pink picket fence

Kitchen { Before and After }

Before.  Red walls.  White 2" blinds on the large window set and a black and gold valance.  You can't see in this picture, unfortunately, the 2-blub flourescent shop-light that the previous owners had hung in the middle of the kitchen. Our contractor even paused to say, 'that's like a...a... garage light or something.  What's that doing in your kitchen?'  Ahem.  Indeed. 

(It's really a shame you can't see the shop-light in that photo.  I got really good at framing that bad boy out of photos, though.)

After new paint, can lighting, new window panels and shades:

The paint is now a grayish greenish blueish color called "Smoke Infusion" by the American Traditions line at Lowe's.  It better compliments the warm red tones of the cabinets.  In fact, at one point I had considered painting the cabinets, but the new wall color put an end to that little fantasy.   

The biggest project was the windows.  The bamboo connects the two spaces in a way that the white blinds couldn't, don't you think?  I love the simplicity of these panels and the cordless bamboo shades.  Cordless.  Cordless.  That's a heavenly word. 

Anyway.

Curtain rods were a challenge, because the space around the window casings is limited.  I was able to find a rod collection sold with a connector to use in corners, which works well for the large window and the small one at its right that were installed so close. 

The ceilings are already 9ft, but it looks much taller in here now.  The panels don't reach the floor for practical reasons (dog, kids, dust bunnies, mop water, etc), but I like them this way, too.  It's very casual despite the dramatics. 

Remember when I cut the panels too short?  This is the seam in every panel, about 20 inches from the top.  Rather than try to hide it, I pinked and zigzagged the edges, and finished it off with a french seam, top stitiching on the front.  I kind of like the way it turned out, actually.

There is a short window over the counter in the right of the photo below.  I wasn't sure how it would look with curtains swinging about, but the linen softens all the angles and I do like it, very much. 

So that's it.  Hardly seems worth three weeks of sewing fuss and an entire summer of little projects, but I am happy to mark this one off the list.  It feels good to know that a few well planned changes made such a big difference.  And saved us some cash.  By using stock-sized shades alone (and sacrificing about 1/2 inch width which is covered by the panels) we saved almost $300.  And by spending $50 on some linen for the panels saved us a lot, too -- the linen panels at Crate and Barrel are $99 each!   Ack. Best of all, a $20 can of paint saved us the pain of repainting the cabinets, so that was worth its weight in gold.  ;)  

Thanks for bearing with me over the past few weeks.  I promise, no more talk of kitchens or curtains or shades or anything.  Because there is a bathroom vanity that still needs painting. 

I got it, Grammy. And it's beautiful.

This happened to me, Thursday night.

My Grammy's china and crystal and things showed up during the day (Thank you, Aunt Sue!) and I practiced patience and waited until the kids were in bed to dig in.  The lot had been in storage for over a year and finally made its way to my home.

The employees at the UPS Store must have spent a full day packing this stuff.  It was so well packed; nothing was broken.  All that popcorn -- and entire truckload full -- went back to a local UPS store. They will reuse it; there was no need to throw it away. 

But back to the loot. It took a few hours to unpack, and gradually covered all of the flat surfaces in the room.    Grammy's brooches hang in shadow boxes right above the piano.  It seemed fitting that all her lovely fancy stuff was getting unpacked in there.

Seven different kinds of crystal.  Seven???!! Some have broken over the years, so there isn't a full set.  They are so delicate and etched with flowers.  Port glasses.  White wine.  Cordial.  Water.  Red wine.  Dessert.  Curvy coffee-ish glassware.  At least I think that is what they are all for.  I'd never seen such a selection.   I'm not sure how or when we will use it. 

I never registered for china when I was married, knowing that Grammy always wanted me to have hers.  It's strange and wonderful finally having the dishes she used so many times, here in my home.  

I was washing it last night, thinking about all the entertaining, the stories, laughter, and tears these dishes -- the coffee cups especially -- have sat by and witnessed.  (Mikasa Marlboro Platinum and White place settings and serving pieces for 8.)  

I know they entertained a lot, dressing up that dine-in kitchen with china and crystal, covering the table with huge meals cooked just a few feet away, moving into the formal living room for after-dinner drinks (cordial anyone?) and listening to the music coming from the long stereo cabinet under the front window. 

I don't remember ever eating off of the carnival glass compote dishes as a child, but they are screaming for tiny little desserts, don't you think? There are 10 of these, and 10 little matching fruit cups.    Oh sweets, you've been cooped up for too long.   

