About Me

March 31, 2017

Art Studio Progress.

 We have 2 spaces left in our house to sort
out. The first is the garage and although we
have a plan. we have to wait for really good
weather in order to actually empty it all out.


So for now, we're concentrating on the
other space that needs attention: our
Art Studio. This space was left not
finished for us so we could finish it
once our budget allowed. We've been
scrimping and saving to complete it,
as well as saving for our landscaping
and for finally doing the garage too.


This room will have a few zones: my
writing space, dh's writing and editing
space (both of these are in the dormers,
opposite from each other), dollhouse
restoration space, storage, island and
finally, a spot for our Bow Flex set for
working out in between all our little and
big projects that we'll be completing.


For now, we've chosen the colors, almost
figured out the flooring, dh has hung up
the new lights and we're now working on
cabinet choices for storage. See all those
boxes? Those hold all our supplies and
projects that are boxed up, waiting for
the cabinets to be installed so they can
be unpacked. I'm so excited to get to that
time so we can unpack, sort and then to
truly enjoy this bonus space. Updates soon.

Bed Shopping.

I love shopping when I know exactly what I
want but big decisions like houses, cars and
mattresses are so stressful. We've started to
realize it's likely time for us to replace our
bed. Our current one is about 10 years old.


It still seems to be in great shape but we are
both experiencing tons of sore backs and stiff
bodies when we wake up in the morning. Our
chiropractor suggested we think about our bed.


Yesterday when I was in the big city with my
girls, we stopped in at a local bedding store
and tried out a few mattress sets. The sales
guy was very knowledgable and there was no
pressure at all. I really liked the prices of the
first few he showed us and then we spotted
the luxury set. Oops! But dreaming is ok.


Now I'm doing research to see if this bed
compares to any thing else before we make
such a big decision. This particular one
is handmade in England and the average
life span is more than 30 years. Tempting
to spend the extra and have a really good
bed vs. having to keep replacing after so
many years. Lots to think about for now.

How often do you replace your bed?
Do you find big decisions stressful?

Pussy Willows.


Our trees aren't blooming just yet but
we have a ton of pussy willows. So sweet
and so soft. I cut some last year and put
them in a vintage jar on our kitchen table.
And guess what I found in the cupboard?
The same jar with the pussy willows from
last Spring, looking just as nice as the
ones that are currently popping up each
day. We take little walks by the forest
to see how they are progressing. Lovely.

A New Trend.

We bought our first house back in 1984 and one of the things that endeared us to buy the tiny home was the wallpaper in the nursery.

Over the years, we would decorate with wallpaper in different rooms. It was the trend then. Some rooms, we used a border and other rooms would have wallpaper on all walls. We used it sparingly for enhancing. Then wallpaper stopped being a "thing" and we ended up stripping off any remaining remnants and painting all the walls instead. It was fresh and light and we liked the new trend then. Until now ....

Now, 6 houses later and out in the country, and guess what is making a return? Wallpaper. We won't be putting it through the house as we tend now to ignore trends. But we have one space though that after a lot of thought, we've decided it does need some lovely paper to make it a warm and cozy room to be in. The room? Our main floor 1/2 bath, with 9 foot ceilings and a very loud echo noise. We came up with a plan,  searched and searched for months for the right design and today, we ordered our wallpaper. Best thing ever, as instead of having to order from the U.S., with extra duty, exchange rate and taxes, we were able to order from a local store and today, they had a 50% off sale! Bonus and so worth the wait. Here's what we chose: 


It should be here in 2 weeks and then we can start making this tiny, cold, loud room a warm and cozy spot. I'll be doing some before then after pictures and hope you enjoy the reveal once we're ready to show it off. So excited to add some additional classic touches to our new home. 

March 30, 2017

Twelve Days.

The number of days off of work I
during Spring Break this year: 


And what have I been doing on this
lovely time off? Let me share ....

* organized my office on my last day
* created a "to do" list to work on
* meet with our landscape artist
* meet with our builder and trades
* empty boxes from our art studio
* learn how to make chalk paint
* chalk paint an old hutch and drawers
* learn how to use wax on furniture
* organize master bedroom closet
* chalk paint mirrors and small items
* help daughter buy a new car
* set time with our gate guy

Things on my list to complete still:

* gather all the documents for our taxes
* set up time with our accountant
* move boxes then paint the art studio
* paint then reorganize the mud room
* paint then reorganize the laundry room
* paint them organize the storage room
* take bottles into the bottle depot
* revise chapters in my book project
* visit with a dear friend next week
* learn how to make a bracelet
* put wicker furniture on veranda
* organize one section of the garage

I had 12 items at first, completed those and
added 12 more. A very focused time off but
so productive and I'm so grateful for this
gift. Holidays from 2016, so I still have just
over 4 weeks left to take off for 2017. Love
my boss and my organization. Worth the work.

