Keeps Gettin' Better

So, here is the pantry after I cleared all the junk out and had prepped the walls for painting. And yes, I know that many of you are sitting there thinking, 'she put plywood on the walls?' Well, in the pantry, yes. This was actually Allen's idea way back. I wasn't too sure of it at first but I guess it was a good idea. I mean, in a pantry you are going to be installing many shelves and attaching various things to the walls. Well, this way you don't have to worry about hitting a stud. The plywood is 1/2" I think, so it is very sturdy and it is easy to tell where the studs are also. Plus, most of the walls will be covered with supplies, boxes etc. on the shelves, so it's not like you are going to see much of the walls anyway. And, it's a pantry! who gives a crap; it looks smooth and it's easy to clean. One more note; that is plywood not OSB. Which is shit. Mashed, hammered shit that will begin to expand on you the first time it gets wet. I hate that stuff.

And here it is with the final coat of paint (I used a kitchen and bath semi-gloss) and the window trimmed out. The only thing I don't like is that, if you look real close, you can see a slight crack where the sheets of plywood butt each other. But! I have a trick for that I will show ya'll later. I did skim some areas of the walls with sheetrock mud. It adheres to plywood just fine and sands real smooth.
Now, I just have shelves to put up over the window and around the other wall and move the freezer etc. back in. Oh! I forgot, I am going to go ahead and install the flooring in here also.
I have picked out some really neat stuff I will show you later.

In other news, Jack installed a sink for me in the basement/ studio. Man, this helps me SO much with my pottery and just everything. A friend gave me the old cast iron sink, the faucet and the countertop, so that was great! We also had the lumber for the legs and framing so the only things we bought were a few fittings for the plumbing that I did not already have.

When Allen and I first did the plumbing in the basement he stubbed out for hot and cold water and the drain line by the washer and dryer 'cause he knew my studio was going to be here at some point. I was really glad he thought of that because it made hooking things up a snap. Just cut off the caps, sweat two fittings on the lines and install the valves. Jack says I did most of the work because I sweated the 2 fittings on, but he really did everything. And I think he did a real good job.
But seriously, if you are ever running any water lines and think there may be the slightest chance you may want to put some other fixture anywhere in the vicinity, go ahead and stub out at least some partial lines. It hardly costs anything for a few inches of pipe, a couple of T's and 2 caps and you will be SO happy if you ever do install the other stuff.
I thought about showing a step by step of how I connected to those water lines but wasn't sure if ya'll would be interested in that.

Now, from some time ago I know a few of ya'll had wondered about my support for the pantry shelves I have installed. Here is a photo of the steel braces that are in the center. I know some people seemed skeptical of my methods but you have to consider the materials. These shelves are a FULL 1" thick and they are old-growth pine. That makes a tremendous amount of difference as compared to the 3/4" sugar pine (new growth) they sell at Lowe's. That stuff will warp and sag all over the place! Plus, the shelves are doweled into the wall. These brackets are 1" wide x 12"x 8" and they are 44 3/4" from the wall supports. I could load these babies up like hell and they ain't goin' nowhere.

So, hopefully I will have more finished pantry photos soon. My Be Prepared Challenge is probably going to go slower than the other peoples, since I'm dealing with new construction not just organizing, but that's okay. I will finish the challenge and be stocked up. Plus, it also involves accruing a decent first-aid kit and similar things, not just food. This is something every home needs. If any of ya'll are participating int he challenge, even a little, please let me know how it's going for you.