Baseboards and Bert...

Chilly again this weekend---what happened to Spring? I've noticed that it warms up during the week and then is freezing cold every weekend. A cruel trick?! Brooke says I post too many pictures of "house stuff" and that I should start posting more of the other things we do (what else do we do?!?!)! So, I've taken his advice! We had a fun weekend---Friday night we were able to take a peek at a renovated home in our neighborhood---the house was built in 1917 and had been completely gutted and put back together exactly as it was built, plus a few modern convienences. It was truly inspiring and was exciting to see and get some ideas. Saturday we were fortunate enough to be able to explore my Great-Great Aunt Bert's house. Her home is on Missionary Ridge in Chattanooga and is currently on the market. I remember this house as a child and it was great fun to "poke around" as an adult. Her home was built in 1904 and has also been restored and updated. Interestingly enough, she lived right next door to her sister, my Great Grandmother, and the home my Grandmother grew up in. Their old house still looks great...wish I could have looked inside that one, too. Do we see a trend here? Are Brooke and I addicted to old home remodels? In between these outings, we did a little cooking on the grill and church this morning. All in all, a nice weekend at home.
It was a very foggy morning, but this is the view from her front yard---it over looks downtown, and in the distance Lookout Mountain and Signal Mountain.
The front of the home---a GREAT porch for rocking, and out back, a screened porch that runs the length of the home. My favorite feature is a spiral staircase that leads from the back porch up to Bert's son Earl's old room. She had it put in so that he didn't have to go through the house to get up to his room when he was messy and dirty after playing outside.
This is a really fun picture---this is the exact spot where my Grandmother and Grandfather's engagement picture was taken. So, Brooke and I flipped the camera to black and white and will have to post the pic of Grandmother and Gramps when I get a copy so you all can see that!
Brooke puts down the baseboards...now all that's left is cleaning up and hanging curtains, mirror, etc.!
Is this who I married?!?!

Kitchen re-do and ALMOST done with the coral dining room!

Thought I'd show where I placed the pottery in the kitchen. Utensil holder in the same spot, then I put a fern in the bowl and the sponge is in the small footed bowl. Daffodils started blooming in our front yard! Fun to find those! I just had to bring some inside.
Over to the other corner---I bought some glass canisters from World Market (THE place to go for those---great deals!!), and then have the platter and plate up on a stand in the corner...as well as the candlestick.
Full view---a bit better as far as making the kitchen more inviting. Still gotta get those window treatments done, but all in time, right?!?!
And, Brooke showing how much he LOVES painting! We put the final coat of coral on the walls this weekend and only have 1 more coat of ceiling pant to put on and then we're finished! YEA! Except, Brooke will have to put up the baseboards. Maybe this weekend we can clean up and start getting things back in place!
Another view of the room. You see we opted for a white ceiling. I brought back swatches of the metallic paint for the ceiling, but with the very bright walls, decided to stay white. I think there will be enough going on in the room that it will satisfy my need for a bit of added craziness!

Last snow (hopefully!)...

We had a snow a few weekends ago, and I'd forgotten to post these pictures. While we've enjoyed having a few good dustings this winter, I'm ready for springtime! Hopefully this was the last snow of the season! Boone contemplates the white stuff...
Brooke decided to go artsy with the camera. Pretty cools, pics, I must admit. We drove over to my family's house in Summertown, Glen Mary. Glen Mary's just open May through early Fall, so it looks quite lonely without rocking chairs and flowers planted. But, the black and white pictures make for a neat look. The above pic we're standing on the front porch looking down the walk over the brow.
A big maple tree (I think it's a maple) stretches over the brow.
The house covered in snow!
The Little Brown Church. Open Memorial Day through Labor Day, built in the early 1900's for the residents of Summertown.

Fun things!

We had a great weekend---dinner Friday night at Lil River Grille in Lawrenceville with wonderful friends, Nikki and James (their baby Liam is due April 2nd!), Saturday Mom and I met Sandy and Will to scout out a possible wedding/reception site for them, and then Mom and I had a great Mexican lunch at Pablano's in Snellville, then on for manicures and pedicures, and finally Saturday night to Will and Sandy's engagement party...LOTS of fun! I gathered a few treasures this weekend, so I thought I'd share...

This is McCarty Pottery from Merigold, Mississippi. Cousins Julie, Melissa, and Betsy gave me the first piece as a shower gift (the utensil holder in the back left of the picture). After painting our kitchen I realized how perfectly the pottery matched our walls and always having admired it, thought I'd consult Julie on gathering some more pieces. Turns out she and her crew were headed to ATL for the weekend, so she gathered some pieces from Oxford, Miss. and brought them my way. Thanks, Julie! This pattern is called Jade. They also make a Cobalt and Nutmeg pattern---all made from Mississippi mud by a couple that's been doing this for about 50 years! I love the variations of color in these pieces. Even better the pieces are dishwasher and oven safe. I do believe I'm starting a new collection!
Another view...isn't the little goblet cute?!
Mom picked these vintage postcards up for me at an antique show in Crystal River, FLA a few weeks ago. Thanks, Mom! For those of you who know the mountain and Chattanooga, the above pics are of Bluff View, Alexian Village, and Falling Water. Crazy to find these in a little traveling antique show---very rare!
These are of Signal Point, Signal Mountain Blvd., and the W Road. The two pics on top are of the road Brooke and I travel every day up and down the mountain. These pics are circa 1890's. I want to get them framed in 3s in maybe a rustic wood frame.

Like it? Don't like it?

We made some progress on the dining room this weekend, but I didn't take enough pics to really show the progress. So, you will have to wait until sometime this week (hopefully we'll be motivated enough to paint after work). Thanks to those of you who voted...Lei Flower did end up on top! I love the way it's starting to look. It's bold, but a lot of fun. I was googling chandeliers this afternoon and found this one. It's made of black crystals. Yes, that's right. I think it would be a really neat contrast to the coral and other black and white accents in the room. Don't worry, I'm not ordering yet, just thought I'd post the pic to see what everyone thought. I realize it would definitely make a statement, but these black chandeliers have apparently been in Europe for hundreds of years. So, it's not so new school, but an old tradition! Too gothic? I don't want something so crazy that I have to replace it in 2 years. I wish we had snatched our pretty crystal chandelier from our home in Macon. That was a classic. We'll see...I'll probably completely change my mind tomorrow!

Time to pick a color...

Last weekend I was out of town, this weekend, Brooke's been sick. So, not too much going on around here. But, I did finish rolling primer on the walls in the dining room...
...and started on the ceiling...fun project!
Here are two paint swatches from Sherwin Williams. Both very similar, one has more orange, one more pink. Coral is a VERY difficult color to pick.
They now have the small cans of paint at Sherwin Williams so you can try several colors. Far left is "Emotional," then "Rejuvenate," and finally "Lei Flower." The picture really doesn't seem to do any of these justice. They really are pretty colors and not quite as shocking as they seem in this pic. They are all very coral, though! I really like the "Lei Flower," Brooke seems to like the "Rejuvenate." We'll see who wins! :)