Does anyone have a winter project they would like to brag or complain about? Exchange experiences? Talk about while putting off doing? — Vera Mont

It is complex to explain, but it is precisely in autumn and winter that I feel more motivated to do something. This is weird behaviour according to common sense, supposedly.

Repurposing or redecorating a room? — Vera Mont

I will change the curtains of my bedroom. They are red and black, and now I want them orange or yellow. I would like to repaint my bedroom as well. It is just white and maybe another colour would be better to my emotions. I would like to paint in dark blue or grease.

Learning Mandarin, or the bassoon, origami or advanced physics? — Vera Mont

Keep reading more books in English, rather than translated into my language. I think this would have a good impact on my knowledge development. I always read literature, but I guess it is time to read more about philosophy or linguistics.

They are red and black, and now I want them orange or yellow. — javi2541997

That is an excellent choice! Especially if the fabric is not to heavy, so that light comes through it, you have an illusion of sunshine, which lifts one's mood on a gloomy winter morning. Could be repeated in the bed covering or cushions. Dark blue walls can be quite restful, but I suggest you relieve it with some brightly coloured pictures or fabric wall-hangings. Sounds like a pleasant room for reading Bill Bryson.

It is complex to explain, but it is precisely in autumn and winter that I feel more motivated to do something. This is weird behaviour according to common sense, supposedly. — javi2541997

Not at all. I never seem to start anything in summer: summer chores in garden, yard and kitchen are always urgent. In fall, when there is no produce to harvest and preserve, no firewood to stack or weeds to chop down, I can think longer term and plan a bigger project.

Dark blue walls can be quite restful, but I suggest you relieve it with some brightly coloured pictures or fabric wall-hangings. — Vera Mont

I wish I could relieve it with pictures or fabric wall-hangings, but the walls of my bedroom were painted by gotelé - in English, it is said 'popcorn ceiling' -. acoustic ceiling
It was a common practice in Spain back in the 1990s, and it is very difficult to get rid of this. Well, it is actually possible, but I have to tear the walls down, and colour them again. I am not in the mood to do all of this because it is very messy, but my parents and I have agreed to do it one day in the house, and I promised to stay and take over the project alone with the painters... Whenever I wanted to put some stuff on the walls, it ended up falling down because they didn’t hang on too well. Some folks say this is because my bedroom cross a beam, but I guess it is gotelé's fault...

I wish I could relieve it with pictures or fabric wall-hangings, — javi2541997

Have you tried sticky putty? Once you have a new coat of paint on, that might stick - maybe just for posters or unframed prints, or a panel of fabric that doesn't weigh too much?
Of course, there is also the option of extending the curtain beyond the sides of the window with a longer rod. Or putting another curtain over the head of the bed. That would cover some wall surface with a cheerful pattern. (I like yellow/green/blue for curtains.)

Yes, I tried to use sticky putty too. I still have some in my house, but there is another issue. The weather in Madrid is very hot in summer, and it makes the sticky putty to melt down. So, my posters and stuff end up falling down as well. I decided not to put anything on my walls, but it is obvious that they need another colour, because 'pearl grey paint' doesn't fit my mood. I want something related to autumn or winter, like dark blue or magenta.

(I like yellow/green/blue for curtains.) — Vera Mont

I agree, those are good colours for curtains. I would go for orange too.

I would go for orange too. — javi2541997

Then you'll have to be careful with the choice of blue for the walls, so they don't cancel each other. I'd go to a darker shade, edging into aquamarine.
Too bad about sticking things to the wall. Mine are covered with photos and paintings and plaques on every wall where there isn't a bookshelf (I have to keep patching the nail holes when I move them around). Of course, you can do quite a lot with a shelf-unit - say bamboo, wicker or ironwork, maybe painted orange - to brighten the mood of a room.

Do picture nails not work on popcorn stone walls? There is probably always a work around for attaching something to a wall. Though maybe filling the walls with holes is not an option.

I've got giant tapestries of Hasui Kawase prints on my walls. Wonder how kitsch this is for someone who has a more sophisticated sense of decor. They aren't hung very professionally. I'd like to cycle them out with something new.



This big one probably not Kawase though.

Then you'll have to be careful with the choice of blue for the walls, so they don't cancel each other. I'd go to a darker shade, edging into aquamarine. — Vera Mont

True. I didn't realise that they cancelled each other. Thanks for the recommendations. If you do not mind, I will keep posting here my advances on the scenery of my bedroom. I am interested in 'interior design' but I am lost regarding this topic. I think it is very important to have a bedroom which accompanies your mood. What I am going to do quickly is buy new curtains. But it is important to buy transparent curtains, not opaques. I mean, the ones that, when the sunlight hits, reflects the shine - or spectrum - of the colour in the room. This is why my bedroom is red in the afternoon, but now I am tired of this colour, and I am looking for dark blue, as I said.

