Door #3

It's over a year since I painted the first internal door, and in that time I've only managed one other - the study door that long-time readers may remember was propped up on the landing for several months. No particular reason, except other projects (and life in general) got in the way.

I get the impression Nikki is keen for me to get on with it now. Or get on with something at least. First it was dealing the various bits of bare plaster and damp damage and now that's done, the remaining five doors are coming under scrutiny. Which is fair enough. I feel like I've had quite a long break from "home improvements," especially as we spent what little bit of summer we had tidying up the garden.

A few moments' head-scratching was required to come up with a workspace for this small project, which if I carry on and do each door sequentially I estimate will take about two months. The lounge door was painted in the lounge, before plastering, so clearly that's out of bounds now. I painted the study door in the dining room (wooden floors, a bit of sheeting, simples!) but since then we've bought two new arm-chairs which now occupy the painting space. Only one answer: the conservatory. Using that as a workshop will give me an added incentive to get on with the job, as it won't be long before it starts to get very cold in there. Autumn is, after all, just around the corner.

So I set myself up in there yesterday, took off the dining room door and filled/sanded the first side. It's not in bad condition - there are no cracks in the panels and only a few small gouges in the rest of the frame. Today saw the first coat of undercoat, and I'm always freshly surprised by the difference a single coat of white paint can make to the look of a door. If I stick to the normal schedule this one should be back up just over a week.