New Acquisitions & New Poll

We've acquired a few items over the last few weeks and I thought I would post them. This end table we found at an estate sale. Everything else was totally granny and nothing worked for us. Then we spied this table by the bed. It was listed for $30 but I went back the next day for 50% off and scored it for $15. Not too bad as it is in near mint shape.

** Please note that we have a new poll just to the right at the top of the blog. We are trying to decide what sort of flooring to put into the den and the kitchen. We are definitely interested in what y'all have to say about the flooring so please vote and let your voice be heard!

This painting was another estate sale score. I was walking around the house and I looked up on the wall and had an 'Aaaaaaaaaaaaaah!' moment. What solidified the deal was the piece of blue tape that said it was $7 and we were on 50% off by that point so I scooped the painting up for $3.50. For some reason I have an affinity for nautical works of art and we have been looking for some good [relative term I know] 50's art that won't set us back an arm and a leg.

We have been landing some really great deals lately at estate and yard sales.

And finally I received these two cool candlesticks for an early birthday present from L. They look really groovy on the TV credenza and we have definitely been putting them to good use.

Demo of the Built-In

Hey everyone. Sorry I haven't posted anything in forever but sometimes 'life' gets in the way of hobbies. Things are going well but slowly at the house. We are now beginning to re-do the den and kitchen so there should be some big changes coming up! Hope you will tune in to see what happens.
This time we removed the countrified built-ins. I know that is a sin but there was no way to modify them in a way that would be acceptable to us. We are not fans of mid-century country - not by a long stretch.

When I peeled away the bookcase we discovered more of the 'half record' ceiling plaster pattern. Now we have a dilemma. We are almost 100% sure that the den was originally two rooms so we don't think that the plaster pattern continues across the entire ceiling.

Our original plan was to scrape the popcorn off but I am not sure that it is possible to do without damaging the plaster. And the plaster doesn't go all the way across - why else would they popcorn the ceiling if it did? So if we remove the popcorn we would have to drywall over everything anyway. So it looks like the popcorn will be staying for the moment.

Oh yeah the original ceiling was a pinkish putty color - yikes!

Under the built-in desk we find the original flooring - some tacky paper linoleum of some sort, which is not salvageable in any way.

Of course Sedona slept through the entire demolition process.

Eventually the desk will live here and I will build a new bookcase to go over the desk - I have to hide the exposed plaster in the ceiling.

The Marble Table Top Finds a Stand

Saturday K and I were estate sale-ing around town and K stumbled upon this table stand and announced its perfection and suitability for our marble table top. I quickly concurred. We decided to pay full price instead of waiting for the 50% off that would be in place the next day - what if someone buys it out from under us!? So we plunked down our hard earned monies and walked away with the perfect table support. It might be the best $12 we've spent since 25 cent draft night at our favorite bar. Of course if we could have held out a day it would have been six bucks but that might have felt like stealing. Anyway, we are quite pleased to have found a base for our table top.

This area of the room is starting to finally come together. Of course when we eventually get in there and paint and refloor and do all the things in our heads that we invision for the space it will change a great deal. But for now we are pleased with the current situation. But I cannot wait to get in there and make some more dramatic changes [for the better I hope!].

Just a couple of pictures of the reading nook - still one of K's favorite spots in the house!

The Castration of Clarksdale Place [not the cat]

OK. When we first got the house we didn't realize that we had a couple of, um, testicles on either side of the entryway. Over time they began to emerge as giant eyesores that really clutter up the front of the house and make the facade look very small. So we decided to take them out entirely. I was hoping that the front of the house would look wider and larger - elongated.
Eventually we will plant something in their place. We have thought about a long grass on one side and perhaps the true sign of yuppie gentrification on the other - the Japanese maple. But for now we will have to live with absense. Actually a large part of my philosophy is to take things out before adding things on so I am enjoying the openness of the front of the hosue at the moment. So enjoy the images!

In the picture below you can really see how the shrubs clutter up the facade and block a great deal of light.

One down! And one to go:

You can see how the front of the house opens up in the following photos:

Soon we will deal with the lighting situation and I think you will be excited with out decision when I get around to swapping the lights out.

The dead soldiers - there were incredibly overgrown and very heavy:

K recently made an owl pillow as a baby present for a friend so I thought to include it here - looks really good:

Here is Cramer, occasionally refered to as The Little Idiot. He has taken to sleeping like this, usually with both arms outstretched, but you get the idea. He'll stay like this for hours. We should take a lesson in relaxation from the little dude. He is a perma-teenager at heart, another lesson for us.