It is not impossible to attach stuff to popcorn stone walls, but the problem is that they do not attach accurately. For example, when I use pins, they end up broken because that bloody relieve makes them bend over. I tried sticky putty too, but as I said, I live in a zone where summers are very hot, so they end up falling down...

For example, when I use pins, they end up broken because that bloody relieve makes them bend over. — javi2541997

The physics of popcorn walls in Spain sounds like it requires a post doc analysis.

I didn't realise that they cancelled each other. — javi2541997

Look at pairs of paint chips and see which combination is most pleasing to your eye.
It sounds like a room that will turn out very pleasant. I'd be very interested to hear about its progress. Architecture and interior design are my "alternate reality" - I've lived in and altered so many spaces, I dream about them.

The physics of popcorn walls in Spain sounds like it requires a post doc analysis. — Nils Loc

It gets worse. If they ever decide to scrape it off, they may have to take special precautions, because many of those walls were made with asbestos. Might be safer to keep covering it with paint.
For hanging things straight and true, the best option might be a picture rail: a heavy wooden molding at the join of walls and ceiling, or all the way across a wall lower down, screwed on securely. That will hold regular picture hangers and small lights, if desired. Failing that, individual curtain rods. It all depends on the original construction method.

I've got giant tapestries of Hasui Kawase prints on my walls. Wonder how kitsch this is for someone who has a more sophisticated sense of decor. — Nils Loc

I quite like them. But they would benefit from more precise horizontality.

Does anyone have a winter project they would like to brag or complain about? — Vera Mont

We don't really have a cold season down here, it is more of a dust and mud type of thing. And the temperature rarely gets too low that you need more than a sweater or a light jacket .
The list I have is too big to mention all of it, I will just list the larger ones.

Finish building fence.
Paint roof and rest of outside walls
Replace ceiling in main bedroom.
Finish tiling and plumbing in new bathroom

Some of these were started before the covid lock-down and could not be finished, then last year I had an accident and have not completely recovered still. There are about another dozen things on the list, but money and time will keep them from being done before next year.

I'm sorry to hear about your setbacks. Money's always a major obstacle, isn't it?
Maybe you're up to some less physically demanding tasks this year. Tiling isn't too hard... just ridiculously difficult sometimes. Painting a roof sounds like a bigger job than I'd ever take on! I can just about manage three rungs of the ladder to wash the top windows.

Finish building fence.
Paint roof and rest of outside walls
Replace ceiling in main bedroom.
Finish tiling and plumbing in new bathroom — Sir2u

I feel so unaccomplished reading this. I've always wanted to build a whole house,

I will change the curtains of my bedroom. They are red and black, and now I want them orange or yellow. I would like to repaint my bedroom as well. It is just white and maybe another colour would be better to my emotions. I would like to paint in dark blue or grease. — javi2541997

Funny, we seem to have the same location of project -- the bedroom. I work a lot these days, so I no longer turn on the lights in my bedroom when I get home because my mind wants to be away from the lights and I just want to cocoon in the dimmed chambre. So I started looking at stained glass. Something warm, but artsy. Yes, I ache for art pieces. Sadly, I do not (these days) yearn for nature or the wild -- rather, I desire something that's built, by hands.

So I started looking at stained glass. — L'éléphant

Making it? That's a terrific craft to learn. But no, not if you work from dawn to dusk; it's too time-consuming. Might be able to find some nice windows at a salvaged building supply place....

The physics of popcorn walls in Spain sounds like it requires a post doc analysis. — Nils Loc

:lol:

It sounds like a room that will turn out very pleasant. I'd be very interested to hear about its progress. — Vera Mont

That's my main project. My bedroom is the place where I spend a lot of hours reading books, and I want to make it a pleasant place to be. I will be posting more comments in this thread, and let's see how it progresses on.

So I started looking at stained glass. Something warm, but artsy. — L'éléphant

Good choice! I have stained-glass in the living room. Basically, my parents put it just to prevent the savage heat of summer days, and it works pretty well, because the sunlight doesn't go through the living room.

I just want to cocoon in the dimmed chambre. — L'éléphant

Dimmed chamber! Good point. I couldn't find the exact word yesterday. That's what I am looking for in my bedroom. A dimmed atmosphere, I don't like 'vivid' colours.

