Well that snuck up on me

I don't know what it was but this summer, I had no desire to do a single DIY project that wasn't necessary.  It might've had something to do with last year's big living room remodel.  After refinishing an armoire, a side table and dining room table and a few holiday projects here and there the last thing I wanted to do was strip, sand, paint, drill or anything in that category.

Then all of a sudden those skis on the wall I said last year I was going to strip, get that weird blob off and re-stain before the holidays this year are laughing at me saying "aren't you decorating for Christmas this weekend?

Shitballs.

PLEASE excuse the garage.  The floor needs repainted and the lighting is horrible.  I couldn't open the garage door for light because the neighbor was out there and I had no desire to talk to him especially since I could hear he was in...uh...colon distress a few times.  My main mission was to get rid of this atrocity...

You know, the one that the people I bought it from said was dirt and would wipe right off?  It wasn't, dirt and even a massive clean up didn't help.

I laid out the skis on my project table.

It was time to get the tools of the trade.

I slathered on my natural stripper.

 ...and waited an hour

and used stripping pads to pull off the top layer of glaze.

Thankfully it looked like it was no longer way lighter than the rest of the ski so I was glad.  I didn't mind if it was darker.

I toyed with keeping it dark but decided to do one more layer since it was obvious I wasn't going to get to bare wood.

Once I got the second layer off, I was happy with the results.  A little faded here, a little darker there.  I wiped down the skis and used a wire brush on the crevices.

I sealed them with some Annie Sloan wax and buffed it to a light shine.  (The one on the right has been waxed.)

You can see how much glaze was stripped with this pic of the bottom of one ski compared to the front I just stripped and sealed.

They're curing in the house now but should be ready to be hung over the couch by Saturday.

The only pisser is the wire I wound around them last year had to be cut off, so I know what I'll be doing this weekend.

I really wanted to do some recipe stuff in the kitchen for you guys but the weather was utterly crappy and natural light would've looked Smurfy from the overcast tone of the day.  Same with today.  So that's why I decided to work on projects I put off all summer.

Well that and I'm hosting my first afternoon tea next Friday and I want things to look just so because it could be the last time my friend and I see each other before she moves out of state.

What projects have you been putting off?

====================
Like this post? Don't miss another one...subscribe via email or RSS feed. (Or you can follow me on Facebook )