She Sweeps!

What could make a girl sweep the floors a couple of times a day? My beautiful new floor! I'm sure it won't last long. The novelty will wear off the first time a toy scratches it, but for now they're perfect.

Remember the before . . .

and after . . .

I'm Home

I just survived 10 days without internet and cable television. Only because I woke up to a view of the water every morning.

I have a lot of catching up to do around the blogosphere. I'll post some pictures of the new floors soon - I'm anxious to start the next project now.

Any lessons learned out there on painting kitchen cabinets?

Dark Walnut

Thank you so much for your comments and emails. You all were thinking the same thing I was - the darker the better. I decided to go with Dark Walnut.

We're leaving tomorrow for a week while they sand, stain and poly. I might not have Internet access while we're away so I'll post pictures of the finished floors when we get back.


Hopefully you're still feeling helpful because I have another design decision to make. Railing or No Railing . . . .

Wood You Help A Girl Out?

My dear green friends, please look away. What you're about to see may hurt your eyes and your conscience.

My decorating self had a little battle with my environmental self. It was loud and ugly. And in the end - the decorator in me won. I'm about to pay people to perform a not so eco-friendly act . . . refinish my hardwood floors.



I need your help in selecting a stain. If I was photo-shop savvy, I would have these samples numbered. So let's pretend - I'll start from the left.

1. Medium Brown
2. Provincial
3. English Chesnut
4. Dark Walnut (top right)
5. Early American (bottom right)

Open House

Hooked on Houses is hosting an Open House and you're invited.

The last two homes we've owned were Cape Cods. I love Capes. They're traditional and charming. We did a lot of work to our last house. You can take a look at the before and after pictures here.

Our new home's considered "contemporary". I love the space. It fits the way our family lives. I don't have avocado paint to deal with in this house, but I'm looking forward to tweaking it and making it a little more traditional. It's a great house, and I'm so happy with it.

This is our foyer. The previous owners really liked blonde, white-washed wood. Me, not so much.

Another picture of the foyer. See the door to the left?
That's my very first laundry room above ground.


From the foyer, this hallway leads to the powder room, coat closet and garage.

This is the view of our dining room from the foyer. I love these windows. Our lot is very wooded, so the view is beautiful from every window. Lots of wallpaper . . . and border.

This is the view of our living room from the foyer. Love these windows, too.

Here's our family room. I'm sitting in it right now typing this post. It's great space!

These doors in our family room lead to a roomy screened porch.


This is the view of the breakfast area and kitchen from our family room. I don't know how I feel about this railing. I understand the function of it, but not so sure about the form. Anyone out there ever taken one of these down?

I'm sure we'll make changes in the kitchen eventually, but I'd like to live in it for awhile first.

Alive and Well

Our move is over and we are slowly working our way through boxes. By "we", I mean my wonderful mother. My mother-in-law also came down and lined my pantry and drawers with beautiful liner.

It was so nice having my Fairy Godmothers here to help me get settled in my new home.

I'll be back in a couple of days with an Open House.