Cozy fire, laughing with family, eating a delicious Christmas dinner. Not happening here. Just the 4 of us (2 dogs included) this year, working on the house and FINALLY finishing the dresser that’s been on the work table for months. Greg is just as busy at work as he was 3 months ago with the promotion if not busier which did not allow us (again) a trip home. A 600 mile journey that once took us like 18 hours to drive between a snow storm and then ice storm. A good, calm winter makes this trip about 11 hours. But anywhosal…
The drawers need a touch up on this nearly finished piece, add the hardware and then we get the usual fun of bringing it up our narrow basement stairs and storing it somewhere in our small house. A place the dogs won’t get to which is the second bedroom. They’ve acquired a taste for veneer. Not me so much. Just never took to it. I’ve caught them both chewing on our pieces-yet-to-be-salvaged on the 3 season porch.
That’s been part of the problem on finishing this one. There’s just no space since we made that table a few weeks ago.
We made another desk/table last weekend, and as I mentioned here, we brought the desk up I used in the office. All 3 pieces are up for grabs so it’s not a problem we need to find a solution to at this time. The right people need to come along. Just take ’em right on out of here. Someone is coming tonight to see our selection.
Besides tables, I have been making pillows. And dropping my sewing machine down the stairs. Twice. And having a lightheaded feeling along with being absolutely exhausted even after 8 hours of sleep. The room kind of moves by like clouds do and I feel like I can’t focus on anything. I am not pregnant. Repeat. Not pregnant. Went through that whole thing with friends and family on facebook. Sigh. Vertigo maybe which is weird because my sis-in-law just had a case of it. Poles shifting or something. Back to the pillows.
Long ago, in a galaxy far, far away, when we lived downtown this very town we still live in but now as homeowners, was a shop, Digs, that had fabric and housewares. An amazing and beautiful place. That moved to Minneapolis like many of the shops in our town do. (We now know as people who salvage and refinish furniture for money making…seriously just typed monkey making…how difficult it can be to thrive when you aren’t located where a good sized population exists or travels and with that population, a really supportive community who “digs” your stuff enough to also financially support you. Ha!) Dangerous to me. It was one door down from our apartment. Only an alley separated us. That’s where I picked this fabric up on clearance.
Back then I wasn’t creating much of anything and didn’t take full advantage of the place. Although I wanted to screen print t-shirts with my designs…or open a cake/wine bar and/or food truck for the gourmande in me…we couldn’t afford the rental space which is the same story today but I still want to run a food truck and small space for our furniture.
I am not sure what the fabric is called but it spoke to me. I saved it next to my collection of hardware until I could think of a good use. Not just good but something pretty darn sweet. For the longest time I thought it would turn into a headboard, like a hanging textile and not upholstered on some foamy headboard. Like in a room with more understated things, more modern and against a blank white space.
Pillows are not what I had in mind. But I love pillows and was inspired when I got a load of the pillows Morgan (from a blog I admire and adore, the Brick House) made for her new shop Camp. I love it all. You know I’ve been talking about designing pendants/lighting and I recently went batshit crazy over what she did. I want it all. So simple, glorious and exactly what I’ve been searching for for this 1952 home of ours. Send me 5 of it all then send me 5 more each month kind of love. Ever have that feeling about something?
So now these 3 pillows exist from that sweet sweet remnant of fabric. And thank you, Morgan,for helping me see the pillow light (and your actual lights).
Oh, and our tv is mounted to the wall now. Victory!
Our vent covers are painted Paper White by Benjamin Moore (the shade I picked for our trim whenever that time comes which in my mind is soon). Cleaning the old oil-based paint off was a real bitch. One took 2 hours. But I got them stripped, primed and with 2 coats of paint. Besides our cool tray-like ceiling, these covers are unique features that sold me on the house.
We put the hinges up for the recent project we’ve tackled around here (hush hush until it’s finished). Think “stairway to nowhere” project.
Greg and I have had it with the bathroom so its reno has been pushed closer. We ordered a marble subway tile sample from the Tile Shop and received the Pottery Barn medicine cabinet I talked about a few weeks ago).
We’re going to gather the materials to renovate the upstairs bath and get crackin’. Literally. The old tile has to come down and we have to fix the leak that showed its ugly head before Thanksgiving. It looks more and more like we’ll be making our own vanity cabinet. We need something not as deep as the one we have and found a sink we hope to use about 16 1/2″ deep. Sounds small but the bathroom is tight and we’re doing a mini-makeover instead of our original plan for a custom glass shower among the list of expensive items.
What are you working on? Probably Christmas, Annie, probably Christmas.
So, merry Christmas from our family of 2 humans, a sheepdog and a corgi to you fine people.
