New on New Year's Eve

This afternoon, our one & only headed back to college to spend New Year's Eve with her friends.  Always sad to see her go, so I thought a little retail therapy was in order.  We had a delightful lunch first at our favorite Mexican restaurant, said our goodbyes, and I b-lined it to the best antique mall in all of Wisconsin!

During the holidays, I noticed a lot of cute, vintage toys used in vignettes & such.  Growing up, my dad was a postal carrier so this wooden, green mailbox had to come home with me! I am going to pack it up and save it for next holiday season.  It will be fun to use in our house!



I also found an old butter crock with 6 cents printed on it.  Thought it was kind of fun since our wedding anniversary is on March 6th (oh so sentinmental - and Mr. Bluebird will approve of this purchase!).  It has been added to my crockery collection in the kitchen.

The mailbox was originally a shape toy and all the wooden blocks came with it.  The wear & tear around the shape openings and on the edges show this piece gave some child alot of enjoyment! Love that!

Here is my new crock, alongside anothe butter crock I have.  They sit behind the new glass I had installed when we re-did our kitchen.  That post will be coming soon with lots of befores/afters and product info.

So, those are my two little finds for today - the last of 2012! Tonight we are laying low. Ordering pizza in, watching an episode of Vegas that we missed a few weeks back, and taking it easy. (wild, crazy party animals are we!) Are you up to anything special today or tonight?

Wishing you & yours a wonderful, safe New Year's Eve and a terrific New Year with lots of happiness,

Jane

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Behind the Cupboard Door

Hi Everyone! Whew - what an extended bloggy break I have been on.  I have been recovering from pneumonia and lord knows what all! Just when I thought I was better, I would be knocked down again! Bleh!

Through it all, our downstairs remodel went on - everything turned out beautifully, with very few hitches. I plan on sharing the entire reveal(and all the details)after the holidays.

 Today I just wanted to share a few pics of my kitchen displays before the Christmas decor goes up. Love the wavy glass and how it makes my saltware collection look.

Thanks for joining me today - hope to catch up with all the blog reading I need to do and start posting regularly too! 

Wishing you happiness,
Jane

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Let the Cabinet Painting Begin!

Early yesterday, the painters started transforming our golden oak cabinets into (hopefully) beautiful off white cabinetry. It will take them through Friday to complete the job.

Before:

With two coats of primer:

The painters will finish on Friday, but I won't be re-loading the kitchen until next week - to give the paint the chance to cure.

Looking forward to sharing the end result soon!

Wishing you happiness,

Jane

Getting Closer to Done!

Hi everyone! Just a quick glimpse of the progress on our first floor remodel.  Yes, I painted my walls a deep burgandy - I am in love! Out of the current color stratosphere I know, but I guess I am a rebel.  My Pottery Barn Allessandra gold panels really pop now.

We picked up this awesome light fixture at Lowe's a few weeks ago - it has a industrial, yet farmhouse style.  It can be used as a pot rack, but I am looking forward to dressing it up for fall and Christmas.  Mr. Bluebird brought me home the beautiful bouquet of flowers yesterday to celebrate his first day of going back to his health club to work out since his back surgery in June.

 A night time shot of my coffee table - just a little fall.  With all the remodeling mess, seasonal decor has been a no-show around here.  But watch out Christmas! It is going to be an extravaganza! (Even bought a new faux tree today at Menards)

All of the floors on the main level were installed last week, so our living room is basically done (waiting on a rug I've ordered to come in).  After recovering from pneumonia and also having the first floor ripped apart since Labor Day, hubby and I are planning a pizza/tv night tonight, along with the scent of some yummy, cozy, comforting candles.

Next week our kitchen cabinets are being professionally painted (Ben Moore Subtle), and that should do it for awhile. Time to put everything back & make it pretty. Can't wait to show you all we have done! So many changes!

While the painters paint next week, I will be upstairs painting our master bedroom - found a fab deal on bedding which has sent me in to further re-do mode.  Ha ha! It never ends, does it?

Thanks for stopping by!

Wishing you happiness,

Jane

Linkinf with Savvy Southern Style Metamorphosis Monday



American Pickers & a Preview

Have you all seen the show "American Pickers" on the History Channel?  Well, I am proud to say that one of their guest lives just down the road from me.  Hippie Tom owns an awesome old farm named "Serendipity" which he has filled with tons of antiques, salvage, vintage, and all around junk.



Source: philcast.blogspot.com

Check out this pick up truck overflowing with treasures........

In addition to the farm house and a big old barn, Tom has moved many small outbuildings to his farm and restored them, filling them up with art, antiques, and junque!  It is fun to poke around and just experience Serendipity Farm - no purchase required!  He only opens a few weeks a year, and his sales are a must see! Live music, great food, and surprises galore.

Tom had his big fall sale this weekend, but sadly it was cold and rainy! I was driving by on my way home from WalMart and snapped a picture of the many hardy souls who decided to brave the elements.  I opted for the indoor life this weekend, so I am sad I had to miss it.

