This 'n That....And SOME REALLY BIG NEWS

I have been away for waaaay tooo long,,,but read further and you will find out why!   First of all I took a trip to Minnesota to visit family in October and when I came back to my back yard I found my flowers were so delighted that I hadn't touched them, they all were blooming like I have never seen in the 16 years I have lived here...here is one sample.. .

There were also so many Mandarins on the tree that the branches were almost to the ground!  

See what happens when I leave plants alone!

I told you I have a "Black Thumb!"

Here is a picture of my house that you have seen before but for those of you who like to play "I Spy" check out the left side of the picture!

Yes, that is a "FOR SALE" sign...

So let's move along...

(Pardon the "Pun!")

Here are my Great Room and Master Bedroom (sorry about the clothes baskets...Hee, Hee!)

Anyway, that is how they looked when the house was for sale. (No clothes baskets, of course!)  The Realtor didn't want me to do much staging but I did remove family pictures, multiple picture arrangements and some small stuff.

Then I went out to the back yard (by then the October flowers were drooping and the grasses in pots were browning and looking a little sad.)

I didn't give you a picture of that...it was really sad, a total mess but I did have some pretty flowers planted and set the table and added a cushion and pillows to the bench.

My color scheme in the back yard is red, white and blue.

It made a huge difference to get rid of the sad looking, no let's be honest here, DEAD plants and add some color with chair cushions and set the table.

So the next thing that happened...

It took all of 4 days!  Boy, was I lucky!  I have to admit...homes are selling like "hotcakes" here right now and it is good because this is how it looks right now...

Here's one end of that great room...Boxes, Lamps, wrapping paper and STUFF...

And here's the other end...

Just a quick shot of the bedroom...some nights I have to clear the bed before I can go to bed!

As you can see, my new BEST FRIEND has become my TAPE GUN!

I am packing the "inside" of the house so I will be able to find things at the other end. 

As I told one "packer" (another move) we don't own anything called "Miscellaneous"

so I didn't want boxes marked that way.  So I have been at it for several weeks now and the packers (for the garage, and what I DON'T get done) will be here early next week.  Then the car gets picked up on one of those huge car hauler trucks to go 2,000 miles!

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Oh, yea, you might want to know where I am going...

I have decided to move to a suburb of Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN.

My daughters and their families live close; one is 11 miles and the other 3 hours from my new

Townhome.  It is really lovely, with about 1600 sq. ft. on the main level and a total of 2500 when you add in the finished downstairs.  The lower level is a walkout and totally finished and I am really getting excited about decorating a new place.

Now about the weather...that is another question!!!

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Thank you for taking the time to read my post and I have to admit there probably won't be another until the first of the year...oh, there are so many things that have to changed...phone numbers, e-mail addresses, cell phone carriers, and who knows who else.  Thankfully I will have grandchildren nearby so they can get all the electronic stuff set for me!  HA!

Please don't forget about me...I just might be frozen in a snowbank somewhere!

Lots of love and hugs.  May your holidays be all that you want them to be and more!

Blessings to you all

THE STORY OF A TEENY-TINY SEWING ROOM...16 YEARS IN THE MAKING!

Well, HAPPY FALL to all of you in all but the south and west part of the U.S.  It is still rather warm here in No. California but supposed to cool off next week.  I would hate to say I have been busy because I lead this exciting "retired" life, but, the truth be told, it seems to take me forever to get just the usual stuff done.  And I have been working on my house to get it ready for a possible sale.  That is something I will post about if it really is going to happen  I should know in about a month or so.  Will be traveling across the country the middle of Oct. to check out living possibilities. But, anyway, in the meantime I don't think I ever have shown you the details of the smallest room in my house.  And all you crafters and sewers will "wonder how I do it. This room is a total of 30 square feet!  It was supposed to hold the washer and dryer but I needed a sewing room so this was the only space available...

