Category: Home Decor

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My daughter’s move

A year ago, my youngest daughter moved to Florida and got a really great job. Now she and her boyfriend are looking for a place to either buy or rent. It’s a strange thing to put my head around, that my “little girl” will have a home other than where I am. Or even close to us. But, they are looking for property and to me…it’s bittersweet.

I’ve been slowly filling her cedar chest, (Something I gave all of my kids) with items that are for the home that she wouldn’t think of to buy. Items that she will need in her own home, from dishtowels, to a can opener and other useful things. I’ll have to drive to Fla. to give the chest to her when the time comes.

I have to say, I really miss my kid. She and I are really close and I talk to her on the telephone at least twice a day. I still miss our time together. I hope she and her boyfriend will find a nice place and after that, I’ll take a road trip  to deliver her “Hope Chest” and see the place they move into. It’s still hard to realize my little girl is all grown up.

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Hiring a House Cleaning Service Miami FL.

When my daughter told me that she and her boyfriend were going to rent a house in FL, but that it needed a good cleaning and she was going to hire a House Cleaning Service Miami FL, to first come in and clean the house they want to move into. I think this is a great idea, considering the fact that my youngest daughter used to be quite tidy and neat until she met her boyfriend. Plus with both of them going to school and working they don’t have time to really clean this house before they move into it and if they are to hire a service, at least it is something that they wouldn’t have to worry about doing.

Keeping the house clean on the other hand after they move in, will no doubt be a problem for them. I suggested that they hire a maid service from the same company and that way, they would not have to worry about the cleaning too much. I know both of them are working hard and going to collage also, so there really isn’t much time to actually keep the house clean. A maid to come in once a week, would be totally ideal for them.

In the mean time, just in case…I’m going to box up some new cleaning supplies, a dust pan and items like that, then send it out to my daughter. Who knows? She may use it all one day!

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A work in progress

My daughter and I bought a small lake house to renovate and then sell, but the more we work in the place, the more we are starting to think of it as our special project that we are going to keep. I know this doesn’t look like much right now, but as you can see, we have totally gutted the inside of the house and hope to at least get much of it finished by the end of the summer.

It is amazing to me that we can work so well together on a project like this. We have very similar tastes in color and style. And she knows how to use the tools properly, because – I taught her!

My parents used to do these kind of projects while we were growing up. All of us kids were expected to pitch in and help with every project. Even the youngest kid was able to drag trash across the room to the trash can, or pick up trash from around the yard. The older kids would swing a hammer, paint, even hang cabinets. We spent a lot of time together as a family and when we were finished we had a beautiful home ready for some lucky family to live in!

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Summer or Fall

When I should be doing things in the gardens and also sprucing up the rest of the yards and patio, for the last four days, I’ve been stuck in the house because of the cold, damp and rain. It’s kind of a bummer.

Of course there are lots of things to do inside. I’m trying to find carpet that I like for the living room, the exact paint color I want also. I just haven’t gotten up the Ommph to do any of this, because it’s so dismal outside. I did however have the furnace cleaned out, since I had to actually turn on the furnace because it reached the low of 52 inside, and that is way too cold for me.

Hopefully we will have a proper summer, but if this weather right now is any indication of what we are actually in for, I’m not going to be a happy camper. I should go back to Florida with my daughter when she has to leave next week.

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Wallcovering Projects

Just a few posts ago, I believe that I said I didn’t want to start another indoors project, but I am very inconsistent when it comes to me sticking to home improvement. What I say and think I will carry thought with doesn’t apply in this case since checking out a site with Wall Covering Projects and loving the ideas! Now my mind is ticking again and the wheels are turning. I’m looking around my office and am thinking it needs something to really spruce the place up and show “me” in the room. I’d like to have a classy comfortable Tuscany feeling to it.

While looking through the Product Installation Gallery, I was rather in awe of the rooms set up and decorated with the accessories and furniture that can come along with the wall-covering. Very elegant but not overwhelming. For me however, I’d like to go with a wall covering that will catch my fancy, and then go shopping for the exact items I want to have furnishing the room. This gallery showed the possibilities of the room after the wall covering had been installed. There were some beautiful ideas also!

Now that I know there is another project that will be spinning in my head, I’ll just start browsing more and have a paper and pen handy for my lists. Yes, lists…more than one. Way more!

 

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Months are flying by

It seems like it was December just yesterday and I was shopping for Christmas gifts. Now we are about to welcome in June and my goodness the months seem to be flying by. My youngest daughter will be coming home for her birthday on the 26th and will stay for a month before she has to leave and go back to Florida and work. I’m glad she was able to take the time off and it will be so great seeing her and hugging her, hanging out and just having her around again.

