134 thoughts on “Thank you!”

  4. Was gonna tell you that it looked right, then I saw the thank you…Great job!!!! Even got it back in the box! That was the hardest part for hubby and I…besides sweating bullets when we flipped the power back on that is.

  6. Great job! My kids and I love your Erma Bombeck-like humor! Coming to see you when you come to Pittsburgh!

  8. You are amazing. Love the wall colour -was it the one on the left? Did Joe know you were doing all this?

  10. Women with toolbelts rule 🙂 Way to go! I love to do stuff like that, my DH does the dishes and laundry. We’re funny like that 😉

  11. Great job. Was just at Knitty City in NYC and there was a big poster about your appearance at FIT. I have to work until 5:20–hope there will still be space in the back when i get there—or maybe I will be able to sneak out early

  13. Gorgeous, serene,inspirational…astounding. That is so pretty – I love the matte glow on the floors. What a great job and good friend on Rachel!

  14. Well done! Electricity terrifies me. The last time I had to screw back an electrical socket plate I made my son stand nearby (but not too close) with the mobile phone, ready to call an ambulance in case I got zapped despite wearing gumboots and rubber gloves – which I believe can protect you from electrocution (if you believe hard enough)

  17. Yay, Rachel! Yay, Steph!! The power of blogging…
    Um, how did you post the first time if the power was out?!

  19. Wish I could stay focus on a renovating project to complete it within a year… never mind within a week!! Will we get a picture of a suprise Joe walking into the bedroom?
    could you please tell me your wall colour, I really like it (considering my renovating speed, a blog answer within a year would be just fine).

  20. Good job on it! The Mr. said your house shouldn’t burn down anytime soon either.
    It’s looking good. How are you holding up? Have your muscles revolted yet?

  21. Nice job!! Remember the “rule” – you totally finish a house, get it just right and you have to sell it and move and start all over again. I don’t think I have lasted more than 7 years in any one house!! I’ve painted, put in wall-to-wall carpet, done TONS of demo work – but messin’ with the electricity freaks me out. My hubby stands with one hand in his back pocket when messin’ with that stuff (to avoid a complete circuit??). Joe will be so amazingly happy to see his new bedroom!! What about the Ikai bookcase?? is it toast?

  24. Just me again. I thought how it looks like you are about finished and I remembered what happened to me when I did exactly this when Big Hairy Man went away on business for a week and I decided to surprise him by redecorating the hall, stairs and landing before he got back. I spent the entire week coated in paint, perched on window sills above 20 foot drops and sewing curtains in the wee small hours to get it done. Then, rushing to get the furniture back in before he got home from the airport, I knocked the beautifully painted apple white (!) wall with the table and badly marked the paint. Right where you would notice. And I’d finished the paint and the tins were open, empty and dry in the trash.
    Luckily I’d been given a really good hint by a friend when painting the walls. (This works if you are using water-based emulsion): Load up a paintbrush with paint, as if you were about to use it, then wrap well in cling film (you guys call it Saran wrap?) pop it in a ziplock bag, seal and stash it in the freezer. Keep it there, it only needs 5 minutes partial defrosting, unwrapping and you have a touch-up in exactly the right colour whenever you need it! Especially as you are more likely to bash the walls as you put the bed, tables, cabinets etcetera back in or when perched on a ladder hanging curtains.
    Just thought I’d suggest it. It’s something I’ve used many times since I was told. Maybe everybody but me knew this already?

  28. And just think what your daughters are learning about the power and place of women in the world. You totally rock!

  33. Hooray! Superb work!
    Now you’ll have to share two things with us: Which wall color did you finally choose? (It looks nice!) and you have to tell how excited your husband is when he sees all your work!

  34. I suppose you finished the bohus and a pair of socks in your spare time. Do you sleep? Great work. I bow before you.

  36. You might never touch an electrical outlet again, but then again, you might. Just in case, it’s ever so much easier to get all the wires and the outlet back in the box if you PRE-bend them (the wires)into little accordians. Two pleats should do it, just bends, not kinks. Then, with one smooth push, they go back in, in an orderly fashion, without touching where they oughten’t. I did rehab electrical work professionally for several years in a previous life. By the way, the box with only 3 wires was probably the END of the circuit; the others likely had 3 wires in and 3 out. Nicely done!

