Addicted to Oars

A few weekends ago, Jason found an oar he loved at an antique store near our house.  I checked out the price tag: $50. 

"No way are we spending that much money on an old oar," I said matter-of-factly.

Since I am in sales and I have a very large territory I often come across antique stores on my lunch hour or on my way home that I would have never discovered if I didn't have a job that requires so much travel.

I remembered seeing old oars at an antique shop about 45 minutes from our house.  They were only $20.

So last Friday, on my way home from work I stopped at this little shop and was happy to see that the three oars still remained.  Two were red and one was a grayish blue.

I snagged the grayish-blue one.  I loved that it was all chippy and still had the hardware on it.

When I got home, Jason went to work figuring out how to hang it.

First, he put one screw at each end of the oar.

Next, he put wire around the screw to form a loop so that it could hang on the wall.

When he was done, it looked like this:

We decided to hang it above the window in the guest room. 

 

Now Jason wants me to go back to the antique store and buy the two other oars.  In typical addict fashion, one oar isn't enough.  He wants to decorate with a bunch of oars.

Actually, now that we got the computer out of the guest room and into the new office nook (which was a closet), there is a lot more space in the guest room and there is a big wall with nothing hanging on it.  Three oars hanging in a vertical row might just look nice.

And I can get all three for only $10 more than we would have gotten one! 

Let's hope somebody else didn't snag them before I get there.

Closet Office Progress

Jason  has made some serious progress on turning our hall closet into an office.  The major work is pretty much done.  All we have left to do are a few finishing touches and decorating.

A brief word about this space:  This closet is located under the stairs in our Cape Cod style home.  It has served many purposes.  When we first moved in, it served as a place for all of Imani's messy toys, like paints, crayons, games with a million pieces, moon sand etc. 

About a year ago, I moved all of her stuff out and re-claimed the space as storage for all of our miscellaneous belongings. 

Here is the mess we had going on.

When we started our guest room redesign, I decided I wanted to hide my office stuff, like the computer, printer and office accessories.  My solution was to move the office into the closet.  It took a bit of convincing, but I got Jason on board and, like always, he went to work to fulfill my wish.

The first order of business was to move all of the stuff out and find a new home for most of it.

Here is the closet when it was almost empty.

Notice that horrible cheap tiled ceiling and the strange recessed light on the wall?  Jason was convinced the light came out of a submarine.

Jason set to work, first installing beadboard up the wall and then painting it white.

He also ripped out those ugly panels on the ceiling and installed wooden planks, which he painted white.  The floor was in rough shape, so Jason sanded it and finished it with polyurethane.  Here's a picture of it just as he was finishing and I ran in with my camera to remind him he's not allowed to finish without first taking a picture!

He also added a board with sliding rails under the desk area for our keyboard to the computer.

Finally, he painted it and changed out the light fixture.  We got the lights at Overstock for $30 a piece.  I'm considering getting a table lamp to add more light to the space.  Check out these table lamps on Overstock  and let me know which one you think would look nice on the desk area.  I'm thinking maybe the Grandrich Paper Shade table lamp, but I'm still not sure.

Here's the progress.

Here is a before and after, just for fun.   Not bad for just under $125, right?

BEFORE

AFTER

We used "Cozy Cottage" by Valspar on the walls.  I wanted a light yellow on the walls and the idea is that I will also use this chair in there.

We still have to select what accessories we will put in here -- pictures of some sort on the wall, storage for office supplies, desk accessories, etc.  Any ideas you have to make this space beautiful would be greatly appreciated!

PS -- Notice my new header and button?  I am super thrilled that my good friend Ben hooked me up with these.    .  You might remember Cindy and Herb of Country Buzzins?  They are the cool folks who create antique-looking signs.  If you missed all of their great work and their cool house, no worries! I posted about them here.  Well, Ben is their incredibly talented son (who just happens to be married to one of my very close friends, Brittney . . . who I am trying to convince to start a blog.)   Ben is an artist, teacher, and an incredibly creative person, very much like his parents.  A big thank you to Ben.  If you get a chance, head on over and check out his art work!

Linking to: Feature Yourself Friday, I'm a Creative Cat, Frugalicious Friday, Finished For Friday, Show and Tell Friday, Inspired Room, Saturday Night Special

Electronic Hide & Seek

Anyone who knows me knows I am not the most technologically advanced girl on the block.  To be honest, my Mom and Dad both got Facebook pages before I did.  I only recently started using Facebook and, I confess, it was entirely so that I could publicize my blog (although I have to admit that I have re-connected with some old friends).

In fact, my blog has prompted me to fast forward in the world of technology.  I learned (kind of) how to use Twitter and I even stepped up and bought a "smart phone" so I could be more efficient in responding to comments on my blog.

