Thursday, December 20, 2012
Wall delayed
Well the way is delayed a little. We all had a bout with a stomach bug that seems to want to stay with me, so between that and all of the Christmas preparations I decided I am not going to even try to put the "brick" up until after Christmas. Hopefully I will be feeling better and start on it sometime next week.
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Thursday, December 6, 2012
The wall.....continues
After we finished painting both houses in 2009, I made the comment "If I saying anything
about changing colors or repainting, smack me!" And one along the lines of "I never want to
hold another paint brush or roller". Well, it only took 3 1/2 years.
Painting this small area was a "piece of cake" compared to all of the painting in both houses.
If I remember correctly, we went through well over 150 gallons of primer & paint between the two!
That painting was easy because both houses were empty at the time and no floor coverings to worry
about! So this time I taped the plastic drop cloth to the floor! I did have one little "accident".
I dripped two spots on the vent pipe of the stove. I wiped it off as soon as it happened, but still there is residue in both places. Oh well, guess I will have to get some heat proof paint and touch it up.
close up of "mortar" color. need to work on edge shape
a little easier to see color difference without extra light
Now it is time for the "brick"! I am still debating......do I paint the "brick" before putting them on the wall or paint them after?? Since they are wallpaper, I am afraid if I paint them before and then dip in water to activate the paste on the back that will affect the paint on the front. I guess I could just moisten the back with a sponge and not get the front wet.
Or I could just roll paint on all of them when they are up on the wall, then go back and refresh the grout color between them.
Suggestions are welcome!!!
Wednesday, December 5, 2012
Thursday, November 29, 2012
Update on wall progress
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| This is the label from the textured wallpaper. |
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| Set up for cutting the "bricks" |
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| Using my rotary cutter & mat 2in x 6in |
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| Three strips of "bricks" |
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| Using paper cutter to cut three strips at a time. |
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| Piles of "bricks". 60 cut so far....... lots to go! |
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Quick & Easy Cream Cheese Cinnamon Rolls
I have been hungry for homemade cinnamon rolls. I have a really great recipe, however it takes a while and some planning ahead......so after checking out the fridge here is what I came up with for a quick fix.
I just happen to have some of this in the fridge
A roll of Cresent Rounds - I forgot to take a pic before opening!
Cresent round
Unroll each cresent round, spread with cream cheese
Sprinkle with brown sugar & cinnamon
then roll back up.
Place on parchment paper or greased cookie sheet and bake according to instructions. (14-17 min. @ 350)
Enjoy!!
After these were gone, I also found some cream cheese icing in the fridge! That would have been a great addition!
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Update on update
Update on update of pellet stove
Pellet stove has been in now for 2 1/2 weeks & we love it! It hasn't been really cold outside so we have only used 8 bags of pellets so far.
So now I need to get to work on the wall behind the stove. We cut the chair rail & baseboard so the gas fireplace mantle would fit, so at the very least those were going to need replaced as well as the wall patched and repainted. Well that was just to easy or ordinary! : ) So I was going to have a friend of mine make the wall between the windows look like brick. She uses spackling, carving it to look like whatever she wants and is really good at it! She has done it all over her house and it looks amazing! Her schedule was very busy and I noticed my husbands reaction was a little less than enthusiastic, so I thought maybe something less permanent or easier to cover up might be in order. After searching online for a day or so, I came across this site courtesy of Pinterest - http://timberandlace.blogspot.ca/2011/11/faux-brick-wall-tutorial.html
I thought this might be the best of both worlds so to speak.
After a trip to the local Lowes, I found textured wallpaper that was perfect! So now to decide on the color of the "bricks" & "mortar". White or light colored like the tutorial would not go in our family room!
Pellet stove has been in now for 2 1/2 weeks & we love it! It hasn't been really cold outside so we have only used 8 bags of pellets so far.
So now I need to get to work on the wall behind the stove. We cut the chair rail & baseboard so the gas fireplace mantle would fit, so at the very least those were going to need replaced as well as the wall patched and repainted. Well that was just to easy or ordinary! : ) So I was going to have a friend of mine make the wall between the windows look like brick. She uses spackling, carving it to look like whatever she wants and is really good at it! She has done it all over her house and it looks amazing! Her schedule was very busy and I noticed my husbands reaction was a little less than enthusiastic, so I thought maybe something less permanent or easier to cover up might be in order. After searching online for a day or so, I came across this site courtesy of Pinterest - http://timberandlace.blogspot.ca/2011/11/faux-brick-wall-tutorial.html
I thought this might be the best of both worlds so to speak.