As I welcome in June, I’ve noticed that all the flower seeds and other plants I put in the ground after Mother’s Day are coming up nicely and the annuals I have are in full bloom! Yes, its starting to look like a garden again!

I have a lot of home improvement projects going on also. From flag stone for the patio, to new flooring in the living room and bathroom. Also the job of finishing the living room paint job and buying new curtains and adding some decor that matches the whole thing. It’s been a busy few months but worth it!

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Entry hall revamp

After some time, I’ve decided that I would like to make the front entry hall more useful than what it is now. Since I’m planing on getting new carpet in the living room, I want folks to take off their shoes when they come over,  or come home, especially the guys in my family who are slackers when it comes to removing their shoes and also hanging up coats.

I’ve been looking at a lot of different DIY sites for ideas on more storage room, and also ideas for a bench so people can sit to put on or take off shoes, but also that would serve as a storage for gloves, hats, and such. I don’t want a coat rack, so I’ve been looking at antique hooks to hang coats and jackets on.

The floor without a doubt will not be carpeted. Not in an entry hall. I’d be just asking for dirty carpet, despite of people wiping their feet on the mat I have on the porch, and another inside the door. I’m thinking about going with a sort of stone floor look. I’ll of course know it when I see it. This week I’m planning on going to this carpet outlet store near here that also sells wall paper and other types of flooring besides carpet. Pictures of the finished entry hall, will be posted once I get my camera to work right.

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Spring cleaning and little repair jobs

While washing down walls the last two days, I have come across some small cracks and little holes in the plaster that need mending. I personally do not even like doing this job at all, but it needs to be done and though it’s just a little project, I know after the repair work is finished I’m going to want to repaint walls that I had just painted last year. And of course I’ll want to paint a fresh new color on the walls. Which means, new color complimenting home decor items.

There are quite a few little home improvement repairs on my “fix it” list this spring. The ceiling fans need new pull chains, and of course I’ll shop for pretty things to put on the end of the chain, which means either going out to stores or shopping online for these.

There are quite a few BIG repairs that need done also, but for them I’m sure I’m going to either scope out DIY books and online tuts for this. One being insulating around my windows and putting up new trim. I know how to do the trim, somewhat. The insulating is another story. For now, I’m sticking to the little jobs I know I can do.

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Old house and ancient plumbing

While remodeling the spare bathroom, we have found that they no longer sell the bath and shower fixtures that will fit our ancient bathtub. The tub is small and is made out of molded cast iron. It’s also on an outside wall. To replace the tub, we would have to totally knock out the whole wall, somehow cut the tub into pieces and then haul that away, put a new tub and plumbing in and also new walls. This means we’d also have to replace the outside wall and siding. What a job.

What makes things worse, is on the other side of the adjacent wall where all the pipes are, is my son’s bedroom. That wall would also have to be knocked out and it is going to be one heck of a major project. The hot water was leaking and we tried to find the right parts to get it at least semi fixed, until we could go a head and do this improvement but my husband had to rig one up, since the hardware stores don’t carry the part.

I had to laugh when we took the parts in, because the man who was to help us looked at the  part, then at us with the most odd look. Like we were asking for something that was from the moon or whatever. He said he hadn’t seen one of these parts since the 40’s and even then they were nearly obsolete. Great. For now, we’ve decided to hold off on this project as long as we can, as we honestly don’t have the funds right at the minute to do a total remodel job. We have just finished the main bathroom. In the mean time, I am going to pick out tile and flooring, paint and at other items I may want to use once that darn tub is out and the plumbing in there is fixed. I can always look shop and get a idea of various prices.

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Curtains or Blinds

I’m debating about going to using blinds in my house instead of the lace curtains I have used for years with variations depending on the season. The family say to get both the curtains and the blinds, but they don’t have to pay for them I do, and my budget is limited when it comes to window coverings.

Right now I have long Irish lace curtains in the living room, which is the room I want to start thinking about for coverings. The windows face the road and on the right east side, face the neighbors. I’m not worried about the neighbors, as there are very large pine bushes that block the window partially and no one can see in. In the front however, I’m glad we know everyone in our small village, because a person can see right into my house, if by chance they are looking.

I guess if I got new summer curtains and also blinds, I could pull the blinds partially down at night, but the other problem besides finances for this improvement since I have six double hung windows, is the fact that I’m terribly claustrophobic. I really like being able to see out, even at night. So now I have something else to mull over and some decisions to make and in the mean time, I still am going to go shopping for new lace curtains for the summer months.