  39. You did a beautiful job. I never would attempt electrical work. Too many variables for me! I do a mean wallpaper job, however.
    I have one question. What are the odds that Joe has not followed this renovation step by step just as we have? Hmmm.

  40. Rock on!! It looks lovely! =) You are so brave!! But I knew that already. So now is it time for details on the day in NYC? Are we still invading Central Park for a photo session? I’m starting to freak out (just a litle bit)! It’s a long ways to travel with vague plans. =)

  41. NICE! I love it! This is why I don’t like remodeling and stuff like that. ^_^ Knitting > remodeling.

  42. I would have had no idea, but Jeff the building inspector and others seem to know what they’re talking about. I will save your post against the day when I have to do such a thing myself. You are indeed Superwoman.

  44. I think I understand now. You must be one of those people who gets by on 3 hours of sleep a night, aren’t you? I can’t imagine how else you could possibly get so much done.

  45. My latest post contains a mini-homage to you that could A) make you chuckle or B) make your brain short circuit completely independent of any electricity mishap…

  46. Well all I can say is Joe better have something pretty special for you when he gets home… and I’m not talking the gift shop either!

  47. Can’t wait to hear what Joe thinks about all this!! I’m so excited for you guys…it looks AWESOME!

  48. I know half of how you feel. Our old cat used to piss on the [floor level] phone connection. The first fix cost $400 and the implied criticism of a workman who used double negatives. When it happened again (despite a plastic margarine tub and a handtowel over the connection) I was mourning my need to call (somehow) when a competent friend stared at me a minute and said “Um. Snooze? You go to Radio Shack and talk to the guy at the desk.” $12.95 and ten minute’s work later, the phone worked. An amazing feeling — we could move mountains. (That said, I don’t think I’m pushing my luck. But well done, y’all. Bully.)

  50. Thanks for the second post…now my sleep won’t be troubled by dreams of a Harlot with even curlier hair than before!

  52. I am so proud of you; ya done great.
    I am am deathly afraid of and yet am learning about electicity, the positives and negatives (!), so I don’t crispy critter myself when I start my next new hobby (ham radio).
    It is one of the most empowering things (truly, no pun intended here- really) I have ever done.
    Next year: auto mechanics. Not.

  54. You and Rachel H will remember this for a very long time…well done. I, personally, would have been the one holding the broom handle…

  55. Let there be light whoooohooooo !!! Great job you two and MUCH braver than I am. Thanks for letting us know all is well. Fantastic !!

  56. One spring day about a year ago, I was on my usual 20 minute walk to work and passed by a construction site. Just the usual perplexing “make a hole for no apparent reason” mess, three guys and some yellow big digger things, and fillerinner things. A few steps closer I realized that the three “guys” were anything but. I had the widest grin and a bounce in my step for the rest of the day.
    I feel like that today.

  57. Well, that beats all. I wanna be YOU when I grow up. (no..wait, I’m old enough to be your mom — in my next life, maybe?) I ascared of electricity too, but not as bad as my Aunt Lois (of blessed memory…no no, she died of old age): she believed that you must cover all outlets, and if they weren’t, NEVER walk past them barefoot with wet feet, because you know, electricity just pours continuously out of those little rectangular holes all over the floor…..

  59. Dude – you knit. You can do ANYTHING.
    Don’t ever doubt yourself again. I find that when I have to tackle these types of jobs if I don every handknit item I own that somehow I have more power. A lot more power.

  61. As my grandmammy would say, “You’re ready to hang up your shingle.” Your list of accomplishments now has painter and electrician listed behind knitter, writer, spinner and that all inclusive “Mother” title.

  62. Just think of how fabulous it will be to wake up in that gorgeous new room every day and be proud. That’s a hell of a way to start (and end) every day!

  63. Well, it looks very nice. I don’t know how you managed it in such a short amount of time; you must be totally exhausted! You’ve inspired me to do something about my bathroom, which I hate. Of course, it would be easier if my children were old enough to fix dinner. It was nice of the girls to do that for you. 🙂 Anyway, congratulations on a job well done!