My nine year old daughter Imani finds it hilarious when I try to use the remote to find a channel on TV.   Whatever happened to three standard, local channels?  I have more channels than I know what to do with.   Forget using the DVR.  It is completely foreign to me.

Basically, I'm a ninety year old woman trapped in a 30 something's body.  It's true; I much prefer to knit, read, or make something than watch TV or chat on Facebook.

When Jason first met me, I didn't have cable for TV.  Basically, I had a television so that I could watch movies.  Now, we have three TVs in our house, including one in Imani's room which I swore I would never allow.

I will add as a side note that I am a bit of a nerd with Imani's TV though.  I have turned on subtitles so that she can at least read while she watches.  I am happy to report that Imani rarely watches TV.  Like her mother, she prefers to read or do something besides watching TV. 

Given all of this, it probably doesn't surpise you that I have a hard time incorporating any sort of electronics into decorating.  I am not one to get the largest TV available and mount it on my wall as the focal point of my family room.  We have a large flat screen TV, but if I had my way, it'd be hidden somewhere. 

Instead, here it sits on a stand in our living room.

What's more difficult about making electronics look nicely is that they always have a million wires running all over the place.  Furthermore, there are always two tons of components that go along with them.

I am forever trying to think of ways to hide all of it.  Perhaps you remember one of my earlier posts where I was thrilled to have found this old chest but I didn't know what I was going to put inside it.

We thought about blankets and throw pillows but then it dawned on me:  this was the perfect place to hide all of the Wii accessories!  In went the Wii guitar, the Tony Hawk Wii skateboard, and the Wii drum set.  Perfectly hidden, yet easy to access.

(You can see that we lined the inside of the trunk with burlap.)

Another eyesore in my book is DVDs and CDs piled up all over the place.  A long time ago, I decided that jewel cases for CDs were a waste of plastic and I hated the way they looked.  I threw out every single one and put them in binders instead, like this.

As for DVDs, I was thrilled to find this card catalogue at Target long before my antique treasure searching days.  It fits DVDs perfectly and keeps them out of sight.

My distaste for electronics is what has my husband busily working every night to convert a closet in our house into an office -- so we can hide the computer, printer and all of the components out of our guest room.

Is it just me, or do you hide your electronics too?  What have you found works to keep it all under control so you can stay current with technology, yet continue to decorate with style?

Rescuing a House

As many of you know, Jason and I are thinking about buying a new house.  We actually had a realtor visit last weekend to give us a comparative market analysis so that we would know what we could list our house for.  We were happy with the number she gave us, but not quite ready to list until we find a home to buy. 

The original plan when we bought this house was to flip it.  It was in terrible condition as you can see from our "Fixer Upper" page.  We figured, we'd do the improvements it needed and sell it to make some quick cash to buy a house we REALLY wanted. 

What I didn't know is that some people become attached to houses, as if the house is one of their kids.  Jason and I both fall into that category.  I guess it would be easier if we could find a house we really, really love. 

We went to look at a house the other night and I could hardly contain my excitement.  The house was built in 1850 and was out in the country with a couple of acres of land.  I was envisioning a big porch where I could put a rocking chair, detailed trimwork, and a backyard that would house my dream of chickens.

We expected the house to need work.  As we drove out to look at it, I asked Jason if it ever occurred to him that we rescued a house. 

"Yeah, I think about that all the time," he said.  "So many people looked at our house and passed it up because it was so crazy.  We definitely saved it." 

Even though we are out looking at other houses, we continue to rescue this little Cape bit by bit, even though all of our friends tell us to stop spending money on it if we're considering selling it.

Jason is busy every night working on turning the closet into an office.

He also recently painted our front door black. After we decided to paint the entry black, we had to paint the front of the door to match the inside. I am really happy with how it turned out.

Here it is after it was stripped (I forgot to take a picture of it white!)

And here it is black.

We just need to get a nice antique knocker for the door.

We still need to address the landscaping and curb appeal for our home, although Jason and Kelby did install this awesome brick walkway last summer! 

What in the world are we going to do about those steps? Any ideas?  They are such an eyesore!

Anyway, I was excited at the possibility of rescuing another home, except this time staying in it for a long time and raising our children in it (yes, that's plural . . . we hope to add to our family in the near future . . . hence the need for a bigger home).

I won't get into the details of the house.  I will just say that it was wrong.  On so many levels it was

wrong

wrong

wrong.

I am good at seeing past imperfections and imagining possibilities but this house was in total disrepair.   Although the yard had beautiful, mature trees, it also had a barn located on the property that wasn't part of the sale of the house.  To access the barn, the owners had to use the driveway for the house.  I know that would bother me.