Did you have time off during Spring Break?
If so, what did you do with your time?

March 29, 2017

Spring Mantel.

Many bloggers are currently hosting Spring Blog
Tours. I feel kind of silly just opening my home
up without being connected to an organized group
"party" or "hop" of some sort at this time. I'm not
sure how to connect to such events. Doing some
research today to see how to bump up my blog.


For now, I will share our Spring Mantel in our
Master Bedroom. I love the sunlight streaming in.


Special treasures we've collected along the
way. A vintage frame and a SSI cut out.


My family presented this beautiful statue
a few Christmases ago. Our family ....


An Angel from a friend. I love gifts from
special people. Truly given from the heart.


Two sets of Angel wings for our sweet babies. A
tiny Brambly Hedge thimble from England. And
a stitched picture we found at the Antique Mall.
I was going to change out the frame. One day.


We found this plate on a trip and were so
thankful we got it home in one piece. Truly
some of the inspiration behind the ideas for
our new home and the color scheme as well.


A vintage lacy purse, a tiny framed print, a
vintage bowl holding scented natural seeds
and pinecones, a vintage doily and finally, 
two rose inspired scented candles. Love.


See that tiny bear? The lavender color is what
we used for the wall color and so many of our
accessories. Sage green, sweet lavender and
creamy ivory, with wood floors and white trim
are the basics in our home. Not for everyone.
But for us, soothing and calm, visually ours.

What colors are prominent in your home?
How did you choose those colors?

Writing Niche.

When we designed our house, we wanted
to have a spot that was multi-functional.


We ended up adding the turret to the far end
of the house, between the Great Room and
the Living Room. On the blue prints, our
builder marked it as the "sun room".


It lives up to it's name with the afternoon
sun pouring in and the late day sunset that
filters the light in to darkness. An eclectic
spot, it has been our music room, our sun
room,  our play room, our Christmas room
and now it is finally our sweet writing room. 


My favorite place in the house, I love
the location, the light, the lamp, the
desk and most of all, the feeling of
being in a spot that is private yet open
to the family all at the same time. I can
sit and dream, write and chat, and be
part of whatever is going on in the house,
without feeling isolated and shut out.

Do you have a dedicated spot to write?
A place just for you to be and dream?

Through the Trees.


The last day of Winter, I took these shots
of a blue sky and lots of snowy grounds.


The trees have started budding and we
finally found some pussy willows on our
walks. The snow is melting, the puddles
have formed and the mud is everywhere.

Lavender Ecocube.



I received this sweet gift at Christmas from a
colleague who knows how much I love lavender.


A complete kit to start seeds and add to our
garden in the Summer. Hope this works!


Easy instructions .... take off the wrap,
add some water and then cover with plastic.


Now we wait to see if little buds will begin
to sprout sweet lavender for all to enjoy.

Winter Morning.

Winter finally showed up in March
this year .... so late but here.


Our mornings are a bit dark and
it's still quite gloomy outside.


But the sun eventually comes out and
now we have great mounds of slush.

Is Winter still hanging on in your region?
Or do you have lush gardens growing?

Peter Rabbit Carrots.


Spotted on our recent trip to the grocery
store. Reminded me of Peter Rabbit. I
hope the garden we finally get to plant
this summer will produce sweet tasting
carrots just like these. Our garden boxes
are built and seeds are ordered. So looking
forward to watching our tiny garden
grow in the sun and the warmth of summer.

Do you have a summer garden?
What are your favorite things to grow?

March 28, 2017

New Winter Toy.

When we lived in town, we had a sidewalk
in front of our house, our big driveway
and a small path from the driveway to our
front door. Lots of shovelling thru Winter.


With lots of kids and great neighbors who
took turns, shovelling always got done. But
out here, other than the road and our little
lane that is plowed, and now with less kids 
living at home, we've got quite a big job to 
take care of a long and snowy driveway. 


