From Stormy to Cloudy in a day

It had been years since I updated Firstborn's room

owing mostly to me not wanting to tackle the mess that was in there.

I have cleaned it before when I could not stand it any longer,
but this time it needed something more...

 To be fair, he pulled things out from the wall, and made me space to work  - see the stack of broken skate decks?  Under the bed is probably $1000 worth of Legos...and the closet is stuffed...

 Waaaay too much stuff on the shelves along with an inch or so of dust and lint. Yuck.  

It makes me want to cry just to look at it!

I absolutely hate that half curtain or valance; what is that, exactly?  And the art on the walls was arranged for the way the furniture used to be, so it looks silly now.  Gosh, I had my work cut out for me!

The old color is a dark and stormy blue - the new color is  cloudy grey.  I lost my paint swatches so I can't tell you the exact color names.  I used my pad painter to frame out the walls first.  I patched nail holes first, since I knew I would be hanging things up a little differently.

I used an empty lunch meat container and brush to tackle the corners, an old towel to catch drips, and a bucket of soapy water with a rag to clean baseboards as I went.
I also vacuumed thoroughly before I began.

Coming around the corner to the least favorite wall - all that stuff has to come off the shelves...I try to hang things back up as soon as the wall is dry to the touch, including the outlet and light switch covers.  Somehow that makes me feel like the project is moving along...

 

The furniture could use a touch up, too, but that can wait til summer.  Three hours to paint because I had to clean along the way...that tangle of cords he will have to address...I even hung up a collage using those small framed prints that were already in there, and adding some new ones of just Firstborn.  His new quilt looks nice next to the blue and grey, and a pop of red from the chair keeps the room from being too somber.

One of the things he least wanted:  a whole bunch of "family" pictures in his room.  So, most of the ones from the shelves went into a photo album instead.  I can understand that - he is a young man and craves a space that isn't invaded by three younger siblings...

I know it's hard to tell, but the new color is very different and makes the room much, much lighter.  

It all looks so clean.

$5 got me a navy sheet that matches the new bed skirt
and 30 minutes made it into a pair of curtains...

I replaced his old sparkly bulletin board with a fresh new one.
DONE!
And now I am ready for a day off to recharge before the weekend...