Summer Porch, Hydrangeas and Wallpaper!

Hello Friends! 

I am not sure where July goes, every year it seems to be shorter and shorter! It all starts off with a nice long weekend for a project ( Like wallpapering! Keep reading!) and whizzes right by ending with a couple of family birthdays. Whew! Here are a couple of highlights from the month.

 In our family, holidays are not only the perfect time to see family, they are the perfect time to round up a group of relatives for a project! (If you remember, last year my brother-in-law came to help demo the Brick House basement.) This year, Mandy and I went up to visit sister Becky and helped her paper her living room!

 When we were young we helped our Mom wallpaper a couple of walls and hang boarders. But we have never tried doing an entire room! It was fun! But like most projects comes with challanges.... Thankfully Becky picked a smallish repeat and a busy enough pattern that most mistakes were easily blended!

I am terrible at taking after pictures (or if I do, I then forget to take before pictures!) and with two little boys after pictures are filled with toys and motion seconds after everything is back in place. But you can see how lovely the wallpaper is and the elegant touch it adds to the room! Very fitting for the age of the Farmhouse. The pattern also reminds us of our Grandma's 1970's avocado green wallpaper, similar pattern just a different color!

As promised! Here are pictures of the little wicker and wood table! Looking right at home!

 We gave the porch another quick cleaning as our Aunt came for a visit and we knew porch sitting and talking was high on the list of things to do!

 This yellow rocker was a new addition last year. I love it! It actually is a folding and rocking chair and folds flat for storage. So facinating! I love the pale yellow color and am planning on matching the paint and spiffing it up.

The pillow is actually a class sample I made, but when it has done it's job it will come back to the porch! Fits in perfectly, doesn't it?

 I can never resist taking a few pictures of the cottage in summer. Perfection! We are so grateful for this house every day!

 It has become a tradition to plant geraniums in the front beds. We talk about planting something else, but I always come back to geraniums. They never let you down! (They always remind me of the first summer I owned the house. The inside was an ugly construction mess, so one Saturday I planted flowers and painted the steps for a bit of beauty! That post is here.)

I am loving the softer coral color this year.

I am so excited some of my other hydrangeas are blooming this year too! Most of them are tucked away behind the boxwoods and no one but myself can enjoy them. But it is exciting to watch them grow and there is always next year!

I also moved my room around in July! It was so fun and a great time to give everything a good dusting! I am really loving the new arrangement. Somehow it really feels like me. But I am going to save that for another post! For now here is a sneak peak!

The Farmhouse Progress Report: Kitchen

Two weeks ago when we went up to the Farmhouse, our main goal was to get the kitchen finished. And I am happy to say, we did it! Now they are just waiting for the counter tops and sink and it will a complete kitchen!

If you recall, this is what it looked like when they bought the house. Lots to do!

 And here it is in progress. We were all so excited to finally take down the scaffolding! We had forgotten how big the kitchen was!

 Becky's wood floors came out beautiful! There is maple throughout the entire first floor.

 The cabinets were a wonderful Craig's List find, which worked out perfectly. (Pardon all the sanding dust, I couldn't wait to take pictures!)

Mandy and I are hoping to get back up to the Farmhouse in about a month to help finish the bathroom walls. Progress seems slow at times, but so much has been accomplished!

The Farmhouse Progress Report:Bathroom

We headed north this past weekend to help Becky at her farmhouse. I can't believe it has only been two and a half months since they bought it. They have done so much in that time! 

The bathroom has changed so much. From an empty square of a room, to a very charming functional bathroom. Of course there are still things that need to be done, like finishing the drywall and a bit of trim. But for now at least it is a working room. 

Becky has had so much fun adding antique/vintage details back into the room. The bathroom had been completely torn out so there was no character left.

She picked out a beautiful old medicine cabinet with original hardware.

Re-claimed bead board for the walls. Even though it looks a bit grungy with a bit of cleaning and a fresh coat of paint, it was the perfect way to add character to the bathroom!

Doesn't that add a bunch of vintage detail!

We also helped her install a classic black and white tile floor. So old fashioned, I love it!

But I think the real star of the bathroom is the antique door! (When she bought the house, there was no door, so it was on the top of the list very fast!)

Isn't that black enamel doorknob fabulous?! 

I love all the old layers of paint and history.....

Stay tuned for a kitchen update next week!

The Farmhouse

 Well, here she is! My sister Becky's lovely old house! The farmhouse was built around 1900's and has some lovely features. Right now she needs lots of love..... and Work!!

We spent the weekend helping them get started!

 One of the loveliest features is the front staircase. Everyone who walks in the front door can't help but exclaiming. The banister has already been restored, but the walls certainly in need of  a little sprucing!

This is looking back toward the living room from the dining room. There is new drywall that needs to be plastered and hardwood floors that need to be refinished through out. 

It already looks like a construction zone doesn't it?!

The kitchen is also in need of a bit of work.

And here is the new bathroom tile floor we laid! It took awhile to get all the prep work done. As with most old houses, one always comes across previous owners handiwork. The bathroom floor had two layers of plywood and a layer of vinyl, which all takes time to remove.....

I will keep you updated on the progress. We will be heading up a couple more times this month to help with projects.