Kitchen Fix-Up

This is a very old house built in several parts, so the lay out is whacky. The kitchen/dining room is long and narrow and leads right into the bathroom. If the backdoor is open and the bathroom door is open, you can see all the way through the house.

So there is almost no counter space. Not good news since my boyfriend is big on using knives and cutting boards. So the first thing he did was he found a kitchen island on Craig's List.  We drove a really long way to pick it up at night in the rain, and they'd forgotten to disclose a few things.  Like the missing door, and missing shelf supports. But we didn't want to have used all that gas money only to come home empty handed so we got it. So word to the wise, if something is far away, perhaps pass on it, just in case it's not in good shape.
Anyway, it works out fine snuggled up against the stove. Our kitchen isn't wide enough to use it as an island anyway, and it makes a handy storage spot for rolls of foil and plastic wrap. And the top of it is a chopping block. On the end we hang potholders and oven mitts.

When I was out of town visiting my grandbaby back on Easter, I came back to a greatly improved kitchen.He had taken the unfinished wood shelves and used a white pickling stain on them.  And then he put them up to hold all those jars of spices and sauces that you need nearby for cooking. Before they were just kicking around on the floor or buried deep in cabinets where we had to send search and rescue to find them.  Nothing like burning dinner while you are on your hands and knees looking for the ground cumin.
So here are photos of the shelves he painted and also of the baker's rack someone abandoned in the alley at our old apartment, as well as the kitchen island.  All these things help us stay organized in the kitchen. We are still unpacking boxes from the big move though.

I'm itching to stencil designs on all these white surfaces though. Not sure he'll go for that idea, but I can ask.

Baker's Rack for cookbooks and appliances and pans.

End of island for storing oven mitts and potholders.

Kitchen island with the new shelf over it.

Shelf finished with pickling stain.

Other shelf nested against the baker's rack.

Shelves for extra storage.

Some Ideas For Small Spaces

Even though my home is far from finished Rachel inspired me to show some of the things that I like around my house. Notice we have some things in common, like feathers in bottles. I just hopped up and took the photos after seeing her blog so they are taken without sprucing it up, just as it is, so it will be so much better when I have time for spring cleaning. But it also serves as a reminder that we need to enjoy our home all the time, not just in the hour after we clean it up.

Fresh Apricots for Feng Shui

The knick-knack shelf above the piano.

It's amazing how personal knick-knacks are. The little gypsy horse is my wish to have a real one someday. The bottle is one I made a long time ago, The rattle in the upper left is one my friend Sal helped me to weave. The juggling photo on the top row was one I took of my juggling equipment when I had black and white photography in college. People wonder why I have trouble throwing stuff away.

The view outside my bedroom window.

At night I can see the stars from my bed.

My feather jars.

I raided my feather jars to make Robin Hood  hats. But I just found my peacock feathers that a friend gave me so I'll fix them right up when I can.

My Tarot Table

The deck on this table is the Faery Wicca tarot. This is a new spread I learned from the tiny book that comes with the deck. It's quite different than the usual tarot.

Interior Redecorating For Real People

Check out what one of my online friend's did to her house to fix it up. http://talk2thetrees.blogspot.com/2013/06/blessed.html She is such an inspiration to me. I still have so much to do to my own house before I can have dinner parties or guests over or classes. Ack!

A New Novel Hovel

I now officially live in a Novel Hovel out in the high desert in a place called Lucerne Valley (near Apple Valley in CA). As soon as I get an endless number of boxes unpacked, I'll start decorating. I've named the place Shoebox Ranch because its so tiny, in fact the same size as my last apartment, which was way too small. I feel like I'm trying to fit an elephant into a phone booth.  So this will challenge my creative imagination for sure.

 

Thrift Store Finds

I truly believe if you focus on what you need, then what you need has a way of appearing.  Case in point, my shower caddy was peeling paint and rusting.  It was ugly, but worse, I was afraid I'd get rust on the scrubby and end up rubbing it into my skin.  So I went to look for a replacement.  Even at Ross, they were more than I wanted to pay, and that was the discount shop.  I also wasn't sure what size I needed.  We have two showers and when I bought the first caddies, one didn't fit.

So yesterday I went to a Goodwill in Garden Grove (next to John's market).  I wasn't looking for anything in particular, and they had a lot of racks and shelving pieces.  I immediately spotted a brand new shower caddy that looked about the right size for $4.  It fit perfectly. It holds everything that was in the old one with room to spare. I'm so happy.

I also found a set of wooden salad bowls and tongs for $8.  It will be feast gear for S.C.A. events. Or when we have picnics outdoors.

And just last week I had carefully packed Guy's ceramic bowl for olives and his new mug in a bag inside a basket on the couch.  I don't know how it happened but I suspect cats, because the next time he went in the living room it was all on the floor and the bowl broke in half. So I felt kind of responsible and found 2 more 'olive' bowls that were hand thrown pottery at the Goodwill for $1.50 each.  They were 'manly' colors and he's happy with them. Pretty good haul for under $20.

Things That Make Me Want to Say Bad Words

We are renters. The last owner repainted the exterior.  Imagine my shock when the new door looked like a giant Hershey bar. I got used to it over time. Then our complex went into foreclosure and was bought out by the owners from hell. Of course they wanted to remodel. They ripped out all my lovely flowers just at the high point of spring, tore out the lawn, and repainted the exterior and put up new light fixtures.

The only thing I was looking forward to was getting rid of that brown door. I got rid of it all right. They painted it an even darker brown. Now it looks like a giant dark chocolate Hershey bar.

And the last owner put in nice light fixtures with clear glass for maximum light. The new owner ripped those out and replaced them with a tiny fixture with dark plastic that blocks the light coming through. And they are butt ugly.  I hope we move and soon. UGH.

Me in front of the Hershey Bar door.  The new Dark Chocolate Hershey Bar Door.

The old fixture is the tiny one in the corner. I hate the new one, and they put one on the back porch too.

Three days after they bought the place, this is what I came home to.

They ripped out all my blooming pansies, roses, calla lillies, jasmine..everything. Next week they are ripping out all the plants in the backyard, many of which I bought with my own money or grew from seed. And we never get an opinion on anything. They are selling it next month after owning it just long enough to remodel, with no thought of what the people who have lived here for years wanted.

Flower Box

I just revamped the flower box in the bathroom for Valentine's day. I found a great metal heart cookie cutter and made the flower box in the colors of red, white and pink. I needed more red so I added my little red plastic bear. I really need to find a better way to put the tiny lights around it, because the green wire looks icky. I added some faux carnations in white. I'm still not happy with it but at least it's not Christmas themed anymore.