Hippie Tom is just the neatest, down to earth kinda guy.  He used to attend my parent's antique auctions when I was a teenager and bought many a treasure from my dad.  My dad is no longer with us, but he would be thrilled at the success Tom has had and his notoriety from American Pickers. My dad was definitely an "american picker" long before it was cool!

The first floor remodel has been chugging along - granite is in, most of the lighting is installed, tweaks to the cabinetry continue, and the floors are being installed as of this writing, and cabinet painters will be here the last week of October. Woo hoo!  The mess is overwhelming, but in a few short weeks it will be done!

Mr. Bluebird added beadboard behind one section of cabinetry - the rest of the kitchen has a stone backsplash. I previously had the wallpaper beadboard, but we decided to go with a more permanent solution.

Hmmmm, this doesn't look like white, or icy blue, or gray, or greige now does it?  Wonder where this will turn up.  You will have to wait & see!

Glad to be back blogging again after a ridiculously long bout with pneumonia! Feeling great now, so you should be hearing from me more often!

Wishing you happiness,
Jane

Join me at Between Naps on the Porch Metamorphosis Monday

Long Time Gone

I've been out of the blog loop these past weeks - both posting and reading!  I have been down and out with a nasty, nasty cold.  Wow! This one has quite a bite.  Planning on seeing the dr. tomorrow - fun!

Despite being sick, I've been busy painting the kitchen walls along with going to work.  I have to say the walls look great and are in a surprising color. Mr. Bluebird has also been busy adding beadboard to the cabinets and hanging light fixtures, and lots of odds & ends getting ready for the granite, floor guys, and painters.  I will show you soon!

Granite comes tomorrow, so the kitchen and first floor remodel is moving along!

Hope to have a new post up soon and am looking forward to catching up with all that you have been doing too!

Wishing you happiness (and health!),
Jane

The Good, The Bad, & Uhhhhgggglllyyyy!

Happy Sunday y'all! It was the most beautiful fall weekend around here...love this weather! Such a welcome change after the beastly heat of the summer.

Today I am excited to share with you my stair tread shelf reveal!

It started like this....

And now looks likes this....

I started out thinking I was just going to wood stain it, but this room was starting to get just a little to "woody" - and the floors that are going in next month would (or "wood!") only make it more so.  Out came a can of apple green spray, some gel stain, and a few coats of wax....love the pop of color. Total cost was about $20!

Now, for whatever reason my (gorgeous!) new sofa is looking like something straight out of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat - but really, it is not.  I think it is my cheap thrifty point and shoot that is distoring the picture. It is really much more subtle.  The "frame" holding the 'W' is an old grain sifter - really neat up close and personal.  I will have to give it it's own photo shoot someday.  My dad found it in an old barn and gave to me for FREE years ago. The outside is several rings of wood, and the center is thick screening. Love this piece. It is camoflauging our cold air return (bleack!) - and again, the camera really makes that thing stand out.  When you are in the room, you'd be hard pressed to even know it was there.  Hubby tells me I can't cover it up completely because it is a necessary evil in Wisconsin!

This arrangement hides one of our old school surround sound speakers.  Another thorn in my side! Someday we will replace it with a flat, paintable one.  But for now, we camo it up!

And now the bad and ugly!



Too gross to be color picture worthy! This first floor remodel, as I have said before, has turned my house into a pit of horror! Unfinished projects are e-v-e-r-y-w-h-e-r-e! Chaos! Mayhem! I took off my cabinet doors and took them to my glass man (hey, I have a glass man now! I am feeling pretty HGTV!) and he is installing glass panels in a clear glass called winterlake - kind of on the seedy glass vein. And even more excitement this week - my granite guy (and I have  a granite guy, too! Pinch me!) is coming to do the template - then two weeks from now the counters will be installed.   So the mess will continue for awhile, but I am okay with that - I am grateful that all these nifty changes are coming my way!

Thanks for checking in!

Wishing you happiness,

Jane

Partying with
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Bits, Teases, & Tears

Bits. That's all I have at the moment. Just little bits of things to share with you all.  With the remodel of our first floor in progress, I swear that MY ENTIRE HOUSE is underseige and is a disaster land.  But like my little sign says, I am going to believe it will be beautiful!

I am madly in love with my new three drawer cabinet, which Mr. Bluebird installed for me yesterday.  It replaces a little desk surface that seemed like a good idea when we built the house.  We used to keep our computer there and it was a spot for our daughter to do her homework.  Obviously, technology and life has changed, so this new cabinet is going to be awesome!  Looking forward to going white over the golden oak - the painter is on schedule for October! (I also need to finish taking down my faux beadboard wallpaper!!)

Onto the tease - a few weeks back I picked up a pine stair tread and two brackets.  I have been wanting to buy a big, beefy shelf for my living room for quite some time and have had zero success. So, I was cruising the aisles of Menards "just looking" and came up with this idea.  I orginally was just going to stain it, but changed course midstream and I am looking forward to showing it to you.  Soon! Mr. Bluebird needs to help me find the right fasteners because this bad boy shelf is

h-e-a-v-y!!

And now for the tears! Our one and only went back to college this morning, loaded down with clothes, shoes (lots of shoes!), groceries, and who knows what else.  She is starting her fourth year, but I am always kinda sad on this day.  Love her so much!

