Getting the Red Out

  
Weeks after starting the wallpaper removal project in the dining room, it's finally finished. Yay!
I started taking down the old red wallpaper weeks ago, but finally found a good chunk of time on Sunday to complete the job.  Of course, I had to take time outs to watch the Women's World Cup final. Wow, what a game. We had to celebrate the win by dining out at a Japanese restaurant. Normally, I'd root for the USA, but this was an exception. It was great to see all the cheering crowds in Japan.

Now that the walls are painted a nice soothing grey (same color as the living room), I can relax a lot easier in here. Of course, we'll add some color with our pottery and some art. I might even try something like a modern stencil above the chair rail.

My wallpaper removal technique is improving. At first, I was getting frustrated because the paper was only coming off in tiny bits. By the end, I figure out how to get the paper off in nice big sheets. I talked to several people about the best way to go about removing wallpaper and got a different answer each time. I found that the key was getting the wallpaper completely saturated with a water/wallpaper removal combo. I used something called Chomp, but some say you only need hot water. The process is a two-stepper. First, you have to tear off the patterned paper. Behind that is the white paper backing. Maybe I'll do a post with some more details about the whole process.
The dining room table was a $75 yard sale purchase. It needs to be refinished, but that will have to wait until we complete some other much-needed improvements. Like the yard for starters. The table came with four chairs that are still sitting in the basement. I've got to paint and put new fabric on the seat cushions on those. I've got my work cut out for me.
Here's a shot of the old room. Notice the floors are now darker, too.
So glad I took before shots to remind us of all the hard work we're putting into our first house. I have a TON more wallpaper to take down, so this is only the beginning!
  

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