I managed to wake up reasonably early - around 9am, in fact, and get started with the decorating. I also managed to get remarkably behind with it almost immediately.

Step one was removing door furniture and then sanding every bit of woodwork in the room. This also extended to filling a crack in the wall that I'd missed the previous night and then sanding the filler of the cracks I'd filled. I also discovered a bit of ceiling which disintegrated when I put my knife near it. So I filled that with some special bodgey stuff. This won't be seen - it's behind a pelmet. No problemo.

After a lot of sanding, done by hand to reduce dust and also because I was doing cursory sanding, rather than going mental over it. I then lay the big polythene dust sheet.

If I'm honest, I should have done that first, before the dust. Never mind. In fact, thinking about it. I think it got lain about half way through the process. I did most of the sanding with it down, but not the bits where huge chunks of plaster were coming out of the ceiling. No matter.

With dust sheet down, and the room clear, I could begin the serious business of painting. I did a coat on the walls - this took me beyond lunchtime. Then I stopped. I had about 3 hours out as a friend dropped by for a coffee and I went out for a coffee with another friend.

Then I returned home and did the ceiling and the frieze. Pure brilliant white.

Then, for a change. I did the walls again.

Then I started on the gloss paint. I did the picture rail, the door, the architraves and the supports for the book shelves.

By 2am, I was ready for bed. So I went to bed. A lot of painting had been done.