This is the total width, 6 feet, of my work area. The room is actually 6 x 5 feet 

 To make the bulletin board I covered a piece of Foam-core board with fabric and then added (with glue) the ribbons and the primitive-looking buttons.  From there I "nailed and screwed it to the wall." and called it a day!  There are under-cabinet lights and then I also have one of those "True-to-Color" lights which really works as a spotlight when I need it...like when working on black!

Here are the 4 cabinet doors where I added roosters.  I got the cut outs at Michaels and painted them black with white polka dots.  They break up all that solid cream color on the doors.  I stuck them on with those little squares you use to hang posters...they have been there for over 10 years and haven't fallen off yet!  Before I stuck them on the doors I had a small "chicken wire" stencil and very lightly stenciled near them in red.

How do you like that?

Here is a fairly hidden bulletin board for Messy stuff, Doctor Appts., coupons for restaurants, a couple of pictures, and stuff I don't know where else to put!  I took a frame I found at Goodwill about 12 long by 24 long.  I painted it red...(of course, my favorite color) and, now stick with me here, it is a little confusing:  I went to Home Depot and got a piece of sheet metal, which, just my luck was already cut to 12 x 18 so it just fit in the upper part of the frame after I covered it with fabric, glued on the back.  Then I cut a piece of foam-core to fit below the covered metal and covered it, too.  Got it, so far?  So I can use magnets on the upper part and push pins on the bottom part.  

Hey, nothing like a little variety!  LOL

And I know that somewhere in the past, I have shown you a tut. on how to add fabric (the crazy chicken design below the red chair rail) to the wall.  So below, this is how I store most of my thread...it is all stored on two spice racks I also got at Goodwill and painted black.  The shelves are just the right size for spools but now there are many that I have had to "stack."  Unfortunately, thread for the serger doesn't fit and when I tried, several toppled down and you know what a mess that can be...so they are in another closet...to save my sanity.  LOL

This is just a little area where I hang my scissors...HA, HA, I ALWAYS know where they are!  After many years of accusing my family of not putting them away, AGAIN!  

Another rooster on the clock with black and white checks around the edge.  I love that clock!

Well, the light is so bright in here, or dark with all turned off, that I couldn't get a good picture.  When I re-did my kitchen (the previous post) my contractor removed those "wonderful  ugly florescent lights.  They still worked so he installed one in this teeny-tiny sewing room.  When I walked in the first time after the work was done I almost "swooned."  For the first time in 16 years it WAS REALLY BRIGHT IN THERE...I really love it...I CAN SEE WHAT I AM DOING FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 16 YEARS! By the way, when it was in my kitchen , to make it a little bit more less ugly, I covered the "light cover" with lace with a "star" pattern.  Glue would not work and it is also flammable (yikes!) so I had to use double stick scotch tape around the edges to hold the lace on, but the "star" pattern was not too bad actually pretty cute.  So if you look really, really close...

Before I go I must show you my lovely Hooked Rug that I scored at HOMEGOODS at their grand opening.  Love it!  All my friends want to buy it!  HA!  (See that beautiful new laminate floor just like the kitchen and back porch and now both bathrooms!)

This is the door to the garage...and just last week I had the great idea of adding a full length mirror!  Now what do you think of that!  Previously I had mirrored sliding doors in the Master Bedroom and it was so easy to get a peek when getting ready to go somewhere.  But I removed them, (too cold-looking for me!) and then for lack of any "big" mirror resorted to one on the back of the Master Bedroom door...a real pain to have to close it to see myself.  So, I said to myself, "Self, where can you put a mirror where it is more handy?"

And in a flash, it came to me:  "Why not on the sewing Room Door To The Garage?"  After all that is the door I almost always use.  So there you have it...

A teeny-tiny little sewing room

but it works for me.

I NEED TO THANK MY NEW FOLLOWERS, COMMENTERS AND FRIENDS 

who hang in there with me.  I try to find the time to thank all, but I am afraid the days go by or Google won't let me send a message or something or other.  

But I DO APPRECIATE you even taking the time to read.  

