the projects that took way more time than it should have

This post is about two projects that we thought could be whipped up over a weekend.

Spoiler alert: They took almost a month.

It starts back on Memorial Weekend, when we were visiting our friends in Minneapolis. Mike's sister sent us a picture of an outdoor bench going for $5 at an estate sale. Did we want it? Heck yeah! We envisioned using it as part of our landscaping.

It's a lovely teak bench that just needed some cleaning up and paint to pop (it really blends with the brick). So, we decided to paint it. We also wanted to refinish the patio table that the previous owners left behind. Seemed like simple projects.

For the table, we decided to use our Kilz Primer and our leftover trim paint, since it'll be in the covered patio. The bench would specifically get outdoor paint, since it'll get full exposure to the elements. Off we went to the hardware store, blissfully skipping because we knew our DIY dreams were about to come true.

...

See, there's a funny thing about painting outdoors. You don't just have your schedule to contend with, you have the H word. Humidity. I'd like to take a moment and apologize to everyone around us, because I think this stormy June is our fault. It pretty much started the moment we set out to paint the table and bench. Our bad. Anyway, you need to be careful about humidity levels when you paint, because the moisture in the air will cause the ingredients to evaporate at different rates, which can cause bubbling and other woes.

We decided to paint the bench rails green and the wood white. With a can of Rustoleum and a humidity check (look on the can for workable levels, then check the weather report), I set to work.

This was definitely the easiest part of the process and took a few coats.

The next step was painting the wood. I enjoy painting, but this quickly became tedious due to working around the iron rails and in-between the boards. We used Rustoleum's Painter's Touch Ultra Cover (not spray), since it's supposed to handle outdoor conditions. This is where we started running into humidity and schedule issues. The first night, I just painted the wide flat spots, then had to wait a couple of nights before I could get into the tiny areas with my tiny brush, because of Humidity. And torrential thunderstorms. The VOC rating in the paint was above the low level and the can specifically said to use outdoors or in a fresh-air, well-ventilated. Considering we were hitting the 90s in between nasty storms, we weren't going to open the windows and paint inside. Plus, that would let in the humidity and defeat the whole bloody point.

BUT. We could do that with the table.

 See, we took the leftover green paint from the bench rails and sprayed the flat sides of the table top.

By the way, even if you're outside, I recommend using a ventilator while spraying. Right after this shot I grabbed ours, because the fumes were nasty and I like my lungs and brain cells.

Once the spraying portion was done, we cleared space in the dining room and brought the table inside, since we'd be using low VOC primer and paint.

Yep, that's the bench hanging out with one coat on. We brought it in during the storms, since it was still curing.

I do wonder what any snooping neighbors must think, since all they must see is chaos through our windows. The table painting, at least, was a 3-night project with priming and two coats of paint. We probably could've done it within 36 hours on a weekend, but this was a week night project.

The roller made things go on fast and smooth.

The hardest part was getting the table through doorways.

Now it's complete!

Tonight, now that our Humidity was back to a workable level, I set up a work space in the patio. Laptop, bluetooth speakers, Netflix, and some ginger ale is all I need. Is that asking for much?

Check out our new swing and pad!

Things went much faster this time. I'll still need to do another coat (and hope the weather cooperates), but I think this will give you a good idea of the finished piece! It'll look nice against the brick out front.