happy living Design

dad project no. 2

We have one large wall in our 'TV room'.  I didn't want to hang artwork or pictures on it but wanted something to hang there to break up the wall and possibly reflect the light from the windows on the opposite wall.  I looked around at mirrors but I never found anything I liked (or that was low budget). 

I had a co-worker salvage a few window sashes from a barn he was renovating and my dad pulled a few more out of the trash and we came up with this configuration.  Dad replaced the panes of glass in the barn sash (center) with mirror.  The sashes were left in their natural state and just cleaned up and he hung them on the wall with Z-bar hangers.  I seriously would NOT get anything done like this around our house if it wasn't for my dad.

ps.  The pillows are by Kalla.

dad project no. 1

There is seriously nothing better than a retired parent(s).  My dad retired a couple of years ago and in between breaking up old concrete in his basement, caring for Kheri a few hours each week and reading the paper while sipping coffee at Panera Bread he made this wonderful coat rack for us.  On the other side of the wall is our back door (the one we use most frequently) so this area here is our makeshift mudroom.  The coat hooks are old glass doorknobs.

Kheri's room

I have my parents to thank for taking the trip to Ikea with me, my dad for putting together 3 bookcases and hanging the shades and Annisia for coming in March to have tea and help me put the room together.  Carl was working 80 hour weeks leading up to Kheri's arrival...tax season...so I was on my own!  There are still quite a few things I need to do, such as hang more pictures, but rather than have the room completely 'finished' when she arrived I decided to let it evolve.  So like everything else that I do around here, it is a work in progress.

crib: It was mother-in-law's when she was a baby and then my husband's.  Check current crib safety guidelines if using an old crib or cradle.

rocking chair: craisglist

bookcases: Ikea Expedit, of course!

white baskets: Ikea Agen

blue round baskets: our local dollar store

breastfeeding stool: By Medela at babiesrus

multi-colored blanket: knitted by Aunt Jill

green knitted blanket: knitted by my great-grandmother

animal pillows in crib: Zid Zid Kids

bamboo roman shades: JC Penny

mobile: James Cornell & Annisia Cialone (architects & furniture designers for Starting Small)

'Fiona and Her Cub' picture: Creative Thursday

mobile: by Elena of Shoosha

changing table: another piece from my in-laws' attic

changing pad and cover: LA Baby and Bobby from Target

white baskets: Container Store

We were lucky to have been given the crib and changing table by Carl's parents.  (Otherwise I probably would have headed to Walmart.)  They are usually the big ticket items in a baby's room.  We debated on getting a glider but I just couldn't spend the money on something that I didn't really like in the first place and I don't regret it.  Honestly, the first several weeks I breast fed in the old La-Z-Boy chair in our living room, on the couch or in our bedroom in a big armchair.  The most expensive items we purchased were the Ikea Expedit bookcases.  As long as you don't get swept up into the frenzy that has become 'setting up the baby's room' I don't think you have to spend a lot of money.

wall color is Irish Spring, trim color is Super White both by Benjamin Moore

before pictures

and pictures of when we were using it as our temporary bedroom while redoing ours

DON'T try this at home.

My amazingly talented husband (CPA-turned-electrician) was hanging some new lights in the garage over the weekend.  He has zapped himself more than a few times so it's a running joke for me to ask him periodically throughout the day "Have you electrocuted yourself yet?".  Not really funny, but it is.

The lights turned out great.  But the switching mechanism had yet to be completed and he just couldn't wait to try out the new lights.

He likes to live dangerously.  In all fairness though, the finish product is perfect.  And perfectly safe. ;)

spring cleaning in summer weather

It was hot this weekend.  I am not complaining though.  I could not wait for the warm weather to get here.

I did some spring cleaning of our screened-in porch on Saturday.  During the winter it is used as the staging area for fire wood and gets pretty messy.  But on Sunday we were able to enjoy a very long and relaxed brunch with a friend on the porch.