Imani thought the house was haunted.  So did Jason. 
I thought the house had a very bizarre layout. 

I left the property and didn't speak for some time.  When we got home, even though it was only 6:30, I crawled into bed and snuggled up with my sadness and disappointment.    Jason came upstairs and tried to cheer me up.  He asked if I would cook dinner so he could work on the closet-office. 

I told him I didn't feel like it.

He asked what I wanted for dinner. 

I told him stuffed peppers.

While I was upstairs, I was thinking of the dilemma.  We definitely need more space if we are going to expand our family because this little Cape Cod will be cramped!  But I cannot see moving to a home that needs twice as much work as this one did.  We've considered calling an architect to see what the possibilities of an addition on our home could be.

But then that rules out the possibility of my ever having chickens.  The village won't allow it.

As I pondered this big decision, the aroma of stuffed peppers drifted upstairs and I heard the rhythm of the hammer nailing beadboard to the inside of the closet.

Seriously?  What did I have to be sad about? 

Life is good and I know no matter what decision we make, everything will be okay.


PS: Did you take my survey?  If not, please click here.  It's closing on Friday.

Easter Eggs, Home Tour and Closet Office

I'm so excited for the weekend.  For one, it's Easter, which means tonight we will be coloring Easter Eggs. I will have a vision of a fabulous egg that I've designed free-hand without any fancy stencils or decals.  I'll just use a crayon and old fashioned food coloring and vinegar, just like my mama taught me when I was a kid.

In my head, my egg is going to be fabulous, like one of Martha Stewart's creations:

Instead of my fabulous piece of art on an egg, I'll end up with a big melted mess from the crayon (I'm always too impatient to wait for the eggs to cool), dipped in a color.  Then, I will become jealous because Jason's egg will look like something that belongs in an art gallery.  I will take this opporunity to remind everyone that Jason originally went to school on scholarship for illustration before switching his major to Art History.

I am inspired by these coffee-dyed eggs from 504 Main though, so maybe there is hope for me this year.

Other than coloring Easter eggs, we will be looking at a new house!  I'm not getting too excited because I have become quite picky in selecting a new home.  For one, this house is NOT out in the country with a lot of land, so the whole idea of getting chickens is out of the question.  However, this house is for sale by owner, and is coming HIGHLY recommended by Kelby.  If you've been following my blog, you know how we feel about Kelby around here.  He is never wrong, so when he suggested we look at it, we jumped at the opportunity. 

The other reason we're not getting too excited is because this house is located in a pretty fancy schmancy area around here.  Most of the homes are big and ornate, rich with intricate detail, old wood and brick.  I am sure this is probably one of the smaller homes on the block and I'm sure we probably won't be able to afford it anyway!  But, I am still super psyched about going to look at it. 

My mother was a real estate agent when I was a kid and I always liked when she let me tag along so I could look at all the homes that were for sale.  I am always thrilled to look at other people's houses, so the fact that this is on the agenda this weekend makes me happy.

Finally, we have come to a road block with the guest room renovation.  The problem is that this room also serves as an office and I hate the way the computer and all of its accessories look.  I considered getting an armoir of sorts to hide it, but have been unsuccessful in my search.  Plus, the room is pretty small and I think adding any more large furniture would make it look crowded.  We already have that crowded look going on in our bedroom, so I don't want to make the same mistake in the guest room.

My solution is one that Jason has been resisting, but honey . . . if you're reading this . . . it is happening this weekend.   I want to turn the closet that is under the stairs of our Cape Cod home into a tiny little office.  It already has a light and electricity in it and it's certainly big enough to fit a computer and printer.  It would solve my dilemma about electronics and I am confident we can make it look nice.

I would take a picture of the closet, but it's really crowded with stuff and I'd be embarrassed for you, dear reader, to see my hoarding problem.  I will post it on my before and after photos, I promise.

In the meantime, here are some closet-turned office pictures that will hopefully inspire!

http://www.cbc.ca/stevenandchris/

DIYideas.com

Apartment Therapy

Finally, I hope there might be time to go check out a store I just discovered here in town that sells recycled building materials, like claw-foot bathtubs, antique lighting etc.  We didn't get to go treasure hunting last weekend, so I hope we can squeeze it in between looking at the house and taking Imani to a rock and mineral store that she's super excited about.

Sunday, we'll wake up to the happiness that the Easter bunny brings and head off to church.  Imani asked last night how the Easter bunny is connected to the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Jason had some interesting answers, but I just smiled and asked her what she thought. 

She said she wasn't sure but that the Easter bunny has to be real, right, even though it seems ridiculous?!

Happy Easter.