Be Excellent To Each Other

They are both gorgeous!

Ouch! Garden centres be spendy!

Spent the last couple of days taking down an old wardrobe and putting up both a new one and a chest of drawers in its place. Knackering but now it's done I'm pleased with the results. Next task is to fill them up and throw out clothes I don't want or fit into any more.

Gilly, I have just seen this and I would absolutely love that! Thank you!

Keen, well done. I’m similarly just sorting through our wardrobe now, and it feels good when there is a bit more space. Where did you manage to find a wardrobe from, if you don’t mind me asking? I’m looking at getting a new one and so many are out of stock.

I ordered this one from John Lewis. It does come with handles but as I didn't fancy drilling through glass I bought some stick-on ones instead .

Chest of drawers came from Argos.

I hadn’t even considered John Lewis! I just had a look and found one in stock that goes really well with our furniture. Sadly it’s more expensive than all of the rest of our furniture combined so would be cheaper to just start again (don’t worry, environment fans, we won’t be actually doing that)

Good work! It feels so satisfying doesn't it?

Just finished the mist coat. Can't get the spotlights out though despite gentle turning and gentle pulling. I think we are just being too soft, but we don't want to cause any damage.

We've text the electrition who installed them, but don't expect a response on a Sunday. If you have any ideas, let us know.

Even I wouldn't leave something like this.

Those flush-fit downlights are normally on spring clips. If you can get a thin chopstick or similar in either side, you might be able to compress it enough to slip it out

Yeah, try a couple of old bank cards or even a plastic spatula to prise it down.

Or take the roof off/floorboards up above them and push down.

Yeah, that's my guess, I'm just not sure and don't want to cause any damage to the plaster.

Ooh, cards are a good shout!

Can you move them away from the ceiling enough to get some tape around them? Thats what I normally do. Pull them down a centimetre, run the tape around the edge, then push the tape over the light fitting. Use a small roller and a sash brush.

Can't you pop the springs off from inside of you take the bulb out? I thought that was part of the design. Maybe only certain models.

we have similar lights, they are indeed on springs, and if you pull hard enough they come out fine, it really feels like you might be putting too much pressure on, and then they just pop out!

I watched the electrician put them in, and I thought the covers screwed on. I did save one of the boxes, but it looks like it's been thrown away in one of the many clean ups. He's due back out this week anyway, so if he doesn't come back to me, I'll just get him to take them down while he's here.

No, I can't budge them at all.

Thanks for the suggestions guys, really.

I've cleaned up for the night now, but if Ben doesn't get back to us or isn't around tomorrow, I'll have another go.

That’s quite unusual. The springs can be stiff, but I’m surprised you cannot move them at all

The ones the spark put in our downstairs hall nearly broke my thumb - absolutely unnecessarily strong springs. And because whoever cut the hole for the previous fitting used a bin lid as a template, almost impossible to make it stay, for bonus multiplier on risk of a&e visits.

Going back to DBSnappas comment, yeah just mask them up

I'd be tempted to get the blue automotive masking tape for this as some beige bog standard tapes are shite and paint still gets in, especially as you'll be painting above them.

Or frog tape. The bigger problem with most masking tapes is they “really” stick if left in place for a couple of days and are a PITA to remove

Thanks for the suggestions folks.

I'm sure you're all dying to know what happened.

We did hear back off the electrician, who confirmed they do just pull out, goodness only knows what Joan's thought he saw. I'm glad we waited and did it properly though, it will have such a nicer finish.

In other news, we tried to order the kitchen yesterday, the doors and draw fronts are out of stock until June.

In a case of very much not doing it yourself, the water feed for the toilet in my en suite sprang a leak on Friday evening.
I had visions of spending all weekend ruining things then remembered I'd got free household emergency cover with the home insurance so gave them a ring.

Aside from the plumber having a horrendous case of builders arse crack, and being unable to put a mask over his nose it was all sorted within about two and a half hours of me picking up the phone. I'll be more than happy to use Esure again next year.

So Russell has gone into the house today for the first time since we bought it, and the seller has left a wardrobe. We can’t find a wardrobe online, so... win-win?

Well, I could find wardrobes online that didn’t go with anything m, and I didn’t want to spend a huge amount of money on something that didn’t go with any of our stuff, so at least I’m not spending money on ugly wardrobes, but... is there any way to improve these? Can you just buy wardrobe doors? Would that be cost effective? Is there any way of painting/covering this weird material?

Vinyl! Nicky's vinyl covered the whole kitchen again. It looks ok and it's perfect for big flat surfaces like those

Vynal is definitely an option. I'm a bit fan of painting furniture too. I've seen a lot of lovely stuff done with Frenchic paint recently. It looks pricy, but I did our front door using just a tester pot so it goes a long way. When we lived in our last house I painted a sideboard to match the kitchen, that was using Wilkos own furniture paint.

Lots of options, but please show us what you decide to do!

I’d rather paint it matte, but I would be doubtful that anything would stick to that glossy surface.

I’m not sure could make a good job covering them with vinyl because of the strange fake mouldings.

You can just sand it down to key it. I've painted laminated stuff before doing that.

I thought/hoped that, but was worried because this was just so, so, so mirror-shine shiny rather than just plain laminate.

I'm getting real Frasier Crane vibes from those doors.

But free large wardrobe - win! You could get some mirrors but custom sizing might get pricey and you'd have to see if the doors could take the weight.

*whispers* I hate mirrored wardrobes.

Are the sides or inside of the doors the same? If so you could do a tester patch where it can't be seen maybe? Sand, wipe, primer, paint.

I'd just do it with emulsion too, to check that it takes okay before spending on the proper paint.

They aren’t, no. Inside it’s standard white laminate.

I'd think with a fine enough sandpaper you would be alright, but that's just a personal opinion from a novice, so don't pay it too much attention!

@dbsnappa is probably your go to guy for professional advice on this one.

Decoupage? Fabric?

I know the appearance of the wardrobes is niggling, but they look in good condition, so if it was my gaff I'd probably just leave them alone, because I'm only ever awake in my bedroom for about two minutes at a time and I don't really notice the decor. Typical bloke, I know.

Great garden, by the way. We spend a huge amount of our spare time in ours, even if we're just gazing at the clouds. We always feel less stressed when the weather is good enough to sit out there.

Cut to size mirrors are very cheap

I think that might be a bit too ‘craft-y’ for such a large piece of furniture that dominates the room. I might try the paint idea in an inconspicuous area... The problem is... the whole thing is a bit conspicuous!

I did find this in the garage which I LOVE, however.

It’s a bit of a shame but it looks like the wind-up clock mechanism has seized up from neglect.

That looks a fab project.

Looks like it’s actually an old alarm clock!!

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Original-ret ... 890.l49292

If I could find one of those clocks for an affordable price I’d make that look really fun. I love it.

Edit: one that was affordable and works would be good. £50 for a broken clock? I assume it’s broken as it winds up snd ticks, which seems odd to specify if it worked.

I need Steve from The Repair Shop.

Could you not just change the clock mechanism, rather than the whole clock?

I’ve fitted those silly little battery clock mechanisms to things before. Do you mean that?

I’ve been Googling ‘Nicky’s vinyl’ for twenty minutes utes, to no avail, before realising that’s probably the name of Lady Wookie.

Oops, correct.

That looks awesome! Did you go over too?

The big question, were there any curtain rails?!

Yes, Darwin and I went over for half an hour this afternoon. And there were (some) curtain rails! Some they’ve taken, some they’ve left. I’m going to take the stepladder next time and start pulling all the hooks out of the walls.