Middle aged musings from farm & hearth
SO, the New England grey has descended, and the best remedy for that in my opinion is to pick something in the house that needs rejuvenation. That would be our bedroom. I went to Bed, Bath and Beyond to see what might inspire me… and found -lots-. I came home with a few bags full of stuff and two rugs… and spending just hundreds, not thousands, the room was transformed in a half hour.
I’m one of those who change up the decor just a little with each season. With the unseasonably warm temps of recent weeks I’ve starting bringing out the Spring Things… and the dining room table area got a little facelift.
I took a big old painting I had done when I was a teenager off the wall and put a mirror I found at Homegoods in it’s place. Immediately there was more light. Then I finally found a simple not quite sheer curtain to put up over that window. It’s a linen that looks like sheer burlap and I love the simple rustic look.
I also found a metal chippy basket to put some of my shell collection and seaglass in instead of having it just sit on the side table looking sort of cluttered.
With just a few changes, this area of the house looks lighter and more welcoming. It doesn’t take much to perk up any space and simple changes like this can really lift your spirits. We’re in the middle of some glorious weather and I’ve been spending it outdoors, soaking up every bit. I hope you’ve gotten the chance to do the same in your neck o’the woods.
When this old house was put back together, the Man of the house claimed this area as his MANCAVE. THIS would be his place to be by himself enjoying peace and solitude while he hollered and sweared as he watched his football games by a crackling fire. The rest of us could congregate around the other side of that fireplace in the FAMILY ROOM, because THAT’S what it’s FOR.
See.. once you DECLARE something like that in a particularly burly tone accompanied by a steely resolve, it doesn’t usually stick. Most often, even when we have company, everyone congregates in the Mancave. Even though it only accomodates four people comfortably, (which I’m sure was his intention) … sometimes you’ll find six making do.
Before…
http://thisoldhousetoo.blogspot.com/2010/08/enter-mancave-at-your-own-risk.html
It originally had old furniture from the previous house, and would only allow for THREE people to sit comfortably. We decided, since it has become the hub, to get more comfortable furniture, and I really like the result.
Because I like the convenience of letting my dogs out the side door into a fenced yard, every house we’ve lived in had this feature. It’s peace of mind at night or early morning when you can’t see what they’re doing at there, and the house sits close to the road. In this case, the look added to a new/old house is, to put it mildly, unattractive and industrial. We also use the side walkway area as parking space, and so some of that has to stay. The question has been how to soften that harsh industrial look to be more in tune with the old house.
I did… and I gotta tell ya ….it disturbs me just a little that anyone can type your address in and virtually drive down your road and park in front of your house. I was even able to pull in my driveway a little. Yeah.. disturbing.
However, Google Earth has not yet updated our “street face”. This is a really cool shot of the house in 2008, before we owned it and took over the renovation. You can see that the house was 40 feet closer to the road originally -notice the power lines at the road. There was alot of overgrowth surrounding the house. The previous owner took down some beautiful trees before we were able to acquire it, broke my heart to see it happen…and If I had my druthers, we would have kept some of that overgrowth, including a big tree that was right next to the house. Because of the extensive work we had to do, alot of that had to be removed. I will probably spend the rest of our years here replenishing the “green”.
Why not? …. who’s rules am I following, anyway…
We still have boxes and boxes in the basement that have not been unpacked since our move. These family photos used to hang in our old dining room and I love them dearly – so why not put them where they will get full attention. You’re just sitting there, guest or resident…….might as well have something to look at, right?
…. because there are dirty dishes in there that I’ve been ignoring all day.
Thank you all for the compliments on our kitchen – In our previous home the kitchen was too big and it felt isolated from the rest of the house. This time around I wanted a more open feel, especially when we have company. This Old House lent itself perfectly to my ideal, mainly because in the old homes the kitchen, or “keeping room” was the main Hub of the house activites. Our dining room, kitchen eating area and island work space are all one big area, the entire back of the main frame (the original box) of the house.
These wingbacks were given to us by the previous owner of the house. They date back 100 years – and the upholstery was probably original. The stuffing-cushioning were in pretty good shape, so I reupholstered them in this coral/cream/brown print and they look like new again. They don’t make things like they used to.
The two prints above the fireplace were my grandmothers. They are floral prints from the Smithsonian, one in the month of August and one in November – my grandparents birth months. Many years ago they were hung on the wall over their headboard.
Our small kitchen table and breakfast nook – This area needs some decorating help. Haven’t gotten to that yet.
My standard attire, my basic wardrobe, the outfit I’de pick if I had to wear just one thing for the rest of my life would be without a doubt… blue jeans and a t-shirt.
Did you know…
The upstairs hallway is very narrow and sits between the kids’ bedrooms. When the shop closed recently I brought home this awesome blue dresser that we used for displays, but I had no idea where I’de put it. I found it at Homegoods two years ago in the sale department and fell in love. I don’t decorate with blue though, so it wasn’t looking good anywhere I put it. Then it dawned on me that there were no competing colors up there and I could go blue-crazy in that one spot. So I did.
Bench picked up in an anitque shop whos owner is very generous with his prices. Looks to me like an old pew, maybe? I want to call it a Deacon’s bench, but I don’t truly know what that is, as I am new to paying attention to these things..
Bathroom door.. and this sink is the smartest idea I contributed to the design of the rebuilt house. It’s the DOG SINK. All of my dog supplies are under there, and this sink is where I give them baths when they are filthy from the yard, make their meals and clean up their dishes, leashes, collars, etc.
This is another piece of eco-friendly furniture by my friend Art. If you’ve read this blog in earlier days, you may remember he makes furniture out of old material from dismantled houses and barns.. like windows, doors, barn siding, etc. There are usually atleast three different paint colors involved too….
And since it’s a miserable rainy morning made for lazyness and I’m walking around with the camera doing nothing productive anyway, here’s what we’re doing outside too…
This room, located in the front right corner of the house if you’re facing it from the street.. was originally a dining room. Since we use that big keeping room (kitchen) as a dining room, sitting room, hanging out at the island room… Mike made this his office. Jeff did all the cabinetry work in his shop, and the fireplace and beams are original, even the stones are back in place. Mike took photos before the dismantle and the stones were marked so that they would go back together properly.
