Operation Heart of the Home : Painting that dang-tan-Ceiling edition
So it’s hard to tell from these photos but all the trim in our kitchen is tan. I actually had it color matched one time and the closest color I could find to it was True Value’s paint color called Irony. It is ironic…because I hate that dang trim and I have it EVERYWHERE.
And I didn’t even notice the ceilings until we started painting the trim a nice bright white color. Then it popped out at me like a kid in the bushes on Halloween eve…you know…the one that scares you half to death and you thank your lucky stars you didn’t have a weapon in hand because you probably would have beaten them to pulp and gotten sued for attacking a fourteen year old.
So last you saw, we tackled the cabinets. The trim was painted. The cabinets were painted. The ceiling was not.
Since the floors and counters were already covered, we decided to just tackle the ceilings. We used two gallons of Valspar’s Flat Ceiling Paint in Brilliant White.
Since this paint was not low-VOC, I skipped out on this adventure and just popped in to take a few photos here and there.
After he was done with cutting in part of the room, he would use a roller with an extender attached to keep the ‘wet edge’.
It’s hard to tell from a lot of pics…but our ceiling was a tannish-pinkish-dusty color….and the new color was just a smidge grayer than the bright white trim color (which is Valspar’s Semigloss paint in Bright White with no tint added).
This task is not for the faint of heart. First of all, it is like a major shoulder/mindovermatter workout. This was probably the ONLY task during the entire kitchen makeover where he was completely exhausted after doing it. All the others he would be tired but for entirely different reasons (like say, waking up at 6am, going to work, getting home at 7pm, playing with Will for thirty minutes before throwing on work clothes to paint cabinets till midnight and then repeating that routine over and over and over).
He was up in this corner when I walked in the second time and said “I think I wanna cry”. Then I called him a wuss.
No I didn’t. I actually would have if I didn’t think he meant what he said though. He is no fan of painting with a brush and roller and this was pure unadulterated torture for him.
He said that it was worse because this was his first time ever painting a ceiling and he just didn’t know how long it would take and how difficult it was to get a good finish without any drips. Have you noticed that he tends to want to do everything perfectly and it is upsetting to him if he doesn’t meet his own expectations?! Yeah. Total opposite of me.
After a solid nights rest, he woke up the next morning (which happened to be a Friday) to see that he did a pretty darn good job and that one more coat was gonna do the trick – YAY! So the next Saturday he applied the second coat.
And yes, that is one of his ‘work outfits’…I love when he wears it. Something so darn loveable about a man with paint on his jeans.
His number one tip was to not load up the roller too much because then you’ll have drips and uneven paint and it takes longer to roll it all out.
So that’s that. Trim painted – check! Cabinets painted (still needing touching up) – check! Painted ceiling – check!
On deck….taking up the paper and painting the walls.
Oh and just so everyone knows…no, these posts aren’t up-to-date…I’ve fallen behind (what’s new?!) simply due to the fact that some processes take SUPER long (hello cabinets I hate you) and got sick this past week…so I will try to bring you all up to speed….I’m kinda afraid of going into labor and not having you all in on what we’ve accomplished so be prepared for a panty-load of kitchen updates 🙂
Where have you guys been cooking/eating during this ordeal? I don’t know how you managed that being preggers and with a toddler running around wanting snacks! Dying to see the finished project!!
Love that y’all are getting rid of all the tan and brown. I’m SO sick of all the “earthy” colors that come standard in homes as of late. The white brightens the whole room!!
I have a post planned about how we survived kitchenless…it includes a lot of toasting…microwaving…and fresh foods 🙂
xo – kb
How did you guys LIVE while this was going on? Did you eat out a ton?
There should be a metal of honor given to all who spend hours painting ceilings. My neck hurts just thinking about it.
Yessss! I’ve been craving some of your kitchen posts… so bring ’em on!! My hubby is much like Jer in the perfection department. Wish I could catch a bit of that…my famous last words “It’s good enough!” 😉
My sister just started her kitchen reno and they are trying to decide on how much white is enough! They love marble but think granite is more durable… check out the first part of the process: http://createbakecelebrate.blogspot.com/2012/10/create-kitchen-remodel-granite-selection.html
I lOVE all of your molding & that big window. With the white, all the light will make it look amazing!
