Welcome

Welcome to our old farmhouse. Over the past year I have learned so much history of this house and the people who lived here. Ninety six years of love, loss, hopes and dreams. Preservation continues and there is always a repair to be done. We are trying to be purest in our preservation as much as we possibly can. I hope you follow along and each week I will try to give you a little history of the house as well as the first owners of the house. I've been lucky enough to find a journal from a Granddaughter who talks about the house as well as her Grandparents. So come follow along and learn about this old house as well as the occupants, old and new.

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Chili Night

It' time for tablescape Thursday!
Be sure to stop by Susan's at
to see all the inspiration there
from all 0f today's
participants.
For the last four years I have had
Chili Night at my house.
It's a night where DH makes a
couple huge pots of chili and I
just have the girls over for food
and fun. Everyone brings their
children and through the years
we have had all ages, from babies
to teenagers. There have been as
many as fourteen people here and
of course the we girls tend to sit
around the dining room table and
do our giggling, and the kids tend
to go there way for their chit chat.
So tonight you will see three
tablescapes, one for us girls, I
have a table set for the teens and
one for the little guys. So follow
me and lets get ready to have
FUN!!!!
I have the dining room set for us Big kids.
My inspiration came from the bowls I am
using, but first lets start with the center
piece. I have a little orange basket holding
pine cones and sun flowers, orange candles,
a burlap pumpkin laying in a copper bowl.
I used orange, gold and brown as my color
scheme. I started with a brown tablecloth
and layered from there.
I added a little Welcome for everyone.
We also have copper salt and pepper shakers. And Mr. Rooster with a few chilies. And why a Rooster you ask? Just keep going! This bowl was my inspiration for all three tables. This is one side, and....
This is the other!!!
My place setting for the big girls.
The bowls are from TJ Maxx.
The smaller plate under is from a
set of diner dishes I have, the gold
you have saw many times. I used
gold flatware, a straw place mat
and two glasses for this table, one
for wine the other for sweet tea.
No napkin rings, napkins were simply
placed in the wine glass.
Now lets move into the kitchen and
into the breakfast area. I think the
older kids will be happy here. I used
the same color scheme and the same
element for the centerpiece. You can
see we have another rooster, our
sunflowers and pine cones.
You can see the straw serving tray
here, holding part of the center piece.
A copper dish holding our candle.
Another burlap pumpkin laying
in more copper.
Same colors being used in
our place settings but in a
different way. Gold place mats,
I used the same gold flatware
and diner dishes, then used
the orange in the middle for
desert. The brown napkins were
placed under the desert plates.
My everyday tea glasses are
just coated with an orange
sugar coating around the
rime just like I did the white
last week. This allowed me
to have somewhat coordinating
glasses.
Hungry yet?
We still have to get the little
guys taken care of.
So lets go!!!
I thought this smaller
table would be a good fit
for these guys. They could eat
then play a few games or watch
some TV.
I started with a brown table
cloth, gold material running
across the table to define the
place setting.
We have a rooster holding a
Welcome, more pine cones and a
huge sunflower, you can also
see the wooden primitive rooster
on the table, but there are
a few differences.
Want to see?
Follow me....
Our place setting, you will see
some of the same elements, but
we have an orange plastic chili
bowl. Little guys need sugared
orange glasses tooo...
Remember make them
feel special , but, safety first!
The candles on this table are
battery operated. I simply
put orange tissue paper around
them to cover the white then
tied with raffia.
A final look and we can head back
to the dining room to eat!!
Wish everyone could be hear with us
because you would be guaranteed
to have a great time!! Oh and before I forget, this
year we are adding a little surprise
Birthday Party to the night!!!
Well time to go!
Don't forget to let me know
what you think about our
little tradition. I love hearing
from you.
Bye For Now,
Sandy

