I recently renovated my master bathroom. My first attempt at such a thing, I didn’t really know what I was doing. I’d never been involved in this type of project before. Never had various contractors give me estimates, never had a room completely gutted down to the studs, never had people in my house working every day for a couple of months. And I’d certainly never picked out tile.

I recently went through the experience of painting my first wall. Or, more accurately, I watched someone else paint the wall while I hovered in the background rather uselessly, offering to fetch any number of items—brushes, trays, rollers, snacks. I promise I did eventually do some of the painting myself, a task more satisfying than I would have thought, especially given how much prep work is required before you can even begin.