Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Giveaway Winnings!!!! I LOVE Them!

Hello!!  I just had the mailman stop and the house and drop off a package!!!  It is from Kelley from Hook and Needle  Kanknchester!!!!  I won her giveaway a while back and she sent me such awesome stuff.  First is a pile and I do mean pile of great fabrics. She must have known that I was just thinking that I really needed some new ones for the pin keeps I'm making. 


 Next, was a set of wool strawberries......so neat, a couple of pattern books, and some rusty jingle bells.
 

And finally, she said there would be a surprise inside.  It is my FAVORITE and I LOVE it!!!  This cute little punch needle cat pin keep.  Thanks so much.  You are too generous!!


Here are a couple of pics of our room remodel.  The first is the corner with the boards torn off. 


The next one is after is was full of insulation......boy that made a big mess.  Wow. 

 
This last one shows the dry wall they did yesterday. Some one is coming today to start mudding and finishing it.  In the corner I have paper with the navy and tan paint on them.  I think I am leaning toward the navy on the fireplace wall.  The burgundy I had was too brown and it's hard to match the kitchen's burgundy cupboards without using the same paint.  I don't really want to overkill.  The only thing I'm not sure of is if I'll like where the walls meet and the color is different.  I'm sure I'd get used to it and not even notice after awhile.



Gotta run for now.  I need to put the pretty blue tarps down.  Thanks for stopping by.

Take care,
Melissa 

Monday, July 26, 2010

Remodel......and We Have Lights

Good morning.  The remodeling continues this morning.  We have all of the paneling down and are having insulation blow into the outside walls.....I hope there is not as much mess as I think there will be, but won't know until it's done.  We have tarps all over to protect the carpet.  We resided the outside last year, but the family room was still a bit cold and drafty.  Well, we figured out why.  Part of the room used to be a sun porch and it has a stone foundation outside, under the bow window.  When they took the paneling down, there was no insulation there only plaster next to the stone wall.  No wonder it was cold. 


We used to hear squirrels rolling walnuts around the ceiling years ago. Another perk of an old house.  Anyway, after the paneling was off this is what we found.....


I started counting as I took them out.  I told everyone in the room to take a guess at how many.  My oldest said 102.  I asked her if she was counting because that is exactly how many there were. Wonder how long it took the squirrel to get those there.  Kinda funny, but gross too. 

I had said in my last post that we were not able to get all of the recessed lights in that we wanted.  Well.....we have an awesome contractor who I mentioned the problem to.  He crawled into the space between the ceiling and floor through a floor vent to get access for the electricians.  He mentioned after the fact that he is claustrophobic.  We were running a fan into the hole to keep some air moving.  I am so happy we were able to get them all.  It just did not look right with them only on one half of the room.


Well, gotta go for now.  They are sealing the room off.  I'll show you pics on the next post.  Take care and thanks for stopping by.

~Melissa~

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Starting a Remodel and a Dilemma

Hello. As I sit here writing this, I can hear drills and smell sawdust.  We are starting a remodel job on our old farmhouse today.  We are beginning with putting can lights in the family room, and anyone who has ever remodeled an old house already knows this.....expect the unexpected.  I don't really like these lights, but it's the only way to get light in here.   We were originally going to put  more lights in, but the electricians can't get to the area we wanted them because we are not replacing the ceiling.  So, no lights there.  Next, the others had to be moved over a bit to accommodate the beam in the attic.  I am hoping that it all looks good when done.  Our room is so dark, and I am tired of lamps everywhere.  They are putting them in today and going to wire tomorrow. The contractor is coming tomorrow also to start tearing down the siding on the walls.  Now, I have debated this issue for years and I hope I'm making the right decision.  We have on the walls right now a pecan siding which is made up of individual pieces .  Each piece will need to be taken off and we are then drywalling. We know it's not paneling but it looks like it. Like I said, it is very dark in this room so we are trying to lighten it up. The doors between rooms are being replaced also.  We are getting the old baseboard and window trim from DH grandma's house to use in here.  It matches the rest of the house as we are trying to get back to the original farmhouse look. 