 

It was a strange evening, surrounded by Grammy's things.  I missed her. I had a few weepy moments.  But I was happy, too.  She always wanted me to have her china and now it's here, ready for another go-round of holidays, and luncheons and bosses-for-dinner.  It's solid and 'serious' (as hubs said, the plates are quite heavy) and really, really beautiful.  Grams, I got it.  It's all here with me.  I'll take good care of it, I promise.  

There is a lot to clean and organize.  And to store.  Maybe that old china cabinet in my bedroom will be of some use, after all.  

I had to.

Honestly, I was just at Goodwill to donate.

But it was $5.  A teeny tiny baby doll sized pram.  It needs cleaning and a new lining, but it is otherwise in perfect condition. Fidge will adore it, but Hubs is going to shake his head.

Happy Friday, friends...

Tutorial: curtain clip ribbon trick

Let me start by saying that it is entirely possible, probable even, that this tutorial isn't even necessary.  Just because I had an aha! moment doesn't mean it's a new concept. 

But when I read the tip that Posie's Alicia got from the curtain guy  -- about sewing a strip of ribbon to the back of the curtain top, with little gaps for clips to hang on to so you don't have to actually the attach the clip to the panel -- I did a bit of a happy dance.  Because that has always bothered me, but that was exactly my plan for my new kitchen panels.  And it happened to be my next step.  Problem solved. 

I took photos while I did it, so I might as well show you what I did.

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First, I pressed what would be the very top edge of the finished panel.  (I had already pinked and zigzagged the edge.  No need to get too fancy way up that high.)

Then I took a length of ribbon and placed it across the top, about a half-inch from the crease top of the curtain, on the hem side.  I pinned the ribbon to it, exactly where I wanted the clips to attach, and then marked about a half inch for the clip to pass through.

I don't have a photo for this part, but I sewed along the ribbon, stopping where the openings should be, to back up and reinforce the stitch.  Then, rather than cut string and begin again, I lifted the foot, pulled the thread through the machine, moved the fabric to the new position, and put the needle back in, reinforcing again and continuing to sew to the next clip marker.  Like this:

---==     ==--------------==  ==---------------==  == ---------------== == and so on, without cutting.

This left a few spots on the ribbon that were not stitched to the panel. 

I folded the hem over, and stitched below the ribbon to finish off the top hem.  The clips were easy to attach.  And the ribbon(and its stitching) is invisible from the front of the panel.

And, it totally works.  Much nicer than just clipped on, but still casual and informal.

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I am very close to being able to show the whole finished project.  There is still one more shade to hang (and it's a big one so I have to enlist the help of hubs), and then we'll be done.  Thank goodness.  Because I'm as tired of talking about these darned things as you are hearing about them.  ;)

Guilty Pleasure: Mad Men (the tv show, not angry men in general)

I'm not much of a tv-watcher.  I like having cable so I can listen to the music choice stations and keep up with new artists. 

But, friends, I have found something new.  And I like it.

Not since 24(and drat that writer's strike -- we didn't get a season this year.  I'm still bitter.) have I been so intrigued by a television program.

Mad Men, the original AMC drama, is rocking my world.  First, because the main setting is a mid-sized Madison Avenue advertising firm, and the main character is the head of the Creative department (copy writers and designers).  I have been the entire internal marketing and advertising creative department for a small company for a long time, so how the producers convey the creative process is just plain interesting to me.

But second.  It takes place in 1960.  Oh, the music.  And the cars.  And the parties.  The atmosphere.  The set design is perfect.  From the desks to the clocks to the vintage accessories (children's books!  cigarette dispensers!  lamps! that sunburst clock on the wall in the above photo... )

 

And the recklessness.   They don't sugarcoat it. 

Imagine being angry at your child with the dry cleaning bag on her head, only because she probably ripped the bag off of one of your newly cleaned gowns.  Or drinking and smoking whilst pregnant.  No seat-belts.... children hopping over the front seat or hiding on the floor.   Resting your head on your honey's shoulders on the long drive home after a night with friends.

But what wins me over every time???  The CLOTHES.  Oh my.  Just look at Betty Draper.  This is what she wears to run over and watch the neighbor kid.  (She's just finished making dinner for the family.)

   

And here she is, all gussied up next to her handsome and mysterious hubs, Don.

