that wall, trim the new window with hickory, and hang the beautiful blind that has been patiently waiting in the basement.

When the real spring hits, I am getting small scale seating, end tables, a small vintage buffet with a wall hung TV over it, and two bookcases.

A real parlour...I can see it now in all its sage glory!

Of course, there's still the original hardwood floor to deal with, and the built-ins around the south window, and the narrowing of the entryway to the kichen, and... and... and... but I'll have made a start.

Hey, I'd say you got the worse case of it Caroline. You go girl! Hate to say how long (years) I've had to wait on improvements. Most of the time because of the money, but many times because I can't find a contractor to help me and "look outside the box". They have their way of doing things and it's difficult to change their minds.

I was just thinking to myself, every time I decide to paint I think "green". Guess I just like the looks of the old cupboards and such painted what I call "Depression Era green". I find alot of old pieces with that color. Now if only I had the talent and patience for hanging shelves - drives me nuts. Oh I could probably do it, but it would be a mess; so I'm going to call a contractor who sometimes does small jobs for me. I think he feels sorry for me. lol

I've always wondered what was meant by "chalk paint". They talk alot about that on the Home Decorating forum. Thanks for the link raven.

I love to paint! I get started and can't stop. DH says I have so many layers of paint on my walls, one day the sheet rock is going to fall off! LOL

Hey Cheryl, I could keep you happy for weeks. Lots of rooms to paint here. I'd treat you like a queen. LOL

Nice! I like doing stuff like that.

Caroline, you are a better woman than I! I have never
washed a wall before painting. never! yuck! LOL

I love to paint too. And I'm here to tell you it is addictive. I can't paint just one wall, room, hallway, whatever. Because whatever is right next to it, needs a fresh coat also, and so on and so on.

Painting is such immediate gratification, and is one of the most affordable ways to change the look of something.

Good luck on all your projects.

Isn't it tho? Amazing how fresh things look with a new coat of paint. Well, today I bought a pair of retro looking salt and pepper shakers for the new shelf. Like it's been said, one thing leads to another. :)

My bathroom is the only room in my house that hadn't been painted since I moved in 7 years ago. DS just left today to return home, he was here 2 weeks and painted my bathroom blue for me. It looks so fresh and clean. Previously it was white and it looked like it was painted long ago.

Schoolhouse~I love that name 'Folklore' green, reminds me of a fairy forest color~~

show us a pic.

Ok. Here it is. Decided to try hanging it myself instead of waiting on someone. Just got it up half hour ago, after much cussing and stomping feet. lol For once in my life, I measured well. The shelf has a keyhole hanger and it was a PITA to figure out where to put the screw in the wall because the shelf slides down over the screw head. Well, it was for me anyway.

Nearly had it hung, but the right screw was 1/8" off(!). The shelf wouldn't slide down over it. So I took it out, tried to move it that 1/8". For some reason, Dad's old drill wouldn't stop running and flipped the screw into the air and out of sight. No kidding. I could NOT find that screw and yes I had only bought two. :( I pulled the stove and two cupboards away from the wall but still could not find it.

So back to the hardware store I flew, came home with FOUR new screws and a brand new drill too! The guy at the hardware gave me a tip on how to move the screw over without it falling into the original hole. Use a drill bit to drill a hole beside it. I did that - it worked. Had to noodle it one more time because the shelf was off a hair from being level, enough to bug you, but I got it.

Question. Is there something I can anchor the plates with just in case they decide to roll if I have another stomping fit? Isn't there some type of putty for holding dishes securely? And yes, the pot holders are a little too long for the hooks but I'll change them out later. The shelf is at the right height for reaching across the stove so I don't want to raise it.

You could put a narrow strip of wood tacked down the length of the shelf in front of the plates. That will hold it. I have done that for pictures, and it works pretty good.

That's an idea. Thanks.

Or, you could cut a plate groove in the shelf.

Nice color!

hounds, I came on here to post that the shelf does have a groove in it already. Thanks. The plates seem pretty stable.

It is a nice color isn't it? I painted the pantry cupboard the same day with it, but will have to wait until tomorrow to post a pic as the light isn't good in that small room at night.

Tomorrow I'm going to attempt to hang this paper holder (see pic). Even tho it also has keyhole hangers, it should be much easier because you can lift the lid(s) up and see the holes to mark the position for the screws.

Hi Schoolhouse; that is a lovely shelf, and paper holder!

May I share a trick I learned for hanging items with two, or more, keyhole slots in the back? This will work for wide items like your shelf, or more narrow items like the paper holder.

Let's take your paper holder as a "for example."

Set it on a firm surface and turn it over to expose the keyholes. Using a rigid measuring stick, a 24" level with inch and 1/8" marks is great. Wider item? Get out the longer level.

Measure the distance from the very center of the left keyhole to the very center of the right keyhole. Be as accuate as possible to the nearest 1/8th or 1/16th of an inch.

Let's pretend the measurment is 8 1/4 inches.

Now, using the level, lightly mark the wall where you want the item to hang.

If the tops of the keyholes are 1" below the top of the paper holder, then make a mark 1" below where you want the top of the paper hanger to be.

Taking the level, mark the center of the area the paper holder will cover.

Then measure 4 1/8-inches to the left and to the right of the center. That makes the two marks 8 1/4 inches apart to match the keyholes on the paper hanger.

Double check that the two marks are perfectly level.

Double check again.

Now, drill the little pilot holes, insert the screws, and "Taa-Daa!" ... hang the paper holder.

Measure 17 times, cut or drill once.

caroline, I will copy your helpful tip and save. However, I am terrible when it comes to reading a ruler. Just one of those things that I never learned in grade school and no matter how hard I try it goes right over my head. With the shelf, I did manage to make measurements that worked out except for that darn 1/8" business.

For the paper holder, it was much easier because I could see and access the keyholes on the back of the holder from the front by opening the lids. Like I did for the shelf, I put the holder on the wall, traced a reference line across the top of it onto the wall all the while using a level sitting ontop of the holder. Then I used the pencil to trace inside the small keyholes onto the wall. That showed me right where to place the screws. The hardest part was finding the right size head to fit the keyholes - not going to say how many trips I made to the hardware store until I found the right ones, even with holder in tow. ha