Rare and Beautiful Treasures: April 2009

1920s Cottage Charmer

This beautiful 1920s cottage is home to interior designer Tia Zoldan and family. Isn't it just positively lovely??

It is just oozing with charm and curb appeal.

I just love the way the contrast between the dark and white paint highlights the curved ceiling

Awesome tufted headboard

This room is any little girl's dream! And look at those giant windows that swing open!

To see more of Ms. Zoldan's work, visit her website and browse her portfolio. All photos from Cottage Living and Myhomeideas.com

New Old House Updates, April 2009

We worked worked hard this weekend on lots of projects around the new old house. A few of these projects we actually completed and I'm happy to have the pictures to show for it!

Last month, Mr. Marvelous and I snagged this solid wood table at a local antique store for just $55! I was specifically looking for a table to put in our foyer, and this piece was perfect: love at first sight. (If you overlook the hideous yellow/pea green paint and the fact that it smelled like cigarettes that were smoked in 1972).

We brought the table home and put her in place. I look more excited than the boys. Credit that to the wisdom that comes with age: I knew she would clean up well.

I cleaned the table thoroughly with a sponge and hot soapy water and removed the front doors and hardware. I painted the piece a neutral beige, followed with three coats of white paint. Then I distressed it, using a fine sand paper to reveal the beige paint beneath the white in certain random spots and edges.

Then, I went to town decorating with pictures and other fun things around the house.

I found these bud vases at Target on Friday for just $3. The golden rod was free (seeing that it is a weed) from the woods next to our house.

Honeysuckle from our yard gives a great pop of green and it smells amazing.

* * * * * *

Moving to the exterior of the house . . .

Our intention has been to cover the exposed concrete beneath our front porch with the same stone that is on the porch pillars. Unfortunately, the cost of that project was not in our budget this year, and we were desperate to cover the concrete that was weathered and tired looking from the long winter.

Quick fix solution? Paint! We bought two gallons of exterior paint, custom matched to the color of house trim and set to work.

We may still go back and add stone in another year or so, but until then, the paint is clean and fresh and makes the porch look finished. Next up I am going to yank the tired evergreen bushes and plant some taller perennials to fill in the space and cover up some of the white.

I am expecting a bunch of perennials to be delivered this week so that I can spend next weekend gardening. Already counting down the days until Friday rolls around . . .

I Love . . .

I love white bathrooms.

I love streams of natural sunlight in white bathrooms.

I love lanterns.

In any room.

They make me happy.

I love Lake Michigan.

I love being with my love on Lake Michigan.

I love bright, white kitchens.

I love to bake in my bright white kitchen.

And boy do I love Charley the Wonder Hound!

I love red shoes.

I love shopping for red shoes with my boyfriend, A.

I love to blog.

I love to blog about the people I love.

I love love.

And I love God.

For God is love.

And the one who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.

-1 John 4:16

This post has been linked at the Inspired Room, as part of the "A Beautiful Life" series.

Prayers for Stellan

Please pray right now for precious Baby Stellan who is this morning undergoing heart surgery. Please pray for healing and for God's perfect will for this child and his family and all those who are witness to his story.

The $10 Kitchen Makeover

I am incredibly excited and entirely humbled to be able to share with you the following incredible makeover by blogger, Alyssa of Resolved2Worship.

This incredible mom of six, with one on the way, recently (along with her husband) moved her family into a commercial building which she is transforming into an amazing home. While the makeover is gorgeous by any account, what is so amazing is that Alyssa did this makeover on a SONG.

I contacted Alyssa to see if I could share her makeover here and she responded:

"I would love for other women, who like me don't have decorating in the budget, to be encouraged that they can make any place a homey and lovely place for their man and family. The Lord be glorified in all we do ~ even in the little things :)"

If you are a reader of this blog who thinks "those photos are lovely, but that must cost a fortune," then this post is for you! With some creativity, imagination, and big dose of FAITH, Alyssa transformed this egg plant and green kitchen into a lovely cottage stunner. I hope this inspires you.

Alyssa's goals in her kitchen makeover were to "lighten the kitchen up, simplify the colors, and spend less than ten dollars." (emphasis mine)

You still with me?

Hold on to your hats!!!

Here is the kitchen before:

And here is the AFTER:

She used a leftover (free) can of white paint to paint the wainscoting. And a leftover (free) can of brown paint she snagged from her sister to paint the cabinets.

Alyssa wanted an odd sized table - narrow and long and unique -so her husband made this table out of used lumber and used table legs. The top is yet to be stained.

These lovely dishes were wedding gifts 12 years ago.

This basket was from a warehouse sale; the metal rescued from the yard by one of her children, the "glass" label from a cardboard box!

One of several frames from goodwill, originally red, were painted black, and adorned with acorns from the yard with the help of her young children.

Her husband brought home this large piece of cork board from a job, which is now used for posting pictures, reminders, and clippings. The metal roll-away cart was a rescued throw-away and the dishes? Goodwill!

Another goodwill frame decorated on a dime.

Vases from Goodwill "for mere pennies" and seashells from Alyssa's home state.

* * * * *

Alyssa confessed that her biggest expense in her kitchen project was the hand towels she bought from World Market for 69 cents!!!

Alyssa's decorating motto:

"Do What you can, where you are, with what you have."

-Theodore Roosevelt.

Thank you, Alyssa, for sharing your makeover with us! Your space is a rare and beautiful treasure.

In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:16

To God be the glory!

Decorating By Color

There are endless possibilities with color in decorating. Whether it is cool tones, warm hues, saturated colors, or pretty pastels, indulge in the colors that speak to you and enliven your home with color. When deciding on a color scheme for a room, think beyond paint colors for your walls and consider my favorite look of neutral colored walls with pops of color in accessories such as throw pillows, art work, vases, pottery, and of course flowers!