A Work In Progress - Adding Color

Working on my center hallway. At first, I filled it with old varnish brown pieces from the Decatur house. The hall was dark and a bit sad looking.  I loved all the other rooms, but looking into the hall pulled my spirits down. It was lovely, but a little too traditional for me. The rest of the rooms were filled with light and art and my favorite old painted pieces of furniture. I dug out a few cupboards in storage and purchased a few more items, the blue table, sweet white chair, and a white bench that I will post later. Now I am tickled pink with the results. It is hard to photograph the space because of the high ceilings and darker woodwork, but all in all, I think you can catch a glimpse of how it is shaping up

While I love all my old oil paintings, I decided to add a bit of an edge to all the sweetness in the hall, now that it was so light and airy. Old lithographs, from the 1980's when I was buying and selling more modern art, found their new home on these walls. Again, more whimsy than serious art, but colorful and playful, which makes me smile.

 

 

And finally, I am obsessed with all things garden related so the six-foot garden gate feels right at home as you enter the front door. The St. Augustine sign brings back sweet memories of my mother and the house we had in St. Augustine, Florida, that she loved. The oil painting is full of color and life and at the very bottom, in tiny scrawl, the word "Magic". Which I believes sums up living in my 1906 cottage. It is magical.

 

 

 

A Cozy Fireplace Mantel Can Warm Up The Bedroom

Antique tin ceiling tiles in old pink paint make up the center of the fireplace mantel.

 

 

My old bedroom had a huge amount of charm. When the sunlight filtered in the room, the apple green chest of drawers sparkled. Ice cream colors made for a happy room. One day I looked at all the sherbet colors and realized it was just too much. Too many odd pieces of furniture directly across from my bed. The green chest, an aqua book case, vintage hampers, and other sweet pieces appeared disjointed. I wanted something that was colorful, but restful. I sold most of the bedroom pieces to purchase the old chipped paint sea foam green Victorian mantel. I'd loved it for over a year in a shop in Monroe - then decided it would be the perfect piece to tie the room together.

 

The mantel had to be anchored above the baseboard. It looked as though it was floating in air. I took out my acrylic paints and added an 'extension' to the bottom, over the baseboard.
 

 

 

My old book case was placed before the mantel, but it didn't give the charm I wanted. A few months ago I purchased twelve antique ceiling tiles, in the sweetest old pink paint. I decided to fill the inside of the fireplace with the old tin tiles. I used my E6000 jewelry glue to adhere the tiles to the white wall. Tape held them in place while the glue dried. Next I cut one tile to place around the light switch. When all was in place, I grabbed my acrylic paints again and filled in around the tiles with grey paint to pull them together. Most had grey edges, but some of the white wall peeked through. A quick line of paint took care of that problem.

 

I put the book case in another room and brought in an old pink paint bench to place in front of the mantel, piled on a few books, a plant, and an old chippy pink paint watering can. I love the results.

 

Below are photos, before and after. I will post pictures of the entire room tomorrow.

 

 

The original look across from my bed. Just too busy.

 

 

Mantel with old bamboo bookcase. Still not quite right.

 

 

 

Mantel with old tiles and bench.

 

 

 

 

The finished product. I love how it turned out!

 

Sunshine In My Window

     

Sun on my floors, a welcome sight!

     Today I will just enjoy my house, my yard and the world outside my front door. The final work on my bathroom, if you can call it that – decorating – can wait until tomorrow. There is reason to celebrate this Saturday... the sun is out! It looks and feels like spring. It is about time.

     The bleak weather has carried on too long. My dogs are restless. I am stir crazy. The basement leaked again from the rain the other night. My handyman is waiting for a few days of sunshine to dig out around the foundation and fix the problem. Tomorrow...as Scarlett would say. Today I am all about fun!

     I love the sun. I am at my best when it shines. It fills me with excitement, hope, energy, and possibilities. I am a Leo, ruled by the sun, so I am almost giddy in its presence.

    This morning the sun blinds me as I sit at the computer! Its rays pick up every bit of dust and dog dander on my floor. I don't care. And I am certainly not going to clean today! Soon I will be outdoors doing whatever sparks my imagination.

     The dogs had a huge romp in the yard and now do what they do best, sleep! All six are out cold, spread across the room on chairs and the sofa. Rascal takes full advantage of the sun's rays. Her head is aglow with light and her tiny paws sparkle. Her head begs to be kissed, but I don't want to wake her.

Sweet Rascal loves the sun too!

     The cottage in my mind has huge windows that draw in every bit of light from Mother Nature. My own ranch house is full of sun. I couldn't live in a house that was dark, no matter how charming it was in other ways. The bones are great in my ranch, it is missing those things I dream about in a much older cottage, but the basics are there and I can create my own little charming space.

     I came across a quote by the artist Edward Hopper that sums up my feelings about sunshine.

What I wanted to do was paint sunlight on the side of the house...Edward Hopper

(1882-1967, realist painter of twentieth-century America)

    

Seven A. M., 1948

High Noon

Cape Cod Afternoon, 1936

Light House

     I want to paint sunshine in every room of my house! The cozy cottage paint I used in the bathroom allows the room to explode with the light from outdoors. Maybe that is the shade for the rest of my rooms. Time will tell.

Enjoy your day! Back to work tomorrow as I share the final bathroom photos.

Links for Edward Hopper articles.

The Wall Street Journal

WiKiPaintings

Edward Hopper