Piddling

Things are changing (at a snail's pace) at FPH

but it's progress, right?

My Mr. worked on the main bathroom this past

weekend and textured the upper portion of walls 

and ceiling. 

Oh, and he also started tearing out the 

shower tile which, oy vey. That's all that

needs to be said about that. 

I have the vanity done, ready to go,

so as soon as the new tub is in our possession,

we will proceed.

We are laying slate (porcelain) tile with a pattern 

and under that, we are putting

in radiant heat. 

Since we don't have central heat or air,

the bathroom gets mighty chilly in the winter.
Four of us share this bathroom
(Sissy has her own bathroom) for now,
so until the master bath is done,
this will be nice!

My real job is keeping me elbow deep in flour
and frosting,
and I am loving every minute of it!
I am excited for future growth.

And in my free time (hmm), I've been piddling
around. I found an old bridesmaid dress on
my last treasure hunt and the color was one that
I could not pass up.
Pumpkin season is almost here so that dress is
being recycled into
Cinderella Pumpkins.

I am making some for the Pumpkin Patch just
outside town and some to keep and some to
sell through FPH. I may take a few
to The Market on Chapel Hill in October.

I'm hoping sweet Fall isn't too far off.
I'm ready for chilly mornings, how about you?

The FPH Garden

Summer surely has been a Summer! 

As we head toward the tail end,

the garden proves it to be so.

My tomatoes are just about depleted  with

no new blooms so I am 

 considering pulling them this weekend to

prepare the beds for the start of my

Fall garden.

Since Spring, I've been working 

two compost piles that are so ready to 

be put to use. We live on a mound

of sandy loam so it desperately needs the

nourishment!

My daughter makes fun of me, but

I love turning those piles with my pitch fork.

It makes me feel like I'm doing something

good. I'm proud of my dirt! 

The worms abound at the bottom and they surely

have done their due diligence.

As I sit at the dining table looking

out to the coop and garden,

I see my small patch of zinnia, with 

colorful hats, that I planted

 because I fell in love

with a friends zinnia patch.

They will become a staple in my 

Spring garden from here on out. 

Regardless of the time of day,

butterflies flutter about out there

and I see the occasional 

hummingbird. I don't put

sugar water out here, but

I will definitely continue my plantings

with them in mind.

Our garden fared pretty well.

I didn't get an abundance of cucumber

or zucchini that I had hoped for but

I replanted both recently and they are doing great.

We'll see what we get!

I signed up for planting reminders

from Mother Earth News.

You plug in your zip code and it

sends you updates for sowing 

seeds, indoors or out based on the 

season and area.

Right now (for us), we're looking

at Bush Beans, Beets, Broccoli, Carrots,

Cucumber, Kale and Turnips.

I won't plant all of those but I like

the guidance of suggestion and 

it gives me ideas for recipes

to use them in. 

And the pool. It'll be finding a new permanent 

 spot not in front of the window, next Summer.

Vintage Dishes

Can you believe we've lived here for two years and 

this past weekend was my first real treasure hunt?

I mean, I've gone junking here and there but this time,

I was on a mission for specifics and I found them.

I usually set a limit on my expenditures and I was

completely ecstatic that I came home with leftover. 

I found all sorts of vintage plates and china, mostly 

mis-matched but some matchy-matchy sets too.

I think my favorite of this round was

the pink Mary Kay set.

I will be heading out again on Wednesday with 

a new junking buddy that has some hot spots

that she's willing to share (yay!). 

I recently bought some components for creating pastry stands, which I love.

I don't think I'll start on those just yet so I can see if I can find some other

pieces to go with the ones I have.

Rest assured, Mary Kay will not see the tip of a drill!

Since I'll be selling delicious sweets at 

The Market on Chapel Hill,

I thought that vintage kitchen goods and wares 

would be a great accompaniment to pastries, don't you?

I'll let you know what I find on my next rendezvous,

 hopefully cake plates, domes and crates!

Happy weekend, friends!

Dining Table Revival

Although I truly love the whites of Shabby Chic, it just does not lend 

well with our style of life. What feels so comfortable to me and what I keep gravitating 

toward are the warm and rich colors that are Old World and what I think, European. 

