Footboard and finished pix

The foot board is done and here is a look at the final product.. to totally prep and paint 2 night stands, a tall dresser, and headboard and foot board I spent 47 hours...and right in the middle of holiday baking time..BUT I got it all done.

Repainted bedroom furniture !

I took our bedroom set and gave it a make-over ! It was originally done in white washed pine. I went for a french-country, cream and blue, with antique glaze over the dainty pink flowers I painted on. Here is the Dresser and headboard..scroll back to the past "master bedroom" post to see the before.

The den

Here is the room we use to sit and enjoy the lake view all seasons. We wanted wood floors to go with the wood on the Juke box. It was a 25th wedding anniversary gift we gave ourselves. Holds 100 cds, and also we went to the beach for a month. Awesome anniversary...11 years ago ! We picked out hardwood cherry floor and couldn't decide on a color..we went with cherry and cinnamon, and layed it in a stripe pattern.. It was so easy to lay. We call it the Bowling alley look. The shelves are for our Hallmark Kiddie Car collection.. we also have a few real full sized pedal cars, and a reproduction pink trike. The chairs we placed looking out the bay windows.. We can see the geese, ducks, seagulls, and even white pelicans when they migrate through.. There's always something to look at.. from wildlife to people putting in boats at the ramp.. We are so glad we opened up the stairwell, to have a open feel...being able to see into the living room helps open the space. The little chair in the corner was Dons grandpas original dining chair. It is so tiny, and looks hand whittled. The seat was missing so Don cut a new seat and I covered it with a cowhide. I think it's cute.

Just a few more decorations to start the Season. Keeping it simple so I can get it all put away I put out my Jim Shore collection on the mantel and love eating out of the snowman and woman dishes.. I don't mind hand washing them after every meal... it's only for a few weeks. The make a bowl of homemade chili and a plate of cornbread even tastier !I like how the bowls stack on top of plates and you can still see the face design. I'm ready to make some rolled out sugar cookies and frost and eat ! Ahh the Holidays are here !

Happy Holidays

I wasn't going to decorate this year.. last year we sold our big tree, the stand that spins it around..and we didn't decorate. Took a break. Then Robin over at Candy creek showed me her tall white tree with robins egg blue decorations..IT is so fabulous..check it out ! It made me think, maybe I would do a small tree..so I got a 3 1/2 foot white,pre-lit and went all pink decorations. Some pink pearls, peace, joy, believe, noel in white tin with pink glitter.. the crown sprayed pink and pink glitter too. The white dominoes with pink rhinestones.. they were to hard to play dominoes with..they tipped over..so I added some hangers to them..and added them to the tree. I took a pink feather boa, cut it up and tucked it in the branches. Had some pink and white polka dot ribbon, and the pink and white polka dot satin for the tree skirt I had.. so I threw the tree together on the cheap with so many things I was able to spray pink and add glitter to.. I had got this tray table for $3 last may.. scroll back on past posts and u will see it in black and gold.. I wanted it pink and white for the tree to sit on..but later I plan to paint flowers on it and antique it too. I have an idea for next years tree theme already. Thanks to Deb & Robin motivating me to get in the spirit ! I even decorated extra early, since we had planned to go to Utah for Thanksgiving...but due to my cold we couldn't risk my Mom-in -law getting sick , since she is still in chemo for her cancer..and has no immune system...and we leave here Jan.1 for 3 months at the beach in Florida... time marches on !

Small Shack, Big Happy !

We don't need a lot of space.. we never have wanted formal dining rooms. Just a cozy for when the cousin come for bar b Q's and boating, a spot to have a few friends for dinner, fry up some fresh caught fish ((Thanks Hazel & Chuck - YUMM))) a game of cards or dominoes.. SO Don built a banquet style eating area, some great storage, I covered it with comfy cushion and easy care fabric, sewed pillow cases to cover regular pillows, so I can change the up when the mood hits. So there is a window behind the mural..but we blocked that up when the garage went up, we may re-open the area one day and use decorative film so we don't have to see the garage, but still get light in. We used leftover marble and granite from the floors and counters to tie it all together. The stairwell was suppose to be closed, but we chose to add wood turnings to be able to have an open concept look into the den. I am to blame for the huge t.v. I would have a drive-in theater if I could. Hubby could care less the size.. The next post I will have to show you what the banquet started from.. Bit's and pieces. Tonight was the first fall weather..some rain brought some chill..so we had the first fire in the wood stove of the season !