And Joan.  The Gal in charge of all of the office Girls.

She is somethin'.  Let me tell you.

We heard good things about this show, winning all these awards and such after its first year.  We started watching the first season's episodes on demand since they were available and we were intrigued and, well, we were hooked.  All 23 epi's were there for us just by hitting 'select'.  A show that can get away with things (oh, the drinking and smoking and womanizing) that you can't on regular network tv.  And hubs and I BOTH like it.  Brilliant!

And then the Olympics began and HD On-Demand decided to replay volleyball and fencing and heavens knows what else in lieu of our beloved Mad Men season one epi's.   I tell you what, that made me cranky.  So much so, that hubs actually suggested I call around today to see if we can get the DVDs.  I must have been in a state. 

The good news is that dear Justin at Blockbuster was kind enough to verify that they do, in fact, have the discs we need to finish out Season One and get all caught up with the rest of the universe.  (Are you staring at the chairs or the cool desk lamp in that office?  I knew it.)  Crisis averted! 

Seriously, have you watched it yet?  I don't know that I like any of the characters, really.  They are all kind of grimy in their own way, but the show itself is immensely likable.  I do like the Menken's Dept Store owner character.  She is smart and successful and kind of tragic. And Betty, who was dressed in her flowy nightgown, shot at the neighbor's pigeons after he threatened to kill the dog, and she grew instantly more likable, in my opinion.  ;)

{ ALL photos borrowed from AMC's photo gallery. }

Accomplishing { the list post }

Behold, quite possibly the cutest composition notebook ever:

I am a daily list-maker.  This is no small secret to those who know me.  Everything goes on the list.   (I also like to write in colored ultra-fine-point-sharpies, because the color is rich and bold and fun and I can tell my daily Lists from other lists, like groceries or driving directions.  I am a color girl, so why fight it?) Today's List is:

• drama camp
• preschool
• amex art (for work)
• edit URG (for work)
• curtain panels
• bathroom
• chicken for dinner
• run
• shower
• laundry

There is no particular order, but it is pretty much a list of the things I can expect myself to accomplish today.  

The thing is, "Curtain Panels" and "Paint Bathroom" have been showing up on my list every day for a while.  And they have been giving me a complex.  Like I wasn't accomplishing anything, even though I was making baby steps.  But I couldn't mark the darned items OFF. 

It's easy to get overwhelmed and feel like you are spinning your wheels. 

So I finally did what I should have done a long time ago.  Instead of the meta-item "Curtain Panels," I made another List.  A micro level one:

And now, I can mark off almost each and every step.  I've got one more set of blinds to take down(a large bamboo shade that had to be custom ordered), and have already made the two other panel extensions... As I finish each panel I can "X" it out.  How satisfying is that?   Take THAT, panel number three!  Much better.

And this is for Lera, who says she doesn't tire of my thrifting finds:

I picked this up on Monday for about $1.  It is plastic so it's perfect for lemonade on the deck.  I still can't get over that people give this stuff away. 

Happy Thursday everyone!  What kind of 'accomplishment' tips do you have?

Characters.

Looks like my last post got screwy on bloglines, where special characters were added throughout the text.  Nice.  Not sure how that happened, as it is appearing on my blog the right way. 

Just wanted to let any subscribers know I'm not trying out new languages and getting fancy with foreign characters for fun.

Speaking of new languages and things that are just stupifyingly challenging, has anyone else read Born on a Blue Day by Daniel Tammet? 

(image: Amazon.com) 

It is a riveting self-penned memoir of a 27 year old autistic savant who can learn a language in a week and sees numbers as landscapes... It was our bookclub selection last month and I thoroughly enjoyed it.  What a peek into his extraordinary mind.

bamboo shades and owls. { yes, very clever }

I'm in need of a pep talk.

Those stupid kitchen curtain panels will ruin me. I will soon say in a loud voice to no one in particular,

I will never ever make curtains again! Ever! Don't let me do it. My TIME is worth more than this. My SANITY -- wait, let's not go there. But my TIME! I want it back!

Especially when working with generous amounts of linen that doesn't want to be measured. So much so, that when I measured so carefully last week I was short TWENTY INCHES on four of the long panels. So. Now I have six panels that need twenty-inch extensions added to them and some embellishment on on the front that makes it look... intentional. Ahem.

