Wednesday, April 27

Sometimes the process isn't pretty


Did you ever plan a project only to have it go very wrong?

I was so excited to get a much-needed improvement underway here last week. After months of waiting, my front door was going to be refinished!

Here it is, all sanded smooth, ready for its new look.



This photo from last fall gives you an idea of how the door had become pretty weathered:



Here's a closer look from Christmastime:


As you can see, the door was a golden color, but badly weathered at the bottom. What's really sad is that the door was never supposed to be a golden color.  In general, I prefer painted doors, but this one is solid mahogany. So I decided to have it refinished in a darker stain.

I knew I wasn't up to doing this project myself, and I'm glad I didn't. I never would have made it through all that sanding.

Although the professionals I hired spent lots of time prepping the door for its new stain, no one could have predicted the outcome:

Sometimes things do not work out as we had hoped--like the refinishing of this door that didn't go well!

Yikes.

So while I had planned to have my front door all beautifully refinished and ready to show off by now, it turns out that it's still in process. And the process isn't very pretty.

But isn't that the way life goes a lot of the time? We dream, we hope, we plan, we do our best. . . and sometimes things don't turn out at all as we'd envisioned.

Sometimes things take a lot longer than we'd imagined.

Sometimes things get worse before they get better.

Sometimes things aren't pretty when they're in process.

But we press on. If necessary, we regroup and re-imagine, but we don't lose heart.

This is one of the ways we can help each other, I think. When one of us is stuck in a difficult part of the process of life, the rest of us can gather around. We can offer one another a word of encouragement, a pat on the back, a much-needed hug, a reminder that everything is going to be okay.

What about you? Are you going through any processes that aren't very pretty these days?

6 comments:

  1. Such a great meaningful post. Love one another in all things.

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  3. Hi Richella,

    I really enjoy visiting with you and reading your post right before your link up goes live. Your home is quite lovely and I enjoy all the pictures you share. What an inspiration to us all to pour our energy into making our homes a place of grace.

    And about your door - wow! Who could have seen that coming? Yes, life is just like that...taking us on unexpected bends and turns. I hope the project comes out well. Please keep us posted.

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  4. Eeeek. I was looking for an answer to refinishing our door.

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  5. Oh yeah been there and done that. My hubs refinished our icky oak cabinets that came with our old dumpy house. After much research he decided that he would sand blast the finish off of the oak using tiny tiny glass beads. It took the 40 year finish off and left a slight distressing to the doors and faces. Then he sprayed the 50/50 mahogany/ english chestnut stain on and then sprayed a lacquer finish on a few times. The lacquer give the glow but I do have to touch up every two years in the most used spots. But the cabinets and doors do look great and what a savings of money and mess, although it was messy doing them but that is another story. haha
    On another note I remember when you were redoing your master bathroom but missed out on the final reveal. Could you post pictures of the bathroom when you were all done? I would love to see how it all turned out!
    And I hope your son, who had the stroke, is doing well in all his endeavors!
    Thanks! Love all the fun things you show on this site!

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  6. Your posts are always so inspirational Richella! Thank you for being you and God bless!

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