Under a blue moon

5.6.13

Sorry for the lack of Friday's Favorites last week.  The week just got away from me with work being incredibly busy and with getting ready for a garage sale.  

Goodness garage sales are hard work!  I was very organized.  I had everything sorted in big boxes, labeled and priced, had my fanny pack with lots of small bills to make change.  We scheduled to start at 9:00am and at 7:30 people were already pulling up and going through my unpacked boxes.  

My goal was to get rid of things I haven't used in years or just didn't have the need or room for in the new house.  Making money was secondary.  I sold almost everything so I feel good about that.  It was a joint effort with my mother in law (held in her driveway) and it was fun to hang out with her all day.  We were both exhausted though.  

Anyway - enough of that.  

This week I want to finish up with the house tour so we can get on with decorating and projects.  So first up front yard.  

Here is the view from our front door.  Rick deadheaded the roses yesterday but even so there are still tons left on the bushes.  I feel like Alice in Wonderland walking down our pathway.  I love looking out at the houses across the street.  They are really, really cute.

Let's talk about the brick at the front of the house.  I'll show you a better view of the front yard in a second - but take a look at it here.  We'll eventually paint the house and I was thinking of toning down the orangey brick a bit.  I would whitewash it so it isn't so bright.  I don't want to completely cover it because I like the contrast, and frankly painting brick is one of those things where you need to be completely committed because once painted it is near impossible to reverse.

Does anyone have any experience with whitewashing brick?  Any tips or advice?

Orange just isn't my color.  We'll probably paint the house some version of a light taupe-y grey with white trim.  I think whitewashed brick would look nice with it.  

And finally here is a long shot of the front of the house.  If you remember the pictures from the inside far left is the garage.  The first window to the right of the garage is my office/craft room.  The second window (going left to right) is the window over the kitchen sink.  The rest of the windows are kind of hidden but the brick part of the house is the living room and there are corner windows on each side (so four windows total).  The front of the house has a southern exposure to it is very bright and sunny on that side.  

In the next post I'll show you the little courtyard in the front and some shots from the backyard.

4.29.13

Welcome to my home.  Please come in and let me give you the guided tour.  Get ready for a very pic heavy post.  First up is the living room.  

Next up (below) is a shot from the corner window looking towards the dining area and hallway.

Look closely around the hallway door to the right, near the floor are two old, defunct heating vents.  And on the left side of the door we have thermostat build-up.  They replaced the heating system twice and left all the old remains behind.  

Here we have the dining area looking towards the kitchen (drapes are gone now).

We've seen the kitchen ad naseum but here is a different angle:

And another:

This odd little room is the laundry area slash Rick's office.  It's hard to get a sense of the space but the washer/dryer are behind the shutters.  There is a small panty/broom closet to the right with a hot water heater closet right next to it (near the doorway to the kitchen which I am standing in while taking this picture):

You got a peak at the sitting room above - here's another shot looking back towards the laundry room/Rick's office (he is stuck in a corner just out of sight and now looking at this picture I should have shut the shuttered doors):

This room is one of my favorite spaces in the house but before anyone gets excited about the toile wallpaper it is going.  And the blue paint.  We'll do white beadboard below the chair rail and some nice fresh, neutral color above.  Curtains are going too.   They are a bit too precious for me.

Let's turn around and look towards the backyard.  Real French doors people!  I have real French doors! 

And finally let's look out towards the street.  This room was an add-on in the 60's.  The second owner of the house (whom we see riding his bicycle past the house fairly regularly) connected the garage to the house with this room:

On Thursday we'll pick up with pictures of my office/craft room and the bedroom part of the house.  

 

4.25.13

I promise to move out of the kitchen soon.  We have been setting up other parts of the house but they aren't ready for their close up yet.  I just wanted to quickly share my shade fiasco.

So a week ago I asked about washing fabric roller shades.  I took the shades down and unrolled them and could see they were just attached to the roller mechanism by masking tape.  It also had the manufacturer stamped on the roller.  I looked online to see if I could find the exact shades (and the fabric content of the shades). I didn't find them but most of their fabric shades were a cotton/poly blend so I figured it was pretty safe to wash them.

Turns out not so much.  They shrunk in width about three or four inches.  There was no stretching them back to shape.  So I hopped in my car and hit up the local fabric store and found regular old shade material on deep discount.  I also found some beaded trim that I threw in my basket.

It couldn't have been easier to put them together.  I just cut the material to size and then sewed a pocket for the hem bar and glued on the beaded trim.  I finished it off with a bit of grosgrain ribbon on top of the beaded trim for a neater look.  The trickiest part was getting them taped back on the roller mechanism straight.  The teeniest bit crooked and the shade doesn't roll up properly.

I spent about $20 and a hour of my time to put them together.  

Next time I promise to show you another room in the house.  I was thinking of a big, long, boring post with all the before pictures so you can see what the entire house looks like and get a sense of the layout.

I also need to show you the garden.  The previous owners loved their garden and roses in particular.  We have 60 rose bushes, last count, and they are all in riotous bloom right now.

