Window Tinting

When we bought new furniture for the Living Room, we were concerned about the sunlight fading the furniture. We installed shades on some windows in the back of the house to use when the sunset is a little intense, but we aren’t always home to draw the shades to protect from the sun.

Our answer = window tinting! I did research on tinting that is okay to be installed on double-pane glass. Tinting reflects the sunlight and it gets trapped between the double-pane glass and can cause it to crack or break the gas seal and allows moisture to get trapped and you have fog between the glass panels.

Our glass doors in the back became foggy within 3 months of moving in. It use to only happen in the Winter, but then it stayed. And when I contacted the manufacturer, they conveniently wouldn’t return my calls or emails. I received a quote to fix the glass, but I might as well buy new doors. It is on my to-do list in 5 years.

In the meantime, I used window tinting found at Home Depot to put on the doors. It’s awesome! It gives reflection from the outside, so it is harder to see in during the day, and it looks like we have sunglasses on in the house. The house is not as bright, but I have now gotten used to it.

Window on right is not tinted.

We installed the tint on the breakfast nook windows as well, because the sunsets in the Winter come through those windows as well and hit the living room. During the Summer, the sun shifts and it won’t be that much of an impact.

only bottom half is tinted

Windows on right tinted

In the picture comparison above, you can see how the inside of the house disappears with the tint. The bottom picture has the windows on the right completed and you can't see the window sill trim. But you can still see the trim on the left window. As long as the light on the outside is brighter than the inside, you cannot see inside.

Tips I learned while installing that I want to share:

1. Buy the install kit
   It comes with a razor, soap solution bottle, scraper and lint-free towel. They are all useful.
2. Don’t buy the liquid refill
   When the soap solution runs out, put a cap-ful of Johnson’s baby shampoo in bottle and fill with water.
3. Clean window
   Make sure window is extremely clean and if there is painted trim (like there was on our doors) that it is not on the window. Use razor to get excess paint off.
4. Measure window and add a half inch to the measurements on all sides for tint size
   I used graph paper to get efficient use of the film and have less waste. It is all about planning! Sometimes I only added 0.25 inch extra to the window measurements.
5. Mark tint with sharpie and cut
   Make sure your lines are not slanted. One side slanted will not be able to be installed on a straight line window edge. I used a sharpie to mark my lines. You have to work to get it off, but it should be on the excess that you will cut off.
6. Wet tint in sink
   To save on soapy solution, I filled up my sink or tub with water to dip the tint in before separating it from its protective film.
7. Spray window with soap solution
   Overload the window and film with soapy solution. This allows you to move it around freely while lining it up.
8. Use tape on corners to separate film from protective sheet
   A small piece of tape, facing each other become handles to separate the film from its cover.
9. Spray film as you separate it from cover
   To help with static and creasing as you peel away the two films, pull it down some and spray the sticky side with soapy solution. If the window is large, have someone hold the film while you spray it. This makes it less sticky while you install.
10. Work the air bubbles
    Spray the film outside with soapy solution and use the provided squeegee card to work out major bubbles. I kept a regular hand towel ready to get the soapy solution excess. I went back and forth getting the solution out and the air bubbles. I wanted to make crease of the edges so my razor knew where to go.
11. Cut corners with scissors, not razor
    The razor is great and takes time to figure out, but I noticed I had errors if I used it all the way to the corner. It would cut in. So I would start an inch from the top and take the razor down the edge until one inch above the corner and stop. Then I lifted up the corner and cut with a scissor along the crease formed.
12. Look for debris
    There might be debris that gets between the glass and film. If that happens, left up the film, spray it with soapy solution and use your wet finger to wipe it off. Spray the film again and repeat the process of getting the bubbles out.
13. Keep checking it as it dries
    You will think you have it perfect and leave. But go back and check ten minutes later. An edge might pop back up. When I noticed this happen was when my film was not cut exactly right and had overlap on the edge beyond the glass. The slightest sliver over makes a large air bubble.
14. Use ammonia-free cleaner for maintenance.
    Ammonia will break down the film and shorten its life. I suggest using the soapy formula used during install as your new window cleaner. Cap-full of baby shampoo with water.

Once you get the hang of it, it becomes very easy. Plan to buy extra because your first attempt will be a practice run (Even if you don’t think it will.)

We used this tint in the dormer windows upstairs, too. Not only does it block the UV rays, but it is suppose to help with heat transfer. Our ICF walls are awesome, but with so many windows, that is where you lose heat the most. I wouldn’t trade my windows, but even with Low-e glass, the tint should help. I’ll let you know how the Summer goes.