Happy Shack Hangouts

We don't need a lot of space. Just a small area for casual dining with friends , eat a home made meal, some fresh caught fish, play some cards or dominoes with the neighbors. So no formal areas for us. We spend so much time outside in spring in summer. SO here is our combined living room, dining area. Don built a banquet style seating, with storage under it, and I covered it with easy care fabric, and sewed fun pillow cases to put on regular bed pillows.. easy to toss in the wash and can resew new ones when the urge strikes. We used leftover marble and granite from the floors and counters to make the table and wood stove backing. Wait till u see how that table came about. There is a large window behind the mural on the wall.. but we covered it up, because we put that large garage on that side of the house, and chose not to see it..but later we may reopen that window and just use a decorative film so we can get some light coming thru. But for now we like the look. The stairwell was originally suppose to be all closed in, and we chose to use wood turnings to be achieve a more open look into the den. The overly huge t.v is my fault.. If I could have a drive- in theater in my house I would... hubby could take the big screen or leave it ... anyway.. here's where we hang and life is casual and fun at the HAPPY SHACK !

Back from the beach

Oh two months on the beach was heavenly ! It is always good to get home.. we will be home for 8 weeks..well maybe.. we will probably go to Utah / Colorado to see friends and relatives for Turkey time.. then back to the lake for a bit..and then back to the beach for all of JAN/Feb/March. We want to see what its like in Jan/Feb.. we usually go in March and camp for two weeks..but this time will stay in the condo again. It's an experiment to see how we like being snowbirds! But look at the cute mermaid we made from sand...what a hoot. I'm going to spend my time at home on some fun projects. Repainting my bedroom furniture in the french country and cream..like the mosaic dresser I did.. I bought the paint today.. (No , I am not unpacked yet)... almost.. had to go buy food today. Fridge was empty ! Will have to dig out some fall clothes to get us thru till we repack for the beach. The next 8 weeks are gonna fly by. Check back soon.. I want to blog some more interior house pictures ! Enjoy fall..it's beautiful here at the lake..and we get to go play in the snow for Turkey time.. then leave that cold stuff behind!

Kitchen closeups

Just some details about changes, and re-use / re-cycle. I love to take stuff and use it in ODD ways... So here goes. I had to have my GE Artica fridge. But it was so large, it needed "hidden". Instead of building a wall, this old headboard did the job. Thanks Shellie for giving it to me..it now has a new life ! I had Don add some dental molding trim to one edge, and some turned spindles for "feet". He used brackets to attach it to the wall.. it's good and stable.I Painted the head board an off white called "sugar blossom" , a color I use all the time. I used a "grass green" for the rest. after I antiqued it, the grass green looked more teal green. I spattered it with the same antique glaze. Then used brush on chalkboard paint. Every kitchen needs a chalk board ! It is one of my favorite things in the kitchen.The cheapest thing.. yet one I love.

The bake center...well the stove was suppose to be there according to the original plans..BUT since we were doing it our self..we could change it up.. moving that washer dryer wall gave us the room to put the stove on the other side of the room. Leaving this spot for a bake center, and more counter. Don got the bake center done, then realized there was no head room.. SO a few months later he remade it.. Brought the cabinet out away from the wall... added more counter top.Perfect.. He has re-modeled so many things in the house before we ever finished the house. But he's so patient , and he does great work ! My hero !

Here is a close up of the window film. It is laser cut and comes from http://www.decorativefilm.com/ It's awesome stuff. A tad pricey, but worth it. Easy to put on, has an adhesive, peel and stick back.