 

4.23.13

I'm slowly getting my office/craft room set up.  Most of the boxes are unpacked.  I can't say it is entirely organized but at least things are being put in the general vicinity of where they belong.

One of the things I always felt was lacking in my last few office spaces was a white board or chalk board.  A standard whiteboard is a bit too boring so I hacked an Ikea frame to make a chalk board.  I've seen this hack all over Pinterest so it's not an original idea.

The frame cost $25 and is made out of molded plastic.  It was a little too Barbie Dream House looking so I sprayed it with flat white paint to give a more chalky appearance.  Then I spray painted the glass with chalkboard paint.  

Warning - if you get chalkboard paint on your person (or your favorite jeans) well then you are just going to have to live with it for the rest of your life because that stuff does NOT want to come off.  

It looks a bit twee against the pink wall paint but that will be changing.  I've picked a cream color that is bright and provides some contrast against the white trim and beadboard in the room.  

Ikea Expedit shelving is all set up too.  I want to get the desk attachment that goes with it but Ikea no longer carries it in two sizes.  The one size they do carry is too short.  I may have to MacGyver something to work.  

Right now I'm using our old eating area table that is pushed up under the window.  I want to replace it with a shallower work table for spreading projects on and then have the (new) desk for my computer/work related stuff.

That pink is really starting to annoy me.  This room was a baby girl's nursery.  The painted branches had Tinkerbell and butterfly stickers on them.  I probably should have painted before unpacking and putting stuff away but who knows when that will happen.  

Please ignore all the packing boxes in the background.  Sigh.  They are everywhere.

(all pictures taken with Instagram since my camera and I aren't currently getting along.  If you want to follow me on Instagram I'm @andreajp135)

 

4.15.13

Here is a before picture of our kitchen.  All pictures in today's post are from my iPhone so sorry about the quality.  I have some on my regular camera but I haven't loaded them onto my pc yet.  I feel so out of practice with the camera.

Anyway - this shot was taken just mere minutes after we took possession of our new home.  The sellers left all the window coverings as part of the contract (so we wouldn't be scrambling to buy new coverings the first day we moved in) but my plan is to eventually replace them all.  

I did remove the valances but left the fabric shades.  Which actually aren't bad.  Just dirty.  Since they are fabric I'm thinking they can be washed but they are the roller shade type.  Anyone ever take one of those apart to launder the shade and successfully put it back together?

I have new valances on order.  White.  Sheer.  Modest amount of crocheted lace.  

I also removed the curtain under the sink.  Of course I don't want my garbage can and jumbo sized bottle of dishwashing detergent on display so I whipped up a new curtain to replace it.

A year or so ago I bought a pair of vintage French pillow cases from a vendor at the Alameda Antique Faire.  The lace is beautifully and the pillowcase seemed sturdy and in good shape.  Until I washed them and they kind of disinigrated.  I salvaged the hems with the lace on it, figuring I would just sew them onto new pillow cases.

I found another use for them instead.  They became part of my new undersink curtain.  I had a scrap of Kona cotton in white what was the perfect size and I hemmed all the edges, added a pocket for the curtain rod and then added the lace hem to the top and the bottom.

Not bad for salvaged pillowcases and leftover scraps of fabric.  And much more my style.  

7.9.12

It's hard to get back to the swing of work when you have had a five day weekend.  I think the weekends are completely backwards, don't you?  EVERY weekend should be five days.  

We had a guest for part of the time and I put a little arrangement of carnations in her room to welcome her.  I love the combination of pinks and coral with the (faux) Jadite vase (actually it's a cachepot that I got a few years ago at Trader Joe's of all places).

I like doing little touches like this when people come to visit.  Since we live a ways away from most of our family and friends I like to make their stay with us special so they want to come back.  

You might have to share the guest room if you do visit, however.

I'm trying to get back into the mindset that I can do a quick, short blog post.  Not every single one has to be a photographic or literary masterpiece.  So today you get a cheery vase of flowers.

4.12.12

This past Winter we were wondering where all our rain was.  What a mild Winter we are having, we said.  Well it turns out April was stockpiling all the rain.  

It makes for a very gloomy indoors but outdoors everything is turning a lush, vibrant green. 

We are lucky to have these huge picture windows in our living room that overlook a big lawn and the trees below.  It does give the interior a bit of green glow.  Maybe we shouldn't have picked green carpet and a green couch.

(I left the shoes in the shot because that is just how it is around here.  I have shoes everywhere.  As soon as I sit down I kick them off.  Just keeping it real....)

This picture gives you a better idea of how green it is out there. After months of grey and brown the green is a welcome change.  Not visible in any of these pictures are all the azaleas and camelias that are blooming.  If it wasnt pouring rain I'd go out and take a picture for you.  They add a lovely bright pink to the landscape.

I would also go out and take a look at the creek to make sure it isn't in danger of flooding.

I hope where ever you are you are enjoying a lovely Spring and that you are staying dry.

 

1.2.12

I hope everyone is settling into the new year nicely.  We, as is our habit, celebrated quietly and with little fuss.  The house was sparkly clean and denuded of anything Christmas related. 

