Twister

Sometimes (maybe too often), what you think of as a simple, straightforward project becomes something much more. For example: shelf paper. I'd never used shelf paper before. Our new houses had new shelves, and it was something I'd never considered. However, this older home with its older shelves bedecked with odd stains and glops of mystery stuff (bright yellow!) was a different story. Before unpacking and setting out our kitchen, pantry, laundry, and linen closet stuffs, I decided to zip to Costco and grab some shelf paper. Line the shelves, shielding my stuff from all that mystery goop, and then unpack. Easy peasy.

The drive to the Costco was very straightforward. No asterisk today. Dedham, by the way, is where all the big box retail seems to be. It also has a McDonald's with an actual drive-through. Woohoo!

I filled my cart with stuff, including eight rolls of premium shelf liner...non-adhesive, clear, ribbed plastic stuff. After a delicious lunch of Costco hot dog, time to get to work.

Unfortunately, this wasn't as straightforward as it seemed. First of all, I couldn't figure out how to cut a straight line. The stuff was thick (think a thinner version of a rubber bath mat) and large and flexy. It didn't crease like paper. It didn't hold a fold. I ended up playing Twister on my shelf paper...one hand and one foot holding down the ends and one hand wielding the scissors. Did I mention how thick this stuff was? Premium, indeed! The scissors didn't slice cleanly through. No nice straight cut, but choppy little waves. Not pretty. And apparently, I'm far too old to play Twister for long. And how does this non-adhesive stuff actually adhere anyway?

So...I've given up for now. Suggestions on how to wrangle this stuff are very welcome.