After a trip to the local Lowes, I found textured wallpaper that was perfect! So now to decide on the color of the "bricks" & "mortar". White or light colored like the tutorial would not go in our family room!
Updates & pics as the work progresses!!
Happy Thanksgiving!!
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Avant-Garde Art and Craft Show
A friend of mine recommended an arts and craft show to me recently. It was too close to the show date for me to have a table, at least in my opinion, as I am already trying to get ready for a show in December. I wasn't sure what to expect as I have only been to "local" shows. So I thought I would check it out both for my friend who was unable to attend and for myself to see if I wanted to participate in the next show in February.
They did a great job in advertising with their webpage Avant-Garde Art and Craft Shows. There was a charge at the door, but a portion of the proceeds went to a charity. I like the fact the artisans/crafters are featured on the webpage. The location was easy to find and there were plenty of signs in the area. I was amazed at how many vendors they were able to fit inside! It was a bit crowded, but there were many interesting and unique items! There were numorous jewelry vendors, but they were different and unique. Everyone was very friendly, but not in the "pushy, buy something" kind of way. The vendors I spoke with were new to the show, but seemed very happy with the set up and turn out. I was there in the during the middle part of the show. There was a steady stream of people going in and out. I can't say I noticed alot of people carrying out packages, however there was one crafter making more items in the parking lot. I think she advertised custom, while you wait, items. Overall it seemed like a very successful show. As a "customer" and potential vendor, it would be more appealing if it were a little less crowded. Especially since my craft is glass, I would be afraid of someone (or myself!) bumping into something and breaking it. But I understand space is a premium commodity.
Avant-Garde Art and Craft Shows hosts shows all over the state of Ohio. A portion of the proceeds from each show benefits a local charity. They have a complete list on the website. I think they are onto something!
They did a great job in advertising with their webpage Avant-Garde Art and Craft Shows. There was a charge at the door, but a portion of the proceeds went to a charity. I like the fact the artisans/crafters are featured on the webpage. The location was easy to find and there were plenty of signs in the area. I was amazed at how many vendors they were able to fit inside! It was a bit crowded, but there were many interesting and unique items! There were numorous jewelry vendors, but they were different and unique. Everyone was very friendly, but not in the "pushy, buy something" kind of way. The vendors I spoke with were new to the show, but seemed very happy with the set up and turn out. I was there in the during the middle part of the show. There was a steady stream of people going in and out. I can't say I noticed alot of people carrying out packages, however there was one crafter making more items in the parking lot. I think she advertised custom, while you wait, items. Overall it seemed like a very successful show. As a "customer" and potential vendor, it would be more appealing if it were a little less crowded. Especially since my craft is glass, I would be afraid of someone (or myself!) bumping into something and breaking it. But I understand space is a premium commodity.
Avant-Garde Art and Craft Shows hosts shows all over the state of Ohio. A portion of the proceeds from each show benefits a local charity. They have a complete list on the website. I think they are onto something!
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Thursday, November 8, 2012
Update on Pellet or Gas
We went with the pellet stove - Harman XXV from Dr. Lee's Stove Shop. So far we love it!
Here is a picture:
Now to figure out what I am going to do with the wall...........just touch up the paint and redo the chair rail & molding or do a faux finish between the windows to look like brick........hmmmmm, decisions, decisions! Any ideas or comments/
Here is a picture:
Now to figure out what I am going to do with the wall...........just touch up the paint and redo the chair rail & molding or do a faux finish between the windows to look like brick........hmmmmm, decisions, decisions! Any ideas or comments/
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Pellet or Gas?
We have been debating this issue for some time now. Even though last winter was very mild, we still had a few months where the heating bill neared $400! I love our "new" house, but really miss our old one when it comes to heating costs in the winter! We had electric baseboard heat, but rarely used it. Instead we relied on our Vermont Castings propane stove.
It pretty much heated the whole house except the bedrooms. I like a cool room to sleep.
We looked at both pellet stoves & propane stoves at two local places. Admittedly one was more pro propane & the other more pellet. Cost wise they were very close. Appearance, I favored the propane. I would like to add, in the beginning I was the only one that was for the pellet stove figuring it would be cheaper. Husband and daughter kept going on about the propane stoves (no maintainence, cleaner, etc.), so wouldn't you know it, I started looking at them and guess what?! Now I liked the propane better. Well before he agreed to buy it I suggested we check out at least one other place to compare.
We had the gentleman come out to the house to see exactly where we wanted to put it, etc. As he is going through the different makes and models, he mentions "if you buy this brand, you will get two tons of pellets for free." TWO TONS for FREE??!! That is like free heat for at least three months!
