We don't clean under our kitchen sink nearly enough and this picture is proof. Today I set about getting the lower cabinets ready to be painted. I really hadn't planned to do a deep cleaning since I was only painting the front, but realistically I knew this could not be ignored.
You know you are in for it when your kitchen looks like this. But of course everything has to get worse before it gets better when it comes to a deep clean.
MANY hours later, I ended up with an organized outcome. While this was absolutely not fun to do, it had to be done. As for the area under the sink, just about everything is in a tote, so I just pull those out when I am looking for something, rather than dumping and bumbling through it all. I have this thing for Sterilite containers. If I seen a piece at Dollar Tree, I buy it. The product is sturdy and dependable, and even if I don't have an immediate use, I know it will get pressed into service.
Now that this is all clean, I can start painting tomorrow. I am just doing the outer surfaces. Once I get everything else I want to do in the kitchen accomplished, I may have the appetite to paint the guts. But for now, my efforts are being concentrated on the face-lift aspect.
This is no pandemic boredom project. It's a big thing I just couldn't manage to get to when I was dedicating three days a week to swimming. I've had help with TBG and my sister walking Teddy a couple of days per week, but we are now in phase 1 of our return to normal, so they are both working.
Once this area is done, I plan to deal with the doors of the upper cabinets on the other side of the room. Those shelves will also need to be cleaned/organized, which I am dreading. Since I don't expect the town pool to open for a while, I'm going to try to just plow through this and get it done. I'm not looking forward to more days like today!
I think we have all had those big messes when trying to complete a project. Things looked organized where you cleaned.
ReplyDeleteI'd planned out the actual painting part of the project and given hardly any thought to this part. Maybe that's for the best, as it probably would've made me procrastinate!
DeleteThere's no pleasure in cleaning unless it was a mess to start with - that's my excuse, anyway!
ReplyDeleteAnd it's easy to ignore the mess if it isn't in clear view. Out of sight, out of mind!
DeleteUnder the kitchen sink is the worst, ugh. So, a few years ago, I decided to get some of those large peel and stick tiles at Lowes. In less than an hour, I had a nice clean and smooth surface. If anything spills, I just wipe it up. Everything slides so much easier. It worked out so well, we did the same thing under the bathroom sink too! Best of all, the tiles were on sale and it was very inexpensive. No more painting.
ReplyDeleteThat is a fabulous idea. I won't be too good at cutting around the pipes but it would be great on 80% of the areas I can get to. I'll add that to the list!
DeleteYou can do it! Just make a template out of cardboard, the same size as the tile. Before you peel off the backing of the tile, lay your template on top of the tile, mark your holes and cut. We used an exacto knife. It was easy to fit it in since the tile is flexible. Once you get the tile down, just caulk around the pipes...no bugs or vermin can get in. Doesn't have to be perfect...no one will crawl under your sink to check...or maybe they will since it will be so beautiful. lol! You got this! I did the peel and stick in a black and white checked pattern in my laundry room concrete floor. It reminds me of a 50's kitchen.
DeleteWell now that makes sense. I am going to do this!
DeleteWe don't have pandemic boredom projects either, just s*it that needs to get done lol whether there was a pandemic or not. My under sink looks familiar to yours, although I did attack it last month but it gets dirty so bloody fast!
ReplyDeleteSo I am not as quick for the whole stay at home thing to go away. I have maybe five or six more tasks to do in the kitchen. And I swear I'm going to clean under the sink more regularly! It also kinda helps that we're not ready to go back to camp (although they are now open).
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