Our typical New Year's celebration generally is a lovely dinner, just the two of us.  We rarely, if ever, stay up until midnight.  I wanted to stay up so I could text our two boys a happy new year (calling is never productive because they have not embraced the quiet celebration and instead are generally somewhere where the decibel level does not foster a telephone conversation).  I got all snuggled into bed and was watching the clock.  At 11:53 pm I thought "Oh good.  Only seven more minutes."  Then the next time I looked at the clock it was 3:00am.  Ah well.

Day 2 and I'm doing splendidly on my 2012 to do list.  I decided on a language - French.  German would have been the obvious choice since I started learning it as a child and took every German class our Jr. and Sr. High schools offered.  But when I think of a language I really wish I could speak French it is.  Oui.

I made thoughtful choices with my eating yesterday and even sprinkled some Chia seeds on my eggs this morning.  I guess Chia seeds are the new wonder supplement of this generation.  My parents' generation had wheat germ, we had flax seeds and now all the cool kids are throwing Chia seeds into everything.   They are innocuous tasting.  They look like poppy-seeds and add no dicernible flavor. They just add a teeny crunch to whatever you are eating.

I am going to buy a basket for my bicycle today. (I bought this basket - it can double as my shopping basket at the store) The excuse I keep giving myself for not riding it is that darned basket so today it is. Then I can ride my bike to the grocery store for our dinner makings, whilst conjugating French verbs and picking Chia seeds out of my teeth. 

Sadly today is the last day of my vacation.  Tomorrow it is back to work.  I was really getting used to sleeping in until 8:00 every morning and having the whole day luxuriously stretched out in front of me with nary a meeting in sight.  Sigh.  It was lovely while it lasted.

 

12.28.11

(Brace yourself for a series of scintillating pictures of my broom closet...)

One of my Old Year's traditions is to make sure the house is nice and clean when we greet the New Year.  I like to start things off with everything neat and tidy and in its place.  

On the surface our house already looks tidy and organized.  It's not until you start opening doors and looking in cupboards the ugly truth starts to surface.

Exhibit A:  My broom closet. 

Seriously.  Could I jam anthing else in there?  It's a nightmare every time I open it up and try to pull out the broom.  Eight other things come tumbling out with it.  

The broom closet is in my laundry room which is between the kitchen/eating area and the garage.  It has a door to the deck and is quite the thoroughfare.  

Yesterday I pulled everything out and swept it (the irony is not lost on me).  I went to the hardware store and bought eight different hooks.  Four regular hooks and four the kind you hang long handled things (like brooms and mops).

The ironing board can go - we have a new one that doesn't fit in this closet.  There are also 87 variations of the Swiffer mop.  I weeded them down to four.  A regular broom, a dusting Swiffer and two hardwood floor mops.  

Now everything is off the floor and easy to retrieve.  

Simple pleasures for sure but how nice to open that door and see everything in its place.  Very Martha-esque.  

I only wish I had time to tackle the garage before the 31st....

What about you?  Do you have any end of the year rituals?  

11.19.11

Table runner has been made.  Why oh why do I insist on sewing ruffles and pleats?  I love the look of them but man, what a pain to sew. 

I did come up with a trick for sewing pleats today.  After I had sewn, unsewn, resewn my first attempt.  

The actual runner itself was easy.  I bought three yards of flax colored linen (a cotton/linen blend actually) that was super cheap. $3.99 a yard at Hobby Lobby.  

I trimmed the ends and selvedges using a straight edge I've appropriated from Rick's garage.  It looks totally greeby but I prefer it so much over the plastic Omnigrid ones.  Since I rarely quilt, and therefore rarely have to cut small pieces, the heavier metal straight edge works better for me.  Mainly in that is stays put when I am cutting.  I can't tell you how many times the plastic one has scooched while I was cutting.

Plus I think I can square things up better with it.  

I cut two 3" wide strips from the end for the pleats.  Then I just sewed the long edges together to make a tube and then turned the tube inside out.  I pressed it so the seam was centered down the back of my runner. 

Then I started fiddling with the pleats.  And fiddled some more.  First I pinned the pleats in place and sewed them in but they wouldn't stay straight and I didn't catch the back layer when I was sewing.  So I unsewed.  Twice.   I repleated my strip and then - here is where my brilliance kicked in - I used scotch tape to hold down the pleats so I could stay stitch them before sewing them to the ends of the runner. 

After I stay stitched them I positioned them between the layers and, once again, taped them in place.  On both the front and the back. Then I just stitched through the tape.  It was easy enough to remove after I was done sewing.

Maybe this is a well-known pleating trick but it was new to me.  I suppose if you have a super duper fancy Bernina you may not want to risk gumming it up with tape.  But then again if you have a super duper fancy Bernina you probably aren't coming to my blog for sewing tips.  

This fabric was a dream to sew with.  Washed and dried with minimal wrinkles and irons beautifully.  

I had to do a trial run of my Thanksgiving tablescape (forgive the cellphone picture).  I wanted to find a white pumpkin or maybe even a ceramic turkey but didn't have any luck.  So I just used my little quail pot.  I'm still going to look for something a little more Thanksgiving-ish.  I think the floral arrangement with the greenery and candles looks too Christmasy.