  64. Go Harlot Go!!! I’m totally jazzed that you are doing the wiring and everything. I’d feel like superwoman too if I were you (I generally don’t tackle anything more complicated than paint in the “home upkeep” department). I feel like superwoman that I can keep up on feeding “Leo the Insatiable”–my one-week old who’s giving me a run for my nursing money. he he he
    Today, feeding — tomorrow, maybe drywalling!!!!

  66. I think you need to take a week off when Joe gets back – then he can make the new curtains (drapes) etc.
    Janet MF up in YK

  68. You are simply awesome. And so is Rachael. I can’t believe how much you have done in a week.
    You all are truly superwomen!

  69. Stephanie, it has all been said before, but you seriously rock. I SOOOO want to see photos of Joe’s face as he walks in the door…

  70. Kudos to you and Rachel! You inspired me to get off my duff and go at least clean the bedroom some. I can find the floor now. 🙂
    Your floor look amazing and I love the lamp.

  71. You and Rachel have earned enough karma points that you can do whatever you want for the next decade.
    Thanks for being such great role models.

  72. Well I have been lurking and watching the renovations with awe… but wiring work was so over the top of amazingness that I had to pass commentary.
    So when do we get to see the Harlot’s Guide to Home Repair? I smell a new book….

  73. You may possibly have inspired me to take a week off and redo my bedroom. I won’t have the floors to contend with, so it may be o.k.
    On the other hand, now that I’ve delurked (and commented 3 times in a week), I look an awful lot like a stalker. Especially when I pick the same color for my walls.
    Your room is beautiful. You are awesome.

  74. Wonderful…you are far braver than I’d ever be. I’ve done drywall, roofing, plumbing, septic – but no electricity, thankyouverymuch! Scawwy! Joe is going to be so tickled when he sees all this.

  75. Now I totally feel like I should get off my ass and get all that wallpaper scraped off that I’ve been delaying doing (what a huge mistake that was) for a couple of years now.
    You and Rachel H. both rock hard. I’m proud.

  76. Congratulations. I just want to say how impressed I am about the work you are doing and what you are taking on yourself. It looks really fantastic!

  77. Look out, Debbie Travis — there’s a new decorator in town. Looks great! You’re brave beyond words to tackle the magical electric stuff.

  78. I am so impressed, you have taken on this projected and just keep kicking it until it submits. When I try to do something like this it just keeps growing until it is out of control and unmanageable.
    You have done an awesome job.
    Sorry you couldn’t come to the Peter, Paul and Mary concert with us. It rocked.
    I might be visiting Toronto again in a couple of weeks with my friend Gayle. We want to visit the textile museum again and hit that dye shop that is a couple of blocks away. Maybe we can do lunch or something. I will get back to you if this trip pans out. We might go to Pittsburgh instead.

  79. The only thing better than a finished DYI project is having friends to help you get there. You did a fantastic job this week. A wine and pizza party is definitely in order. See you in Oak Brook, IL!

  80. Great. And when did that paint get on the wall? Last we heard you were doing white trim. You should show a picture in better light, because I’m worried you have painted it a shade I would describe as baby-shit brown. You wouldn’t have done that, would you?

  84. I always read your blog first thing in the morning. It’s a fav. After this week’s blogs, I have to say that you’re a truly amazing person. It would never occur to me to try the things you’ve done this week let alone replace electrical sockets. Wow! Look forward to meeting you when the tour hits Portland, OR. It’s an 8-hour drive from North Idaho but just have to say hello.

  86. Not ceiling, nor trim, nor outlet plug shall keep you from completing!
    I’m encouraged to paint my room now. 🙂 I know, not quite the same level of difficulty.

  88. You two ladies just rock! I can hardly wait to see what Joe looks like when he gets to see the room for the first time. YOU will snap a photo right?
    For now, a hot bath, massage and some wine and choc. to celebrate.
    On another note, Michele in North Idaho…where in North Idaho? I live here (there) too. Wanna ride share to Portland maybe?
    Steph? it’s ok to share my email with Michelle if she sees this and responds?.

  91. LOOKS WONDERFUL!!!!! You are my hero! MY God girl you can do just about anything. See knitters can step outside the box.
    I particularly loved the paint story. One thing I want to know. Did your brother Ian help you in any other way than with suggestions? And I hate painting ceilings. I felt your pain. Been there done that. But the outcome is incredible.
    Great Job!!!