I could have used one more day this weekend.

I am thankful...

...that you keep coming back.  It has been 13 days since I last posted.  I have been a bit under the weather lately.  So thanks for hanging in there with me and 'hello' to some of the new people who have stopped by in mini absence.

I never officially posted about the spending hiatus wrap-up.  I feel like I am in spending hiatus 'lite' mode.  I have purchased a few things but nothing that could be considered a clear-cut non-essential.  So much gray area there!  We have a couple of circumstances that have come up since the official end of TSH so TSH 'lite' will probably continue for the foreseeable future and I feel ok with it.  Maybe TSH 'lite' isn't really a spending hiatus at all.  Maybe it's my new perspective.

I did some spring cleaning of my closet over the past couple of weeks and have a few things that I might list on ebay.  I will let you know when they are up.  We have an SUV load of stuff to go to the Salvation Army.  And probably more that should! 

Our bedroom has been without trim (baseboard and door casing) for over a year.  So we are gearing up to finish the overhaul of that room in late spring.  I finally picked colors too.

I really enjoyed reading each of your comments about spring cleaning.  So many good ideas and thoughts.  I plan to go back and read them again!

almost here

The lilac bush that the boy ripped out (he was supposed to rip out a different bush) is growing again.  I hope it's a good year for a comeback.



I went 'shopping' in my closet and got out these handmade quilted placemats that the boy's aunt and godmother made for us for our wedding shower.  Love them.


And I finally have door knobs!  And this time of year I love the light in my office when I come home from work.

chalkboard door of my very own

I forgot to show you this!  After my mini-obsession with chalkboard paint, I finally used it at our house on the closet door in my studio.

 

I doubt I will ever actually draw or write on the door with chalk.  I just love the matte blackness of it! I am planning on painting the front of our pantry door in our kitchen too.

A couple of notes:  The doors throughout our house are cheap hollow-core, natural (ugly) finish doors.  These are the first two that I have painted.  I used (2) coats of Benjamin Moore primer and so far have applied (1) one finish coat of chalkboard paint (the brush-on kind) and Benjamin Moore Super White (my favorite white paint) semi-gloss on each door respectively.  They both need (1) one additional finish coat.  Really easy and fun.

canning the housecleaner

I did something crazy a few weeks ago.  I let my housecleaner go.  He was great.  No complaints there.  But I had been thinking about it for awhile and just decided to go ahead and do it.  It was really a bit of luxury for us and great while it lasted.  Originally he came every two weeks and then we went to every three weeks with my supplemental cleaning in between.  I loved coming home on those Thursdays to a clean and refreshed house.  Chris cleaned for us for about a year and before that, at our other house Barb also cleaned for a little over a year.

Why would I do this??  I honestly can't say that I had any inclination that the stock market was going to go below 8500 points and I was taking advance steps towards tightening our budget at home.  A general tightening of the budget was in my mind, and I also wondered if it was really necessary for our tiny family of two to have a housecleaner (the house, except for the bathrooms, never gets that dirty anyway).

But there is another part of me that felt that I lost touch with my own house.  Is that weird?  I think there is a benefit to being engaged with your home and something both meaningful and practical that is lost when everything is left to the hired help.  When I am the one scrubbing the bathroom floor I notice the that caulk along the base of the tub needs to be done and I make a mental note of it.  The housecleaner is not necessarily going to notice and even if he or she does they may not remember to tell you about it.  On a less practical note is not the scrubbing and dusting just as much a part of making a home as say the decorating and cooking?

I am not implying by any means that I am noble or deserve a pat on the back because I am back to cleaning my own house.  I am just glad to be an active particpant in the 'keeping' process again, I guess.

the weekend

: manual labor (we finally got the rest of the bamboo floor put down) - see the before pic here.

: alfresco meals (in between Indy & Nascar)

: coffee drinking and magazine reading (and a few small gardening projects)

: and taking time to remember why we observe Memorial Day