The color is hard to capture, but these photos are close. It's Benjamin Moore Philipsburg Blue on the walls and Linen White on the ceiling and trim.
Monday, July 29, 2013
Singin' the Blues
Just a little sneak peak, but we're loving the new wall color in the study. We are still in the middle of reworking everything in there (fireplace mantel, partners desk, drapes, etc.), but we had company coming so I quickly painted the ceiling, trim, and walls last week just to look presentable. Finally, no more half-done, sloppy bright aqua paint in our front room. It's a sophisticated yet very livable warm blue that sets off the trim nicely and should go great with the quartersawn oak mantel eventually.
The color is hard to capture, but these photos are close. It's Benjamin Moore Philipsburg Blue on the walls and Linen White on the ceiling and trim.
The color is hard to capture, but these photos are close. It's Benjamin Moore Philipsburg Blue on the walls and Linen White on the ceiling and trim.
Sunday, July 28, 2013
Itty bitty kitty
He's suppose to be a barn car (shop cat, really, I suppose, but same thing). But at the moment, he's a bit afraid of the chickens, so he's in the study with me ;-)
Our good friend's wonderful cat had kittens, and they were originally all spoken for. But this little guy went home with a boy who turned out to be allergic. We've been talking about an outside cat for a while, so we offered to take him. I just got him this afternoon so he doesn't have a name yet, but it will likely be Schrodinger. For all you readers a little fuzzy on your physics and quantum theory, here is a brief (though macabre) explanation of the appellation!
Our good friend's wonderful cat had kittens, and they were originally all spoken for. But this little guy went home with a boy who turned out to be allergic. We've been talking about an outside cat for a while, so we offered to take him. I just got him this afternoon so he doesn't have a name yet, but it will likely be Schrodinger. For all you readers a little fuzzy on your physics and quantum theory, here is a brief (though macabre) explanation of the appellation!
Friday, July 26, 2013
Jeffism
(This after I spent a rainy day cleaning house and polishing mirrors!)
Monday, July 22, 2013
Small and suite
It's time to get the ball rolling on the downstairs bathroom renovation! After scrubbing it down, disinfecting everything, and giving walls, ceilings, and floor (yes, even the linoleum) a coat of paint back when we moved in, nothing much has happened for the little full bath. The fiberglass tub is badly stained, the galvanized plumbing runs rusty water at times, the toilet occasionally misfires, the ancient wall-mounted sink is tiny and low, and the torn linoleum is curling and peeling. (Is it any wonder we added on the new bathroom upstairs?!) But this little first floor bath has a good layout, great storage, a cute little window, and convenient access as the downstairs bedroom en suite, as well as serving the kitchen and mudroom.
Here's the plan so far:
This will be my first tile laying experience. I've grouted before, and patched a tile here and there, but I plan to take this from start to finish. To that end, I chose a small mesh-mounted glass mosaic for the shower surround. I originally wanted marble, but have you hefted a 12 inch marble tile lately? It's really, really heavy! And it's apparently hard to cut. I had visions of hard, fragile marble tile dropping off the messy mastic walls onto my foot; or worse, damaging the new tub! We already have subway tile upstairs, and I wanted something a little different for this bath, so glass mosaic it is.
The tile, lighting, faucets, and vanity are already purchased. The tub, toilet, and flooring are picked out. All I have to do is get the plumber in to run new water lines. Oh, and of course, wait for our upcoming guests to arrive and depart before I begin tearing the bathroom to pieces!
Thursday, July 18, 2013
The gift that keeps on giving!
As I type, Jeff is still pounding away on that infuriating fireplace! Little did I know when I asked for the wall and firebox to be opened that someone had WAY over-engineered the closure of the thing. Was there a simple piece of plywood or drywall over the hole? No. Was there a single stack of bricks closing up the opening? No. Were there thin mortar lines of hastily laid patching? No.
