Mud Room Shelf

Saturday was a day of scraping.  I worked on the arch above one of the recessed areas in the living room.  My shoulder has been taking a beating and sometimes I think I spend as much time with my arm resting in a down position as I do with it above my head scraping.

I almost finished the area above the arch but my shoulder started screaming and rather than injuring it again...I just stopped.  But I did finish it on Sunday.

I wish I could find a before photo.  I know I must have one somewhere.  Before I started this project, the recessed area had wood shelves.  There is a pair of these recessed areas but the shelves were different in each one plus the shelves were not evenly spaced.  It looked bad and was not in keeping with a formal living room.

The shelves were removed and I made new shelf supports out of brick molding that I cut a return cut on each end to continue the profile to the front.  The cabinets will be painted white to match the trim. I will order glass shelves once the painting is complete because storing the glass is just asking for heartbreak. Eventually, this will display my vintage ceramic pottery collection.

At one time the back wall of the shelf area was painted a different color than the wall paint.  I'm leaning towards just having it the same color as the rest of the walls because the pottery is colorful and I don't want it to look too busy.  But who knows....the only detail that I am sure of is that the trim will be white with the doors stained dark like the floors.  Other than that, my color choices change monthly. I'm leaning towards a light sage green for the entire lower level except for the kitchen and mud room which will be white.  The green is a color that is original to the house and era but I have to find the right shade.  Not too dark, not too light, not blue, and not too muted and greyish.  I'll change my accent color in each room, so it has to be a shade that will work with those colors.

I'll move my ladder over to the area above the front living room window.  My goal is three days to finish the area above the window.  Then I will be back to the corner next to the fireplace where the paint is difficult to remove.

On Saturday we were able to cut the shelf supports in the mud room. We used wood we already had in our wood pile.  On Sunday we installed the shelf which was originally the top of the cabinet that we removed.  Before we installed it, R sanded it to remove the grime and even out the surface.

That window is all wrong and not original.  It will be replaced with a 6 over 6 double hung.  This is another of those Andersen windows that are falling apart.  I mean literally falling apart at every seam.

R was having a difficult time visualizing my plan.  This happens.....A LOT!  But after we installed the shelf, he understands what I have in mind.

***This area is very difficult to photograph.