Sure...we'll drive 200 miles for a piece of furniture

One of the things I miss about our 1925 cottage is all the storage. Attic space, built-ins, a basement for Pete's sake! This house has minimal storage.

We're about to solve that problem.

Look what I found at RD Steeves Imports



A walnut wardrobe from the 1940's....4' wide, 18" deep, 76" high. Ready for the best part? It's only $200. Well worth the drive.

No thank you, I don't want any formaldehyde

One of the problems I came across during our remodel was the lack of understanding regarding the health issues of using products containing formaldehyde (think laminate countertops and pink insulation, and in the case of insulation....a double-whammy because fiberglass is also toxic). Formaldehyde is a carcinogin. No ifs, ands or buts about it folks. It causes cancer.

I found this article in Re-Nest

Why?

Why would anyone put an electrical panel box in the dining room?
I haven't figured out how to hide this yet. It's off-center, so I'm going to need something at least 30" wide and 40" high.
Any suggestions?
I'm thinking about a kilim (Kilims are flat tapestry-woven carpets or rugs produced from the Balkans to Pakistan. Kilims can be purely decorative or can function as prayer rugs.)

Remodel-Kitchen: the before pictures

Really...could it have been any more hideous?

Remodel-Kitchen: and the story behind the design

Designing a kitchen for myself turned out to be much harder than I thought. I knew what I wanted: "green" kitchen cabinets, wood floor, paperstone countertops. But then the budget got in the way. Our first estimate for cabinetry was twice the budget we had for the entire kitchen. Replacing all the appliances wasn't an option, but since I happen to love this stove (a GE from the late 50's is my guess) I decided to design the kitchen with this stove in mind. As well as Mark's grape branch which I wanted above the window, and seen from as much of the house as possible.



All the kitchen pictures I had saved throughout the years featured off-white cabinets. Since I didn't want off-white next to bright white appliances, I added the dark stained pieces to off-set the appliances.


The footprint is fairly small 9' wide by 11' deep. I changed my floorplan at least 12 times before I had it the way I wanted.

Craigslist....Gotta Love it!

Scored this rolling kitchen island off Craigslist for $50

“If you can organize your kitchen, you can organize your life.”
- Louis Parrish
Well...I have my rarely used cookbooks organized now...

Why Does it Have to Go There?

When we bought the place, this door was the access to the furnace. This is the first thing one sees when they enter our house. Our plan was to wall off the existing access door, and make access available from the mud room. I wanted the cold air return vent to be in the ceiling, hidden from view.

What ended up happening? A hole was cut in the wall...which, as far as I was concerned, was the same problem. I didn't want a cheesy metal vent in the wall.

So I started looking for decorative grilles. The ones I liked all had a hefty price tag on them....anywhere from $200-$500. I needed something a lot cheaper so when I found this cool metal piece at Aurora Mills Architectural Salvage, one of my favorite haunts, I knew we could make it work. This is actually the grille from an old register cover. Mark salvaged the grille, and we screwed it to the wall. I have one coat of paint on it....still needs another. But, as with all the painting that still needs to be done....this will have to wait.

I Spy

My husband and I realized we could spy on one another...
from one end of the house to the other....

View from master bedroom:

View from den:

Seriously....

In honor of the State of the Union Address

Custom Work

Walking in a winter wonderland isn't always fun. Or attractive. I bought what I refer to as my Michelin Tire Man coat. It's one of those thick, quilted down coats that makes me look twice my normal size. But it is warm, so I wear it. It has a fur lined hood too, which I like, but the wind doesn't. It keeps getting blown off my head. So I wrap my scarf around my head, babushka style...tied under the chin (very attractive) and then pull the hood back up. The wind will then knock both the hood and the babushka scarf off, thoroughly freezing my ears.
What's a girl to do?
I put out a plea in the Etsy forums the other day and got a response from Megan from Nutmegs Look what she made for my poor frozen ears (Can't wait to get them!)