If I can make this move I am sure I will have more to post about.

Wait! I don't want you to get away just yet...tomorrow morning I am leaving for the Big Apple, New York for a convention with the organization where I got my certification as an 

Interior Redecorator.

I am traveling with one of my first clients with whom I have a continuing  friendship

Should be fun!

In the meantime...

HUGS ALL AROUND.  

The Bad and the Good of Mother Nature and Something to SMILE About!

I imagine most of you have heard about the fires in California this past week and I thought I would share some of what it is like with The Foresthill Fire right in the vicinity of my home.  It is about 30 miles away, thank goodness!  I can't even begin to imagine how it must be to be right in the middle of one, much less have a home or ranch in the area. So far they are 50% contained and no one has had to evacuate...Yet!

I walked outside the other day and looked to the north-east of my house and saw this horrendous cloud of smoke.  That smoke is 30 miles away!

So I scurried back into the house as the smoke makes the air smell "smokey" and TV people advise staying inside...even 30 miles away!  But soon I had to go out again and when I looked up into the sky this beautiful PINK cloud almost covered the sky!  It took my breath away!  So I grabbed my camera...

Over my house

A beautiful Brighter Pink

and this one looked like "Cotton Candy!"

So they finally started to dissipate and I had things to do...

So back into the house I went, wondering all along how 

"something so bad can be so beautiful" for a few minutes.

But then, I laughed when looking at my "workplace that day" because

instead of seeing the beauty of Nature like we should all do and appreciate, 

these are some of the things we are constantly seeing.

What's wrong with this picture!!!

Have a great week, friends!

Don't forget a COMMENT, Please! 

A New Kitchen for Joy...

Hey, wanna see my new kitchen...at least it's mine for a while, but we will talk about that another time! Here is my OLD kitchen table area...

And here is my NEW kitchen table area.  I repainted the front wall from Red to Benjamin Moore's HC-43 Tyler Taupe to match the rest of the walls.  We tore out the old light-colored wood floor that was really beat up and added a new laminate floor that is very close to what is in the rest of my house.

This is the black cabinet you can see on the left side on the "before" picture.  I love black but was going for a lighter, brighter, cleaner look so I had it painted Benjamin Moore HC 26 Monroe Bisque to match the kitchen cabinets with (as you can see) a RED interior.  (Need my "fix" of red!  HA!)

But, as you can see in the "after" picture I removed the TV from the corner and another small stand from the opposite corner.  Well, I wanted the TV on this cabinet and it was a bit too tall, so my wonderful contractor, Mike, came to my rescue: he raised it several inches and then he didn't like the way it looked so he added the beautiful trim molding to it.  What a guy! He is a sweet Christian man with a darling family who does so much for everyone.  He even took my old appliances to Habitat For Humanity for me!  Am I lucky or what! 

So since I cleared out the corners I still needed a little "display space" and wouldn't you know it but my good friend, Arlene (see my May post-her new kitchen) had this BEAUTIFUL Pennsylvania Bench she wanted to sell!  Again, how lucky can I be.  It is 96 inches long (front window is 100 inches) and it is a lovely old blue with a wood top.  Oh my heart, so perfect for the space!

OK, back to the old kitchen...don't get me wrong, I did like it but after several years of a LOT OF RED decided I needed to "neutralize."  So here's the "stove area...

and here's the "sink" at the end...

But here is the "NEW" look...so clean, simple and "today" looking.

And here is a shot of the area above the stove and microwave.  There are lights up there and I cleared several  things off.  Much neater now...all the main items are white.

Here is another situation Mike corrected.  When the appliances were delivered I noticed that the side of the Stainless Refrigerator was an ugly gray!  UGH!  Looked terrible and that is what you could see from the great room!  MORE UGH!  So Mike suggested he build a "wall" at the side and (this was a bonus!) that he would pull the cabinet that was above the Frig. forward so I could reach it!  I never could and always had to get a ladder to get into that cabinet.  Well, now only about 4 inches of the "ugly" gray is showing (just enough for a small memo pad) and I am so happy!  I thought Stainless Refrigerators were stainless all over..what do I know...I have to get out more!  HA!    