I love that it’s going to be so bright. My whole house is brown (just about) and it just feels so dark. A nice clean white is perfect, especially in winter when things are so dreary out. Too bad my husband likes all the paneling (!)
Haha…we did eat out more than normal but for the most part we ate at home with a modified meal plan 🙂
xo – kb
PLEASE quit using that cheap VALSPAR paint. I just painted over flat paint in my living room with Sherwin Williams Duration with ONE coat. It is as thick as pancake batter and I waited for a 40% off sale so it was reasonable and worth every penny.
Yes! I was worried that you would go into labor and we wouldn’t get to see the kitchen for months!
wow that’s such a huge change! paint is amazing. go jeremey!!
Oh man, this post empowered me and scared me. I have been contemplating painting our ceilings, which sounds hard/a pain in itself. But these are textured ceilings. Their nasty yellow tan is totally killing the groove of the room but I am scared senseless to paint those puppies!
for the love of god.. you have no idea how excited i get when i see a post starting out with kitchen reno update…just the thought of what might be ahead gets the adrenaline pumping here.. 🙂 as much as i can’t wait to see the finished kitchen, i’m worried what will i have to look forward after that.. oh right the new baby… 🙂 Cool., Jer is doing a great job.. and my neck hurts just seeing what he had to endure painting that humongous ceiling.. it all looks great and i cannot wait to see the cabinets up and all beautiful… btw, you are so pretty preggo. best of luck with your new bundle of joy.. xo Patty
Jeremy is a saint. I don’t mind panting but there is nothing worse than painting a ceiling. I avoid it all costs. Ok now where is this paint on his jeansyou were talking about??? You should see the mess I make when I am painting. I look straight out of the 80’s splatter paint fad.
I am really digging all of the high gloss white. We have a 1910 home that we use as a rental property and we painted some of the trim white and our friends and family acted like we sacrificed one of our children. I know it’s not for everyone but I can’t live in sea (forest?) or wood.
BTW.. I get a lot of flack from my wife for how much I follow you and Sherry.
I feel your trim/ceiling pain. We just bought a house and it felt like someone packed me in a cardboard box! We had a paint crew in from 8-5 one week and they did all the ceilings in the house as well as the dining/living/foyer/kitchen from top to bottom. Throw in three deliveries of our household goods as we moved back from Europe and it was just enough to push me near the edge! 🙂
Oh Em Gee!! Jeremy is my new hero!! I painted the ceiling of ONE bedroom in our house and wanted to scream! My neck, back and arms hurt so bad that I wanted to curl up in a ball and cry, so I know his feeling. I’m a perfectionist too, but I try to tell myself that once it’s all done we won’t notice a tiny little mistake so don’t worry too much. It totally sucks that you can’t help him, but I guess he’s a true provider, wanting to get this done for you and your family, so I admire him for that. Please pass along my thoughts to him and make sure you let him know he’s appreciated, which I know you already do. Hope you’re feeling better, can’t wait to hear more about the kitchen, but can’t wait to hear about the baby even more:)
Painting a ceiling is definitely a literal pain in the neck. When I got my house, all my friends offered to come over and help paint, but mysteriously had other plans when I mentioned the ceilings 😉
Makes a huge difference, though! Great job!
I hope you massaged his neck after! Painting ceilings is brutal! After we did our bathroom reno’s in our first house I told myself I would never do it again. But now we have started another bathroom reno in our current home. Yay for me!
Your kitchen looks so much better already! I love how white brightens everything 🙂
I’m on a kick right now to brighten our home. And currently it’s our hallway that is getting sunshined!
http://the6wolfeden.blogspot.ca/2012/10/project-hallway-part-1.html
haha…as long as you don’t get a kick outta hearing my cervical status, I think it’s alright 🙂
xo – kb
haha…actually we have used all sorts of paint and I think it all comes down to pros and cons. We actually have used thick paint before and HATED it because we are so slow and meticulous that it dries and gets clumpy…or if it is slow-drying, it drips…so I definitely think it’s one of those pick your battles type things. I love it when people have different opinions though…it makes us all special 🙂
xo – kb
Oh man! The progress in the kitchen is amazing! I can’t wait to see what you pick for the wall color, I’ve been so curious about it!