In fact, this firebox was basically a solid block of bricks and concrete mortar, built up layer by layer and cemented together into an integral mass. What was someone thinking? To make matters messier, the bricks are coated in soot; so, by default, is Jeff at this point.
I guess we should have suspected something like this. The last feature we tried to uncover, the heart pine floors in the dining room and kitchen, were buried under layers of linoleum and plywood nailed in columns and rows EVERY FOUR INCHES across the entire floor (remember this post?). Perhaps it speaks to the well-built construction of the house in general, but I could do with a little less brick-and-mortar and little more hole-in-the-wall!
Almost there:
Success!
There is still plenty to be done! We'll have to tidy up the plaster, patch some brick, cut back the baseboards to exactly the right width, lug the very heavy mantel in, position and attach it, reinstall the mirror, etc., etc., etc. But we'll enjoy our hole for the moment and try not to think about that yet.
Oh, and I think we may build a firepit outside with the extra brick, so add that to the list, too!
In fact, this firebox was basically a solid block of bricks and concrete mortar, built up layer by layer and cemented together into an integral mass. What was someone thinking? To make matters messier, the bricks are coated in soot; so, by default, is Jeff at this point.
I guess we should have suspected something like this. The last feature we tried to uncover, the heart pine floors in the dining room and kitchen, were buried under layers of linoleum and plywood nailed in columns and rows EVERY FOUR INCHES across the entire floor (remember this post?). Perhaps it speaks to the well-built construction of the house in general, but I could do with a little less brick-and-mortar and little more hole-in-the-wall!
Almost there:
Success!
There is still plenty to be done! We'll have to tidy up the plaster, patch some brick, cut back the baseboards to exactly the right width, lug the very heavy mantel in, position and attach it, reinstall the mirror, etc., etc., etc. But we'll enjoy our hole for the moment and try not to think about that yet.
Oh, and I think we may build a firepit outside with the extra brick, so add that to the list, too!
Saturday, July 13, 2013
Doggone Cute!
We had our wonderful DaVinci for ten years, and I just now find this perfect doormat. Doesn't make much sense without a cute canine around, but it sure makes me smile to think about it!
This one is also funny, but it would have never applied to DaVinci. Our boy was very polite about restraining his tongue and never offered unsolicited baths.
Friday, July 12, 2013
Anniversary Part Deux
If you read the previous post, you know Jeff began work on opening the old fireplace as part of his anniversary gift to me. He also surprised me with a very nice dinner out, which was quite a treat, given the day we had (details below)!
So you may be wondering, what does a woman like Sarah get for the best husband on Earth who would slave away for hours in the plaster dust and mortar mess and brick debris just to please his woman? Why, she gives him the world, of course!
Again, just like the hole in the wall, I do mean, quite literally, the world. It's a 9 1/2 by 6 foot detailed map mural of everyone's favorite planet, produced by none other than National Geographic!
I wish I could say I surprised Jeff with it, but given that it comes in three giant panels and hangs like unpasted wallpaper, it was definitely a two person job. So I prepped, primed, and painted the wall Sunday evening, and on Monday, twelve years to the day we married, we joined forces to mold the world onto the vertical plane that is our upstairs hallway.
Before:
During:
While I'm wishing, I wish I could say the project was smooth sailing. And it might have been, were it not for the thermostat right off the coast of Spain that was going to be obscuring much of Western Europe. So we decided to move the thermostat and neglected to turn off the proper breaker while fishing the low voltage wires to another location. So the air handler fuse shorted out and left us without air conditioning for several hours on a humid 87 degree day while Jeff scrambled around in the tiny attic, located the fuse, drove to get a replacement, and got it all put back together.
So only one-third of the world went up on Monday (since we had to get cleaned up and ready for our fancy anniversary dinner), but the remainder was completed Tuesday. Then we stood for a long while admiring and marveling over our amazing planet and it's countries, names, geological formation, bodies of water, and other fascinating features. We shall strive to spend our thirteenth year together more informed on social studies and geography!