Last Winter, we had very little snow and
it wasn't a big issue. This year, we were
sure we were going to get a lot of snow
because of the predictions that were
circulating. So we saved and saved and
then found the best sale ever and finally
brought home our new Winter Toy. To
date, we've only used it twice but what a
treat to be able to blow the snow away
instead of shovelling. Well worth the wait.

Snowy Path.

Our snow is almost all gone but I
wanted to share these older shots.


Hardly any snow fell this Winter but
then Spring was almost here and bam!


Snow everywhere. We still got off lightly
compared to other regions. Very lucky.


We finally had to shovel to create our
little path from the front door to our
driveway for visitors. We come in the
garage door but our guests need a path.

Tiny Cottage.


We bought this tiny "cottage" for our
children in 1990. It's weathered many
birthdays, several deaths, play dates,
alone time and one move to the country.


Now it belongs to our little grandbabies.
Covered in snow for now but it's ready
for new life this Spring. The boulders
were placed by our builder and we hope
to use the to create a garden area around
this cottage. So much fun, so very tiny.

March 20, 2017

Spring Dreaming.

Welcome to the first day of Spring! I love this time of year when the days become longer, the sun brighter and our landscape comes alive with buds, birds and bees. Inside the house, I'm truly anxious to get outside and start our very first vegetable garden. However, here in Canada, it's going to take a while before we can start to "Spring" up our yard. For now, I'm content in decorating the inside of our home, brightening our space, while we wait for the green outside to hurry up. 

Building a new house is not a cheap venture, so we've been very careful and deliberate with our decorating. It takes time to decide where to place furniture, giving space for moving items around to try different configurations. Time to play with the decor we've accumulated over the years. And time to ensure we like what we have, as we have to live with our choices for a very long time. I'm a firm believer in not buying the cheapest piece of furniture or accessories but to invest in good solid items that will last through the years. That being said, it's always fun to add a new piece or two each season. I'm done my Spring cleaning and purging, so now I'm ready to figure out what I have for this bright season and what might be missing. In this month of bright and light, Wayfair asked bloggers to share their tips for Spring decorating and I've decided to join in by showing what I've found for our new home. Sometimes it's hard to determine what would look the best with our current stash so I'm very thankful for sites like Wayfair that not only have a million and one items (my guesstimate of course) to choose from, but they include wonderful articles on the site and a great spot to create your own Dream Board that will help you to find ways to brighten your home for Spring. 


For Spring, we're currently adding lace curtains to all our windows and that has really softened our home's look. Now I'm searching for some great area rugs to create a kinder landing for a feet. Our wood floors are lovely but having a carpet here and there is our next wish. In my board above, I found a wonderful patterned rug that comes in a variety of sizes, including a runner for our hall. The mix of brown and ivory fits so well with our color palette. I also found a light lilac rug that would be amazing in our guest bedroom. And some sweet accessories that are just so "Springy!" A rack with 3 terra cotta pots filled with lavender, a set of 3 bottles with whimsical touches and a vintage themed mirror for our back hall. Love them all! Finally, I chose a light sage colored coverlet set. Our current quilt set on our bed is my favorite of all time but because we have a Cali King, it doesn't hang down as low on the sides as we'd like. A coverlet set underneath would solve this problem and the one I chose above has a beautiful pattern. It would look so finished with the quilt on top, the coverlet in the middle and our lovely ruffled bed skirt down to the ground.

Wayfair always has great sales and now that I have my wish list set, I'll create our budget (frugal as it is) and then I'll be checking back often to see when the items I've chosen will be on sale. Until then, I can "Spring Dream" my wishes while I work with what we currently have. Hop over to Wayfair and put together your own Dream Board to create the light and bright Spring theme you'd like to see in your home. You won't be disappointed in your search. It's fun to look for items that complement your current decor and provide inspiration for your dreams.

March 19, 2017

Easy Apple Pie.

Chop apples.


Melt butter with sugar.


Mix in chopped apples.


Simmer until golden.


Cool in bowl.


Add to pie crust.


Bake, cook and enjoy. Such an easy
recipe from the chef Ricardo. Love it.

March 17, 2017

And the After ....

Without all the garland, it's a much
tidier and "quieter" look for the veranda.





Now we have to bring up the bins from
the storage room for the Spring items.

The Before ....

Our veranda, waiting for Spring,
still decorated for Winter ....





Sorry to see our festive items go, but
excited for Spring and colorful decor.