Mix it up....

Our green mixer is living at Joe's new place, and I use my mixer often, so when they went on sale I got a new one. Red! I like it. Livens up all that brown and tan. The rug is from Target. I kept the tags on in case I wanted to return it, but I'm definitely going to keep it...feels cushy and looks purty too.

Dirty Windows!

I've been washing windows again this morning. You might be wondering why it's taking so long to wash the windows. Well, here is the dirtiest one...yuck!!!!!

 As you can imagine, you don't just hit something like this once, you have to prewash it (scrub!) and then wash it again, and sometimes yet again before it looks decent. On top of that, three of the windows have wasps making nests in them. I haven't touched them, but I'm going to get some of that poison you can aim at them from a long way away. After hearing about Jack (our neighbor up at the lake) dying from a bee sting over the weekend, I'm trying to be very careful. I don't think I'm allergic, but I don't think Jack thought he was either!

Here's the little living room. It's going to be wall to wall sofa I do believe. I'm thinking that could be cozy though...like a big movie-watching nest.

 After I got through working on windows this morning, I walked around to remind myself why I like this little place....look at that nice baseboard and corner block.

 And the newel post...so pretty!

 And the little entry is just like one in a larger Victorian home, but it's doll house size.

It's getting better!

 Click any picture to see it bigger!

What a difference a week can make! They shored up the porch and took the old columns off. They just used 4x4s to replace them, but I went ahead and bought a bit of lumber so that Jerry could wrap 1x around them to beef them up a bit...it makes the posts more the width the old columns were. He says I have to let the wood breathe for a few months before we paint the new wood white because it's treated lumber. I like the railing, and I'm sure I'll be less likely to step off the edge!

 Another angle. The house has a new roof, for which I'm very thankful.

The porch roof is really peeling. The landlord says he is going to cover it in white vinyl. That's ok with me...it will neaten things up considerably. I like the old beaded board, but it's very warped from when the roof was leaking.

Look at that dirty siding! Joe and Mike took the power washer over so I could use it to clean it up, but wouldn't you know it...it would not run. So I scrubbed the front by hand. It still does not look super, but it definitely feels cleaner and I can go ahead and put the glider on the porch this weekend.

 This is my little kitchen. It's tiny, but will get the job done and there is room for a little table.

This is some old vinyl wallpaper that I have used so many times on different projects. I figured it's vinyl, I can wipe it clean, why not use it for shelf paper. It's bright, but I think I like it! And hey, it was free!

I had enough to do all the bottom cabinets and drawers. I think I have another roll somewhere, so maybe I can do the top too. Not sure about those cabinets being brown inside. I usually paint them white inside so it's lighter and I can see better. But I'll try it...maybe it will be fine.

Artwork

Believe it or not, I've not had my own work hanging in our house. I don't know why I never did, but that is going to change with this house. I'm going to have a few things framed to hang.

I'm thinking about printing this journal page and matting and framing it.I'm fond of these two...I like the tenderness between them.

 Or maybe I will do something similar on canvas.

Well, I'm off to maybe powerwash the siding on the little house, unless I'm very lucky and they have done it for me. You'd think with all that rain I wouldn't need to, but unfortunately it does not work that way!

Creating Home

This blog will mostly be an online scrapbook of my little house, and what I'm up to creatively. I'm happy to be creating a little home again, where I can snuggle in with the dog and the kids when they are home. 

My little house is a rental, and it was in very rough shape when the landlord bought it. He has replaced the roof, and he and his helpers have put a lot of work into fixing it up. It's now my turn to move in, and make it a home. I'm looking forward to decorating and working in the garden.

Here is how it looked when I first saw it...sporting a rickety porch with a toilet and refrigerator!

When I looked in the door and saw this little entry, I started to become attached. Jane had already started priming by the time I saw the place. It was still awfully grungy and had a long way to go, but I have a good imagination!

Here we're looking back at at the front door.

 This is peeking into the living room. I love the leaded glass windows and when all the nicotine is washed off them, I bet they are going to sparkle!

 Here's the dining room. The bay window leaked and ruined the floor in this room, so they are going to carpet. If you peek through that doorway, you can get a glimpse of the kitchen. I must say, the folks who worked on this had their work cut out for them!

Here is the back of the house. They are replacing the screened doors too, thank goodness.