This old house: It’s all in the details

Here we are again at this wonderful 130-year-old home! I could not wait to share some of the details inside (and out) that makes this place a one-of-a-kind. If you missed the first post go here.

Tamara and her husband Tony have brilliantly restored this home in beautiful Nova Scotia. You will find it in Marriott's Cove along The Lighthouse Route. Makes you want to go for a road trip right? Anyone with me? I am dying to go visit!

Look closely at the next picture…that’s Marriots Cove just beyond their land! Tamara says she can see ocean views from upstairs in the Lunenburg Bump at the front of the house and from a few other windows. Who wouldn’t want to wake up to that everyday?

This is the view just in front of the barn… see there’s room for us!

Tamara has thought of endless ideas on a budget, including finding a place to store kitchen items while still looking fabulous.

This “shoe keeper” bench was built to be functional yet add additional seating space in the kitchen.

They found this old wooden box out in the barn and added the legs for another seat and storage too.

The living room was cozy but didn’t include a fireplace and was not quite roomy enough for a TV cabinet, so they came up with the perfect solution. They made a hole in the wall and built a fireplace out of old bricks from a former chimney.

Tamara’s words on building the fireplace and TV surround:

Fireplace:  There was a mantle on one of the walls in what's now our office... just a mantle... In the living room, we had our TV on a cabinet that took up so much room I had to climb over my husband's chair to get through the room... I was so excited when the solution hit me... Again, not the perfect fantasy fulfillment... but it worked.  I'd wanted one of those 'gel fuel' fireplaces (didn't want electric and gas or wood was WAY out of the budget).  The gel fuel ones burn real flames but don't have to be vented and they even crackle like a real fire.  the flames get up to about 8-9" and look pretty good with fake logs hiding the can.  My solution to both the fantasy and the space problem was to make a hole in the wall that separated living room and office, taking some space from the office to build in a brick 'fire box' (using bricks from the torn down kitchen chimney), and a place to put the TV, set in above it.  A TV wasn't in my dream mantle decorating, so I used a pretty curtain that could cover the TV when we wanted to.  For the space on the front of the fireplace, inside the mantle opening, I used brownish glass plates from the dollar store.  They had a nice textured design, so I smashed 'em up with a hammer and did a sort of glass mosaic, right on the mortar.  OH... and the fake logs... tried to buy some at a fireplace dealer and they wanted almost $400 for some broken ones!  So... instead, I made my own out of mortar... took a tin-foil turkey roasting pan and squished it into a log-ish shape and poured the mortar in it.  Rubbed on a little brown paint and blackened it with a lighter!  Strange but true!

So we got the TV out of the way AND got my 'fireplace'.  Now that we have a flat panel, we didn't need to make that big hole in the wall but we now use the space behind the TV for the DVR, Xbox, etc.  Oh, and the space isn't missed in the office as the new wall/cupboard it created is lined up with the house's actual chimney that already 'jutted' into the room.  That's also why the TV had to be off center.

How clever… Hiding her TV with a cornice and drapes!

Love the wooden appliqués added to the stairs and I would love to have a few doors like this in my house! Here is her attic door…

The mosaic mural was found on ebay but wasn’t quite as large as they needed it for the shower wall, so she found small stones at the dollar store and made her own borders! So clever that girl!!

One more of the back side of this awesome home that I have fallen in love with…they were repainting the windows, but I still love this view of the house.

ROAD TRIP!

Don’t be surprised if you get a few unexpected visitors Tamara and Tony!

Melissa of The Inspired Room is also featuring this lovely home on her blog today!

Stop by to check out even more before and after photos that Tamara so graciously dug up for us!

Before you go I want to show you more of the talented Tamara…I like that …

She’s going to freak out because she doesn’t know I am showcasing her website too!

“Talented Tamara” of Freyja’s Jewels

This lady can make some jewelry!