  92. Hey, Steph, you have done an AMAZING amount of work! It looks like you are almost done? Outlet covers aren’t there, yet, are the baseboards done? or do they need another coat? I HATE when things need two coats…way worse than second socks! Oh, yeah, you mentioned that insellation stuff…did you end up triming that, or what does one just have to ignore it?

  94. Yay! This reminds me of when I installed a 2nd internal hard drive in my computer. I was afraid I would do something wrong, or ruin something else by touching it, or electrocute myself and wipe out an expensive piece of machinery. Nah. It was easy as pie, but certain people are invested in us being scared to do stuff on our own.
    Power to the ladies!

  95. Great job. I bow to your sheer perseverance in getting it done in just 5 days. Unless it has meant that the toilet doesn’t work, or the dishes get done in the tub, I’ve never managed to force myself through a home improvement project in a reasonable amount of time.

  96. I love the colours of the walls (I think — can’t wait to see them in better lighting!) I also love how the old lamp looks new and looks like it was custom selected to go in the new room! Nice match/mood/feel.
    Your husband is going to be sooo impressed — let’s hope he doesn’t expect a “big reveal” everytime he goes away from now on! lol!
    (how much longer til he’s home?)

  97. You ROCK. Are you still painting behind your exhausted eyelids the miniute you lie down to sleep? You have earned a mental pat-yourself-on-the-back that you will enjoy for the rest of the days you live in that house! Last thing before you go to bed, and first thing when you wake up, you will remember how hard you worked and what a great job you did. How great to be proud as you head into and come out of your dreams every night.

  100. WTG Stephanie! Looks like you discovered one of Linda’s Rules For Joyful Living: It’s only as hard as you make it. That’s one I use often, like when I fixed my DH2B’s bass guitar last weekend.
    Can’t wait to hear about Joe’s reaction. You should record it.

  101. Sorry I didn’t see this when you were asking, but you’ve got it all back together so that’s okay.
    Normally I’d wirenut the two blacks together, along with a “pigtail” (small length of wire) which I then put on one of the screws. Ditto with the whites. The only time this would really matter is if you’re installing a ground-fault outlet, so you’re fine with what you did.
    If you wanted to “switch” one of the two receptacles in that outlet, here’s a trick: break the little piece of metal connecting the two screws on both sides -in effect you’re isolating the two from each other. Then you can run two wires from a lightswitch to one pair (white & brass) and run your regular power to the other pair. This is handy if you are permanently plugging in a lamp or something that you want to control from a lightswitch instead of fumbling around with the lamp itself each time.
    A downside to the way you did it, instead of pigtailing, is if that particular receptacle goes bad it kills everything downstream from it, because you’ve made it part of the path. If you’d pigtailed then only the dead receptacle would lose power. (Visualize eyelash yarn. You want the receptacle to be hanging off a lash instead of the main yarn, so if it blows up it only burns off that one lash instead of burning the yarn in two.) Clear as mud?
    As far as folding the wires back into the box, LOL. Practice.
    And kudos, you wrapped the wire in a clockwise direction, the same direction you turn the screw. Not everyone figures that out. 🙂

  102. Congrats on the electricity! Let there be light!
    When we finally got the power back on in Mom’s house after Katrina repairs, we all went around just turning things on and off, like those stories you hear about people in Bora-Bora seeing a flashlight for the first time. 🙂
    You should knit yourself — and Rachel H. — Superwoman capes.
    Now on to the fun OCD part … touching up paint errors, making curtains, razoring overpaint off the windows, putting the furniture back in, replacing the outlet covers …
    A Bit Of Been-There Advice … be sure to have enough people to LIFT any furniture and PLACE it in position on the newly finished floor. It is only “dry” in the technical sense of the word. Dry enough to walk on. It is not hard enough to have stuff dragged across it yet.

  103. Geeze, don’t I sound grumpy! Didn’t mean to. Kudos not only on the clockwise wire wrap, but all the work you’ve done in such a short time, especially the awesome floor. You’re indeed an inspiration 🙂
    Can’t wait to read your report on Joe’s reaction. When’s he due home, anyway?
    peace,
    julie

  104. It is amazing how different the same paint looks in two separate photographs. Different camera? Different light? Pinkish in daylight, brown at night? From now on, changing the lighting may be as effective as changing the paint, and easier.
    Congratulations on the electrical work. Dad taught me to do it when I was a kid but I still avoid it.