Monday, October 26, 2009

Posh Porch Party

It's time for the Posh Porch Party being hosted
by Shannon at "Posh Pieces".
Be sure to stop by Shannon's for some..
Halloween Treats.
I really don't have what would be considered
a front porch, but that has never stopped me
from decorating for the Holidays.
I decorated my door in September for fall,
than all I had to do was make small changes
the closer we got to Halloween.
The sunflowers are in a black hanging basket
and all I did was attach the Welcome sign
from Hobby Lobby with a little wire to the
hanger. I used clear light on the grapevine
tree, then all I had to do was add the little
pumpkin light covers for Halloween. I sat the
tree on a plant stand covered with Autumn
leaves. This has worked very well for the
last two months. I will change things in
November for Thanksgiving.
This is just outside my kitchen door, its a little
offset and makes a great little seating area.
I have a couple of antique wicker pieces out
here a settee and a table. I also have another
grapevine tree here as well. This is a day time
view.
I have some sticks from the yard with a pumpkin sitting in the middle and Mr. Crow as the lookout.
As night approaches!
My wreath is a little out of the norm. I had
two grapevine wreath the same size so I
just attached them together with a little raffia.
My next picture is not even of a porch, but
I always throw a few decorations out here
This is my front yard pond, I just love the
reflection of the lights off the water. Hey,
the fish even match the lights. Ha Ha.
Thanks for visiting tonight and I hope you
will came back soon! Please feel free to
leave a comment, suggestion or question
I love hearing from you.
Bye For Now,
Sandy

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Metamorphosis Monday

Welcome to Metamorphosis Monday
hosted by Susan at
Be sure to stop by Susan's and all
of today's participants for your treats,
before Halloween!!!!
First I would like to thank everyone
who visited and left comments on
the home tour, I appreciate each
and every one of them and loved
reading them.
I just have a couple little yard sale and
thrift store finds that have gone through
some changes in the last few week.
This little candle holder I got at a garage sale
a year or more ago. It was only .25 , was a
great size and had great lines, but the gold
wasn't working for me! So last week while
doing my tablescape I needed a large black
candle holder, so to storage I went!
And here she is!
The magic of black paint!!! Now my next little projects inspiration came from all those beautiful lamps I see out there in blogland. Susan has one in her den and I have seen several others while visiting other blogs. Have you ever seen these in the thrift stores or garage sales? Well I have plenty of times, now don't get me wrong I do love my kids and grand kids, but I',m not interested in any more nursery decorating, sooooo........... I grabbed this little baby up for .75, and the shade I already had as well as the yellow material to cover the shade. And here is what she looks like now!!!
I had the little rooster as well, a little white
paint to the lamp and rooster, and I think
I have a winner!
Now the little bear did not go to waste, Lola
and Copper were more than happy to have
another toy to lay around for me to pick up.
Thanks for visiting, I hope you stop by again,
very soon. Feel free to leave a comment,
suggestion or question. I love hearing
from you.
Bye For Now,
Sandy

