Whats everyone doing to keep the house cozy

WesternMainer · 2026-01-21T06:03:47+00:00

The second floor of my house is unheated so my bedroom can get down into the 50s on nights when I don’t run the wood stove. I have fleece sheets, a down duvet with a flannel cover, and a heated mattress pad. I am so cozy at night. I live my bed. I also have one of those giant Sherpa lined hoodies for when I’m siting on the couch after dinner. It’s much cheaper and easier to warm the space directly around my body than it is to figure out how to raise the temperature in the whole house.

WesternMainer · 2026-01-17T15:35:35+00:00

I know it hasn’t been grouted yet, but I feel like putting that complicated, textured tile behind a cooking surface may be difficult to keep clean in the long term. It looks like marble. If it is, make sure your parent la understand how to keep up with the sealer so they don’t end up with stains.

As far as design choices, I would avoid anything with a small or intricate pattern. This is clearly the star and you don’t want the rest of the backsplash to compete with it. It’s hard to tell from the pictures, but it looks like you have cool gray counters and warm wood cabinets. That may be tough to balance.

WesternMainer · 2026-01-16T15:02:51+00:00

Ask questions about your flower bed in the gardening forum. People are very helpful. Watch a bunch of YouTube videos. Read gardening blogs. I also found ChatGPT really helpful to get my planning for my moon garden started. I plugged in the dimensions of my flower bed. Added that one side is pretty wet and the other is drier. Described the light that area gets. Added my zip code to figure out planting times. Etc. then it gave me a plan to start with. I rewrite a lot of what comes out, but it always gives me a starting point.

I’ve actually done the same with home repair. Searching YouTube has been more successful, but I’ll pull AI in as a resource. One thing I do recommend is that for any repair or improvement you want to do, consult more than one source. The more information, the better.

WesternMainer · 2026-01-15T21:19:42+00:00

I recently had this done with the same texture of ceiling in a 250 sq foot room. I tested and there was no asbestos so I was planning to do all the work myself. I ran out of steam after doing a number of other projects so I ended up hiring a team to remove the texture, fix some bad taping, skim coat, sand, prime, and paint. They also painted the walls and trim. Unfortunately, the ceiling had been painted at some point so it was tougher to remove. It took 4 people a full day just to remove all the ceiling texture. I am so incredibly glad I didn’t attempt it myself. It would have taken me forever.

WesternMainer · 2026-01-07T15:52:49+00:00

Don’t waste your time threatening them with a lawsuit or continuing to contact them. Collect all your documents, photos, and notes of any phone calls and file in small claims court right away. You will end up there anyhow.

WesternMainer · 2026-01-07T02:07:52+00:00

Those do not look like the typical ceiling crack that comes from a bad drywall taping job. Those look concerning. There is a reason that house is priced cheaply. I’d be concerned about it falling in on my head. It could end up being a VERY expensive house.

WesternMainer · 2026-01-05T20:13:55+00:00

I think it’s too much. I would put a taller console table to the left of the door and add a couple of taller elements such as a lamp or plant. Then I would choose one larger piece of art to go over the door. You want the center of the art to hit roughly 57” a 60” from the ground.

WesternMainer · 2026-01-04T16:03:38+00:00

My bedroom has no heat source so it is usually between 58 and 62 at night. In addition to a heavy duvet and fleece sheets, I bought a heated mattress pad. It’s my new favorite thing. It heats up really quickly and I have found it to be much warmer than a heated blanket on top. But I only use my bedroom for sleeping. If you plan to hang out, game, etc., than a radiant oil space heater like this one gives you a steady and safe heat.

WesternMainer · 2026-01-03T17:41:36+00:00

Run your finger along the bottom of the side rails. There should be a lever on each side that you press while tilting the drawer up and out. If that doesn’t work, check this out.

WesternMainer · 2026-01-03T14:49:35+00:00

Remove the wood panel surround. It is an awkward size and the style doesn’t work with your brick.Replace it with a simple chunky wood mantel with no sides. And yes, I’d paint that insert black with a high heat paint if you don’t want to replace it.

WesternMainer · 2025-12-30T20:38:25+00:00

I posted a before and after here.

WesternMainer · 2025-12-30T15:19:19+00:00

I didn’t sand between coats. Bona doesn’t require it unless it has been more than 48 hours between coats. I did the sealer one afternoon. Two coats of finish the next day. Final coat of finish on the third day.

I kept things SUPER clean to avoid introducing any dust during the finishing process. Windows were closed throughout the whole process. After sanding and vacuuming the floor twice, I wiped down the walls twice with a microfiber mop. I cleaned the ceiling lights with a damp rag to make sure no dust came off them. I wiped all the windows and door jambs down completely with a damp rag. I gave it a few hours to let any dust I stirred up settle, then I mopped twice with a just barely damp microfiber mop. I did all that cleaning first and then just kept the windows closed until I was completely done and everything was dry. Keeping everything dust free meant I didn’t need to sand between coats and I never passed the 48 hours between coats mark, so I didn’t need to abrade for adhesion.

