Hidden Treasure

I don't know about you but I had an awesome weekend.  Not only was the weather great, but I got to knit with Lori on Friday and then on Saturday and Sunday, Jason, Imani and I all went antiquing and treasure seeking.  We found so many cool things to add to the home that I have enough blog material for at least two weeks!  Any yes . . . Jason's OCD kicked in and he bought more coffee cans but we'll save that for another day.

I took a vote on Sunday night and asked Jason and Imani what their favorite find was and they both responded with the same thing:  the old weathered trunk.  I agree.  It's an incredible piece -- one of those pieces you might see mass-produced at Pottery Barn carrying a $350 price tag.  We scored it for 65 bucks and it is definitely my favorite piece of furniture in my house right now.


Imani thinks it's so beautiful that she didn't want us to put it near a window for fear that someone might see it and break into our house, thinking there is really some sort of treasure inside it!  She is now on her own little mission to convince us to get a trunk for her bedroom. 

We found this piece at the infamous "Cool Stuff" shop in Candor, NY.  For those of you who aren't familiar with this place, it is a random house in Upstate New York that appears to be without a name.  It is located on a main road and there is a sign that says "Cool Stuff" alongside the road.  Jason grew up not far from this house and many of his friends have commented that they wanted to stop just to see what kinds of "cool stuff" are in this bizarre, old, run-down place.  Jason had never stopped to check it out and neither had I, until this weekend.


I'm so glad we did.  As soon as I saw the piece, I knew I had to have it.  There were a number of old trunks all stacked up high, and this one was in the middle.  The colorings were just right and it looked almost like someone had worn it out intentionally in all of the right places.  I asked the guy how much and he told me "$35." He took it down and then discovered it had a tray, which somehow drove the price up to $65.  I didn't much feel like bartering (which is very, very out of character for me!).  I was way too excited about this new piece of furniture and I was envisioning exactly where I was going to put it when I got home.  


I half-heartedly looked at the other trunks to see if I liked any of the $35 numbers. Nope.  None had the right coloring, and none were worn in just the right places as this one.  This one just seemed to speak to me. 

Much to Imani's dismay, our beautiful trunk found its new home right next to our big bay window in our living room.  It's like a little end table and I have found my new favorite place to sit in the living room -- at the end of the couch right near the trunk.   Jason and I plan to line the inside so that we can use it to store our blankets.  When we first brought it inside, we all just sat and stared at it looking all aged with stories we will never know.  If I could have, I probably would have curled right up inside it and fallen asleep.  That's how much I love it. (Ew . . . it's really nasty inside).


The next day, we were pleased to see that the trunk looked just as beautiful with the sunlight coming in through the window as it had in the dim lights at night.  We all love to look at it and wonder what its purpose was in its former life.  Was it used simply to store clothing or blankets, or was it used as Imani envisions: to hide valuable treasure?


Whatever the case is, we're happy that we could be a part of its journey.

Entry Goes Black

We decided to do it. We are going to change the entry-way closet doors to black, along with the banister and the stairs. This weekend, Jason busted out the old sander and sanded down the stairs so that we could stain them black. He started with the stairs because they are the biggest pain to do so he figured he'd get them out of the way first.   Here is the last time you'll see them in their original color:

And here they are sanded:

When I left the house this afternoon to go grocery shopping, there was a haze of wood dust filling the air. Those of you who have ever sanded anything in your home know what I'm talking about. No matter how well you block off the area, the dust seeps out and manages to get on everything. Poor Jason was covered in it too and it is perhaps the job that makes him the most miserable.   Remind me not to give him any more sanding projects.

When I returned from the grocery store, my banister and every other stair had gone from unfinished to black. Here is a sneak peek of what we have going on right now. We had to leave every other stair so that we could get upstairs to our bedrooms.

We had to block off the base of our stairs so our dog wouldn't get on them and track stain throughout the house. Luckily, she's a 7-pound chihuahua who can be carried up and down the stairs easily.  Here's a picture of Maggie from this summer (since I have been terrible about getting up our 'About Us' page -- coming soon, I promise).

I am giddy with excitement because I cannot wait until the whole thing is finished! I am envisioning it all coming together so nicely and I hope all the doubters out there love it as much as I do.

I found some more pictures of black banisters that solidified my decision to stain them black. Take a look and tell me you don't find them gorgeous?!

