cindycindy's Profile

If there's one thing I've learned from watching Hoarders, it's this: where there are live cats, there are dead cats too.

If there's that many cats spilling over into your yard, then there's probably even more cats in her house. Unvaccinated, unneutered, uncared for. I don't think citrus or a sprinkler is gonna be anything more than putting a tiny bandaid on a giant wound.

And the cat problem is likely only the first wave of suck for you as her neighbor. You could be dealing with overwhelming odors and roach infestations that cross from her property to yours at the very least in the near future. The cats are probably keeping vermin at bay, but if the hoard's filling her backyard that's another issue you'll be dealing with and could end up in your house. Mice/rats/etc can carry all sorts of disease, and depending on what part of the country you live in, they can even carry the plague. The plague! Another thing to seriously worry about is house fire.

Sorry to be so alarmist, but having a hoarding neighbor can be a very dangerous thing for you. I don't think you can afford to not get involved. It's mental illness. It's not going to fix itself, it's only gonna get worse.

Howard's RestoraFinish would be easier than sanding, stripping or painting. It comes in a number of different tints. I usually use the walnut color, which is one of the mid-range colors, and that darkens most wood a shade or two. You could try the dark walnut or ebony, those two are the darkest tints but not always easy to find in stores. The key is to rub it on with 0000 steel wool rather than just a rag.

I've never really got the whole unsanitary thing. What do you all think people are doing with books/magazines in the bathroom that makes it so gross? Because, to my knowledge, it works like this: sit on toilet with reading material, do your business, put said book or magazine back down on shelf, wipe, pull up pants, wash hands, leave bathroom with or without the reading material.

The book never gets touched with dirty hands. So it's more sanitary than the toilet handle or your pants. No one goes through a Silkwood-esque decontamination chamber on their way out of a bathroom. All those pants-touching germs are left free to wreak havoc on the outside world!!

Cake...?

I would add "shop around" -- many sites are dropshippers or at least source from the same manufacturers, and you can find the exact item for sale at many places for as many different prices.

Area rugs are a prime example. Pretty much any rug at HomeDecorators or even Overstock can be found cheaper elsewhere online, often significantly cheaper. And always remember to search for coupon codes for the site you're buying from.

The lamp is (or was, as they don't seem to carry it anymore) from West Elm.

I think anaglypta wallpaper is all paper-based and can get pretty expensive, but there's tons of cheaper vinyl styles. I used some in a tin tile pattern for my kitchen backsplash. It's extremely easy to work with and really durable.

The raised pattern is like a squishy vinyl that's applied to the wallpaper base, so you can make a temporary mark in it with your fingernail but it doesn't collapse from painting. And I actually tried on purpose to get paint gunked up in the pattern so it would look old/less pristine, but to no avail.

I'm gonna echo what later said about the stripe in this wallpaper not working with beadboard. Go with a non-stripe pattern if your mind's set on wallpaper.

Yeah, it's an Ekornes stressless from the early 70s. I have one in brown that I bought on craigslist for $25 and it's super comfy. That picture isn't the most flattering though, it's actually got a nice 70s vibe, more tailored than overstuffed like it looks there. I've seen them on ebay for $200-300.

The cabinets are pretty inoffensive -- actually better than inoffensive -- I think they'd look great with just a polishing/oiling and some hardware. I'd go for a modern style handle over a knob. Look online for hardware deals, there's lots of decent options in the $1-2 range. I replaced all of my grody cabinet handles for less than $30 total. Buy one of those little plastic jigs so you drill the holes in the proper places.

I'd wallpaper the backsplash, maybe a black & white pattern will tie together the mismatched appliances. You can buy easy strippable wallpaper paste. My backsplash was awful chipped blue formica and I covered it with some cute vinyl wallpaper. It was extremely cheap and easy to do, durable, easy to clean, and will be easy to remove later on if need be.

Then just add a little rug. Whole makeover would be well under $100.