  105. Stephanie and Rachel H.
    You both ARE superwomen! It looks like it might just pass if Joe were to arrive right now. I am SOOO proud of the two of you! There is NOTHING IN THE WORLD like the feeling you have now. No, not the exhaustion, not the aches, but that fabulous inner glow of satisfied womanhood, a feeling the guys don’t have. You have done “man’s” work, and, not only have you succeeded, you’ve done it extremely well. A triumph for women everywhere. You are great examples for the girls, for all women (and men) who might be reluctant to try such a job. It CAN be done. It feels like nothing else, except perhaps child-birth. You’ve brought something into being that didn’t exist before. I’d bet the mortgage money that you feel like you’re walking on air, when you look at it. AND YOU DID IT!!!

  106. Hey Stephanie,
    It looks fantastic so far! and what’s left is the easy part. Woohoo! Last night I had a dream about your closet door (we’ll leave what that says about me aside…) and I’ve been thinking that a Knitted freeform curtain a la Debbie New would look grand. A close second would be a noren (Japanese two panel curtain for doorways) That would certainly solve the odd size door problem.

  107. Yep, you rock. Feels good, no? I am a journeyman carpenter and my days almost always make me feel like superwoman, too. (‘Course, finishing a pair of socks or gloves makes me feel pretty good, as well.) I missed the post about the switch in time to comment, but get this – both my dad and my boyfriend routinely do those kinds of things WITHOUT SWITCHING OFF THE BREAKER! “Ah, it’s only 110,” they say, as if I were the biggest chicken on the planet. I’m looking forward to seeing your AFTER pictures.

  108. There will be pictures of Joe’s face the moment he sees this stunning transformation, yes? Congrats on not electrocuting yourself — and that wood floor is just gorgeous!

  111. stick with it, you are almost done. Then you can have your own slice of heaven, just the way you want it. *Hugs*

  112. I was already impressed ages ago when I found out you can birth babies AND knit. AND you taught me how to turn a heel. You can do electrical work too?!?
    I now humbly bow at your utter brilliance.

  113. I e-mailed my mom and told her to read your posts from this week, because she likes to improve the house when my dad goes away…heehee…

  114. You are truly a hero! Of the super kind! And an inspiration to us all. My son is moving out May 1 and I am going to sand his floor and replace the outlets so my daughter can move into it and then I am going to do my daughter’s room too! Inspired again by her high harlotness!

  115. Oh your room looks so great!
    The wall colour, the trim, the floor and the light!
    Way to go. You have put the While You Were Out people to shame – you didn’t need a team!
    Just an audience here on your blog.
    Can’t wait to see/hear Joe’s reaction.

  116. Wow! A woman after my own heart! I can SOOO sympathize with you! Last summer I decided to open a yarn shop here in Ontario, Oregon. My husband and I have owned the “oldest house in Ontario” for about 26 years, and when the last renters (a hospice) moved out in June, I decided to do some renovating and then fill it with yarns and fibers. The house was built in 1885, and through the years had been added onto, etc. My sister and I did all the remodeling ourselves. We did the painting (all 2800 Sq. feet!), the flooring (ripped out old carpet, put down wood), the trim (bought and learned to use my own compound miter saw!), the kitchen counter tops (ceramic tile) and even replaced most of the light fixtures. ( After replacing many of the old light fixtures, we did draw the line and call the electricians when we took down one of the old fixtures to find NOT 3 or 4 wires, like it showed in our DIY electrical manual, but no less than 12 wires!! Even our trusty electrician had a time figuring that one out! My sister had had someone tell her there was really no need to turn off the circuit, as long as the light switch was off….HAH! Let me just say that hearing ZZZSSTT!! and seeing sparks arcing from the wires above were enough to make her a believer in always shutting power off at the box!!) As I’m sure you know, nothing in an old house is level or square, so things took much longer than we had planned. Yes, all those DIY things sound pretty easy on the back of the box of whatever it is you’re wanting to do, but actually DOING it is something else altogether. KUDOS to you for sticking it out and doing such a major overhaul. Yes, it will take longer than you think. Yes, there will always be some sort of “monkey wrench” thrown into the mix. Yes, you will be in the middle of it all and say to yourself….”WHAT WAS I THINKING, STARTING SOMETHING LIKE THIS????” BUT…. when all is said and done, you will sit back and look at it and say “I DID IT! I did it all myself and I’m darn proud of it!!!!” Many happy wishes flying your way and just know that when you’ve finally finished you will have accomplished something wonderful!! Besides….how cool is it to really be able to use POWER TOOLS?! Can hardly wait to see the “after” pictures!!