This one looks as if they have left the wood color on the stairs, but the banisters were stained black.

traditional staircase design by new orleans architect Bockman Forbes + Glasgow, Architecture + Design

This one also has a black banister and very dark stair treads.  Notice that the base newel post is black.  We were originally planning on painting ours white, but after seeing this picture, we are reconsidering staining the bottom post black.  They did leave some of the newel posts white and that looks nice too. Still deciding . . .

traditional entry design by seattle architect Sullivan Conard Architects

This is an absolutely beautiful winding staircase with a black banister.

traditional staircase design by new york architect Austin Patterson Disston Architects

Here is one that is black with black stairs to match the floor.  I love the light fixture too!

traditional staircase design by new york architect Austin Patterson Disston Architects

Now the big decision is whether the newel post at the bottom of the stairs should be white or black.  We are open to suggestions!  Stay tuned to see the finished project!

DIY Pier One Chalkboard Containers

So remember these containers from Pier One Imports that I love so much?

Well I decided that I would make some of my own to add to the collection.  First, I bought some jars at the Salvation Army (forgive me for not turning the flash off). 

Next, I had Jason tape the jars so that there was a sqare on the front (Jason is waaaaay neater than I am.  He is a perfectionist).

Next, we painted the area with chalkboard paint.  We put on two coats of paint.

Finally, we removed the tape and cut a decorative edge so it didn't look so square.  This was a very easy project and the jars cost $5 for all three.  They might also look nice with ribbon or raffia tied around the top if that is more your style.

You've Got Mail

I'd never given much thought to mailboxes until recently.   I just liked knowing that I had one, and by having one I could receive the latest Pottery Barn catalogue or birthday cards from friends and family.  

I remember as a kid receiving letters from my cousin who lived only a quarter of a mile down the road.  It didn't matter that we would see each other on the bus every day; we would still write each other letters just because it was so much fun to receive mail. 

Today, I watch this same excitement from my nine-year old daugther when she receives a letter in the mail from her Grandmother, or a card from a distant relative. It's the simple joy of communicating and knowing that someone was thinking of you in drafting the card or letter.

I worry that this means of communicating -- the written word on paper -- is slowly becoming lost in our world of Facebook, email, and to be fair, even blogging.  I heard on the news the other day that the US Postmaster might stop delivering mail on Saturdays in an effort to cut costs.  Is this just the beginning of the end of the need for a mailbox?  After all, bills are now paid online and most newspapers have an online version.

The good news is that perhaps more trees are saved as we become more virtual and use less paper.  But the bad news is that communicating has become something we do for the masses, instead of just sending an individual letter with pen and paper to someone special.  As a recipient, something about holding the letter in  your hands - feeling the paper and seeing the penmanship -- is special and cannot be replaced with a flat, glossy, computer screen.  When is the last time you sent someone a letter?

The mailbox is also the area that represents our house number; it is the first object in our driveways, or it is attached to the outside of our homes.  It is an extension of our house.   Given all of this, why, then don't we have fancier mailboxes?

I do a lot of driving for my job and started paying closer attention to mailboxes.  Many were plastic, some aluminum and rusty, some wood, and others were unique creations that reflected their owner's personalities.  Most were falling over or crooked.  Some were placed inside antique milk cans, others had vacant flower beds (it is winter in upstate NY though).  I decided to search online to see if I could find some nice mailboxes - you know, mailboxes with character. 

First, some Early American mailboxes.  I like their heavy construction and detail.

Next, the mailbox that is built into a roadside column.  What I like about this mailbox is that it is part of a piece of the landscaping.  It adds character to the home and is almost hidden out of sight instead of a big clunky piece of aluminum teetering at the end of a driveway.

Here is a nice, cleanly designed mailbox that opens from the front and back to prevent you from having to go into the road to get your mail.

And this one, is perhaps my favorite.  It appeared on the "This Old House" website. I love all of the detail and that it looks like a solid piece that took time to create many years ago.  I like that it has a unique shape.  I would love for something like this to grace the end of my driveway and you can bet I'll be looking for one every time I go antiquing.

And of course, there are some really creative and quite eclectic mailboxes out there.  These definitely aren't my taste, but I figured I'd include a couple just for fun:

So what prompted me to do all this thinking about mailboxes anyway?  Well we were hit with a decent amount of snow recently and Jason was outside shoveling when, right there before his very eyes he watched the snow plow doze our mailbox over.  Needless to say, Jason was not pleased.  A few years ago someone accidently went off the road and hit our mailbox.  We were without a mailbox for a while and it was such a pain to have to go to the post office to get our mail. 

Remembering this, Jason was determined just to get the mailbox to stand up before he went to work so that mail could be delivered.  We are both utterly embarrassed by the solution, but we are going to have to deal with it until some of the snow melts and we can fix it or get a new one. 

Isn't that a beauty?  Hey, I'm just happy to have a mailbox.  You never know, someone might just read this and send me a real letter.

