When I returned to society from the road, I needed furniture. I spent a few weeks searching thrift stores and craigslist for beautiful, antique furniture like the stuff I gave away before I went on the road.
After my struggles giving away nice stuff, I had expected to find plenty of beautiful furniture for free.
What I found was laminate junk. Occasionally I’d see something decent, but it was too expensive.
What a disappointment!
I’d rather do without than buy something I don’t like. But sleeping on the floor and having no other place to sit was getting old so I bought unfinished wood furniture from IKEA. It looked ok and I could paint it myself if I wanted.
What’s the worst that could happen – I might “ruin” my cheap IKEA furniture? Who cares? A month ago I was living in a 6×8 camper. Anything now is an upgrade.
So I assembled, painted, sanded, stained and distressed. I followed directions from videos and blogs. I tried different techniques for layering and staining.
It was challenging. I learned I could do this, if I took my time, followed directions and didn’t worry too much about the results.
It was kind of fun.
Then I started thinking about doing my kitchen and bathroom cabinets. My painter had given me a quote for doing these, but I really didn’t want to spend another $1100.
I did one bathroom cabinet first. It went so well, I did the other bathrooms. Those went well too. Then I tackled the kitchen cabinets. It took an entire week, but turned out better than I expected.
I never thought I could make anything beautiful. I certainly didn’t think I would enjoy doing the work.
But I have.
It was like magic. I changed bland cabinets and furniture into beautiful, unique pieces that I actually like to stare at. I learned how to sand, paint, stain, and refinish. It was a blast.
Before this experience, the only way I knew to have beautiful furniture was to buy it or pay a professional to paint it.
I was incapable of doing it myself.
Not anymore.
Before I met Ellen, my life was gray. She brought color into my world. When she died, the color left with her.
I learned on the road that I couldn’t escape the gray. I had do something to bring color back into my life.
I think the furniture and cabinets came out beautifully. What I discovered going through this process turned out to be far better.
Judge for yourself.