Before:
After:
(As you can see, the thermostat now floats happily in the middle of the North Atlantic!)
So you may be wondering, what does a woman like Sarah get for the best husband on Earth who would slave away for hours in the plaster dust and mortar mess and brick debris just to please his woman? Why, she gives him the world, of course!
Again, just like the hole in the wall, I do mean, quite literally, the world. It's a 9 1/2 by 6 foot detailed map mural of everyone's favorite planet, produced by none other than National Geographic!
I wish I could say I surprised Jeff with it, but given that it comes in three giant panels and hangs like unpasted wallpaper, it was definitely a two person job. So I prepped, primed, and painted the wall Sunday evening, and on Monday, twelve years to the day we married, we joined forces to mold the world onto the vertical plane that is our upstairs hallway.
Before:
During:
While I'm wishing, I wish I could say the project was smooth sailing. And it might have been, were it not for the thermostat right off the coast of Spain that was going to be obscuring much of Western Europe. So we decided to move the thermostat and neglected to turn off the proper breaker while fishing the low voltage wires to another location. So the air handler fuse shorted out and left us without air conditioning for several hours on a humid 87 degree day while Jeff scrambled around in the tiny attic, located the fuse, drove to get a replacement, and got it all put back together.
So only one-third of the world went up on Monday (since we had to get cleaned up and ready for our fancy anniversary dinner), but the remainder was completed Tuesday. Then we stood for a long while admiring and marveling over our amazing planet and it's countries, names, geological formation, bodies of water, and other fascinating features. We shall strive to spend our thirteenth year together more informed on social studies and geography!
Before:
After:
Sunday, July 7, 2013
Everything a Girl Could Ask For...
For our twelfth anniversary, I asked Jeff for a hole in the wall. A literal one, not a reference to a dive or some smoky joint!
It's been twelve wonderful, exciting, adventurous, fulfilling years of matrimony on July 8th. We talked about a trip to the shore or some other vacation destination, but in the end, we preferred a quiet holiday at home. We are blessed with so many opportunities to travel and see and do that sometimes being in our cozy home is the best treat. We did do dinner (fabulous, fabulous restaurant!) and dancing last week, so we can count that as our romantic outing. And I finally got the present I've been really hoping for: a masonry chisel and a hole in the wall!
Before:
(You can see the strange peach colored hearth plate on the floor, and
if you look hard, you can just make out the patched plaster.)
(Who knew the plaster would be well over an inch thick in places?!)
I've had two lovely, antique mantels waiting in the shop for over two years. I bought them even before we officially purchased the farmhouse, that's how long I've been hoping to do this project.
The study and the downstairs guest bedroom both have old fireplaces that have been long ago bricked up and plastered over. It's been my dream to open them back up and install the mantels, and Jeff took the first steps toward that! First with an exploratory hole, then with a fair amount of pounding and plaster dust, Jeff was wholly (ha, ha ;-) on board with my scheme. No better way to say "I love you" than a little house wrecking!
It's been twelve wonderful, exciting, adventurous, fulfilling years of matrimony on July 8th. We talked about a trip to the shore or some other vacation destination, but in the end, we preferred a quiet holiday at home. We are blessed with so many opportunities to travel and see and do that sometimes being in our cozy home is the best treat. We did do dinner (fabulous, fabulous restaurant!) and dancing last week, so we can count that as our romantic outing. And I finally got the present I've been really hoping for: a masonry chisel and a hole in the wall!
Before:
I've had two lovely, antique mantels waiting in the shop for over two years. I bought them even before we officially purchased the farmhouse, that's how long I've been hoping to do this project.
The study and the downstairs guest bedroom both have old fireplaces that have been long ago bricked up and plastered over. It's been my dream to open them back up and install the mantels, and Jeff took the first steps toward that! First with an exploratory hole, then with a fair amount of pounding and plaster dust, Jeff was wholly (ha, ha ;-) on board with my scheme. No better way to say "I love you" than a little house wrecking!
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