Wisdom

"Don't compromise yourself. You are all you've got." - Janis Joplin

Snow Day

Desert

Oregon is mostly known for being very wet. It rains a lot which means it's very green...on the other side of the mountain...where I lived for 40 years. Central Oregon is something else entirely. It takes some getting used to...a dry, brown, rocky climate is not where I ever imagined myself living. Part of the problem may be the conception of what the desert is...based on its definition:
desert, noun. a region so arid that it supports only sparse vegetation or none at all.
But there is beauty here...

Deschutes River

Crooked River Canyon

Steelhead Falls

Surfing, Anyone?

I'm sitting here, trolling through my photographs, looking for something to warm me up on this cold, cold, high desert morning. Found the perfect picture (and I get to brag, too!)

My niece beat the boys! Surfer girl that she is, just like her mama (my sister), she took first place at this competition!

Remodel: Bring in the Light

"Live in rooms full of light." ~ Cornelius Celsus

Before

Inspiration

I tore this page from a magazine pre-blogging days so I don't have a source to credit.

Any ideas?

After

Unfortunately, we didn't have the ceiling height or room depth to do either the arch or the bar. But I wanted the 1/2 wall so as much light as possible would fill the room. The door to the mudroom has a frosted glass panel which allows even more light. (Someday...soon...I will paint the trim)

Wall color-Yolo paint-Grain 01 (Yolo paint has zero VOCs)
Flooring-EcoTimber, solid bamboo, vertical grain, Amber

Remodel: Master Bedroom

Codi: "So you think we all just have animal dreams. We can't think of anything to dream except our ordinary lives."
Loyd: "Only if you have an ordinary life. If you want sweet dreams, you've got to live a sweet life." ~Barbara Kingsolver, Animal Dreams
Before:

After:

Wall color-Devine Paint-Saffron (Devine paint is low VOC)
Flooring-EcoTimber solid bamboo, vertical grain, Amber

Damn Near Tropical

Woke up to a tropical 0 degrees this morning. Mind you, it's been 5 below zero the last three mornings, so this is an improvement. This made me realize that one year ago, I was on a cruise to Mexico with my girlfriends. Some pics to warm us up:
San Diego

Catalina

Mexico-as seen from cabin window
I'm ready to go again.....

Thoughts of Spring

I just came across this tulip photo from our old house. Made me think of spring and all the flowers in my (former) yard in Silverton. Have to say, I'm not a gardener and although I will miss all the flowers and shrubs, I will not miss the maintenance. Something to be said about living in the desert...no yard work! I think I will get some bulbs to force though...

"If I were to name the three most precious resources of life, I should say books, friends and nature; and the greatest of these, at least the most constant and always at hand, is nature." - John Burroughs

Remodel: Master Bath, part one (or: Turning a trailer into a home fit for a Diva)

Before: Master Bath
"What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have not yet been discovered."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson



The first question people ask: "Why did you buy a trailer?"
Answer: "We couldn't afford a stick built house (on 5 acres) close enough to Bend (Central Oregon) for Mark to commute to work.
Second question: "Why put $ into a remodel on a trailer?"
Answer: "No way in Hell was I going to live in that!...and, since we did most of the work ourselves, we came out fine financially"

Remodel: Master Bath, part two

"There is certainly no absolute standard of beauty. That precisely is what makes its pursuit so interesting." - John Kenneth Galbraith

Master Bath: After



We purchased antiques from RD Steeves Imports in Yamhill, Oregon for less than it cost to buy new cabinets....even cheap ones from the big box stores. Buffet (used as sink cabinet)-$285, recycled porcelain sink from ReStore (Habitat for Humanity resale shop) $10, armoire (used as linen closet)-$185
A link for RD Steeves can be found on the side bar under Other Cool Links
Wall color-Ralph Lauren Regent Metallic paint-Ballroom Gold

Remodel: Dining Room

Before:

After:

Before:

After:


Wall color-Ralph Lauren Regent Metallics-Ballroom Gold

Look what I'm getting for Valentine's Day!

This is what Mark is getting me for Valentine's Day!
I'm so in love with this bracelet! It combines two of my favorite things: antiques & the ocean (in this case an antique cuff bracelet and a sea urchin).
This line of jewelry is made by Star of the East in Turkey. Check out their shop www.staroftheeast.etsy.com and their blog (link on left side bar)