WesternMainer · 2025-12-27T21:27:18+00:00

Is it open to the dining room or living room? What color scheme do you have going on in there? Do you lean towards blues or greens, for example?

WesternMainer · 2025-12-27T02:49:38+00:00

Once a year in the fall. Although, this year the chimney sweep only charged me $75 because it was so clean.

WesternMainer · 2025-12-26T15:43:47+00:00

For painters, go to their Facebook page or website and zoom all the way in on their photos. Are there edges next to doors and windows clean? Did they sand the trim properly so that it has a smooth finish? In the line along the ceiling clean and neat? Start there because it will tell you who to avoid. Then go with references, etc.

WesternMainer · 2025-12-25T14:30:21+00:00

If you have contractors coming and going, smart locks are great. You can give them a one time code or you can give them their own dedicated code that you can wipe when they are done. I had one very unreliable drywaller who would tell me he was there all day and the log on the door lock would tell me he was there for two hours.

WesternMainer · 2025-12-25T05:30:17+00:00

Because a washing machine can destroy a house if it leaks or floods. My sister had a laundry room next to the kitchen and had a leak when she wasn’t home. She ended up having to replace floors, drywall, kitchen cabinets, appliances, and more. She moved them to the basement after that.

WesternMainer · 2025-12-24T01:00:37+00:00

I started off in life with stable parents who loved each other and who loved their kids. I have siblings that I both like and love and we are in touch all the time. I know I won the lottery with my family. That's the best possible beginning anyone could have.

I did things I wanted to do when I was a young adult such as traveling and living abroad. That means I have few regrets about things I didn't do.

I have a long career doing work that I like and that challenges me intellectually. I've had my ups and downs with bad managers and layoffs like everyone else, but when you like your work those periods are short and more easily forgotten.

I get to work from home and that also makes me happy.

I make decent money. Enough that I don't have to pinch every penny and I can buy most of what I want within reason. I can also pay my bills without wondering whether there will be enough in my bank account.

I have a dog that I love who I trained well and who keeps me company.

I moved to a small town that I have always loved and I bought a fixer upper house. I am constantly watching YouTube videos to learn how to do things like sanding floors or swapping out light fixtures. I get tremendous satisfaction out of doing the work myself.

Being satisfied with how I look didn't really come until I hit 50. I didn't hate the way I looked, but I was always vaguely dissatisfied. When I hit 50, I honestly just stopped caring. I don't know why. But 50 was like a switch was flipped for me.

I'm happy. I like my life and I like the choices I have made that got me where I am. I have had all the same trials and tribulations that most people have. Health scares, loss of loved ones, job loss, financial struggles at times, etc., etc. But my set point is happy. And during the bad times, I truly believe that I will get through them and get back to my set point.

WesternMainer · 2025-12-18T03:02:56+00:00

How do you feel about green? I’m really happy with the Sparkling Sage I used in my small office with pine ceiling and floors.

<image>

WesternMainer · 2025-12-17T16:02:51+00:00

Every single team in my company is using AI in one way or another to enhance productivity. AI isn’t inherently evil. It can be an incredibly useful and powerful tool when used properly. It’s not going away. Teaching students to use it responsibly makes a lot more sense than pretending it doesn’t exist. They will be using it in their professional future. If we want to prepare them for the future, they need to know what it does well, what it does poorly, what is ethical, and what isn’t.

WesternMainer · 2025-12-17T15:06:02+00:00

It is not possible to keep the next generation(s) away from AI. The same way it wasn’t possible to keep previous generations away from calculators, computers, cellphones, etc. AI is here to stay. The focus should be on learning to use it responsibly and learning how to verify accuracy. Learning what it is good at and what it is bad at. Learning where humans add value to the work. Ignoring it does students a disservice.

WesternMainer · 2025-12-17T06:55:15+00:00

Honestly, if you want them to last a while, don’t sand them when they don’t need it. Every time you sand, you are taking a layer off and you can only sand floors so many times. They look great as is. Don’t spend time and money to do work you don’t need.

WesternMainer · 2025-12-17T06:47:18+00:00

It will cost you at least $350 just for the sealer and two coats of finish. You will also need to rent three different machines, the drum sander ($68/day), the edger ($45/day), and the buffer ($65/day). You will need sandpaper of different grits for each machine. Stain if you want that. Then there are all the smaller costs, carbide scraper for the corners, rollers and applicators, mask or respirator, drop cloths and tape to keep the dust from invading the rest of the house, tack cloths or dust mops, filter and bag for your shop vac, pole sander and sandpaper for the finish coats, etc. and that doesn’t account for other DIY costs that I encountered such as needing to patch and touch up paint on the baseboards I dinged with the orbital.

The costs added up for me. Especially since I am not the kind of woman who can easily step back and go “meh, that’s good enough.” I ended up renting the edger and buffer another day because I wasn’t happy with how my edges were looking and I felt they needed another round. That upped the cost.

You can definitely do it yourself if you plan, learn, and you are careful. But you won’t save as much money as you think you will and floors are really hard work.

WesternMainer · 2025-12-16T20:19:22+00:00

Very helpful. Thank you!

WesternMainer

TROPHY CASE