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. 

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?

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?

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.

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.

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.

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.