Welcome Rust

I never thought I'd bring rust into my home decor, but it has happened. Jason and I went to Hub's place, a little shop in Ithaca that is filled with all kinds of thrown-away stuff. It's so much fun to dig through the overwhelming piles of stranger's lives. I immediately spotted some apothecary jars that I wanted along with some salt and pepper shakers. Jason found some whiskey bottles that would go nicely with our collection of old bottles.

It wasn't until we were leaving that Jason spotted the old rusty coffee and food cans. They were way up on top of shelves behind piles and piles of junk. We had to get the owner to climb up to get them. Jason and I both liked them but we weren't sure what in the world we were going to do with them or where we would put them.

As we were gathering up our new treasures, I spotted an old wooden crate that I decided I really wanted. Again, I wasn't sure what I was going to do with it, but I just liked the way it looked.

We got home and put all of our new purchases up on the counter as a big collection -- a mishmash of items that were seemingly unrelated. I cleaned everything off and began going around my house to see how it would all fit.

Those old rusty cans are perhaps some of our favorites. We used the wooden crate to stack the cans and placed them up on top of a bookshelf. They bring so much character to the room. I love them and so does Jason. It always amazes me how we manage to incorporate whatever it is that we find into our home. The only problem is that now Jason has a new obsession. He keeps telling me he wants to fill our house with old coffee cans! I'm a little nervous.

As I said, I'm new to decorating with rust so although I see that it can add character, I need to take this one slowly . I am inspired by Junk Fest. If you get a chance, check out their blog because they do some amazing things with "junk." Look at this picture that appeared on their post "A Romance with Rust."

Another one of my favorites is Funky Junk Interiors. They have some great do-it-yourself projects listed on their site and a whole lot of pictures to inspire you to turn something old into something new within your home.

Even with all this rusty inspiration, I'm not ready for a house full of rusty coffee cans.

What about you? Have you decorated with rust? I'd love to hear about it or see pictures!

Confession

Okay, so I have a confession. Jason put different closet doors in the entry way closet not too long ago. If you've read my "Fixer Upper" page, perhaps you remember them. Here is a picture:



Well, I hate them. I don't like the color stain and I hate that they have a lacquer finish. I must admit, they are a huge improvement from what they once were:

So obviously, I feel bad complaining because I know how hard Jason worked to fit these doors on this closet. We received the doors from a family member who understood our dilemma when we first moved in: We needed replacement doors FAST. The doors had to be cut to be re-sized and all sorts of other work went into making them fit. I don't remember all of the details, I just remember how miserable Jason was getting them just right.

Did I mention that the previous owners of our house used oil-based paint to paint all of the walls and trim? They weren't exactly neat painters either -- there were giant gobs of dripping paint that had dried on every surface, so repainting the old doors wasn't an option. This is the only reason we have 1970s brown lacquer doors in the first place: we were desperate.

In any case, we never finished the banister because I wasn't sure what to do. Should we match the banister to the color of the closet, even though I hate it? Should we just paint it white? So we did what we always do when we can't decide: we leave it alone.

Last night, I thought I had the perfect solution. I looked around my sitting room and liked the black end tables against all of the white trim and soft colors.

Here is the furniture (ignore the fact that we haven't decorated the mantel yet!)

And some shelves on the wall:

And a console:

It looks similar to this photo, with the black accessories, white chairrail and shadow box trim, doesn't it?

eclectic living room design by other metros interior designer Seaside Interiors

Well, when Jason came home from work last night, I told him I had another project for him. I told him I wanted to paint the front entry closet doors. He seemed intrigued. "What were you thinking, white?" he asked. "Nope. Black." I said. I went on to explain my idea: black closet doors with stainless steel hardware and a black banister to match.

The look on his face told me this was not going to be an easy sell. He wasn't budging. He is convinced it will look terrible. He doesn't think the doors are as ugly as I do. After all, they do sort of match the wood flooring in the room. But, if you know anything about me, you know I am not giving up.

So I decided to search around to find some pictures that might convince him. Here is what I found:

I love the black accent wall in this white living room:

home design by 2.bp.blogspot.com

And here is another example that shows how beautiful black can be:

home design

On Starter Home to Dream Home, Mikael shows how she refinishes a banister in black. The finished staircase looks so much cleaner and crisper to me.

And here on Cote de Texas blog, if you look through to the next room, you'll see my exact vision: black closet doors and a black banister with white posts. Isn't it beautiful?

So what do you think? Should we take the plunge and paint the door and the banister black, paint them white, or leave the closet door as is and stain the banister to match? HELP! I need your opinion!

Chalkboard Containers

Don't you just love these chalkboard containers? They were a fabulous find at Pier One Imports. Jason and I couldn't figure out what to put in the cubbies of our cabinets since I am not a drinker and he is not a wine-drinker. These litte square containers fit perfectly! Love 'em!