Progress

An update on the progress over the weekend. My friend came to help...thank goodness! She is always lucky and confident when it comes to choosing paint colors. We tried 6 different paint colors on the wall. We started with three but weren't satisfied. What a frustrating process! Once we got the colors on the wall, they didn't look at all like the swatches. Nor, did they look anything like the website! Sheesh... You really can't tell in the photos, but we ended up with 'warm suede' from Glidden. I really like it. Very warm and yet not too much. It probably could have been a shade darker, but at this point, we just didn't care!

 In this photo (above) you can see that we got that desk moved out and put the buffet in the nook. Really like it here. We also moved the stain glass piece that hung at the other end of the living room. I liked the stain glass in the window as it was gorgeous in the morning light, but we agreed that it competed with the fireplace and that the colors in the stain glass were not right for that end of the room. I like it here!

 Here is shot of the china cupboard that was moved from the 'parlor' into the new dining area. You get a little feel for the new wall color here. I really like the height of the china cupboard in this space. I think it did A LOT for giving the room some balance.
You can also see that I added two lamps to the sofa table which I like for dividing the room and at night, the light is great.

 Another shot of this room from the far end from the fireplace. Not sure I'm satisfied with the round mirror over the buffet. I wasn't sure what to put there and didn't think a framed mirror would work. Compete with the stained glass? Ideas? I am really liking the light that has been added to this end of the room in the evening from the two lamps that sit on top of the buffet.

 Here is a shot of the china cupboard that was moved. You can also see that I took the quilt square down from above the tv cupboard. I think that also competed with the fireplace and things look cleaner.

 Here is a shot of the parlor. The china cupboard is gone and has been replaced with the desk unit. We painted it. More on that later.  Decided to go with the chairs in this configuration and did order the round copper coffee table. Can't wait until it arrives! Tried various curtain colors, but since we painted the desk will likely go with the red curtains. The chocolate brown was nice too. Note: the back of the leather chair is not right up against the island as it looks to be in the picture. There is plenty of space to move around the chairs.

 Another shot of the parlor. Try to picture the coffee table there. I will add a stump as a side table. Added the snow shoes to the wall. The snow shoes use to sit next to the fireplace. Kind of miss them there. Might have to find another pair.

 Here is the fireplace after we removed everything and started over. Decided to stay with the wreath as it has pinecones, antlers, pheasant feathers and things that I like. It is also so nice at night when it is lit up. We really stream lined what was on the mantel. I owe this all to my girl friend. I have a tendency to mix too many different elements together.

 Also removed everything that was on the hearth and went with something simple. (My hubby liked it with more...who would have thought he noticed?)

 Rearranged the bedroom! We decided with the change of arrangement, we liked the gray color. The only thing I don't like is that I can't see out the windows when I wake in the morning. That was the reason the bed was in the old spot. Ah well...
Note: Didn't get as far as rearranging everything on the bookcase for a good display.

 View from other side. I am buying a slip cover for the stripped chair in an off white.

 View from the other side of the room. I like the picture over the door. It use to hang in the 'parlor' and was replaced with the quilt square. (I should have shut the bathroom doors so you couldn't see all the way into the closet.)

 Opps..pictures a bit out of order. Here is another shot of the china cupboard that got moved.
(Funny story here....I really wanted to get the furniture moved, but knew we couldn't do it. So I went to the local feed store on Saturday morning to see if I could find some buff young boy and a friend. I found one! Very polite young man too! However, when he arrived, rather than bringing a friend along, he brought his grandfather! Egads...The young stud had no difficulty moving these heavy pieces, but his grandfather nearly gave me a heart attack. At one point, they had the top of the china cupboard in their arms as it began to sway and I could just see it crashing to the floor. Yikes.)

 In this photo you can see the wall above the tv cupboard and how there is nothing hanging on the wall anymore. I think it looks better this way, but my husband thinks it looks too bare. What do you think?

 In this photo you see a picture added to this wall. The picture use to hang above the buffet. I like it here. Breaks the wall up a bit and defines this living room space. Notice that the stained glass no longer hangs over the window on the right. Looks much cleaner.

When the budget allows, the next thing will be replacing these couches with a sectional.

China cupboard's new home...flanked with two dining room chairs.

The desk make-over:

 So, the young man and his grandfather got the desk moved to the parlor.  This desk came with the house and I never really liked it. It is solid wood and was very heavy. If I decided to get rid of it, I just wasn't sure how we would go about that. I can't even imagine how I could convince someone to move it all the way out of the house!

 We set out to transform it and I know that those people who are opposed to painting wood would shudder. We also wacked it a good bit with a hammer to rough it up and give it some age. (The previous owners would have a heart attack if they knew I did that.) Here it is with a coat of primer and beginning to paint it. Originally, our idea was to paint it red and then dry brush black over it...which we did. We were experimenting the whole time. After we got the black on it, it looked somewhat like the original finish! That surprised us. We were really liking it when we had it painted red, so we went back over it with red paint leaving a bit of black in the creases, which you really can't see in the photos. I'll have to take a few close up photos.

 Here it is finished. You can't tell in the pictures, but we sanded the edges and you also can't see the dents, dings and bruises that give it a more repurposed look. Added some decorative stuff to try to keep it the lodge feel.
Oh...it's also missing the new hardware that I will get on this weekend.

I think it looks okay! I didn't want it to be the focal point of the room, but wanted it to blend in. Unfortunately, pictures don't give you the sense of depth or space.

 In this shot you see the picture I hung that use to be in the bedroom and the window box with dried flowers use to be here, but I set it on top of the desk. I love this folk art picture, "In the Shade of My Garden". I like many different styles and am always drawn to folk art. I wanted to hang it here originally, but it didn't work so well then. I think it does now because the desk has some of the colors in this picture and other colors in the room as well. I love it.

I moved this quilt square from above the tv cabinet to this spot. In this spot there use to be a picture that now hangs over the door in the bedroom. I think this quilt square fits this parlor room and also incorporates the colors in this room. 

So...there you have the transformations over the weekend! What I think is so great is that we were able to use all pieces of furniture and decorations that I already had. We just moved things around (and quite a few times until we were satisfied!)! It's so cool when you can use what you have! The only thing I've purchased was paint (and lots of samples!), the three chairs, curtains and ordered a coffee table. 

I am so grateful to Kristen for her decorating advice. I am also forever in debt to my girlfriend who came to my rescue to help paint, move furniture, hold heavy mirrors and pictures up on the wall as we made decisions, her great ideas and her support!

Now, I am free to start to think about what I will do outside!