  117. Beautiful, Stephanie!!
    Gorgeous colours, & new Standard Outlets, too. That work really was brave!
    Treat yourself to a spa day – you have well & truely earned it.
    Or maybe just enjoy your new room. 😀

  118. Hi! My boyfriend, who is an electrician, says that your outlet is not up to code. You need to connect the neutrals (the white wires) together by a pigtail which is then connected to a pigtail.

  119. I know you already have it back in the box, but a good safety measure is to wrap electrical tape around the whole outlet (where all the screws are) before you cram it back into the wall. Just once around is good, it secures the wires and keeps anything from touching them. Good Job!!! I love the wall color it looks like my Mocholatte wall in my old house. Peaceful

  120. Oops – also with the outlets that have only 3 wires, the ground should be wrapped around the bounding screw of the back box. 🙂

  122. I have become your newest, biggest fan! I’ve been getting caught up on all your blog enteries as I find the time to tear myself away from my needles. I was reading an excerpt of Knitting Rules in Chapters the other day and I was laughing aloud until this woman gave me a funny look. Your blog enteries are just as funny. I enjoyed the note from The Sweater That Must Not Be Named (and I see why). You have a great sense of humour. I look forward to each day’s entry, and I’m still marvelling that a woman of your calibre is a Canadian treasure.

  123. Oh, it looks beautiful. Joe will be pleased. I hope that you get a chance to fully relax in there soon.

  124. Hey- how did you get my lamp?! Yeah, yeah, I know… us and a million others. But seriously, I am quite impressed with your refurbishing skills. I aspire to such projects some day (have to get rid of a few teenagers first!)

  125. Great job. Really, really great.
    As far as putting it back in the box, I worry about it and my hubby just jams it in. Go figure.
    I can relate to the story of the white paint. When we remodeled (major undertaking NEVER EVER TO BE DONE AGAIN), we went through the same process for out white kitchen cabinets. We wanted white. Period. By the time we left the place, I was foaming at the mouth. The sales guy kept insisting that I would not be happy with white, white cabinets and probably would prefer antique. Duh, No. And didn’t I want the shiny finish. Duh, NO. And what about . . . NO. Just give me what I want.

  126. Wow! That looks great! Congratulations! Refinishing a floor is Very Hard Work.
    We’ve done a lot of renovations on our 80-year-old house, and I have to say that I will no longer agree to paint a ceiling. I’m only 5′ tall myself, and using that damn pole makes me feel like I’m going to tip over backwards.
    I have learned, however, to ask the paint guy for “ceiling white” for everything, including trim. In the states (or at least my local Ben Moore dealer) that works just fine.

  128. WoW! You are so the coolest gal. I am totally impressed. Yesterday at my nearest yarn shop I ran into a lady that whipped out your Knitting Rules and showed me your autograph…I so had a moment! I can’t wait to get my copy too. I am about to start knitting koala bears for my 5 year old son…ahhh how cute eh?

  130. Great job, Stephanie! You’re braver than I for sure.
    How are plans coming for the yarn crawl in NY? Are you still planning to be at the FIT on March 22? I’ve got my train tickets from Boston and I’m ready! I’ve sent both you and Jayme an email offering to collect hats and bring them down from Boston if it would be helpful and haven’t heard from you yet.

  131. So, it’s Monday now, and I’m salivating to see the finished results. Your posts are inspiring, empowering, ennabling. Women Power, Unite!

  133. Please have your camera ready because I want to see the look on Joe’s face when he sees your handiwork. Well done, Steph!

  134. I absolutely luurve everything that you have accomplished in the past few days. It looks incredible!
    The plain door on the wall looked really nice. I am sure that it looks great with the fabric and padding, but it did not need it!

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