Facelift at last

To the creator of wallpaper:
I really don't like you. It seems like such a good idea, until you have to take the stuff down because you just cannot stand the print any longer. Then, it is an enormously tedious job that makes me think very unkind thoughts...

That said, I'm pleased to report that I am finally removing the last vestiges of wallpaper from my house. The front bathroom was the first to go, immediately after I moved in. Later, the master bathroom got stripped. A few years ago, I ripped out the wallpaper in the foyer. Thankfully, these were small areas. (That's about the only time I've been thankful for how small those areas were!)

Knowing how tedious even those little areas were, I've put off the kitchen long past when I wanted to change the look. Once I got started, it took even longer than I'd expected. Apparently the installers wanted to make sure that the heat, condensation, humidity, what-have-you of a kitchen didn't cause the paper to come loose, and so they applied copious quantities of glue. Gallons of the stuff. What a mess! It was applied directly to the drywall, too, so much effort was required to soak and scrape without damaging the wall itself.

Here is what the wallpaper looked like:


Say goodbye:


Now it is a lovely, lightly orange color. Orange? In MY house? Yes, oddly enough, this is the color that Alex and I both decided we liked best. It's called Fall Straw by Behr. I think of a yellow color for straw, but such is not the case in paint. The color has really lightened and opened up the kitchen quite a bit. I'm very pleased with it. And should I get tired of it and want to change it in the future, I can just slap on some paint and have a new look in just a few hours. Unlike the week of scraping it took to get that nasty wallpaper off!

Unfortunately, I'm not quite done. My kitchen is rectangular, with counters, sink, and cabinets on one side, and the stove and fridge on the other side of the walkway. The cabinets side is done, but I still have to pull out the fridge and stove to get the wallpaper back in that area.

*sigh*

At least I have the beautiful other side to look at when I need encouragement to keep scraping and scrubbing and rinsing...

I'll post a picture when everything is put back together again.