And away she goes!!!!

I will leave you with one last little tease.....after our daughter left, I started re-painting my downstairs powder room. It is getting a completely different look.  Hope to have pics of the finished room soon!

Happy Labor Day!!!!  Up to anything special?

Jane

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Water Hyacinth Trunks on a Rainy Day

Since the arrival of our new living room furniture, the cats have been banished from their usual cozy quarters and I have been feeling a *little* badly about that.  While browsing through the latest Ballard's catalog, I came across  water hyacinth trunks that seemed like a perfect solution.  The cats love laying in, on, and around baskets and I thought a set of two would look perfect in front of two of our windows.  Of course, the $129.99 price tag for a set of 3(plus shipping!) seemed a bit out of my range. Lucky me, I came across two for $34.99 each - yipsters! Gotta thank my local Home Goods for that!

The sofa table to the right is actually about two feet away, but it looks much closer in this pic! The chair to the left is just holding a spot until I find the right leather chair - it is a perfect reading corner.  This trunk is just begging for a furry friend to drape itself over the top.

Barker approves of this new lounge spot - now if only it will keep him off the new furniture!



 Had to try out a little rooster vignette - but in the end, I'm planning to keep both trunks clear so my two cat guys have a place to hang around.

On a completely random note, it's raining today and I couldn't be happier! Like so many other parts of the country, we have had a severe shortage of rain, along with scorching hot temperatures.

 We are feeling very grateful for this all day, gentle rain!

Wishing you happiness,

Jane

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Decisions & Indecisions

*I NEED YOUR HELP CHOOSING THE 'RIGHT' WHITE FOR MY KITCHEN CABINETS!*

It has been a fun and stressful few weeks of making decisions about our first floor remodel.  While I am very excited and incredibly grateful to be able to do this, I spend alot of time second guessing my choices.  Ugh!  But, we have finally made the majority of choices and contracted for the work to start late next month. Whoopee!!!

Here is a pic of our kitchen cabinets as they look today. The cabinets themselves are well made and I am happy with the configuration and features.  (They are only ten years old!) So, we are keeping them and having them painted.  Therein lies my greatest indecison!!! I just don't know what color of white to choose.  I've purchased several colors and made sample boards etc., but just not sure.  Any suggestions? I am a warm color decorator, so anything that has gray or taupe in it just isn't going to work.

 We have chosen Black Pearl granite for the counters.  Have you ever been to a granite yard? Oh my gosh - granite overload! But so fun to actually see all the different types and colors of granite.  Mother nature is amazing in her artistry! We chose Black Pearl, first because we wanted black counters and second, it has a fairly uniform pattern and won't compete with other elements in the room - both now and in the future.

For the kitchen, powder room, laundry room, and foyer we chose Mannington Mojave Slate Laminate.  It is absolutely gorgeous and perfect for our family and our crazy pooch with long nails!!  You would be amazed at the strides laminate has made - and I am drawn to the looks as well as the durability. Yum! Love this floor!

In the living area we are installing Shaw Heron Bay Yadkin River Hickory.  This is also a laminate product and it is absolutely stunning.  It will look fantastic with our Wisconsin River Rock fireplace!!  I know you wood purists will shake your head, but I am sold on laminate.  Our current den was used for six years as a dance room for our daughter.  In middle & high school she was a competitive dancer & also danced on the Radiso Disney Dancer team and spent hours practicing her tap & other routines, and there is not so much as a scratch on it!! For my busy house, I'll go with laminate every time.

This is a shot of the foyer.  Here you can see our existing vinyl floor and a tiny peek at our old sofa. (I cannot find a picture of our living room with the old furniture in it - sorry! The new was delivered two weeks ago and I am waiting for the "big reveal" lol!) Our living area has beige builder grade berber carpet.  I can't wait to get rid of the carpet - bye bye ten years of dog & cat hair! So excited to have these upgrades made to our house - it will feel new all over again!

Big changes around here! So much to get done - I need to paint the kitchen and powder room, empty ALL my cabinets, install a new bank of cabinet drawers, etc.,  etc. Fun, but hectic!

I leave with this plea for HELP!!!!!:  Any suggestions on a white paint for my cabinets? Any suggestions welcomed!

Wishing you happiness,

Jane



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Inspiration Friday At the Picket Fence

A Little of Fall, Y'All

       Like so many of you, I have been itching to add a little fall to my home.  Not quite ready to go all out with pumpkins, mums, and leaves - just adding back in some of the cozy fall tones and textures.

My new living room furniture was delivered last Thursday and I also hung new drapery panels.  They are all in the fall color spectrum that I return to again and again.  I flirted this year with neutralizing which is soooo popular right now and sooooo beautiful.  It just wasn't me.  So I have returned to my decorating roots!

(Oops! You can see the foil I've been using to keep our cats & dog off the furniture off to the left!)

We are installing new floors in the living room as part of an entire first floor remodel in the next month or so, which means I am only going to give you a glimpse of how things are for now. (I'm sneaky like that!)

Thanks for coming along on a little "just before fall" tour!

Wishing you happiness,

Jane

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