The Studio Punch List

When it comes to the my studio, I’m starting to feel like I’m trapped in Groundhog Day, repeating the same work day after day after day with only some slight variations and with no end in sight. But after I stopped working last night, I took some time to take inventory of what I still have to do, and I am actually making progress. I’m so ready to be done with this room! There’s still quite a bit to do, but I’m going to make every effort to have this room finished by the end of this month so that I can move on.

When I talk about finishing this room, I’m not including the studio bathroom. That will be a separate project, and I do plan to work on that as soon as the studio is finished. But there’s no way I can get the studio and the bathroom done by the end of this month. That much I now for sure. But I do think it’s possible that I can get the studio finished by the end of the month.

Over the last couple of work days, I’ve been trying to get the rest of the ceiling painted. It’s a much bigger job than I had anticipated, even with the scaffolding. I had to do quite a bit of cleaning and rearranging before I could get started, and I’m still having to work around a lot of big items. So far, I have most of the ceiling painted, with just this strip of blue ceiling on the mural side of the room that still needs to be painted.

Once I get the ceiling finished, painting the rest of the walls will be a breeze. This ceiling is a bear, though. I came *this close* to hiring it out, but I guess I just needed to prove to myself that I could do it.

I also have some trim to finish — baseboards and door casing around two doors. The door to the right of the office area cabinets (which is currently covered up) still needs to be trimmed out, and those areas still need baseboards.

And then the long empty wall has a door that still needs to be trimmed out, and it also needs baseboards.

And then both of those doors need to be painted.

The bases on my two work tables need to be painted. They’re going from this bright green to eggplant.

And then my desk needs a makeover, the black on the paint swatch cabinet needs to be painted white, and my desk chair needs to be reupholstered.

The cabinets in the office corner of the studio are finished for the most part, but there are still some finishing details that need attention. I need to install all of the door knobs and drawer pulls, and install the window shade. I’m still waiting for the window shade to be delivered, and I already know that the company forgot to cut the shade to my custom dimensions. But evidently, they won’t do a replacement order until I receive the first one and verify that it won’t fit. *Sigh*

And of course, I still need to make a decision about what to do with the wall around the windows and the backs of the cubbies. Regardless of that decision, I still need to add lights to the cubbies and finish the electrical stuff. I still have four electrical outlets that need to be installed inside the cabinets.

I also have two outlets that need to be installed on the other side of the room, and then there’s the decorative stuff. I’m still trying to work out in my mind how I want to handle the long, blank wall, but I think my plan is coming together. And then I need to print and frame the landscape design to go on the wall next to my desk.

And finally, I need to make the pendant light to go above my desk. I’ve already gotten started on that. After doing some figuring, I determined that the light will require 1300 tasting spoons (that’s 500 more than the gradient pinwheel artwork required!), so I’ve already cut the handles off of all 1300 wood tasting spoons.

But now every single one of those has to be sanded and shaped so that it’s not obvious that they used to have handles. I’ve only sanded this many so far…

…so that is going to be a very time-consuming project. But quite honestly, I love those types of projects. Maybe I’ll sit outside and sand spoons on Monday during the eclipse. There will be 2 hours and 40 minutes from first contact to last contact. I don’t want to miss it, but I’m also not the kind of person who can just sit still for 2 hours and 40 minutes with nothing to do. 😀

I’m sure there will be some other little projects that I’m not thinking of right now. In fact, I’m sure the floor will need some touchups, and some cabinet doors and drawers will need some readjusting. I’m sure there will be other things.

So here’s the punch list:

  • Finish painting the ceiling and walls;
  • Install and paint baseboards;
  • Install and paint door casings on two doors;
  • Paint two doors;
  • Paint bases on work tables;
  • Paint desk and add two drawers;
  • Paint black parts of paint swatch cabinet white;
  • Finish wiring electrical outlets;
  • Add lights to cubbies;
  • Finish trim on office area cabinets;
  • Install window shade;
  • Reupholster desk chair;
  • Make pendant light;
  • Frame and hang landscape design;
  • Decorate long, blank wall;
  • Clean and touchup paint on floor;
  • Finish adjusting doors and drawers;
  • Install drawer pulls and door knobs.

Each individual thing seems so simple, but seeing the whole list makes me wonder if there’s actually any possible way I can get it done by the end of the month. I’ll give it my best shot, though! I’m so ready to be done with this room and move on!

 

 

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19 Comments

  1. You’re getting closer and closer to being done. Don’t beat yourself up if you miss your goal date by a few days or weeks. Think about how happy you’ll be when it’s done to your standards.

  2. Give yourself some grace—I know it’s an aspirational goal but if you can finish it by mid-May that’s a win!

  3. Give yourself some grace. Look at all you’ve accomplished. If it’s not done by the end of the month, the worst thing will be your disappointment. Go for it. You’ll get done when you get done!

  4. I love when you get to the punch list part of your projects, things move so fast 🙂 Its looking amazing! Getting that ceiling completed and your scaffolding out of the space should free up a lot more room for getting other things done more easily.

  5. You might consider moving a few things that are done but you want to change (black to white on paint swatch cabinet, color of table legs) to the bottom of the list and focus on the essentials – wiring, doors, etc. Whatever order you choose, you’ll get it done and it will be beautiful

  6. I read this on my cell phone and wondered what project you had in mind for those Pumpkin seeds. 😁
    As always, enjoying your journey from afar.

  7. Don’t paint the black cabinet white. It looks good black because it makes the colors pop. Why would you think white? Everything else in the room is pink. Maybe eggplant to match the table legs, but not white. That is absent of color.

    Let’s just hope it isn’t rainy and cloudy on Monday. My son’s neighbor is driving here to see the big event. My son lives in Surprise, Arizona.

    You can get it done, I’m sure.

  8. Take your time and don’t pit so much pressure on yourself it will get done. Somehow I missed your idea for a light using the spoons. Please post again. Have a great weekend.

  9. Don’t beat yourself up. You’ll get there, even if its the first couple weeks of May. Then you can sit back and enjoy it for a couple days before going off to do the bathroom. 😁😁

  10. You made a list and are moving forward, forward, forward. That’s what matters. Ceiling is looking great, and that is probably the most daunting. Your list will get whittled down, one chunk at a time. Big things first, busywork last. Look how far you’ve come already this year, doing all of this yourself. It’s amazing! Keep breathing and it you’ll get through it.

  11. That is a daunting list for most of us, but for you, maybe not so much. But if it goes over a bit, it will still be great, and you have accomplished SO much already. Your idea for the eclipse is perfect. That box will be almost done, or done, and you spent the time well, while enjoying being outside and keeping an eye on such an unusual event. Will Matt hang out with you out there too? Get a snack, and a big ice tea and enjoy a few hours of something so cool.

  12. Looking good! What are your plans when your house is complete? Will you take clients again? You will have a wonderful studio for that work!

  13. You are soooo close! Just looking back at all you have accomplished in this room and how amazing it is going to be when you are all done is inspiring. I am really looking forward to seeing that tasting spoon light!

  14. A gallery wall with large prints of some of your past projects would look amazing on that large wall. Just my thought.