Waow! That’s my favorite color 🙂 It actually also suits on your ceilings too. I am also fed up with my old and out dated cabinets and looking forward to change them.
By the way you guys have shown an amazing kitchen remodeling, nicely done. 🙂
Kaite B, I can see Will so much in the picture of you in your little ballerina costume! It’s darling! And so is he! And so are you!
never in my life have i been so glad to have a really small house. lol that task looks daunting!
you guys are doing a fantastic job! 🙂
i hope someone sees this and wants to film a cooking show in your new kitchen!
xo
I can’t wait until we are all caught up on your progress!!!!! What a transformation it’s going to be! And a new baby to boot! My daughter was due November 7 last year (ended up a c-section on Nov 14)… so I am reliving those final weeks through your posts. We were refinancing our house at the time and were asked to do a number of things before it went through (for example, paint all the siding outside). What a blur it all was! But, it’s in those times of craziness that you accomplish so much. You can do it!!!!!!!! xoxo
We JUST painted our office ceiling last weekend….I feel you on the sore shoulders and neck.
It. Was. Awful.
But the finished product is so worth it!!! Way to go y’all, it’s little changes like that which will make all the difference in the world. Most people would have just said I will live with the kitchen haha!
I am so excited to see the next posts! Your kitchen is going to look amazing! We painted our ceiling in our 2 car garage and that was tort.ure but so worth it in the end.
Ugh. I have been painting our kitchen ceiling this week as well (it was high gloss GRAY. Who does that?) so I feel his (shoulder) pain.
It’s looking so good. I love the white everywhere, especially in a kitchen. It just makes everything seem clean. Are you all going to tackle a new back splash before the baby comes?
OMG! I painted a ceiling once and it was the worst experience ever. You and your boyfriend are my hero. We had ceilings to do in our new house (scraping and painting and I hired it out) because I HATE CEILINGS. I can’t wait to see your progress on the kitchen, I’ve definitely been waiting for this post!!!
PS I know he’s your hubby but since you so sweetly call him your BF and I love that, I think it’s fun to call him that 😉
Seriously can’t even imagine how sore his shoulders and back are after all that! I DETEST painting ceilings!!!!!
Panty load or pantry load? hmmm… lol
The white looks so much better!! I love how fresh and clean it all looks. Hopefully Jeremy’s neck isn’t too sore from that ceiling painting!
Maybe I missed this post somewhere, but what is going on with the back splash? Are you guys leaving that and scraping off all the paint on it afterwards, or is that being replaced as well and thats why it wasn’t covered for the painting process?
Kitchens are always so much work! I totally thought about painting my cabinets and love reading about your process. If anyone wants to check out a tiny Washington DC kitchen renovation check out my blog at http://www.createbakecelebrate.blogspot.com.
What an amazing husband you have! Great job Jeremy and Katie!
Jeremy is awesome! Our ceilings are nowhere near that high, but I recently painted our bedroom ceiling (after painstakingly scraping all the popcorn off, then sanding it) and it took FOUR coats. It was so uneven! And since the ceiling was already super-close to the color I was painting it, I couldn’t tell what I had already done! Luckily I have been doing lots of arm and shoulder work outs, so it wasn’t too painful, but I was tired of spending hours working with little to show for it. I may look into a different paint for the rest of the ceilings.
I’m so glad y’all are doing your reno right now. We are about to start demo on our kitchen, and I’m glad you get to be my guinea pig for what works and what doesn’t. I’m also really looking forward to that post about how you ate! I’m ready to move into the house, but hesitant if it means lean cuisines for a few months.
When are we going to see nursery pics? I know you said you haven’t really done much but you are due so soon! Are you planning on having him in your room for a while until you get his nursery done?
Oh my gosh, I never realized how tan everything was! The white looks great…kudos to your hubby on the job he did. Painting ceilings, especially that high, is the worst!!!
