Light Bulb Review

Light bulb review. Really? Not something I expected to write about. But. I do like a nice light bulb. And, unfortunately, my favorite bulb is an incandescent. I love GE Reveal light bulbs.

I've seen those hybrid bulbs popping up more often, and have been pretty curious. The color of the light seemed OK in the gym bathroom, but who knows how that would look at home.

Today, I had a chance to try them out. When I was working in the future office, I was reminded that the overhead lights had burned out. So I picked up a two-pack of GE Reveal Hybrid bulbs. Basically, these bulbs are a compact florescent bulb inside of a halogen bulb.

The light is neither as WHITE as the regular CFLs, nor as soft as my beloved Reveal (original) bulbs. I'd say it's actually a little bit yellow. But. Better than a regular CFL.

I know light bulb technology will continue to improve. I just hope they can recreate that light that I love so much!

Office Plaster Saga

Yes, it deserves to be considered a "saga." Because this plaster repair job has been weighing on my mind, overwhelming me, and forcing me to reach beyond my skill set. After consulting the hero next door, I had a plan.

I grabbed what I needed from the basement, and thought "This is blog material- better grab the camera" only to discover my batteries are dead. All of them. Even the batteries from the fridge. Both sets of rechargeables are useless, because the charger cord frayed.

So pardon the quality of the photos- I had to use my computer's built in camera. Side note: my computer's camera takes mirror image photos. To correct this, open the photo in Preview, select the Tools menu, and scroll down to "Flip Horizontal." Tadaa!

I didn't feel like I needed *everything* painting related, because I was just going to paint a bit beyond the repaired area. I didn't even use a drop cloth, or put paper on the floor. I did keep a damp rag handy.

Anyway. First, I washed the whole wall with TSP. That was an improvement right there.

Now I can see that there's really not much left to do. Just sand a bit here, and spread on just a bit more plaster here, and there. Of course, the picture isn't so impressive...

Primed:

None the less, I'm feeling a lot better about my chance at not totally failing this project.

Another side note: Did you know that primer can go bad? This primer is about a year and a half old- maybe closer to two years. We used it in the Dining Room. Anyway, the white primer had what looked like mold on the inside of the paint bucket lid, and globs of RED, CARMEL and BLACK goo. I flicked the big ones back onto the lid, and left the little globs, since I have to go back over the plaster anyway. I figure I'll sand it all off, then.

Guilty Pleasure: Craiglist

I have finally "discovered" the joy of Craigslist. I can't help myself! Almost daily, for a few weeks, I've been browsing the furniture, free, garden and materials sections. I keep thinking I'm going to find that diamond in the rough.

Thanks to Craigslist, I'm well on my way to furnishing the future office. So far, we scored a very simple writing desk for $10 and a 5'6" long, 30" tall bookcase for $25.

Now I'm looking for one more bookcase, a bench or pew, and headboard. After that, a media cabinet/TV stand should wrap it up.

I don't see myself ever wheeling-and-dealing for used mattresses or a second-hand La-Z-Boy. But right now, it's hard to imagine paying full price for a bookcase or table ever again.

Blogger's Guilt

For a while now, I have been feeling some Blogger's Guilt. I love catching up on other folks' house blogs, and and learning from their stories, or stealing inspiration from their pictures. And my blog sits silent, making no contributions to the house blogging community. Shame, shame, shame!

You see, we haven't touched the house in months. Towards the end of the summer, we made significant progress on the yard, but once Fall settled in, and the busy season arrived for work, home improvement came to a grinding halt.

"Why," you ask.

Well, the biggest issue is I cannot get the plaster smooth. You may remember last spring, I started the office/guest room make over. That included removing an unnecessary doorway (thus adding some very valuable wall space). Unfortunately, repairing such a large section of plaster has proved to be beyond my skill set.

Now, I'm working on figuring out how to fix it. Should I just keep adding plaster, working further and further out? Should I hire help? Ugh. What to do...

And of course, we have a party planned in a few weeks, so I now have a deadline. Naturally, I have moved the furniture back into the room, and started using it. Frequently. Ugh.

Sneaking in a project

Have you ever snuck a small organizing/rearranging project when someone wasn't looking? Did you ever do that in someone else's house?

Is that the kind of thing people appreciate? I know one of the people in the home will really appreciate it, and is excited. But no one else knows. Except for you. And you wouldn't tell anybody, right?