Operation Redecoration -- Wrap-Up

Everything took longer than expected, especially the paint -- it took FOREVER to dry between coats!! Dad bought Mom back to Dallas about 4:30, and was able to delay getting home until about 5:30. We completely had her fooled, right until she drove up the street and saw all our cars parked out front. At that time I had to meet them in the back driveway. I walked up to the truck, Dad rolled down his window, and Mom took one look at my latex-dotted shirt and said accusingly "What is going on?? You've been painting something!!"

I admitted we were redecorating a room in her house. She bent over double for a second, but quickly recovered so she could grill me further. I explained she couldn't come into the house yet because we weren't quite finished. She needed to leave, and spend about an hour shopping. Dad whisked here away, but they called my cell phone so she could chant "Liar, liar, pants on fire!"

We knew at that point there was no way we could finish everything, but we wanted to pull together enough of the room so we would have something to show her. Some of the work will just have to wait.


Our paint palette.

C, R, B, and D work on damn stripes.

D waits for paint to dry

F removes tape from walls after stripes are finished.

The stripes were finally finished, so we started cleaning up and installing a few details. We a minor crisis hanging the stupid shelf brackets!!! Everything had to come to a grinding halt while we waited on them. Eventually R. secured them, and we were able to hang the curtain rod, which unsuprisingly took longer than any curtain rod I've ever hung in my life. Mom came home while we were working on the curtain, so B. entertained her on the back porch while we moved the furniture into place. By about 7:30 we had finished and were able to show her in.

I think she actually liked it. She's always a little hard to read, but I think she liked it. She didn't jump up and down like the best of the Surprise by Design "victims," but I think she's pleased with it. She said she liked it, several times, but I would feel better if she had started screaming "Oh My God!!!"

I know the curtains were a success, and the linens that matched her china. She thought we had planned far enough in advance to buy the matching items, and laughed when I explained it was pure, dumb close-out luck. The yellow stripes will probably have to grow on her (she isn't a stripe person) but I think when she sees it in daylight she'll appreciate the colors more.


The finished room -- note the perfect (but unhung) clock on the table.

A shot of what the yellow room looks with the green kitchen.

So what didn't we finish?

• Hanging the floor molding


• Hanging the crown molding


• Touching up the paint in a few spots


• Hemming the curtain sheer


• Hanging the pocket door back in place


• The cherry shelf brackets don't sit well -- we need to re-hang them!


• Hang prints and arrange nick-nacks.

It's a minor miracle we finished as much as we did. The stripes on the wall about killed us. I wish I had bought my watercolor pencils -- we had to use a plain pencil instead, and left pencil marks everywhere.

Tomorrow I'm going back to fix the paint, and D. has said he'd come back to finish the molding and install the pocket door. C. will come in next week to re-hang the brackets and hem the sheer. Now we know firsthand why all those decorating shows take two days!

The best part was how thoroughly we fooled Mom. She bought everything hook, line and sinker. She believed Dad really wanted to drive her around from flea market to flea market today, and she believed I was at home sanding my bedroom floor. She even believed my stupid story about why I had blue chambray fabric (Sharon??? Chambray???) and even believed the blue-and-white clock was really for me, even though she felt it was totally out of character.

No, I take it back. The best part was giving a gift like this to Mom. She has spent so much of her time, energy and money helping us make our houses look nice, so it was great to pay back a little of the love and attention she's shown us over the years. Operation Redecorate is a success.