Painting the ceiling is the worst! I repainted all the ceilings in our house and it was torture. Jeremy wins husband of the year! Can’t wait to see more updates.
Why didn’t you spray the ceiling?
A tip for the rest of the house – if you keep your arms below your shoulders it is much easier to paint, and you hurt less the next day. Yes, it means a step ladder, but trust me, it’s so much easier.
Jeremy is doing a great job! (I bet you are glad you are pregnant and getting out of this painting ordeal). One question: I’ve always heard it is better that you paint the ceiling a different color than your crown molding. I know in our house the ceilings that are bright white seem to make the crown molding disappear, and ones with a slightly different shade (maybe cream or a pale blue) really make the crown molding pop. What’s your opinion on that?
The suspense is KILLING me! 1.) Kitchen 2.) Baby
Ready for updates on both 🙂
Mostly because the sprayer uses a lot of paint…like twice what you could normally use…and our sprayer is meant for holding it upright (not on it’s back) so if you tilt it too far, it will not work properly. We made it happen for our office ceiling (because we used the same paint for the molding on the ceiling as the rest of the room) but in this situation, it just would have cost more and been messy to try to use flat and semigloss in the same space.
xo – kb
Yeah! I’ve heard that too! I’ve heard that if you want your molding to pop, then definitely paint the ceiling. We have such high ceilings in this house and soo much molding that I’d rather mine blend in a little more. Both ways could work – just depends on what you are looking for!
xo – kb
We haven’t touched it. Literally. It still looks exactly like a random junk room. We are definitely gonna have him in the room with us for a while (we had Will with us for oh-8 months?) so I don’t feel as rushed this time around…especially with so many other things to do!
xo – kb
We are definitely replacing it. Once a particular tile sponsor came to us and offered us free tile, we made the executive decision that there was not a single good reason not to go ahead with renovating that right now. More on that to come!
xo – kb
haha…no misspellings 🙂
xo – kb
YUP! More on that soon!
xo – kb
LOVE a good kitchen reno. We scraped all our ceilings and mudded/painted them. Its seriously SO difficult to paint a ceiling.
Only pro is you get some sweet muscles.
Great tip Rebecca!
xo – kb
Aww…thanks. I like him 🙂
xo – kb
Man, the suspense is killing me! Every day I check your blog for a big kitchen reveal—I can imagine you’re just as anxious to have your kitchen returned to working order. Your project reminds me of the children’s book, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. Basically, you do one thing which prompts another thing which prompts another thing…hehe. You’re kitchen is going to look so bright and airy, I can’t wait : ]
It looks so much brighter and crisper! Can’t wait to sese the final result!
On another subject, have you started on the nursery yet? I know you’re due date is around the corner and was just curious 🙂
I love the clean white ceilings! I’ve been trying to convince my husband to repaint our house’s ceilings a crisp, clean white!
Nope. Not even a little.
xo – kb
Just so you know, you have the best husband in the world! Jealous!
It looks fantastic, and from what I can tell, this new white kitchen really seems to fit with who your family is. That is just wonderful. A big project before baby — good for you guys. Go big or go home, right?
Fantastic! What sprayer did you use for everything? Came out beautifully smooth
We used the sprayer that is in this post.
xo – kb
OK, I AM IN LOVE,….. WITH YOUR HUNKY HANDY MAN BOYFRIEND. OH, AND YOUR KITCHEN… AND YOUR HOUSE. KEEP POSTING PICTURES OF JER, ER I MEAN YOUR HOUSE, AND I’LL KEEP STALKING , UM VISITING YOUR BLOG 😉
I have to say I questioned your sanity for doing all this with the kitchen being fully serviceable as is, but dern girl, it looks awesome!
This is amazing. What a transformation already. And your husband gets mad props from me for pairing that ceiling in that huge room. Worst job ever.
I’m all caught up and just in time for the arrival of the new bambino! I’m not sure if I should win an award for most dedicated or be committed for being obsessive but in the last couple of weeks, I’ve ready every blog post you’ve written and am so happy to have found you. Thanks for sharing your life with us. I love the projects, stories, humor and love you share. You’re the best!
haha…thanks so much…now you know everything there is 🙂
xo – kb