Patching and Painting

We've moved out of the house and there was a lot of work that went into it. I do feel really lucky that I had three months to prepare. I couldn't imagine squeezing it all into 30 days. I would have had long days and taking time off from work. For that I am grateful I had 3 months.

After taking everything off the wall, I had to patch holes. Most holes were just nails, and those are easy. But the holes with anchors scared me. Not all my paints are in flat finish. When you work with non-flat paint, it accentuates imperfections. I’m a perfectionist.

I perfected my technique in patching holes. I did three coats each. I sanded in between coats. I was pretty proud. I even took some water with a rag to wipe the excess dust on the wall. Painting over the dust isn’t pretty. Even in some spots, I took a razor blade to get the raised drywall off the wall. I did that after I already applied the first coat of putty.

The part that I dread is the painting. Touch-up jobs are much harder than doing a whole wall.

I had thrown out my dining room paint the builder left me, so I bought a quart of it. My holes were perfect, but the paint shade was off. I knew it the minute I started rolling. And you can tell where I rolled.

I didn’t get upset as I knew it could change by morning. I woke up, still disappointed.

Dining Room

This meant I’d have to paint the entire room. Good thing the bottom portion is wainscoting! (Note: While packing up the house, on the VERY LAST day, I found the dining room can of paint left by the builder!)

Painting the whole room was not what I wanted to do. This is why it frustrated me. Even when I use the same paint can from the time I painted the original walls, it still doesn’t turn out right. I love painting, but HATE touch up.

The living room walls were frustrating me. They looked fine straight on. The color matched. But when you looked from the side, you could see the roller marks. I kept trying to fix that area until I called it good enough.

Living Room

The week before we moved out, I had a change of heart. I bought a new quart of the living room paint and decided to tackle it one more time. The new paint worked! I guess my old paint had gotten old enough. Thanks goodness it looks better now!

The room I dreaded most was Little JCrew’s room. The bed system was mounted to the wall, when I painted his room, I never removed the 2x4’s so I painted them. This meant I’d need to paint that portion now that it was gone.

Same issue with the boat propellers. Those suckers were mounted to the wall good. But the anchor caused a large hole.

I used the trick about leaving the drywall paper around the hole to create a smooth transition.

Tips say to cut a square because that’s easier, but I didn’t. I just used chalk around the circle and put my scrap drywall up to it to mark the size.

I then scored the sheetrock and started removing chunks.

The boys were helping me at this point. Little JCrew was identifying all the triangles.

At first the paper curled on the ends. That was because it got thinner during the process of removing the chunks. In hindsight, I should have worked to straighten them out, but instead I cut them.

I then tried to use the plaster to get the paper down, but it failed just like it failed when repairing the drywall on the stairwell. So, I used the same solution, of SuperGlue.

Then I used compound and sanded. I repeated those steps. It actually sanded down the sheetrock paper thinner, so that helped smooth the transition.

I waited to paint. It made me so nervous.

However, it wasn’t as bad as I thought. I did multiple coats of paint. Each layer that went on, disguised the drywall job I did.

Luckily, this is the new owner's office and he put a large wall system on that wall. It was really hard to tell unless you were looking for it. Glad it all worked out and all the holes were filled.

The bonus room was my next to biggest fear in regards to holes. The TV was mounted on the wall using large bolts into the stud. But I was able to patch it with no trouble and with new paint, you can't find it!

I learned how to perfect a skill but didn't master the drywall repair. I need more practice, but you won't find me making holes in my wall just for that.

Transplanting Existing Plants to a New Yard

With the building of a new house, we are trying to save money in every corner possible. Of course, we are not trying to cut corners structurally, but there are some things that we can take with us to save on cost. Appliances are where we are saving the most money. Our kitchen appliances and washer and dryer are all coming with us. They are five years old and we love them.

When I moved to Alabama, my parents brought some plants from the home I grew up in in Florida. And some of those plants came from my grandparents' homes in Mississippi. One of those plants was the Cast Iron Plant. My mom calls it Ironwood.

We had it outside the dining room in Florida, and I had it outside my dining room in the last house.

It was the green in between my purple loropetalum. I took the clump at the back of the grouping because it would be less noticeable. They don't like the cold, so this winter killed them down to the ground, but they came back! I just cut down the freezer burned leaves and it shot up new growth.

The other plant that came from Mississippi / Florida, is my Border Grass. It was outside the Master Bedroom.

In the winter, it dies to the ground (in Alabama, not Florida). If you trim the old leaves off, it will send up new growth faster. Keeping the old leaves attached, only makes it harder and longer to come back, but it does.

This plant is easy to make babies from. It shoots off babies everywhere. It's how it fills in gaps so easily. I just dug up the babies that were spreading beyond where I wanted them and potted them.