Check out this anklet above. YES, that is an anklet! It is made of genuine Baltic amber, Swarovski crystals and solid .925 sterling silver beads and components.

This unique and beautiful, one-of-a-kind, fine jewelry piece is made with genuine turquoise (reconstituted) and Swarovski crystals is a sparkling 'metallic turquoise' colour. The highlight of the piece, though, is the Thai Karen Hill tribe Silver "Love Flower". The piece is completed with solid sterling silver, tiny turquoise "heishi" beads and a med/large lobster clasp.

This bracelet is, at once, modern and chunky yet soft and feminine. The piece is made with transparent turquoise lampwork beads accented with ornate sterling plated bead caps with a leaf design. Between the lampwork beads are genuine Swarovski colours in a well-matched 'barely there' colour. Also included are filigree sterling plate round beads to continue the light play of the piece. Clasp is an easy-use sterling plate toggle.

Tamara’s description:

I don't often 'name' my pieces... because, frankly, I'm awful at it! But this 'spirited' pendant seemed to require it. It's made with a fairly large (but not over-bearing) Red Banded Agate stone in a unique shape, hand-wrapped wire, Swarovski crystals and sterling silver swirl beads made by the Thai Karen Hilltribe. The wire is a heavy gauge sterling silver and it hangs on a substantial 22" box chain.

Oh my Lordy- I am in love with these earrings! How cool is she that she can renovate a house and make jewelry?

Okay, Okay! You have to go check out her site to see the rest!

So incredibly talented!

Stop by The Inspired Room to see more of this home and more of my new friend.

~Misti

Technorati Tags: 130 year old home,details,lunenburg bump,jewelry,Tamara

 

130 Year-Old-Home: Unbelievable Photo

My new friend Tamara dug up a vintage photo of her very old house, and has allowed me to share it with all of you. She also included a poem in honor of the home.

The House by the Side of the Road

by Sam Walter Foss (1858-1911)

There are hermit
souls that live withdrawn
In the peace of their self-content;
There are souls, like stars, that dwell apart,
In a fellowless firmament;
There are pioneer souls that blaze their paths
Where highways never ran;-
But let me live by the side of the road
And be a friend to man.

Let me live in a house
by the side of the road,
Where the race of men go by-
The men who are good and the men who are bad,
As good and as bad as I.
I would not sit in the scorner’s seat,
Or hurl the cynic’s ban;-
Let me live in a house by the side of the road
And be a friend to man.

I see from my house
by the side of the road,
By the side of the highway of life,
The men who press with the ardor of hope,
The men who are faint with the strife.
But I turn not away from their smiles nor their tears-
Both parts of an infinite plan;-
Let me live in my house by the side of the road
And be a friend to man.

 

See my original post here on Tamara’s renovation of this home.

I have more details on the inside of the house to come!

~Misti

I confess my love of…

This week I confess my love of exposed brick.

So warm and inviting…

I’m in love.

What’s your confession?

~Misti

 

130-Year-Old Renovation on a Big-Time Budget

Yes-You read that correctly! My new friend Tamara worked on this 130-year-old house with literally no budget, and it is a thing of beauty. The home resides in Nova Scotia, and for someone like me living in Georgia, I don’t get to see many places like this. There is so much construction and new homes where I live that I am not sure that many homes this old still exist here.

Just take a long look…

Tamara has been sending me pictures little by little of the inside of the house, and I was dying to see the outside. Let me tell you, when I saw this picture I was at a loss for words. The pure beauty of the house and the surroundings…and then the barn, left me speechless. Just as pretty as a postcard…

Tamara and her husband have lived in the home for six years, during which they renovated every wall, floor, ceiling, and everything in between. The put so much hard work and loads of love into every inch of this place! She did try to find more before pictures but her hubby has them all packed away as they are now trying to sell this lovely home and are purchasing a new “old” house right across from the ocean.

