Tuesday, January 29, 2013

STAIRWELL BEFORE + AFTER


We have had house guests almost solid since Christmas Day.  So much so that the people in my art class are convinced we are really running a Bed and Breakfast here.  One set of house guests left last Thursday and the next guests arrive this Thursday.  Instead of relaxing this past weekend we tackled a project that has made such a huge difference I thought you might enjoy the results.   

We bought this two-story with an ODD landing on the stairs.  It's something like a plant shelf, but it's a whopping 34" deep by 7 feet long of useless space.   One of the neighbors has a full size carousel horse sitting on hers, it's that spacious!  I prefer function, especially when space and storage are at a premium.  That ledge is too high up to store things and the deep inset on the bottom half is actually a nonfunctioning area on the exterior of the house.  Unable to change the construction (remember HOA?)  I just needed to at least not hate it so much.  I am still not sure what I will put up there...maybe a mattress and dresser for my new Bed and Breakfast.  This is a photo taken before we moved in that clearly looks like one of those typical sad "before" photos.   It's all I could find that showed the $19.99 original light fixture.  Besides, when I told Mini Mcgyver my thoughts he had the ladder out in 2.2, more excited than I was to make the change.

LANDING AFTER
I found a new chandelier that is perfect for a stairwell as it doesn't have glass to keep clean, plus it's easier to dust and change the bulbs.  I think it was from Lowes; but maybe Home Depot.  I'll keep my eyes open for some tall vases in my colors and a variety of shapes and sizes.  Maybe I'll take up sculpturing because I know I'd have a place to display my work.  Wait; maybe even a mattress and dresser for my new Bed and Breakfast.  

Things were very "masgusting" when we took possession (my grandsons baby word that I never want to forget).  We were forced to pull up the carpet on the first floor and stairs when we discovered the previous owners furniture covered many of these stains and after a couple cleanings this is what it looked like.  I know I'm grossing you out but you can imagine how embarrassed I was to let anyone in the door or live like this.  We decided to remove the old tile in the entry and the process was quite messy but I like even flow throughout.

MASGUSTING CARPET
TEARING OUT THE TILE


Everything has a fresh coat of paint, new woodwork and trim.  What remains is how I will finish the handrails and newel posts; probably paint them black with white balusters like I did in our last house.  My dream would be to switch out the wood balusters for wrought iron, but that might be way down the remodeling road.  Right now I'm dreading stripping all the heavily slathered latex paint, but already stripped the newels and love the feel of my hands not sticking anymore. 
   


Here is the entry looking from the stairs, the hallway to the garage and another good after photo of the after.  I used leftover Flor carpet tiles to make custom rugs.  The painting in the entry is something I started and just hung it up unfinished until I can get back to it.  There's a sneak peak of the bookcases that will be another reveal.  My brilliant ideas combined with Tim's construction abilities, elbow grease and enthusiasm have proved once again that we are still a dynamic duo.  While I am keenly aware of resale I'm not concerned at all about the bold stripes since the whole area would take less than a quart of paint to change.  If by any chance you are holding back from going bold on a feature wall let me assure you this is the safest, least expensive move to make.  Tell me your thoughts. 


Wednesday, January 23, 2013

15 MINUTES OF PLAY


Victoria Findlay Wolfe is one of those people that the very moment you meet her you find yourself instant friends.  We were actually blog friends first and her passions drew me in.   When I lost my son she called and emailed regularly to check in on me.   Anyone who knows Vic will have similar stories, I'm sure.   So when I received her newly released book in the mail, at first I was surprised, then overwhelmed with her amazing generosity.   I sat and read it cover to cover in one sitting; and that my friends is nothing short of a miracle.  I am a picture looking visual kind of gal and only when I am drawn in by the image do I choose to read more.  I read it all.

This is what I found inside the cover:



 And here is Page 22.  This fun quilt is exclusively my fabrics (love her more):


Victoria and I hanging in my booth at the Salt Lake City Quilt Market in 2011: 


Her timing was impeccable, as I had just sorted through and organized all my small fabric scraps into jars, by color of course.  They are awaiting an inspirational project and Vic's book is filled with those!  

If you don't already know this inspiring lady then please check out her sites:

http://www.bumblebeansinc.com
http://www.15minutesplay.com



Here is how I organized my fabric scraps for future inspiration:




Tuesday, January 15, 2013

TICKLED I TACKLED

It hit me that 5 years ago I started this blog as we were celebrating Amelia's 3rd birthday.  She turns 8 today.  I had not seen her for six whole months until Christmas, so there were lot's of "squeezing the stuffins" out of each other.  We always plan an "art day" whenever we're together.  Us girls spent a chilly day indoors cutting, pasting and painting.  I chose to tackle Amelia's puppy looking up at her longingly.  I have never painted fur and wasn't sure I could.  I guess I could say I was tickled I tackled this twosome.  Happy birthday my sweet girl.



I was able to make more progress on this painting of Amelia that I shared here.  I am trying to work much faster; not sure that is working for me yet.  



Remodeling has been coming along nicely and this place is actually starting to grow on me.  I kinda promised a lot more than I delivered on my blog last year.  Life takes over and I frankly think it's not all that interesting.  I thought I could catch up on tutorials in the Fall but in October I received a surprise licensing contract request which I accepted.  It took twice as long as I anticipated and I barely stepped away from my computer until Christmas.  A total computer crash didn't help.  No more art classes, Christmas parties, grocery shopping, sleeping....nada.  Tim and I spent the entire Thanksgiving holiday alone in front of the computer...no turkey and mashed potatoes or pumpkin pie for us, whaaaa whaaaa.  I guess Tim could have taken a photo of me dozing off with my head on my desk, but thank goodness he was too busy taking up the slack.  But alas, I did skid in under the deadline with some exciting products which I can't share until Fall.   

2013 already has lots of company lined up for us.  Jenn, Joe and kids just left, our dear friends are flying in from Nashville in a couple days, then other friends from Indiana will be here before I go back home to spend time with the fam..   Maybe I can do some bloggets??

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