02/03/2026
Friendly soapbox: Often (and I mean often) a job description is just the tip of the iceberg. I think this scenario is the perfect elementary example of that. A very fair and consistent client of mine reached out about hanging three 24” wide pieces of art above their stairs. Not a typical situation as the stairs themselves present a challenge. The setup/cleanup here took just as long as mapping out and mounting the pieces. That involved getting my extension ladder from atop the van, running to the lumber yard for a 2x12, bringing said materials *very carefully* inside, setting them up, and cutting/fastening various chunks of scrap to lock the scaffolding set up in place (safety second!)
Then the layout portion - using various means to get these identically sized frames centered, equidistant, and level instead of making 100 holes just eyeballing and hope they’re close to the client’s wishes. Know how many holes are behind those frames? Three.
The end result is three pictures hung on the wall. Which seems like nothing when you take it out of context. The same principle can be applied to all jobs. Whether it’s hanging a birdhouse or remodeling a kitchen, an estimate will always include the myriad between-the-lines tasks that make up a HUGE part of a project’s pie chart. Always know that each job will have its version of “stairs”. This job took four hours, by the way.
TLDR: Youtube and DIY social media are great BUT don’t get fooled into thinking everything is level, everything is plumb, and your project will be headache-free 🙂
