DIY Dirty Little Secrets

I have a little secret to tell and I'm a little embarassed.  Maybe it's not even a secret to all of you other DIY-ers out there, but it is definitely not something to be proud of.  Ok here goes....our DIY projects are NEVER 100% done...

[GASP]

As you may have already noticed in a recent post on my bathroom door, we tend to get a project to about 90% completion (A.K.A pretty much done) and then leave it for 2-3 weeks months until we have time to finish the last 10%.  The reason that a project lingers so long is because everything looks fine and works fine (emphasis on "fine") but there are little things here and there that need to be tweaked. 

Dirty Little Secret #1

The kitchen cabinets were painted and in working order by June/July (give or take a few weeks), but we didn't re-install the door magnets (which keep the doors closed tightly while not in use) until last month!  The cabinets looked and worked fine, but as you can see in this photo, they tend to pop back out and stay ajar a few inches after being "closed." 

But since it was not an urgent matter, we put it off....and off...and off....until one day we decided to install the magnets.  Finally!

Dirty Little Secret #2

I have painted ALL of the interior doors in my house.  Well, I should rephrase....I have painted all of the VISIBLE parts of the interior doors in my house.  The parts that you can't see....well, let's just say I was saving that project for a rainy day. 

And although it wasn't raining on Saturday, I painted anyway.  We are having our annual holiday party (the first one in the new house) next weekend, so I thought it was a pretty good excuse to wrap up these lingering loose ends (say that 5 times fast!)

Dirty Little Secret #3

Until all of the projects are totally done, we usually leave the tools/brushes/paint cans in the kitchen or in the entryway closet.  Ugh!  This is the worst, but it is also a darn good daily reminder that I need to finish the projects.  And if/when I do, all of this mess can go away.  Initiative, folks....that is what I need. 

Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of my mess, but I'm sure you can picture paint cans and brushes on my kitchen island and power tools left on the entryway bench.....lovely!  It's home improvement as decor.  How chic!  Ugh...

Dirty Little Secret #4

We haven't had doors on our master bedroom closets since March 1st, which is the day we officially moved into the house. 

I took them off the day we bought the house in an effort to finish all of the painting jobs before the guys came to refinish the floors (mid-February).  I got about halfway through them and gave up.  They have been in either the garage or the basement (I move them every so often to make it look like I am doing something with them) for 9 months....and our clothes have been exposed this whole time.  I am almost used to it by now.  I even thought the other day that it wouldn't be so bad to have open closet storage forever! 

But really, who am I kidding.  The only way to make our mess of a wardrobe any neater is to cover it all up with some nice doors.  I also need to work on the guest bedroom and office closet doors.  Those are painted (well, they really need another coat, but they are a lot closer to being done than the master bedroom ones), but I need to replace the metal track pieces along the top since they are old and a little warped from hitting them with the sander 1 too many times prior to painting.  So there is another project unfinished....

Dirty Little Secret #5

I bought curtains and curtain rods for my bedroom about two months ago (maybe more), but never got around to actually hanging them.  Granted, I did buy the same curtains for my dining room and living room and managed to get those up already (thanks, Mom!!), but the place that I really NEED curtains is still in the DIY queue.  Sorry, neighbors!!

Just waiting for someone to find them a home....which hopefully won't be the corner of my master bedroom for too much longer..

So there you have it.  A few of my DIY dirty little secrets.  I thought that maybe if I exposed them for all to see that it would motivate me to finish it.  Let's see how that works out....

Does anyone else out there have DIY projects left undone?  Any dirty little secrets you are hiding behind closed doors....or no doors for that matter?  Are you someone that stuffs everything under the bed or in a closet when you have company coming?  I've certainly been guilty of it in the past.  I would love to hear your experiences/confessions/thoughts.  It might make me feel a little better about my neglect....or at least human!