And now, instead of "getting out more" I am home reading how to work all these lovely appliances.  When I first ran the dishwasher I kept leaning down to hear if it was running and today I couldn't figure out how to use the timer on the stove (I was baking for the first time) and so I used the timer on the Micro.  Well, I was in the other end of the house and didn't hear it go off with it's lovely little chime so I burned the brownies...Anyone for Rock-hard-chocolate bars???

So there you are; what I have been busy with for the past 3 weeks.

Before I go I want to thank all of you for leaving a comment, Readers, and Followers!

You really make my day!

{{HUGS}}

   

SUN ROOM RE-MAKE

Hi all My Pretties who are so patient with me for not posting often enough!  But I am finally here with some stuff I think you will like.  You know I gave you a "Sneak Peek" at part of a room in my last post...well, so much for sneak peeks... THAT ROOM STILL ISN'T DONE! Will it ever be you ask?   Yes, but I have been having so much fun with the newly remodeled and decorated SUN ROOM that I still can't seem to get to that guest room/office! I guess I need to have "overnight company" and that will get it done in a flash!  LOL
But I digress...about three weeks ago my favorite contractor, Mike Bates was available so we made the decision to re-do the Sun room as 15 years with those same colors, carpet and "dumping ground" had taken its toll...

Here is Mike figuring out what to do first...that carpet is really nasty and there could be "water" issues as it is built right on the patio!

So he brought in these underlayments with a rubber grid on the bottom which holds the "new floor" up off of the concrete.  I told you this guy is smart!

Well, no decent "remodel" can not affect the rest of the house!  Here is a pic of my "great Room" with all the Sun Room furniture and "stuff" crammed into it. 

 Can you say: "Hoarder"  HA!

OK, here is the first picture of the new "Pine floor" which I dearly love!  

This is looking out the sliding door on the WEST (HOT) side of the porch.  And, before you ask if I got a dog...which I would LOVE to have...no, but that one is quiet, doesn't bark, require food or walks...and he makes me happy.  

He is just happy looking out the door!

This is a lovely antique pine table I bought from Arlene; my friend whose kitchen I featured in my last post.  Just a great spot to sit with the morning paper and a cup 'o coffee.

The chair is from a consignment shop; I reupholstered the seat with part of an old pillow.

Do you like it?

Here's a shot looking toward the west and there's that dog again...he probably wants to go out!

This is the opposite corner...oops! I didn't think those pillows would take up so much room!

But it still is just a "cozy" corner!

I had to give you a "close-up" of this Poinsettia plant!  It was a gift about 2 weeks before last Christmas and it is STILL alive!  Can you believe it?  

I can KILL SILK PLANTS!

So here are some of my favorite Benjamin Moore Historic Colors that I considered when I needed to make a decision for new colors.  Now I think most of you  know I am a Certified Color Consultant and actually can go into a client's home and choose a color "in the blink of an eye."  HA!  Not so for myself!  I think I can start a "Paint Sample Store" with all the samples I bought before I made the big decision!  I don't what it is...when it is for myself, who knows but it ain't easy, folks!

But I got the job done and used HC-34, Wilmington Tan on the three window walls and HC-35, Powell Buff on the new Ship-lap paneling which now covers the ugly stucco, even if it was RED!

I was going for a simpler, lighter, less cluttered look and I even removed some furniture and love all the space I now have!       

This is looking toward the east side and I now have the TV in the red "jelly cupboard" 

and love having it "hidden."

Here's a close up of the unframed canvas of the little girl and the dog which I have had for years and have had it hung in several rooms of past homes.

I love it and hope you have enjoyed it and my reveal of the 

NEWLY REMODELED SUN ROOM!

Please leave me a comment and I will be sure to visit you, too!