Day 181 of 2021

You've got to love a boy and his putty mustache.

 

Day 180 of 2021

I was looking for this extra fabric from R's quilt for an upcoming project. 

I found it today and the colors are making me happy.

 

Day 179 of 2021

The results of a sprinkling of seeds last fall from my dead snapdragons 

is lots of blooms this summer.

 

Day 178 of 2021

Today's bit of nature was spied on a walk through the neighborhood.

 

Day 177 of 2021

I know these pegboards were a pre-pandemic purchase, 

so I can safely say it has taken a long time to get them hung on the wall. 

In that time I have revised my plan for their use. 

This pair sits near my ironing surface. 

It will be interesting to see what I end up putting on them. 

 

Day 176 of 2021

The tree squirrel (American Red Squirrel) spent some alone time under the bird feeder

 with no competition today from chipmunks or the larger squirrels.

 

Day 175 of 2021

The sound of the mower this morning prompted one of our resident rabbits to hide 

in a pile of wood cut from last year's downed tree.

 

Day 174 of 2021

And now back to our regularly scheduled program.

I've removed the table top from its base and began the stripping process. 

This is coat number two and it is going well. 

I'll need more product because I've decided to strip the underside also

 since this is a drop leaf table and the underside may be visible at times. 

There is also some damage to the center of this top

 which I have researched for a solution. 

I think I know how it happened, what to do to fix it 

and how to prevent it from happening again, 

but I think I may go talk to some experts at the woodworking store

 for additional opinions. 

This project looks like it will take a little longer than anticipated, 

but I think it will be worth it in the end.

 

Day 173 of 2021

My plans for a table stripping project got sidelined this morning 

when this happened on the way to a morning appointment. 

This is just part of the damage our car sustained. 

Thankfully all three drivers involved are ok.

 

Day 172 of 2021

Tomorrow's sunroom project starts here...

weather cooperating.

 

Day 171 of 2021

GB#5 and GB#3 are getting to know each other. 

 

Day 170 of 2021

It rained a lot last night. 

We found a lot of gurgling drainage ditches in our neighborhood today, 

but this was the best one. 

I don't think I have ever seen it this full.

 

Day 169 of 2021

I am going to call this my Sunroom Refresh Reveal 

even though there a few more things to complete 

because I washed all the windows, screens, sashes and sills today. 

I'm still pondering something for over the doors to accompany the birds. 

The navy chair is really just covered with the navy fabric 

which will become a washable slipcover. 

I borrowed some items from other rooms but probably won't return most of them. 

The blue and white lamp came from the family room. 

Three of the pillows came from the den, 

one of which I just noticed is facing backwards in this photo. 

The aqua cabinet came from my mom

 and has been awaiting a permanent home for two and a half years. 

The drop leaf coffee table was a garage sale find

 which I found had uneven legs after I got it home. 

It has spent many years in the garage waiting for me to decide what to do with it 

and how to fix the problem. 

I cut all the legs off even, and shorter, to make this expandable coffee table. 

The top still needs a good refinish with possibly a colorful stain. 

Here are some things that are complete.  

The walls are painted white and the ceiling is a soft blue-green. 

We replaced the molding on the brick wall with something a little larger 

and a bit more decorative.

We purchased the almost room-sized rug, a remnant with the edges already bound, 

to cover all but the edges of the existing carpet.

The blinds are from Bed Bath and Beyond. 

I sewed new, washable cushion covers for the settee and chairs 

with drop cloths found at the hardware store. 

And last, but not least, 

I had one of my more architectural photographs made into a poster, 

put it in a frame I already had, and hung it on the wall.

 

Day 168 of 2021

Fresh out of the rags this morning, GB#2 is a happy girl. 

She styled it a couple different ways 

but settled on just letting the curls hang down most of the day. 

I am surprised that they didn't relax much for as straight as her hair is naturally. 

We'll see what it looks like tomorrow after sleeping on it and 

deciding how to style it. 

I've posted more photos on More Curiously.

The rags were torn years ago from sheets that were a wedding gift, 

but no longer useable as sheets.

 

Day 167 of 2021

This is GB#2. 

Does anyone know what is going on here? 

I know that M and Little E definitely know. 

What is it?

 

Day 166 of 2021

With help from Fireball, I have hung the paintings from last week

 on the wall upstairs between my studio and the guest room. 

They didn't all fit so I will put the smallest one elsewhere.

There has never been anything on this wall

 in the 34 years we've lived in this house. 

I like that I will see these frequently.

 

Day 165 of 2021

M got to see her wedding venue in person for the first time today. 

I believe she is very pleased. 

Fireball found the coffee spot downstairs makes beautiful coffees.

 

Day 164 of 2021

Today M and I are out and about doing wedding research.

 

Day 163 of 2021

Everyone is ready for a game of charades.

 

Day 162 of 2021

More amazing sunlight, this time on the clouds.

 

Day 161 of 2021

The light through this tree today was amazing

 but I really wish you could hear the cicadas.

 

Day 160 of 2021

Yes. 

That's the plane I've been waiting for.

 

Day 159 of 2021

A few of these paintings by my grandmother have been hiding under a chair

 for a while. 

I finally know where I'd like to hang them 

and will see if time permits me to get that done tomorrow.

 

Day 158 of 2021

Cushions have been deconstructed to salvage and reuse the zippers.

 

Day 157 of 2021

I finally found some top down, bottom up cordless shades

 in the correct size that were actually available 

and they arrived yesterday. 

Installing them was one of three projects completed today 

toward our quest to complete this room. 

As a result you get a slightly larger sneak peek than last time.

 

Day 156 of 2021

Our GB#3 turned seven today. 

It was a beautiful day that included friends, painting, water balloons, 

water soakers, cupcakes, food, gifts, family, and just plain fun.

In the background you can see the play set DIL R and I built last May 

and the benches we built last October.

 

Day 155 of 2021

I made a treat tonight but I think I left it in the freezer a bit too long. 

It's too frozen to cut. 

I guess I'll just stand here and wait.

 

Day 154 of 2021

It's definitely still slow going 

but I am ready for the next step on my first test cushion cover.

 

Day 153 of 2021

Here's a sneak peek at another of the quilt tops I bought a couple weeks ago. 

This one is an Ocean Waves pattern and has some of the sweetest fabrics.

 

Day 152 of 2021

Sometimes when I'm working on a project like a room refresh

 I get about 90% done and then the last 10% seems to take forever. 

I'm at that stage now. 

My actual list of final things to complete isn't that long

 but it seems each is dependent on something else 

or I can't find a resource for what I need. 

So today I cut some plexiglass with power tools

 which turned out pretty well 

and then worked on the details of fabric cutting

 for some new covers for the cushions. 

photo taken 6-1-2021