At the weekend, as planned, we gutted our bedroom, repainted the walls, the skirting boards and replaced the carpet ready for our new bed to be delivered today.
This action plan had been booked in our diaries as soon as we had committed to buy the new bed.
I did the technical things, such as, smashing the old bed frame up, moved furniture and ripped up the carpets, followed by a tip run. My wife did the painting and, would you believe it, fitted the carpet – know your strengths!
We are planning to refresh 1 room per month as the house has taken a lot of wear and tear over the years. It feels good to have completed 1 room and the next room is easier as there is no carpet to replace, it’s just painting that is required.
It’s tempting to get someone else in to do this work but, as we are capable and have the time, it makes sense to spend our money elsewhere. There are things that we do not have the knowledge to do, such as rebuilding a brick wall in the garden. I’d love to have the skill to do this but it’s not just a brick wall, there is a whole garden resting against it. If I knock the wall down, we’d probably have a mud slide to the back door! Expert advice required I think.
I saw a great advert on YouTube about fixing a retaining wall and it finished with “Give us a call to fix what your husband repaired!” I thought that was funny, but accurate. I have probably done more damage trying to repair stuff than I’d care to own up to – see the picture above, that’s my handy work!
I realise that I can’t know everything or do everything. I have to look at my strengths, recognise my weaknesses and develop skills in a logical way that bridges gaps – that are worth bridging. I don’t want to be a jack of all trades, but some would be helpful!
This year I will have radiators to bleed, tiles to fit, taps to replace and grouting to be refreshed, so all in all there will be some learning going on, regarding my DIY skills. This is my personal challenge for the year and it’ll be fun and, probably frustrating at times, but I will have some satisfaction doing it myself.
What things do you want to achieve this year around the house? Forget work for a minute, pick a job at home, that you can get your teeth into, and have some fun!