I feel so unaccomplished reading this. I've always wanted to build a whole house, — L'éléphant

I have designed and built three, mostly with just help for the heavy or excessive time consuming stuff that I could not get done inside the time frame by myself.

The house I have now was originally a wooden framed building that I built. I renovated it by changing the framework to metal. I was lucky that I did because we had a bad earthquake,7.2, and it came down from its original 2 meters in the air to sitting on the ground on 2 sides. I was able to lift back to one meter and all of the damage it received was in the siding panels and a couple of minor bends in the frame.

I'm sorry to hear about your setbacks. Money's always a major obstacle, isn't it?
Maybe you're up to some less physically demanding tasks this year. Tiling isn't too hard... just ridiculously difficult sometimes. Painting a roof sounds like a bigger job than I'd ever take on! I can just about manage three rungs of the ladder to wash the top windows. — Vera Mont

Thank you. I am just short of 70, if I leave things much longer I will not want to do the the work at all. I plan on retiring in the next couple of years and need to spend the money to do the work while I still have some coming in.

Been there! We had a small home business after retirement, and while that brought in some revenue, we made the big improvements - like solar panels and heat exchanger - that make us more independent. The Bubble is quite snug now... but it does need maintenance and minor repairs that get harder every year.

I have designed and built three, mostly with just help for the heavy or excessive time consuming stuff that I could not get done inside the time frame by myself. — Sir2u

Impressive!

Good choice! I have stained-glass in the living room. Basically, my parents put it just to prevent the savage heat of summer days, and it works pretty well, because the sunlight doesn't go through the living room. — javi2541997

Yeah, that's the effect I'm after, and of course the beauty of colors.

I have a few panel installed, started mostly as backup because we had a lot of outages and I was working online from home. But I put a few more up and now I can run the refrigerator which is the biggest part of the bill. I also have a 12volt light system so I always have light.

I am hoping to have all of the major work done in the next year or so, that will leave me with just maintenance and damage costs for the future. Fingers crossed on that one. :lol:

There's no smilie for that. I'm shocked and appalled! All the same, I'm rooting for you.

Thanks

I will finish up this app that I'm making for myself.
It'll allow me to set up periodic notifications to myself. I'lll use that for spaced repetition, helping me expand my vocabulary and learn the names of all these damn philosophers and movements my curiosity has entrapped me in :lol:

Quite an undertaking! I never quite mastered the list of 19th century novelists when I was younger: after Turgenev, when I input another one, a previous one fell out. (Happily, Trollope made it) At my current age, when I learn a new name, some random datum falls out and I spend half an hour searching for the flashlight I put down five minutes before or forget to turn off the stove under the beans until I smell them burning.

Two small projects done today:
I sealed the front door. Have to do it every winter, because both the outer and inner door fit poorly into the frame. We meant to replace it some time ago, but no standard door will fit, and it's too big a job to replace the whole frame.
And I cleaned and defrosted the chest freezer. That has to wait for cold weather so I can put the bins of contents on the back porch. The damn thing is always full! It's a job I absolutely hate, but I do enjoy the extra space without 2" of frost buildup on the walls and being able to find things again.

@Vera Mont

Update on the change and decoration of my bedroom.

I finally got the new curtains. My mother helped me in the process of finding them, and it turns out that the colours are different from what we thought in the first place. We made a big effort to find blue or dark blue curtains, but I didn't like the ones that I saw. Then, my mother and I saw a beautiful pair of green apple curtains. I must admit that I wasn't very satisfied with the colour of the curtains, but they have what I was looking for: They are transparent, and the sunlight rays are reflected. So, a good choice. I took a picture. I hope they can be well seen in the photo.

I do like those; very delicate and sheer. Bright mornings will be like a cool forest glade; gloomy ones, like a melancholy reflection. That would work very well with a darkish blue wall - it's not bad, next to that bright blue, but that shade would be way too much for a whole room. Of course you could go deep burnt orange for the wall colour and that would be reminiscent of sunset.

Of course you could go deep burnt orange for the wall colour and that would be reminiscent of sunset. — Vera Mont

Good idea, I will keep it in mind. But, before starting to buy paint, I have to remove all the 'popcorn ceiling', and the mess this causes, as we debated with @Nils Loc. So, I started to think of a better idea: keep the 'acoustic ceiling' and painting it with an intense orange colour.

That would save time, effort, money and a possible health risk, depending on the age of the building. Anything before 1977-80 is likely to contain asbestos.