I haven't been posting much because I've been busy making a mess of my house–grin. Ooh, I also had a garage sale with my sister-in-love, Gena. We each made nearly $400 just cleaning out the house! 

I am working hard to get all my painting done so I can refinish the floors.  I prefer white trim, so we are busy sanding and washing the wood work.  I also hung beadboard wall paper in the girl's room and am painting over it to make it look more realistic.  I'm amazed how the seams disappear when they are painted.

To hang the wallpaper and make sure it stays through the very humid parts of the year, I added my own homemade wallpaper paste.  It's so much less expensive than store bought, and not hard to make.  I used my electric skillet since my stove is gone.  Here's the recipe:

1/2 cup cornstarch, 1/2 cup white sugar, and 2 quarts of water.  Mix the cornstarch and sugar in the skillet.  Add enough cool water to make a smooth paste.  Slowly add the rest of the water and cook and stir until thick.  

(It's handy to let the paper drip into the tub below.)

To use, activate prepasted wallpaper by dipping it in water. A storage tub was just the right size for us. 

 Use a clean paintbrush to lightly apply the homemade paste and …

…fold the pasted sides together to book.  Set the timer for 10 minutes and allow the paper to rest like this before applying to the wall. I can't wait to show you after pictures!

P.S.  The Beadboard wallpaper is $15 a double roll at Lowes.  It took about 4.5 rolls to go 2/3 high on the girl's room (11 x 12 feet). I found real beadboard there for $40 a sheet 4 foot by 8 foot.  This was easier for me and a fraction of the price.  It looks real!