Tamara’s words on the cabinets:

“The cupboard doors were plain, sorta-rounded edge with out-dated hardware.  For $40 bucks, I took them to a local cabinet maker and got him to carve grooves down the doors and put the 'frame' boards around the edges... and Voila! “

Her father-in-law built this table out of scrap wood found in the barn. After much work and several coats of stain this table came to life. The table was assembled inside the kitchen as it would have never made it through the door. She has found many treasures out in the old barn as well, such as this chair that she brought back to life, and the old stool there in front of the table.

She had a vision of butcher block countertops and again, working on such a tight budget (her father in law to the rescue) built this fabulous hard wood countertop. I think it is GORGEOUS.

Kitchen Counters and Sink before:

Kitchen Counters and Sink after: Check out the hardwood counters!

Tamara got such deals on all of her faucets for the kitchen and bath on ebay. $1600 dollars worth of faucets for $400!

She cleverly disguised her electrical panel with this faux cabinet. They also built this handy shelf over the range to hold necessary kitchen items. The tiles over the stove are garden stepping stones over glass tiles. Brilliant!

If anyone should have a blog, it really should be Tamara. She is hilarious! We have emailed about a thousand times since we “met” and she cracks me up with her zany ways! Here are more of words on this chandelier:

 

“I'm losing track now... but these should be my kitchen chandelier (French Empire style)... I'd have a chandelier in every room if I could... and I almost do!  That was $60 at an antique store.  The 'arms' were brass (but I wanted white metal in the kitchen so lightly painted them with basic silver craft paint - without covering 'too well') and the cream-painted parts were blue... so I just used the same paint from the trim on that part.  Found cheap shades and painted the apple green wall colour... And the best part... In a clearance bin at a local hardware store I found those beaded wine bottle covers... found 3 easily... then 4 after one exhaustive search through... Then I wasn't leaving without a 5th one if I had to climb into that bin and toss every item out (before security could reach me)... so after a looong time of being unable to let it go, I DID finally find a 5th one.  I almost cried right there in the store.  I wonder just how frantic and desperate I looked searching for that 5th one!! hehe

Oh, and the rectangular thing it's hung from is a Wal-mart thing ($5) that I painted to cover a hole in the ceiling boards.  That ceiling was hidden when we bought the house by a terribly done drop ceiling, 9" lower.  When my husband was taking out an unused chimney (where my fridge now is) he discovered the beadboard ceiling hiding up there.  We thought we'd found buried treasure... and maybe we did!”

Excluding the appliances, this kitchen renovation cost only $850! Now that’s a great use of a small budget!!!

Let’s move on to the stairway re-do…

Stairs before: (She says we missed out on the horrid striped paper)

Ahhhhh…Stairs after:

Now we will move on to the atrocious bathroom before pics:

Very scary little project they took on. Could you just imagine the kitchen before?

And yet another before shot:

Just look at the bathroom now….

I bow down to you Miss Tamara! What a huge transformation.

Remember the front of the house? Take a look at the beautiful alcove from the inside.

The textured wallpaper is just perfect upstairs. What beautiful lighting and furnishings as well.

What a magical place to get cozy with a great book and relax the night away…

So why go through all this hard work and not stay? Here’s why.

This is the view from the front window of the new house:

Yep, twenty feet from the ocean. I would be tempted to move too!

Here’s more:

She already has her house on the market.  If anyone is interested contact me and I will have my people, call your people. {smile} I’ve always wanted to say that.

I have several more details on this lovely home. Stay tuned for my part two. We really need to give this house a name Tamara. And you will definitely need to name the new place too. That way when you start your own blog (yes, I will talk you into it) it will feel right at home.

Thank you all for taking this little tour with me. I have just been fascinated with this place since the first picture she sent me several weeks ago. Today is the first that I saw the outside, and like I said…I was speechless. Until I started to blog about it anyway.

To Tamara-Thank you for allowing me into your home and to show it to my little piece of blogland. I am honored!

