Captain’s Log | DIY Journey:
In this life journey, I’ve added another DIY to my log. At 40 years old, I started a business handmaking vegan nail lacquers @relaunchnailpolish. Now, at 41, I’ve decided to learn woodworking and become a tool belt diva -learning how to operate power tools and DI-trY around my home.
First up, I’m replacing a baseboard I originally paid someone to do for me almost 7 years ago. Now I know everything has a time limit -even baseboards. However, when not in a high traffic area and seldom being bumped by the vacuum cleaner, this baseboard should have not looked as damaged as it did!
How it started
This baseboard was in desperate need of replacing, but I wasn’t about to pay someone to come do it again.
I chose to do the baseboards as my first DI-trY because I wanted something that would give me a chance to practice cuts with my Dewalt miter saw and practice nailing with my Ryobi brad nailer. I was extremely afraid of the miter saw, particularly the thought of losing my fingers. I also wanted a project cost friendly. All in all, I spent approximately $25 on trim and materials. You can always rent the saw and brad nailer, but I knew I had other projects on my list. Overall, here’s what I learned:
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Youtube University is your friend: there are so many baseboard videos out there. I mainly wanted to figure out how to do angled cuts.
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Properly measuring and cutting was a challenge for me. Maybe you’ll be okay, but I had to creep into the cut -meaning I would rather slowly cut from a piece too long than end with a piece too short.
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Take your time. You’ll see other DIYers swimming through a project -making cuts, painting, and then on to the next. Be gentle with yourself. I had to tell myself this multiple times. All of this was a learning curve, and probably will continue being a learning curve. The point is to start, learn, and pace yourself.
