Arizona, Mesa - Saturday, January 31, 2015 - Val Vista Villages RV Resort

We have three more valances done – only one more to go.

The dining room window is the widest one we have done so far, the one we have left that goes over the sofa is the same size.  One of the biggest challenges is getting the fixture that holds the privacy screens and blinds back into the brackets.  We have the MCD brand blinds on all of the windows and just love them when they are installed.  The concept is simple: put the bracket in a groove and snap it into place – in reality it’s not that simple J.

 

 

One side of the living area is done also.  Getting to the one on the right was a bit of a challenge.  Greg had to take out the desk which is fastened against the wall so it won’t take off while we are traveling.  Under the desk is a wine cooler which also had to be taken out.

We decided today we were only going to get one finished, doing two a day is just a bit too much.  It takes between two and three hours for each of us per window from start to finish, depending on what size the window is.  Which will figure into about 72 hours of work by the time we are done with all twelve windows.  I don’t have any idea what it would cost to have this many valances professionally done.  Our process is including some things I don’t think we would get with professionals – the window casings are getting vacuumed, the windows are washed, the screens are taken out and given a shower, the privacy screens and blinds are getting a wash and we are washing down the walls before the new valances go back up.

We chose to reuse the frames and padding from the old valances.  A big time consumer is getting all of the staples out to get the old material off – where they used two hundred staples we use about 30 and that is plenty, I’m not sure where they thought that material was going.  We did purchase an electric stapler for around $30 to get through this project.  My antique electric scissors have been a real timesaver cutting the material.  We use the old material as a pattern for the new.  When you see how the professionals do the parts that aren’t going to be seen you have a lot more confidence that you can’t screw this up too bad.

I finally got the Christmas table runner completed, I’m pretty proud of my first quilting project.

 

 

Arizona, Mesa - Thursday, January 29, 2015 - Val Vista Villages RV Resort

BELATED HAPPY BIRTHDAY WISHES TO SON A.J.

We’ve finished our work week and are working on the valances again.  Today we finished the one in the kitchen.

 

 

And the remaining one in the hallway.  From this picture you can see how the grey/beige color scheme in the valances is going to tie in with the tile wall we did behind the TV.  We hope to get the remaining four windows done in the next three days.

I’ve also spent some time on my quilting projects, I’ve finished two more squares that will go into my “sampler” quilt.

 

 

 

I also learned how to put a binding on the table runner I’m making to add to our Christmas decorations for next year.  I have to finish the back side of the binding by hand – that’s tonight’s project while watching television.

 

 

It’s raining again tonight, it rained Tuesday and is supposed to rain through Saturday.  I guess it is supposed to dry out for the Super Bowl but I’m sure the downtown vendors and the Super Bowl Experience folks were hoping for good weather this weekend.  The people we work with who are fulltime Arizona residents can’t believe how many days it has rained this year – I’m telling you, it follows us J.

Just finished reading The Poisonwood Bible, a novel by Barbara Kingsolver.  It’s a story told by the wife and four daughters of a fierce evangelical Baptist who takes his family and mission to the Belgian Congo in 1959.  The book was given to me by daughter, Robyn.  It’s probably more “literary” than what I usually read, but I enjoyed it.  I tend to go for mysteries and what I call “feel good” books, probably with no literary value at all but I read for enjoyment.

Arizona, Mesa - Monday, January 26, 2015 - Val Vista Villages RV Resort

Hope everyone facing the heavy snows and strong winds can stay safe and warm.  Skies here were a little overcast this morning but the temperature got up to 70 so it was a very pleasant day. 

This weekend we managed to get all of the bedroom window valances and one of the hallway valances done.

 

We tested the emergency exit window, we haven’t done that since we purchased the coach.  Good news – it opens wide enough for us to get through.  I admit we didn’t try dropping to the ground from it, maybe next time.

 

 

Now that we have the bedside windows dressed up I’m going to need to redo the decorative pillows on the bed.

 

 

We now have six of the twelve windows done and we haven’t uttered a harsh word during the whole process J.  You really have to like each other to live in these close quarters fulltime and when you decide to work on projects together you really could be in trouble if the relationship were shaky.

We won’t be working on the valances again until Thursday, after our work week is over.  We also need to track down a place to get a measles booster shot, seems there is an epidemic going around in Arizona and we don’t want to participate.