My dilemma is this. The tan (it looks grey in the picture) color in the middle is going on 3 walls in the family room.  The fireplace wall I would like an accent color.  At first, I wanted burgundy, but my love of blue is trying to take over.  I found this navy and now am undecided on what to do.  Any thoughts??  I love crocks and we have a blue chair and tan couch to go with the chair you see. 



My friend Ann, A Hole in the Basket Primitives, went on a prim shopping trip to Findlay a couple of weeks ago.  We scored big time on our Pfaltzgraff Folk Art.  We were very civil and split pieces evenly.  We also hit a garage sale that had pottery for sale, the antique store,  and to our favorite prim shop, Early American Home.  Oh, and Hobby Lobby where we found some really pretty fabric.  Take a look at all the goodies I found.


Finally, I added some beeswax icicles to my selling blog.  I know it's early for Christmas, but I was anxious to try out the mold.  Stop by and check them out. 


That's all for now. I get to go clean up saw dust.....too bad there isn't enough to put into a pinkeep!!
Thanks for stopping by and stayed tuned for more remodeling pics.  Take care.

Melissa

Monday, July 12, 2010

Giveaway Winner!!


Good afternoon everyone.  I just wanted to pop on quick and let you all know the winner of my latest giveaway. Thanks to all who entered and for your sweet comments. You are all great.  I put all the entries in my lucky yellow ware bowl and my DD drew out the winner.

And the winner is..........................

Jayne  of PrimWyoGirl!!!

Congrats to you. Just email me with your address and I will get your goodies right out. 

Melissa

Saturday, July 10, 2010

Giveaway Reminder


Good morning. Yesterday my friend Ann from A Hole in the Basket Primitives and I went on a prim and antique  shopping expedition.  We decided it has probably been close to 3 years since we have done this.....way too long. Anyway, we had a great time and found lots of goodies.  You will have to stay tuned for pics coming.  I know she is going to share also, in between work and her boys baseball games.  Check her out as well.

I wanted to remind you that you still have today and tomorrow to sign up for my giveaway.  I will pick on Sunday night.  If you have not left a comment yet, you will need to do it on the previous post so I don't miss you.  You must be  a follower and US resident.  Good luck. 

Our girls are headed home today from a mission trip to New Orleans. They have about 1000 miles to go.  Please keep the group in your prayers for a safe trip home.  We talked to them some and they were having a great time.  Can't wait to hear their stories.

Have a great weekend!!

Melissa

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Giveaway Time


Hello, friends.  I finally finished the items for my giveaway this morning.  I am feeling in a fall mood---trying to keep cool.  Included is a Jacky Lantern doll, a ditty bag, and a blackened beeswax cone tea light holder.  To be entered, you must be a follower, a US resident, and leave a comment on this post only.  I will be picking a winner on Sunday night July 11.  Good luck!!

Sunday, July 4, 2010

Happy July 4th!!! Some Patriotic Decorating and Gardens

Happy July 4th everyone. I hope you are taking advantage of your day of freedom to do something fun!!  I wanted to share some of my patriotic decorating and gardens with you today. I found this bench at an antique store and just loved it.  The crocks are all cracked ones I've picked up here and there.


Impatiens do really well on our front porch. I made this flag a year or so ago.


I had my grapevine tree inside on the fireplace hearth and decided to put it outside for the summer.  I should find something to decorate it with. 


I had to put this crock in front of the ladder because the cats would climb it in the middle of the night and I was afraid they would knock it down and scare us to death!!


These are just pics around our front porch. I think all the flowers are finally growing and filling in like I had them pictured years ago when I planted them. 


This is along our back sidewalk.  We need new mulch....maybe sometime yet this summer??


Here are some more of the treasures I picked up at a garage sale last week. To think....I almost didn't stop.  The lantern is definitely hand made and the tin egg mold is my favorite.  I also picked up a towel rack.  I didn't get a pic of it because I need to see if my dad can do a little gluing and clamping on it first.


I have reached my goal of 250 followers so it is time for a giveaway. Check back later this week for a picture of what I'm giving away plus the chance to sign up.  I also just had my 100th post so I am celebrating that also. 

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful holiday. 

Melissa