#2. Scrape popcorn ceilings

When I started the ceiling project, all I could think was, You didn't give me the wonderful hardwood floors under the shag I was hoping for so the ceilings must be perfect under all that popcorn.
                                                                 

the little specks that look like dirt are actually flecks of glitter

I decided one of the cheapest ways to bring our 70's loveshack into the 21st century would be to scrape the ceilings. Not only were our ceilings popcorn-ed but we were also blessed with gold glitter.







I was under the impression that this was going to be the easiest project. I mean, how hard is it to spray the ceiling with a squirt bottle and then scrape it with a putty knife!? My ceilings, though, were not as smooth and fantastic underneath as other bloggers had said their's were. My ceilings required a series of putty-ing and sanding before the priming & painting could begin.

Have I ever mentioned how great my friends are? Here is a picture of me and a friend who rocked at putty-ing and sanding ceilings. She was like a machine and kept my 1st trimester pregnant self going.

side note: this whole process is messy. It's smart to section off the room from the rest of the house so that the dust is mostly limited to the room you're working with.

Check out the awesome 

metallic wallpaper! 

Thanks, Murphys!

The Process:

If your house was built before 1979, then you should get your popcorn tested for asbestos. It's not required by law, but the EPA highly recommends it.

Gather all of your materials:
goggles (the popcorn falls into your eyes... who wants that?)
mask (I was strict about this because I was pregnant)
putty knife (bigger the better)
ladder (I'm short, and couldn't always reach the ceiling)
spray bottle (good ol' Dollar Tree helped me out here)
drop cloths (to keep the floor clean/ easy clean up)
water

Later on you will need:
putty
putty knife
sand paper (high & low grit)

The process is pretty self explanatory. I just sprayed the ceiling with my spray bottle filled with water from the Dollar Tree in sections and then scraped it as I went. It was time consuming, but with a friend (thank you, Ginger), it went by pretty fast fast enough because there was someone to talk to.

Afterwards, putty is used to fill in the imperfections/nail divets etc. Sand smooth & repeat.

Eventually, you will end up with a beautifully smooth ceiling. Once this happens, you can begin priming & eventually painting!

In total, we scraped six ceilings and two hallways. My ceilings are by no means perfect, but I can live with them. They have definitely updated the house quite a bit. It's a relatively cheap project, but again, quite time consuming.