Bloggin ' at the Beach

Here we are at Navarre Beach, Fla. Spending two months..time is flying by, the weather is hot and humid, perfect for layin' on the beach under the pink umbrella and reading, nice ocean breeze makes you feel so good, long walks on the beach, shelling in the sugar white sand. We have seen dolphins, large loggerhead turtles. Navarre beach is on Santa Rosa Island, east of Pensacola, very quiet and laid back..just like we like it..beaches are empty this time of year. At night we like to walk the paved bike path. As we were walking after dark last night we saw a huge crowd at a public parking lot..we said" WOW large beach party"..but a local , who writes for the paper said "Turtle hatching tonight".. so we followed him over the dunes to the turtle nest..The turtle ladies..who check for nests each spring and keep tabs on them all summer were there, heads to the sand, listening for scratching sounds. they could be heard. The turtle ladies used red lenses over flashlights, turtles can't see red, so it would not bother them when they hatched, yet we would be able to see the turtles. This nest had been laid too close to the surf in spring, the nest was dug up and moved, 110 eggs) to the dune area. all Last night there were still 30 people there, some had left early thinking it was not going to happen, as we did, and finished our walk. stopped back by,still making scratching noise, no hatching yet..so we left for home.. before we got very far, John the newspaper writer drove up to us in his car and said, we have turtle head showing..he gave us a ride back to the site. Once they turtles started crawling out covered in sand,it looked like boiling water so much movement. they were picked up, counted and placed in an empty cooler.. 20 minutes later there were 80 babies.. They carried the cooler down close to the water,we all scrubbed any scent off our hands using damp beach sand, each of us got a hatching out of the cooler, and were told to place it on the sand a few feet from the surf so it could imprint on the sand..hopefully in 25 years when the females are mature to lay eggs some will come back. The tiny turtles, 1/2 the size of my palm were set on the sand..they quickly headed towards the surf..we were there to keep crabs and any birds looking for a late night snack away..we were all lined along the surf and told not to move, as the surf would push the turtles back towards shore, and we were there to make sure they were not pushed ashore, and NOT step on them. Don and I got to release 2 loggerhead hatch lings each. As we released them into the surf, we noticed glowing spots on the surf and sand.. It was fluorescent plankton. So cool.. tiny sparks coming and going, like stars on the water. There are still 30 eggs in the nest..and they placed a screen over it and will check it before daylight , and release any other turtles this morning.. BUT just in case..we will walk back down tonight to see if we can witness this again.. It was getting late, so we carried our walking shoes, and headed down the beach, walking in the surf (once the turtles were safely gone..)and all the way back to our condo, we saw glowing plankton. Stars were out, but no moon..soft sand and warm gulf water on our feet.nice way to end the perfect day.. Thanks John and Sue for letting us into the inner "turtle "circle ! I look forward to next weeks "beach" article in the paper !

Gotta Bake !

The kitchen is a galley style..I was hoping after it was done it wouldn't be too small or narrow. We moved a wall between the laundry to give us 2 extra feet ..and in counter space that was so worth it ! We used natural maple finish and then dressed them out in a Bombay mahogany stain. We put a fireplace mantel over one door way to display the cobalt blue collections. Saved $$ by laying the marble floor tiles ourselves, and Dons idea to lay in on the diagonal made the room look bigger.We also laid black granite tile for counter tops and back splash, big savings over solid granite. This has nice flecks of gold in it. Trimmed it out in stained wood moldings,and 2 coats of clear varnish to protect the stain. There was full window over the sink, but we closed it up when we had a stand alone garage built.didn't want to look at the back of a garage. Once garage was up, we decided to open part of the window back up, cuz no window...very dark in there. So uncover part of window, hung the glass front cabinet, and used a special window film that looks like Waterford crystal. It actually looks like tiny prisms when the light comes thru.. another place to show the cobalt blue. Next I will show you the details of WHY there is a headboard tipped on its side and painted as a chalk board standing next to the fridge..and the story of the Chicken pantry door..and how the bake center cabinet came to be. I actually painted the kitchen 5 times before I got it the color I wanted..good thing I love to paint..and the room was bare ..so easy to roll it on..! Back again soon !

Bedroom Details

Here are a few close ups in Master bedroom. The Tiffany boxes were sent to me from a friend in New York That worked at Tiffany's...so I had to make a "Tiffany clock" ..cut out an opening that would show my digital clock numbers..that's as close to a Tiffany clock as I will ever get ! I ordered a bunch of galvanized cleats, and I gave them a patina finish, to use as tie backs for all the shades in the house. Notice the fossil ed leaf imprints on the wall too. More on that technique later... I found some decorative birdhouses at Samsclub one year, and knew that dear Hubby could adapt them into lites in the "new house"..and he did.. on dimmers...mood lighting.. I got the sconces at Ross.. I had a blast finding odds and ends to put to good use in the house. One night soaking in my Jacuzzi tub..listening to t.v in the bedroom I came up with the shell mirror.I figured if I hung a mirror on the door just right.. the t.v would be reflected..and I could watch from the hot bubble bath I love to soak in. Just and inexpensive mirror.and glued shells all over it.. and done ! I took a metal plane, and painted a banner of " Always Kiss me Goodnight" ..I painted a full moon face on the plane..and it says "Donnie's full moon flights" perfect ! Next time your out shopping, think of another way to use something.. Think outside the box ! Tiffany, or otherwise !

Cozy Retreat

Our master bedroom is so comfy cozy..when we get home from a road trip..we know we can fall into the most comfy bed ! And wake up to a view of the lake without lifting our heads off the pillow. We sleep with the windows open as many nights as possible..love to hear the ducks and geese "talking" on the lake during the night.. tree frogs, the hoot owl, and coyotes yip yipping. Always fun to travel..but so great to go home. I taught myself to texture walls..and in the bedroom I also did a faux fossil effect. The things I learned.. I never thought we would actually do this all our self..but I'm so glad we did..I would do it all over again tomorrow !