Part one here.

You may think this will be the most boring part of my garage to workshop conversion but, my, has it made a difference!

Here's what I used:

Actually the denatured alcohol was for something later...

Taping everything and sheeting the floor took a lot longer than I expected. Maybe three hours.

Prime time!

Next day, finishing off the matte "Ultra White" ceiling topcoat

And then, disaster. I tried to topcoat the ceiling and walls in one day, but it was a bad colour. Nazi grey. I felt sick. I nearly cried.

Tools down and I enjoyed a lovely shower and a sparkling-cold beer.

After that I went on the online to find a new paint colour. Truth-be-told, I was originally going with white. It was my wife who suggested a colour. I balked at her suggestion, mainly because I have huge anxiety about spontaneity; spontanxiety, as I have just decided to call it. For some reason, once I have a plan in my head, any changes to it cause a minor cognitive and emotional breakdown.

It probably stems from childhood when I got excited about things then had my plans dashed against the ground. As an example, I have a strong memory of being maybe nine years old in December. I had sudden festive elation which manifested as me going upstairs and jumping up and down on my bed singing "We Wish You a Merry Christmas!" I was so happy, which I thought would be appreciated at Christmastime. It felt like my emotions and those of my parents had finally synchronised. And then my name was shouted angrily from downstairs. I had done something wrong. I don't know what. It could have been anything from not clearing the draining board, to polishing my father's shoes incorrectly. Whatever it was, it jerked me to my senses. While not a plan, as such, I had experienced an aborted projection of current and future happiness. I would rarely dare to be joyful in that house again.

Once I had recovered from my wife's colour suggestion, I accidentally bought Nazi grey. Home Depot had it on offer, so my choice was made for me. Now I had to choose from the entire colour wheel!

Three hours later I found my saviour:

Crystal. Blue. Waters.

The Home Depot website said I had to wait nearly two weeks to get it! Too long. I phoned my contact and it was in my hands the next day.

Here it is:

Please now enjoy this song:

And now we continue.

My biggest concern with painting was all of the bugs I killed. I tried to save as many as possible. I blew them away, I shooed them with my brushes, I did what I could. But some could not be saved, like this poor critter.

Poseidon rest his soul.

I stood back at this point and nearly cried at the subtle beauty of this blue.

All done.

Just had to remove all the tape and sheeting. Which took AGES!

Had to touch up a few areas where the tape pulled the paint away.

All done.

Epilogue

I felt good about the painting. But there is still much work to do.

For one thing, I had missed a patch of topcoat on the floor. I was advised by Legacy Industrial's excellent customer service desk to scuff it up with a green pad, wipe it down with denatured alcohol (there's the callback) and bang on another coat. I did this badly, but I did it, and it was done.

I also applied some heat resistant window film. We have windows in our garage door, unlike most of our neighbors. We wanted some natural light. But in the west-facing afternoon sun, they created shafts of laser-hot terror. The titanium film I applied claims to reduce the heat by up to 72%, and it really does feel different. More like a warm forest glade—an ambient glow for the ages.

This is nice for a garage, but essential for a workshop.

I'm about to order a table saw. See you in part three.

Thanks for reading!