V-E Day

At some point after the flood in October, my landlord popped round to inspect the damage and agreed that the place really could do with a fresh lick of paint. I pointed out that the walls were still damp and that mould was reappearing at an horrific rate, perhaps it would be better to wait until Spring or even Summer when the walls had dried out and the mould had stopped reappearing. He agreed that that was prudent, especially since the place had been given a full makeover as recently as September 2018 and I know well enough that he doesn't like to spend money unnecessarily.
I told the landlord I would do it myself, but he wouldn't hear of it. I can only assume he was worried I might purchase paint of reasonably good quality and back-charge him for it. It was perfectly obvious that the last make-over had involved shockingly poor quality materials and workmanship – the paint comes off when washed and there are daubs of paint on the light bulbs!

So being stuck at home alone for weeks on end with no visitors permitted struck me as the perfect opportunity for a fait accompli. By Easter the walls were still producing small quantities of fluffy mould, so too early to start, but by this weekend they had been fluff-free for long enough for me to grasp the nettle.

First thing this morning I Googled my local Wickes and was disappointed to find that it won't open all week, so unfortunately it would have to be Wilko. Wilko opened at 8 and I was off like a flash. The paint I wanted had no details of its coverage, and given that there were only three tins in the shop I bought them all. If I find I don't need them all I will return any I don't open for a refund, but I wasn't going to risk running out halfway through the job and finding that the remaining tins had been bought by someone else. Yes, stockpiling, but I don't think that soft-sheen pure-brilliant white anti-mould easy-care bathroom paint is in quite the same category as eggs.

It's a bit of a logistical nightmare – rearranging everything in the flat to leave one whole wall totally exposed, and I am doing the skirting while I'm at it, so each exposed area is going to take a minimum of 48 hours. Fingers crossed Boris is not going to allow my landlord to visit me until the job is completed.