Friday, October 23, 2009

It's So Very Cottagey

I would like to take this time to thank Cheri
from "It's So Very Cheri" for hosting
this event.
I can't even begin to tell you how
much I have enjoyed seeing all the home tours.
Welcome to my home!
I will have to say this house has gone through
allot of changes since we moved in, both on
the inside and outside.
I will never forget the first time I saw it.
I followed the realtor into the driveway and
just looked at her and said, "Oh No".
On her encouragement, I came in.
You see, the outside had no curb appeal, at all.
There was part of a chain link fence in the front
yard, over grown shrubs and the list goes on.
But after looking for one year, I had to hold
on to the hope that, what she had told me
about this house would hold true. And after
walking into the kitchen, I knew this was home.
This picture was taken June 2009.
Please join me in the foyer. This house was built in 1979, as you can see the foyer is rather large. I have a French settee I bought at auction while living in Charleston, SC and my grandfather clock is here as well. The chandelier is also from Charleston. The floors are oak. The wall color is called fawn. This is a view looking back at the front door. The fern is sitting on an antique wig stand. A view from the living room into the foyer. After walking into the foyer if you make a right, that will take you into the living room. I am using this room more of a music/library room. I have no TV in this room, just allot of books, quiet a few of them from the nineteenth century, so therefore you might find this room a little dark, but that is necessary to protect them from the harmful effects of the sunlight. I have used big leather furniture so you can just sink down into it. It's so nice to go in here and have a nice cup of tea or coffee without all the noise of the TV. The fawn paint color was also used in this room. You will also see I have several antique pieces here as well. In fact there are very few rooms in my house you won't find an antique. It's been my tradition for the last twenty odd years to buy a nice antique to add to my collection once a year. My house probably looks like a nightmare to all of you talented designers out there but I have tried to convey the feeling as you walk into the front door that many generations have lived here, there have many trips taken in the prosperous times and many luxuries bought, then there had been the not so prosperous times and that may be where you find the book with the tattered binding or the small tear in the antique lace. The other side of the room.
My antique library table and chair.
The lamp was made from a tea canister, I
found it at an antique store, you can see the
typewriter and the two pictures hanging
over the table are just old and faded but
I love them. The smaller one is a landscape
and the larger is a vase of flowers.
The large painting over the sofa is a landscape
that I won. The antique store I used to visit
did a drawing once a month and I was the lucky
winner one December.
I usually have the large painting hanging over
the fireplace, unless I have decorated for the
Holidays.
On the opposite side of the room an antique
pump organ that is a family heirloom.
A view back into the foyer.
I have bookshelves going in on both sides of the
fireplace this winter.
If we go back to the foyer and take another
right we go into the kitchen. This room
had gone through a major renovation before
we bought this house. The old kitchen and
dining room were combined and a new dining
room, master bedroom, master bath and
walk in closet addition were added to the back
of the house.
This is a rather large kitchen, and is great
when we have lots of company.
The opposite side of the room.
One of my favorite things is my convection
oven, I love to bake and it truly makes for
great goodies.
We added the pot rack over the island shortly
after moving in and added matching lighting
to the rest of the room. I am in the process
of giving the island a little makeover, that
meaning the materials are being bought and
stored in the garage until I have everything I
everything I need. This is the place in the house
where everyone tends to gather. Food, fun and lots of laughter with family
and friends. This is also an eat in kitchen, most
of you have seen different tablescapes there
so I won't bore you with that area.
Oh well I'll fess up, I forgot to load the picture.
There is a blue/gray ceramic tile going from
the kitchen, mud room, powder room and
into the dining room at the french doors.
I have never had allot of blue or gray in my
house in the past, but I have learned to live
with it!
This is the mudroom just off the kitchen
beside the back door. A great little place for
storage.
The powder room, just off the mud room and
very hard to photograph. I did change the
lighting and mirror in this room after moving
in, I really didn't see the need for a huge
medicine cabinet in this room.
There is just a pedestal sink in this room
which I think works well since it is more of
a guest bathroom. The wall paper (I hear
the OH No's) out there, Ha Ha, give me a
break here, I hate stripping wall paper.
My French lady, I bought this picture before
I even looked at this house, the colors match
the wall paper perfectly.
I always like to have pretty little towels for
my guest, everyone must feel special.
If we go out of the kitchen and to the back of
the house we will go to the new addition and
into the dining room. I'm sure everyone is
tired of seeing this room, you have saw it in
so many of my tablescape post. The room is
furnished for the most part with antiques,
oak being the primary wood. This sideboard
was one of the first pieces I ever bought.
The large portraits are family members.
When we moved in every wall, with the
exception of the wall paper was white, gloss
white. As you have seen, things have changed
a little. In this room I used the fawn paint
also, but in a different way. I wanted walls that
looked like they had been around for many, many
years, so I got myself a quart canning jar with
lid, filled it half way with the fawn paint, then
with water. Then found myself a bunch of
100% cotton clothes and start wiping the
walls, some place are extremely light some
a little darker. A friend of mine happened to
stop by right in the middle of my application,
I can't even begin to explain the look on her
face!!!!!
We replaced the carpet with this antique oak
flooring a couple of years ago. A much better fit.
