A Room With a View

There's nothing like coming home after a long, busy day....unless it's coming home to a project FINISHED!!

My amazing contractor finished up the trim and painting around the new windows yesterday and I couldn't be more pleased! 

Despite my long day and the late hour when I got home I set to work getting things back in order again. 

I poured myself a cocktail and started cleaning windows and hanging curtains. 

Yes, I know - they are wrinkled. I don't iron. Don't judge. 

If the wrinkles don't fall out on their own (please do!) I have a steamer I can use on them if absolutely necessary. 

The house looks so cozy now looking in from the deck. I had to snap a couple of photos when I went out with the pups. 

The table will look better surrounded by loved ones but that will happen soon. I'm ready to host another dinner party now that the house is back in order. 

And of course I have to christen my new best friend. You can read all about her here. 

I was glad I got all the work done before I went to bed so I could just relax with my coffee and enjoy the beautiful view when I woke up. The sun wasn't shining yet, it was barely over the mountain, but the view is still gorgeous. 

From the living room I see out onto the conversation area and firepit on the deck, and beyond to the woods and the mountain range. And the flat feeder which the blue jays have taken over completely!

Can you see the two greedy blue jays fighting over the feeder?

From the dining room I see the outdoor dining set and also the woods and mountains beyond. And the goldfinches.....they are pretty much at that feeder all. day. long. 

I don't know if I've even seen any other bird on this feeder yet other than the finches. 

From the guest room window I have a great view of the neighbor's horses and their little red barn.  I think that might have been the point during my initial tour when I fell in love with the house. 

I mean, come on. How could I not? 

I can see the horses out of one of my master bedroom windows also. And I hear them clomping around during the night....it's become a very comforting sound for me in the past few months, once I got used to the noise and stopped thinking it was a bear on my deck!

From my other master bedroom window and also one of the master bathroom windows I can see my little garden cottage and the woodlands beyond. It's so private and quiet. 

I'm so very fortunate to be able to look out my new windows onto views that make me smile and feel at peace. 

What's your favorite view from your home? 

The Trouble with Television

Hi Friends! You know Autumn has truly arrived when you see smoke curling from your neighbor's chimney! 

I was very tempted to light my wood stove last night but I think I'll wait until Saturday when I'll be around to enjoy it. 

I love being outdoors, I love nature, and in the summer months I'd rather spend my evenings sitting on the deck enjoying the beauty around me than in front of the television. I could very easily go from May through October without turning the TV on at all. 

However, there are others in my life (not mentioning any names SWEETIE!) who don't feel quite the same way. And when I do actually sit down to watch TV, I want to be actually able to see the darned thing.

Welcome to my movie theater. 

Granted, it's a nice, comfy cozy movie theater....but the TV is the first thing you see when you walk into my living room. It fights with the stone fireplace, which really should be the focal point of the room. 

 

The living room is long and narrow and furniture placement was challenging for me. There is basically a walkway from the deck door to the hallway door, which meant leaving adequate space behind the two light colored chairs. Those chairs swivel, by the way, so whoever is sitting in those chairs can either enjoy the fire or the TV. 

The living room is open to the dining room, which is open to the kitchen, so it flows very well for entertaining and for daily living. 

Side note: Can you see the fresh spackle next to the new window in the dining room? I can't wait to get things put back together again and hang up some curtains!

I love my home and I'm very happy with the furniture and design choices I've made thus far. It feels warm and welcoming to me, and hopefully to those that visit me as well. I still have to hang some artwork but I'm getting around to it slowly, as I figure it out. 

But the TV sticks out like a sore thumb. At least to me. However, since it's really viewed most often by only one or two people, sitting in the leather chairs, it just made the most sense to hang it on that back wall. 

I've been researching ways to hide the TV for months, pretty much since I moved in back in April. I guess nothing has seemed right just yet. And I guess now that I'm indoors more often than outdoors, it's back on my mind. 

I considered a gallery wall, like this one, which doesn't conceal the TV but rather camouflages it however I'm afraid it might be a bit busy for my small space. It's pretty awesome, though!

Via

I also thought about something like this, which would hide the TV completely when we're not using it. I wonder how well Pandora would sound from behind the doors through the TV's speakers? 

Via

Same concept, different look with the weathered shutters. 

Via

And then I saw this at Pottery Barn and I'm thinking it may be a nice option but perhaps a bit too modern for my home. 

Via

They have some other options, also, but perhaps the one above is more versatile as I could install my own photos or artwork to "cozy" it up a little. 

Via

Via

What do you think? How do you hide your TV? 

Garden Cottage Update

Hi All! I hope you are all settling nicely back into the work week after a long holiday weekend! 

We were sure busy around my new home, there's always so much to be done and never enough hours in the day! We were so very lucky to have family and friends visiting this weekend and somehow still managed to find time to cross a few more things off the To Do List. 

One of the things on the top of my list has been to get my little potting shed in shape before fall. It was in really bad repair when I bought the house and it had come a long way since the purchase - you can read about phase one here in My Garden Cottage

But I wanted more. So much more!

This is how it sat for a few months after we made it structurally sound and added electricity. 

The exterior finally got painted just recently when time allowed....which brought it to this:

Better, right? 

Well....I still wanted more. I could always see the potential for it to be a true garden cottage. 

So next came the shutters. Starting to take shape! I like the way this is going!

Then there was this. I put it together and stained it to match the trim. And my sweetie installed it for me yesterday. 

Looks so much more finished even at this stage, don't you think? It's almost like we added mascara and eyeliner to a naked eye.....

WELL - if that's the case, now we added eyeshadow and false lashes to really glam it up!!

I selected some cold hardy plants to give it some pizzazz this late in the season because let's face it, there was no way I was waiting until spring!

And then I had to do more. Yup, more. Out came the blush and red lipstick and high heels. 

And by the end of the day my little garden cottage was looking so much more beautiful....and I was a downright dirty sweaty mess! But I was a happy mess....happy and very, very sore. 

And I hobbled into the house and took a hot bath and went to bed dreaming of little garden cottages. 

And the little garden cottage went to sleep dreaming of what the future may hold.

And when I awoke the first thing I did was grab my coffee and head out to see my beautiful little garden cottage....and it was still there and it was not a dream!

And I sat in my little red rescued metal chair and sipped my coffee and chatted with the neighbor who came to see what all the fuss was about. 

He loves the little garden cottage. And he can't wait to see what comes next. 

Me, too.