EDITED: I was going to add Tamara’s jewelry sites in another post, but I don’t want anyone to miss out on them. Please check out Tamara’s place:

www.freyjasjewels.com  and another jewelry shop she shares with her sisters and friends www.beadsisterhood.com. You will find phenomenal beaded jewelry at unbelievable prices!  Go check them out NOW!

 

~Misti

Just no time to blog…

 

“On the way to what you planned to happen,

something even better comes along.”

~ Janice Endique

This quote sums up my life right now. Decorator turned Medical Transcriptionist. That’s me!

I am enjoying my online classes, and hopefully the next step in my life will be just as thrilling!

As much as I love blogging, it is definitely taking a back seat right now to my studies and home life. Just know that I am visiting when I can squeeze it in and things should be back to normal soon.

I am working on a great post featuring a 130-year-old home transformation. Still pulling some pictures together from the homeowner.

Thanks for sticking with me this summer. You know I love all of you!!!

~Misti

I confess my love of…

YES, I am late on my Thursday post! See, I knew it wouldn’t be long till I forgot to do my weekly series. Studying has taken over my life. Well, along with several boys who are home for summer, and the pool time that I must have everyday.

This week I confess my love of music.

A few of my favorites are:

Michael Buble--He keeps me company everyday.

Brandi Carlile—Sort of a Janis Joplin sound

Kings of Leon—Dave Matthews meets Peter Gabriel

Ray LaMontagne—Great bluesy sound

If you are like me and sit at a computer all day long, I recommend setting yourself up a playlist on playlist.com. You can start your own list of favorites, changing them out or adding to the list whenever your heart desires!

I think I will hang out at Hooked on Houses today sharing what I am hooked on. Don’t forget to visit her place and see what everyone else is hooked on too.

If you want to email me, I can give you some great selections from these artists!

Have a wonderful weekend!

~Misti

10-Minute Family Room Makeover

 

Funny things happen when I dust; things start moving around all over the house! Since we moved in to our home four years ago, all of our furniture has been up against the walls looking very boring.

Before:

At Christmastime, all we had to do was insert the tree in the corner. No furniture had to move, it was simple and done. We tried to keep it open for the boys. So they would have ample room to play.

You see, the living room in our last house was so tiny that if we lit the fireplace it could very well set the furniture on fire. It was pretty, but VERY small. So we left it open, knowing it was so typical and not interesting at all.

Then I started dusting baseboards and cleaning like a mad woman. And, I found a way to move the furniture while still keeping it open with plenty of room to play, watch TV, and the boys still have lots of space to camp out on the floor on the weekends! I simply angled the sofa, got it AWAY from the wall, moved the sofa table yet again to the tall way under my arrangement. The chairs are now angled by the fireplace and they look and feel very cozy there.

After: A view from the foyer.

A view from the dining room too. I have the perfect mirror to hang behind the sofa to balance out the wall arrangement. Got to dig it out and dust it off. Hmmm… I also have a pretty green plate that I could hang over the finials… (light bulb moment.)

I would love to build this coffee table to put in front of the sofa. We need one that can stand up to dogs, cats, boys, drinks, food, and everyday wear. This one could totally handle it!

A view from the stairs. I will also be making some coffee sack pillows for the couch. Love them! One day I will have the tan checked drapes from Ballard Designs and they will be up to the ceiling. For now, I have my 1997 leaf finial rods hung very low. I have a great aging treatment in mind for the TV stand and the fireplace surround, thanks to Miss Magic Brush.

This sofa table has been in the dining room as a buffet, used as a desk by the kitchen window, and not has found a new home in the living room. I’m liking it so far! This shot is by the kitchen… I want to do a makeover on it now… weathered azure or maybe olive?

I have a few things around the house to tackle and I will post them as they happen. Things happen pretty slooooooooooooowly around here.

Have a great week everyone!

~Misti