This light was one I also brought with me
from SC. The medallion is one of those was
wall hanging metal pieces.
This door takes you to the master bedroom.
Most people don't know this room exsist, unless
we show them. But first...
This is a stencil I did in the dining room
(I see you wonderful decorators out there
flinching) some places are very light, some
a little darker to give the appearance of
fadining over time.
This is the master bedroom with limited
viewing. You see we have a delema going
on, and that would be the flooring to put
in here. The carpet has been taken up and
now its decision time. It's going to be quiet
expensive to floor this room, so its not
something I want to rush into. So we are
just buying samples of different hardwoods
before the decision is made. You will see a
differance in the decorating in the next
two rooms, I have tried for more of the spa
feeling. Lots of whites to go with the green
walls. It is a very peaceful room, not allot going
on.
Just a peak at some of the elments I will be
using.
These will also be used, you saw them last
summer bing used in the dining room.
Ok, that will be all for now, in this room. Lets go to the master bath and dressing room.
This is one of the largest bathrooms I have
seen and trust me, my hobbie used to be
open house tours.
I carried the green though here as well, the
boarder was already here (remember I said
I hated stripping wall paper) so I picked one
shade of the green from the boarder and just
painted.
This chandalier once held court in my dining
room in SC. If you noticed the lamps on the
night stands were also metal and had the
same iron curls and color.
Lots of storage.
I hope no one is offended by "My Lady", I
placed her in my dressing room, because of
her (skimpy) attire, so as not to offend anyone
visiting. I got her at an estate sale several years
ago, she is one of my favorite painting. The
gentleman told me he had bought her in
France while there in the military.
The doors are pocket doors and great for not
taking up space. The door on the left goes to
the walk in closet and the door to the right
back to the bedroom.
This is one of the few room in the house along
with the master bedroom that has good lighting.
One of the good things about additions.
I took the shears all the way to the floor, the
door to the left is a linen closet for this area.
Note: Spa tub great for those tired old bones
after a day in the yard, removing over grown
shrubs!
Note to self: Do not sit on this bench after
a day in the garden, your legs will not move!
If we go out of the kitchen across the foyer
and down three steps we go into the
lower level of the house. I have this room as
more of a morning or hearth room since it
is so close to the kitchen.
The stone wall DH and I built about three
years ago, we found and carried every rock
to build the wall. So that little project classified
as a spa tub night, but no chair, Sandy!
The track lighting was added a couple of weeks
ago, this is another one of my dark rooms.
DH made the entertainment center and I just
added the small table down here from the
kitchen a couple monthes ago. It's great for
meals or for crafting.
There is a outside door in this room, which is
a great source of light and just wonderful to
sit and watch the wildlife in the summer
months.
I love this old piano, both my girls play!
My DH hates this piano, it weights 850
pounds and he had to move it here from
SC. Do I need to say any more????
There is one bedroom on this level, I have it
fixed for the boys, in a birdhouse theme.
The bed DH and I made for my youngest
daughter years ago. We just cut the boards
to resemble a picket fence, then took the
rails off of a run of the mill daybed, and it's
still around. Most of the decore in the room
is from Caties room, before she needed her
(grown up room). So I didn't have to cry to
much at all.
You can see allot of plants in this room.
This is my makeshift green house for the
winter. A greenhouse was on the "To Do" list
but we ran out of time and tropicals just
don't like snow!
Now if we are back in the foyer and take a left
up four stairs we can see more bedrooms and
baths.
The first is the hall guest bath, which I have
previously posted. It was one of the few
rooms in the house stuck in the 70's.
We added this old dresser with the vessel sink,
new hardwood flooring, mirrors, lights and
beadboard to the walls.
Always the special things for guest!
Across the hall to another guest room.
Yes I know the bed is much to big for the room!
There is red carpet in this room, one of three
rooms in the house with carpet, all on this level.
I can't tell you the wall color in this room,
because I mixed it myself. Yes I did! I wanted
a wonderful cup of hot chocolate with
marshmellows and I mixed whites, creams
and browns until I got it!
I have also used some old French pieces
of furniture, found at a thrift store (the chair
and night table). I also added some red toile
to the lampshade and curtains.
Most of the bedding is white with red
added for a touch of color. There are two closets in this room, which
is unusual.
A wash stand with pitcher and bowl my
daughter bought for me with a toile pattern.
The antique chamber pot filled with poperie
and white cotton finger towels.
My "Other Lady" you would meet, if you
were to stay the night. She's dressed more
approporatly, so she is a little more visible.
On to the other bedroom, my "Girls Room".
Again, not a full view, I have just painted this
room and I'm just not happy with the way it
has come together, looking at inspiration
pictures for the finish.
The canopy is one that my youngest used for
years and has been in so many different
materials and patterns, I have lost count.
I just did this blue from a set of drapes with
the attached valance, and I am very happy
with it. The carpet in this room is dark blue.
The previous owners had sons, and here we
come with girls.
Now onto the old master bedroom, which
now belongs to the queen (so she thinks).
We can take a peak, since her majisty is
out of her castle, as you can see her new
taste is on the wild side.
On to the old master bath, a little on the small
side. As you see the, "Wild Side" is continued.
I hope you have enjoyed this long tour and I would
like to take this time, once again, to thank Cheri for
hosting all the great house tours we have had the
chance to see. They have all been so wonderful.
Please feel free to leave comments, suggestions
or questions. I love hearing from everyone.
Bye For Now,
Sandy