Guess which one we picked?!
Even though I still like the looks of the propane stove better & no maintainence to speak of, no one was going to give us free propane. So I will have to empty the ash pan twice a week, carry in bags of pellets, he mentioned something that needed done every two weeks and something else once a month.
Here is the one we went with:
(ours was green)
It pretty much heated the whole house except the bedrooms. I like a cool room to sleep.
We looked at both pellet stoves & propane stoves at two local places. Admittedly one was more pro propane & the other more pellet. Cost wise they were very close. Appearance, I favored the propane. I would like to add, in the beginning I was the only one that was for the pellet stove figuring it would be cheaper. Husband and daughter kept going on about the propane stoves (no maintainence, cleaner, etc.), so wouldn't you know it, I started looking at them and guess what?! Now I liked the propane better. Well before he agreed to buy it I suggested we check out at least one other place to compare.
We had the gentleman come out to the house to see exactly where we wanted to put it, etc. As he is going through the different makes and models, he mentions "if you buy this brand, you will get two tons of pellets for free." TWO TONS for FREE??!! That is like free heat for at least three months!
Guess which one we picked?!
Even though I still like the looks of the propane stove better & no maintainence to speak of, no one was going to give us free propane. So I will have to empty the ash pan twice a week, carry in bags of pellets, he mentioned something that needed done every two weeks and something else once a month.
Here is the one we went with:
Harman XXV Pellet Stove click here to visit their website
It is being installed Friday. I will continue to post updates as we use it.
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Tuesday Tourist
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| The Eye in London, England |
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| Big Ben London, England |
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| The British Museum |
Since the Olympics are over, these are the last photos of the London photos I will post for a while.
Friday, August 10, 2012
Am I really ready to do this?
I have asked myself that question countless times in the past week. Can I do this? Will I do this?
Going back to school.........well, is it really "going back" to school? I did not go to college after high school graduation. I got married and started a family instead. I did go to real estate school to receive my real estate license. That was pretty easy, it only took three weeks. I didn't really like selling real estate, I liked the office/administrative part better. I was better at that. I liked having a steady paycheck. But things change, real estate kind of took a dump and the broker could no longer afford to pay me, so.......I have not been "in the work force" for almost 4 years now. Time to get back to reality.
Going back to school.........well, is it really "going back" to school? I did not go to college after high school graduation. I got married and started a family instead. I did go to real estate school to receive my real estate license. That was pretty easy, it only took three weeks. I didn't really like selling real estate, I liked the office/administrative part better. I was better at that. I liked having a steady paycheck. But things change, real estate kind of took a dump and the broker could no longer afford to pay me, so.......I have not been "in the work force" for almost 4 years now. Time to get back to reality.
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Tuesday Tourist
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| River Thames - Greenwich England |
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| North Greenwich Arena in the distance |
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| North Greenwich Arena |
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Persistant!
Ok, I decided to look into going back to school.......getting an accounting degree. That field is like health care, there will always be a demand. I am not cut out for health care!
I figured I could find quite a bit of information out there online, so I started filling out requests for information. All of them require a phone number, which I do not like to give out, but since it was required......I did. My line of thinking was I do not have to answer especially if I do not recgonize the phone number.
WOW! One college, who shall remain nameless, has called 18 times in the last 24 hours! I will grant them that at least they only call during normal business hours - mine thank goodness because they are in a different time zone. My biggest complaint with them.......they will not leave a message! If you won't leave a message then I am not calling you back!
Three of the colleges have been really good, they called once, left a message, sent an email giving me the option when, if & how to get back with them. Those three are at the top of my list so far!
It is becoming more complicated than I had anticipated........and more expensive. Still weighing the options, not sure if it will be worth it or not. The numbers are quite intimidating.......
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Tuesday Tourist
With the Olympics being in London, I thought I would post some of my photos from our time in that area -
Windsor Castle:
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| Spouts |
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| I am sure alot of people never notice these. They are certainly worth noticing though! |
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| I am glad we had good weather, however it would have been interesting to see them in the rain..... |
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| An inviting garden, however it was inside a very large stone wall |
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| Another hidden garden spot |
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| This was close to the little pond, just looking the other direction |
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Tuesday Tourist
This is one of my favorite places to visit - Marblehead Lighthouse on Lake Erie
This is the lighthouse that started my fascination with them. I have pictures of this lighthouse in all of the different seasons - even one from out on the ice looking back at it, at just the right time to catch the sun shining through the top!
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