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How will you spend your Labor Day weekend?

August 31st, 2018 | 3 min read

By Bill Carlson

Labor Day. Even though we know the day is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers, we have a slight disagreement in our house about how the holiday weekend should be spent. Bill will want to relax, grill something fabulous, watch the first Husker game of the season (Go Big Red!), and enjoy time with the kids. These are all wonderful ways to spend a long weekend. However, Tia will have the itch to labor – not as in give birth, although in about 5 weeks that will be the case – but she will want to slave away on yet another DIY project she has dreamed up in her head. The nesting bug has really hit full force lately, and the to-do list is growing faster than things can get crossed off.

So, as the weekend draws closer, we will see how our family ends up spending it. We want to make sure that no matter which team you would be on, we’ve got a little something for you.

How will you spend your Labor Day weekend?

Team Bill?

Here’s one of the BBQ sauces he makes that everyone seems to love. We sure hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

Tennessee Barbecue Sauce
found in Weber’s Real Grilling by Jamie Purviance

½ cup ketchup
2 T Jack Daniel’s whiskey
1 T steak sauce
1 T dark brown sugar
1 t Worcestershire sauce
¼ t granulated garlic
¼ t kosher salt
¼ t ground black pepper

In a small heavy-bottom saucepan, whisk the sauce ingredients with ½ cup of water. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

DIY painting project

Team Tia?

How about some tips on a little DIY project? If you are ready to paint your outdated oak baseboards and woodwork, then be sure to check this out!

You will need the following materials:
Denatured alcohol
Tack cloths
Canvas back tarp
Fine grit 3M sanding sponge
Vacuum
2” Frog tape
Caulking
1” putty knife
Spackle
Cut bucket (empty gallon bucket)
2” Purdy China Bristle brush
2” Purdy Synthetic brush
BIN Shellac Primer
Benjamin Moore Advance Trim Paint or General Finishes Milk Paint

To get started, move all the furniture to the middle of the room to give yourself plenty of space to work. Be sure to lay out your tarp along the area you will be working. Next, you will want to protect all surfaces you will not be painting. This includes the glass panes and hardware if you are painting windows, as well as the hinges and doorknobs if you are painting doors.

If you plan on painting your walls as well, you may skip this step, otherwise, run tape all along the wall, leaving a nickel’s width gap between the trim and the wall. When pressing the tape down, only focus on the space closest to the trim, as opposed to flattening the whole sticky side of tape to the wall. This will make removal much easier. If you have carpeting, push the carpet down as hard as you can along the trim and secure with 2” tape against the baseboard and tarp.

Clean the woodwork, using denatured alcohol and tack cloth. Now you will want to give a quick buff sand of all the woodwork with the 3M fine grit sanding sponge -- nothing too aggressive, just enough to scratch the surface.

Now it is time to prime. Using a 2” Purdy China Bristle brush, apply BIN Shellac primer evenly over the surface. Be careful not to apply too heavy, which can cause runs in the primer and paint. After the primer is dry, give it another quick buff sand -- again, just enough to barely scratch the surface. You will now want to vacuum up all the dust, and wipe clean with a dry tack cloth.

Next, look carefully for any imperfections in the wood. Now is the time to spackle these areas so that your finished product will be as smooth and flawless as possible. After sparkling has dried, be sure to sand those areas and clean up any dust. You will also want to run a thin layer of caulk along the top of the baseboard and between spaces in the boards. After caulking, carefully remove the tape  -- yes, before we have even painted! At this point, you will re-tape the areas, unless you are feeling confident and want to just use a steady hand while painting. Some people are better than others at this, so it is totally up to you!

We recommend using either General Finishes Milk Paint or Benjamin Moore Advance. Either of these are great choices, but we have found the Milk Paint to provide a more level finish with very minimal brush marks, and an incredibly durable finish. Using a 2” Purdy Synthetic brush, paint your first coat. The paint will take about an hour to dry, so depending on the size of the room you are working in, you may be able to jump right to the next step after you’ve made your way around all the trim.  

Once the first coat is dry, give another quick sand of the surface, vacuum up the dust, and wipe clean with a tack cloth. Now you will paint your second coat. Once that is dry, carefully look it over. Is there complete coverage of the old wood color? Was two coats of paint enough? If not, you guessed it -- quick sand, clean up dust, then paint a third coat!

Finally, you are ready to pull the tape and admire your hard work!

We hope you find the above instructions helpful. If you ever want to ask a question, we would love to help you out! Feel free to call us at 402-932-9764, or find Brush & Roll Painting on Facebook and send us a message. Here’s to hoping no matter how you spend your weekend, it is enjoyed with those you love. Have a fun, safe holiday weekend!

Bill Carlson

Bill is the owner and operator of Brush & Roll Painting.