The table lived as a misfit for the past 3+ years so we finally

brought her up to par to fit the rest of the house.

Okay, as luck would have it, I was on Pinterest looking at my feed and

there it was, in raw, original color (other than the seats).

Yeah, it looked like this at one time. The seats were (they still exist under the new fabric) 

covered in a beige and cream pinstripe.

source

I think I painted the base and chairs black first then went to this:

Then the move and now this:

Now that the top is a rich chocolate glaze, we can see all the scratches in the glass that were somewhat invisible with the white top. I doubt we will replace it but I surely do not want to have it off. We have yet to find a good, reliable and affordable glazier.

One thing I do love so very much about the dark top is a new photographing platform!

The light is amazing in the dining room with the wall of windows facing North.

See ~

I'm glad to have that checked off the list. School starts on Monday and my next project is to finish caulking and painting baseboards and crown. Yeah, it's been a while of in-completion. 

Sometimes, that's how we roll.

See ya soon!

Working On It!

While the blogger is away, the paint brushes and creativity play.

And so do baking pans and a KitchenAid mixer.
Irrelevant but these cupcakes turned out amazing and I had to share.

I wish I could say that was the whole reason behind my time away, but it's not. 

To give you an inside look of our personal, personal life, one of the twins 

had his open heart surgery during that lull, 

so while residing in the hospital for a week and mending back at home, 

I had no energy to do anything but get back on track 

emotionally, mentally and physically.

He's good, I'm good, we're all good!
Now back to regular check ups with the next "big one" 7-10 years down the road.
Sigh of relief and sigh of being able to not worry about that again for a while.

I think that little "rest" was good for me {that's tongue in cheek, ya know}. 

It inspired me to start doing projects in and on the house again. 

I've done some deep cleaning, organizing, rearranging and reworking some 

pieces that have been in dire need of attention. 

With school starting next week, I've compiled a list of my own 

"Amber Do's" to get done while I have those quiet hours.

 It's amazing what you can get done when you're under the gun! 

I've had the itch all summer but with my boys, short projects would drag 

on, and on, and on. You know, because of snack breaks, wrestle mania refereeing, etc. 

 We did manage to get a few things done with the most recent improvement being the dining table and chairs, which got a complete overhaul.
I finished the last chair this morning and now it is beautiful!

It was a re-do a few years ago but it took a beating with

 our move and we grew complacent with its flaws.

Full exposure coming in the next post because it looks nothing like this now.

Rearranging furniture and in house shopping...

Since we are on the verge of overhauling the main downstairs bathroom,
the antique dresser we had in the living room is getting its new job (and facelift)

 and moving in as a vanity.
{Again, another future post.}

Since we're going with a farmhouse look, 

we painted it white and I'll be doing my wood grain painted top. 

It will have a drop in sink, which meant reconstructing the inside of the drawer's. 

{I know a guy that's good at that kind of stuff ~ wink, wink.}

 The little French table that was in the kitchen by the window seat was moved to the living room

in place of the dresser and I really love it there.

 You can really see the detail in the skirt and legs now. 

When it was in the kitchen, it was hidden in the corner and covered with stuff.

The rustic entry table was moved to the great room and boy, did it ever make a difference. 

The room feels pulled together and warmer. I love it!

And, we made a decision on the red wall in the dining room. 

Brick.

I've picked some samples and we are still deciding, but we know 

we really like the old world feel of a tumbled, antique looking brick. 

We'll see what the final outcome is on that one.

AND, to top it all off, I've been accepted into my first Vintage Market in the South!

 It's kinda the only one I've ever applied to, too. 

I will be baking pastries and treats for The Market on Chapel Hill in October!

Somewhat of a different twist on my former business BUT my pastry boutique will have the Vintage feel with my favorite displays just like Black Rooster Cottage did.

 My husband is starting to loathe Pinterest.

 "If you show me a picture." he says. Oh honey! {Big mistake!}

All those old windows, shutters and doors we have piled on the side of the house

are going to be something fun to play with.

Now to work on that menu....

See ya in a few!

p.s. Mr. C says bye!