So forgive me while I show you photos of the new cordless bamboo roman shades I installed this week.
They are also part of the new kitchen look. And honestly, I did underestimate how long they would take to install. (Including the by-hand removal of 50 screws for the previous treatments, while it is 107 degrees outside and we are facing southwest... ) So we're going to celebrate them.

These windows had 2" faux wooden blinds when we moved in. Blinds that, when closed, did such a good job of blocking out the sun that I felt very, very closed in. I'm not really ok with that feeling, especially in the kitchen, where I spend so much of my time. The new shades allow me to see a little while still blocking most of the sun.

But my favorite part is that there are no cords. Cords that we have to wind up because Fidge will mess with them. Cords that become tangled. These shades just go up and down. Beautiful bit of engineering here.

And, I'm going to tell you, I did not pay an arm and leg for them either. They were even a bit cheaper than traditional blinds. I also took a chance and ordered the 33"-wide shades even though my windows measure 34". Because the 33" ones are stock and, therefore, returnable and not so freaking expensive. And, since curtain panels will one day flank all of the windows, no one is going to see that the gap between the shade and the casing is 5/8 inch rather than 3/8.

{ insert celebration dance here } Woohoo! Yay! Yowza! Yippee! We are still awaiting those blasted panels (and curtain hardware), but we are one step closer.

: : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : :

So. About the owls. This one is my favorite. It's a little Avon solid perfume holder from back in the day. Your grandmother probably had one. (Mine didn't, because she hated birds in the house. Maybe my mom did, because I do remember this guy.)

He was discounted to 40 cents at a thrift store. Couldn't pass it up. He still had some of the perfume inside, so I put him in the microwave (he IS plastic, so what the heck) and melted it down a bit to pour it out. I even put him in the dishwasher.

He's clean and shiny and so stinking cute on my living room mantle. And, he's kind of like an action figure, since his head swivels (and comes off).

This guy is from the same thrift store, different day, about 75 cents. The eyeliner is kind of heavy for my taste, but who am I to judge? :) The feathers are pretty cool and I like that he is white, perfect for in here. (Rachel just reminded me she has one, too. "Minus the KISS eyeliner," lol.) Fidget, for some reason that baffles us, talks to him. Yes, that is Heather's pretty sunprint on the right.

We're going to pick up a middle school schedule this afternoon. Someone is celebrating upstairs, I can hear her...

So. What are you celebrating today???

ETA: 
Not sure what all the "�"s were earlier.  Some kind of 'fancy' typepad thing, I'm sure. 

hoot

Hello.  I hope you had a nice weekend.  We did as little as possible, as our AC will only cool us down to about 85 degrees.  But at least we have some AC, so I'm not really complaining.  But this isn't a weather blog, so we have to move on to important things. 

Like, have you seen this? 

I do not think it is coincidental that 

1. I just happen to have an owl thing going on right now. (I haven't told anyone about that yet, but I do.)
2. I have recently started to think about Fidget's new 'big girl' room, and had already started a quilt for her.
3. I opened the PBKids catalog right to this page, and
4. I have no time and/or money for this, but I already love it more than the one I am making her.

Seems completely within the spectrum of reality, no?  That quilt is begging to be handmade... And, oh yes, painting and curtain-ing continue around here.  :) Here's to a new week!

xoxo,
misschris

here and there and making curtains.

Pajamas and skirts and tops are fun to make. 

But I've veered off course and need to focus on the projects needing my attention so very much.  This is the week I really get to work....

 >> On the seven white linen curtain panels for those kitchen windows.

 { I don't like making curtains.  All those chances to end up with wonky edges. And uneven hems that are oh-so-obvious against the squared corners of my windows... And yards upon yards of fabric slipping and sliding around while I try by best to press those hems.   And doing this seven times.  Frustration, thy definition is curtain-panel-making. }

>> And on that bathroom and it's hundred layers of paint.  See, we couldn't just paint the bathroom. No, we've got three kinds of primer, paint, faux glaze and two coats of protectant.  So far, I'm through two of the primers.  And that is just for the vanity.  There is also a linen cabinet, window and wall trim, and a door begging for my attention.

So maybe you'll understand if things are quiet behind la Fence for a few days.  Because photos of white linen curtains and irons and paint are thrilling and all { ahem }... but finding new ways to say, I painted this! and One more panel, done! might just do me in.  I kind of want to get the zone and get it done.  Ever felt like that?  Like ripping off a bandaid for a whole week.