Paper, Please...

After painting the walls & cabinet
Ewww, no match at all!  Teal is out!
And notice the pinkish tinge to the
countertop?  Yuck!

Hello, Happy Sunday and Welcome to the Farm! I sincerely hope all of you have had a good enough week to make up for mine. Here it is, the middle of June, and we're still raining. Not only raining, but still cold and windy most of the time. This last week we've had several thunder and lightning storms accompanied by that frog drowning rain.   You know, that rain that if a drop hits you you're going to get a concussion?  Seriously? This is totally impinging on my painting the kitchen project! Grrrrrr.  Come on weather, straighten out your act here!  I've got things to do!

Crumpled paper bag pieces
and mod podge cuz I didn't
have glue.

One of those things would have been grocery shopping, but I did it last week.  Thank goodness! On our one good day! Trust me folks, that was a fluke. Pure and simple - it was a fluke.  I was very thankful. Hauling out groceries in the pouring rain is not my idea of fun and I was a very happy camper that I didn't have to wring out all my groceries.  That just might have sent me over the edge.  Although hubby thinks I've already gone over it, he's wrong.  I'm teetering, but I'm still up there.

Just finished putting it on and it's
still wet.

What does this have to do with today's blog, you ask?  EVERYTHING.  And I do mean everything.  The main reason I grocery shop is not to get food.  Oh heck no!!  The reason I grocery shop is to get those nice heavy paper bags that I sack my groceries in.  What would I want food for?  I've got things to do, remember?  And that means working on stuff, not cooking dinner or letting anyone else eat.  Really, people, what do I look like here, a wife or something?  Pffbbbt.  No, I've got my eyes on those brown paper bags that are heavy enough to hold a baby in (Ok, possibly a baby doll, but hey, that's a baby, right?) and lug it around.  Yes, I have plans!

Done with the first part and now
ready to dry overnight.

I've been wanting to try the brown paper bag counter top method for a while now, after seeing so many beautiful pictures on other blogs.  The first one that I saw and to this day is still my very favorite, was done by Susan from Compulsive in Texas. You can see her post right here.  I am not kidding in the least when I tell you that she did the most awesome job I've seen. I totally love it! It's beautifully done and looks so incredibly warm and cozy. I took my direction from her post and did the same process she did. Minus the stain. I wanted it; Mr. Scrappin did not, so we went without. I figured I could compromise on this since he does have to live with it too. And although I went without any kind of stain, I think it will work perfectly for out kitchen.

Polycrylic goes on milky but dries
clear.  Don't worry!

As you know, we've been painting (or trying to) the kitchen and its cabinets to spruce things up a bit.  It's coming along, slowly because of weather, but it is coming along. And I love it so far.  Problem was that those old counter tops just DO NOT match at all. Nor does the tile back splash and counter trim.  Hubby bought this place brand new and back then (in the early 90s) teal was in.  Really in.  I remember doing a quilt for my friend for her wedding in the teal and peach colors and it was incredibly beautiful.  I can even remember having a little bit of those colors in my own house back then.  Fast forward to now...and...NO.  Uh uh, no way Jose', ain't happenin' Lucy!  It has to go.  

This is the polycrylic I used.

Off came the back splash and counter trim (I did break one piece of tile in the corner, darn it) so I could start my project.  I have to admit I was a little nervous as I started this.  After all, covering something up, even if it is ugly, is sort of intimidating.  This is my kitchen, that everyone who comes here will see, and not just a little thing that I can hide if it's ugly. What if it doesn't turn out like I planned. What happens if I don't like it?  I really don't want to have to pull it all back up.  That would totally be a pain in my bazoo.  I took a deep breath; actually, several deep breaths and went to work.  

All finished!  I love it!

After I cleaned the counter top thoroughly, I ripped some paper bags while it was drying. That was the fun part.  Ripping is like cleansing the soul.  There should be a song about it.  I did all kinds of random sizes just because. Then I crumpled the paper pieces up to get some texture from them.  That was hard for me since I don't have a lot of strength in my right arm, but I did it.  Then I dipped the paper in some mod podge and smeared it all over to make sure I got every part of the paper.  You don't want to miss any spots so it stays down! Now, normally, I would have followed Susan's instructions to use Elmer's Glue...1 part glue to 2 parts water, but I didn't have any. And since it was raining and I was still in my pajamas (It was Saturday - don't judge!), I wasn't going anywhere to get any. I will do that on the way home from work Monday. So, for this tiny little counter, mod podge it was. I won't lie, it's messy. But I can do messy since I practically invented it. Hahahaha

Another view of the finished product!

This did take me a bit of time, but it was a relaxing kind of thing.  No hurrying at all. Once I got the counter top all covered, it was time to leave it alone.  Just...leave it alone.  In Susan's instructions, it says to leave it to dry overnight, which is what I did.  It's amazing how it looks when it dries. And it feels good too.  :)  Bonus!  So, this morning I got up and did my first coat of poly acrylic.  I wanted several coats since this is a counter top that is actually used (I know, who'd a thunk it?  Using a counter top in the kitchen?  No way!) quite frequently.  I figure several coats will give me the protection I need. Now, the poly acrylic that I used says that after 24 hours you can use it like you normally would, but I think I'm going to wait a couple of days before I put things back on the counter top.  Just because.  Since there are seven layers of poly, I don't think it will hurt to take extra drying precaution.  I will be doing the back splash to match the counter...just waiting for hubby to bring me the wood.

Aaannnndddd...the other side.

During this process, I sent pictures via text to my sons and daughter.  One son asked if I realized that knives are sharper than paper. Smart aleck!  I have no idea where he gets that attitude from!  Today when I sent him a new picture, he said it looked cool.  He might actually be serious but I can't tell yet.  It could also be that he's on the line with Mr. Scrappin trying to make arrangements for me to have a special stay somewhere.  Only time will tell.

All I know is that this is a fairly easy process, although a little time consuming, but I love the end result.  My kitchen is starting to look warm and comfy, and like someone actually lives here and cares about it.  For a while, at least until I get all the counter tops done, I'll be saying "paper please" at the grocery store.  :)  Who knows, I might even find other things to do with them.