These babies don't really die after being transplanted. They thrive! However, I think it does help that they are in pots. When I thinned out my border grass two years ago and placed them in another area, they acted hurt and didn't look great the first year. But after the winter, they came back great!

Having them in pots, will encourage them to thicken up in the pot and I will have nice full plants by the time I have a yard to put them in.

The daylilies were another plant I made smaller plants with.

You couldn't even tell I took some.

The daylilies have already started shooting up new leaves where I removed some just two weeks ago. These plants do like to be thinned out and improve the health. Overcrowding can become damaging to the plants.

We were able to make 25 daylilies out of the clumps I dug up!

However, it can be easy to become discouraged. When I transplanted my iris's years ago, I cut them down to 5-6 inch leaves so that the plant can focus on new roots and spend less energy on the long leaves. I dug up all my iris's to take to the new house and did the same cutting technique.

I used the same cutting technique on the daylilies. I didn't capture pictures of them right after they were potted, but they were green! And then they turned brown, quickly.

I didn't cut them at first, but after they turned brown, I started to remove the dead leaves and cut them down just a little. They were starting to look bad.

I cut them down three times, before I was as low as I wanted to go. Sure enough, new green leaves started sprouting up!

They aren't large now, but they will fill those containers up by the time they go dormant for Winter.

It's just enough to keep me encouraged.

They are growing at different rates, but they can all count as having new growth. That's 25 new daylilies for free! When they can be bought at a store for no less than $3.99, I just saved $100! And yes, I do plan to use them all in the new yard. They will be everywhere!

Cast Iron Plants and Iris's aren't cheap. You pay more for very little. However, they expand and fill in over time. Border Grass can be cheap, but dividing my own probably saved me $100 as well.

If you've got the time and space, I would definitely encourage you to use your own plants to make more before buying from a store. I was able to fill in gaps at the old house this way, and now I am going to be able to fill my new yard with transplants! The only thing we'll have to buy are sod, trees and some foundation shrubs. I'm really excited!

And I've already acquired some new plants from old friends thinning out their yards. And the neighborhood I live in is holding a perennial swap in September, and hopefully I can acquire some new-to-me plants.

"To Plant A Garden Is To Have Hope In Tomorrow" - Audrey Hepburn

A Tip for Cutting Fountain Grass

Alright, so before I get into the details of cutting fountain grass, I have a funny story that I was thinking about the whole time I was cutting the grass. My project/yard work time, is my thinking time. It's physical labor that doesn't require much thought, so I tend to let my brain wonder as I work.

As I did my prep work to cut the grass, I forgot to take before pictures. I figured an in-process photo would suffice. I got my camera and took pictures of the grass. Neighbor-boy two houses down was cutting his grass. I put my camera down and started to cut when he turns off his mower and yells to me, "Hey, I can pose for you." He thought I was taking a picture of him! I laughed and said, "No, I'm taking a picture of my grass." My response sounded lame. But he has no idea of my blog and what random things I cover. I went on cutting my grass and he cut his. As I thought about it, it was Sunday, and our neighborhood has rules that you can't mow your yard or do anything that makes a noise disturbance on Sunday's. I like this rule, but many people don't. I like having one day of peace and quiet. So, if he had a guilty conscience, he knew he was breaking a rule and too cool to care. Or he thought I was taking a picture of what he thought was a hot guy mowing his yard.... Neither scenario true, but funny to imagine what he was thinking I was really doing.

Back to the grass. This is my least favorite chore. Laundry is my second least favorite. This grass and I have a hate-hate relationship. Its blades are so tiny and thin, that they cut me EVERY TIME. This time, I made sure to wear long sleeves and gloves, but I wore shorts and my legs were attacked. Next time, I'll wear pants.

I hate cutting these fountain grasses because they make such a mess. I promise I will never have them in another yard. I'm sure my neighbors hate when I cut them because all the strays get blown into their yards. I tried a trick a few years ago and it didn't work. And I was hoping I wouldn't have to cut them this year and just let the new owner deal with them, but I decided to give it another try and be nice.

I attempted to make bundles of the grass. I used duct tape to secure the bundles. I then started cutting.

As I started cutting, the bundles got loose, so I tightened the duct tape so that no lose blades would escape.

This worked! I was able to cut the bundles and lay them aside.

Clean up was the best part. I just shoved the bundles into garbage bags.

Easy and less mess. The mess is considerably less than normal.

Now, the bushes are ready for their new growth and I have less mess. I know the professionals leave no mess behind, but I've never watched them to it to know how they do it, so I came up with my own way.

It makes me like these bushes a little bit more now that I know how to cut them with less mess.

Bring on the Spring! I'm ready for more green!