Projects – Page 8 – Skies of Parchment

July 19, 2010March 20, 2013

Living Room {before and after}

Quite a few people have asked to see pictures of our house – before and after.

And while I LOOOOVE our little house, there are parts of me that are hesitant to bring it public.

Like, when you do that you really make yourself vulnerable.

What if people don’t like my style and think it’s cheezy? Wonder what I think I am, posting pictures of our house? Like, if I post pictures I must think it’s cute but what will people think of that? And, what if people think I’m shallow and self-absorbed if I do a little house tour? What if they don’t like my projects and don’t like me?

But, for the sake of my friends who have asked, and because this house has been such a blessing from the Lord, and an incredible gift to us, I want to share it. Our four years in a rental house where we could not do anything to fix it up was all part of God’s plan, teaching me to be content, and now, everything feels like such a HUGE gift! I am so much more grateful for this house because of having lived somewhere for several years where my hands felt tied. So how can I *not* share what God gave us and what my husband did an amazing job restoring?

Perhaps I should give a little background as to why I love to take time in my home…

Back before I ever got married, I made a list of things that I want my home to be like one day. This is one of them from my
Mission Statement 2003:

“… I have a heart to create a “heaven on earth” for my family: be for my husband the “home of his heart”; wholeheartedly love my husband and support him; love my children; create an atmosphere that promotes intimacy with God and a hunger to grow and learn; prepare my children for their destinies…”

“… I have a desire to serve others in an atmosphere of beauty in my home…”

And I would tell my newly-married husband five years ago that I want him to come home to his throne. :)

So that is why I do what I do in my home… This is not for everyone, but this is for me personally.

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Little House Fun Facts:

– Was built in 1906, so it’s a little over a hundred years old. Just what Husband and I both LOVE!

-This house was a foreclosure when we bought it. TERRIBLE condition, and thus had been on the market for quite a while.

– Ben bought the house when I was out of state for two weeks, so I never saw it beforehand. He told me about it, of course, but I had to trust his judgment! This is the 3rd house in 2 different states we’ve lived in since we’re married, and I didn’t see any of them before we rented or bought them.

-1300 square foot is what the contract said the house size was. Very small. But I think they forgot to add the room in the back, which would add another 300 sq. ft., but still keeping the size around 1600 square foot.

-hardwood floors throughout the whole house, except tile in the laundry room which we added.

– 5 fireplaces. Yes, five. That is not a typo. One would be fun. Five? Well, it sure looks cute, but it’s been challenging for me to decorate all five without them looking the same, and like I ran out of ideas (which I did).

– 2 bedroom house, and we added a stairway with the intent of adding 1-2 more bedrooms upstairs sometime in the distant future.

-Ben worked for 3 months straight on this house, restoring it, replacing floors, tearing out walls, fixing it up… Can you say ‘genius’?? His work is incredible…

-I have a laundry room INSIDE my house!! Haven’t had that for four years! Excitement reigns!

So that gives you a little bit of background into the house.

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The room I’ll show you today is the living room. You walk in the front door and this is the room you come to.

Before:

Tiny room, tiny doorways, very closed-in feeling. I was seriously
depressed for 3 days
after I saw this place and realized what we were in for!!

the way it looked when I first saw it. the dead of winter and freeeeeezing cold.

After:

Tore out the bookcase,
tore out the fireplace insert then made the fireplace workable,
tore out two walls,
added the wood beams,
tore off the old brick on the fireplace and had new antique brick installed,
added crown molding,
refinished wood floors…
Still waiting on the fireplace mantel! :)

new brick on the fireplace

Ben tore out the wall with the tiny doorway and opened it up, added the beams, I freehanded the verse. I used this font, because I love serving my Jesus and having Him as my Life, and don’t want it to look like a formal, cold thing!

looking into the dining room, no peeking!

by the front door – purse holder, key-catcher…

When I get started on something, I kind of become a broken record. Here are some

Silhouettes: Take Two

Making pillows this time. Used my same pattern from before on black fabric.

After it was cut out, I “painted” all the edges with clear nail polish so they wouldn’t fray. There’s probably some “real” stuff to use, but hey, this is what we used to use on pantyhose and it worked to stop runners! Ha!

Glued it with fabric glue to white pillows I had already made.

Once again, slay me, oh, slay me!

Olivia’s silhouette

Zoe’s silhouette.
The frames I had before and come from Walmart – $3 each. They’re plastic, but when you group them it hides the cheap look. :)

And
Canvas Mats: Take Two

See, I kind of get stuck on something and can’t leave.

16×20 stretched canvas – 2 pack at Walmart for $9. These aren’t the greatest quality, because the staples show on the sides rather than being stapled on the underside. But they worked for what I needed them for.

I painted the sides and on the top a certain width to make my “framed” look. And covered up the staples to where you don’t see them.

And glued 12 x 15 pictures on top… Cheap frames for such big pictures! Gives it a “drama!” look with the big black edges.

These three pictures are compliments of Claudia Barkman Photography. :)

I LOOOOVE this poster. I saw it in a magazine and ordered it on Etsy. Isn’t it perfect for a mother with two young children?! There is a cool story behind the poster too, has to do with Britain during WWII and posting these signs all over to keep their citizens from worrying about invasion.

These numbered pillows inspiration comes from THIS talented woman… She’s just got creativity flowing out of her veins, I tell you.

I like the red pop of color against a mostly neutral room. “That really makes a statement!” Husband said. Yes it does! This mom-who-is-sometimes-frazzled needs a statement like that to grab me all day long. :)

Outdoor greenery brought it. A little hard to decorate this without the mantel in place.

One of the doorways that got opened up and wall removed.

So, that’s the living room! Once again,

BEFORE

and

AFTER!

Bamboo curtain rods are cut from our old backyard.

Those silhouettes of my daughters flanking the fireplace just are too much for me… okay, okay, enough already! I’ll try to not bring more silhouettes to you in the future! :)

Rug comes from Craigslist, which comes from Pottery Barn. WHY someone would sell these to buy Persian rugs is beyond my comprehension…

And that’s the living room.

Cheers if you stuck with me. I didn’t think there would be so many things to even show about the living room!

But didn’t my husband do a PHENOMENAL job?!

I think he’s incredible!

-clarita

July 15, 2010March 20, 2013

Making: Silhouettes

We’ve been living in the new-old house about 6 weeks now. That’s given me time to work on some projects, get the main decor up in the house, and F.I.N.A.L.L.Y. put the last of my boxes up in the attic. With no boxes sitting around anymore, it finally feels like we are settled in. At home. And wow, does that ever feel good!

I am able to just be at home most of my days, without running what felt like a million different places each week… My kids are able to be on a normal schedule, take normal naps (not just in the car running to and fro), and does that ever make for happy children. They held up very well through the busyness of restoring the house, but now that we’re settled, they are just so happy. Sweet babies. I’m so glad life is a little more normal for them again.

Getting settled in… Sure, there are so many little fun details to add so many different places, but the main house is set up. Ever so fun. Seriously, ever so fun. I’m like a little kid in a playhouse, I tell you. :)

I’ll get an idea and then can hardly sleep until it’s acted upon and up on my wall or wherever it’s supposed to be. Husband laughs at me, because we’re very opposite. I get an idea, I act on it within minutes if possible; he gets an idea, he stores it away for the future. :) It’s good, we balance each other out, and he keeps me from overworking!

This week I’m having time for fun little side projects. And somewhere I got an idea to make silhouettes of my girls for a certain room that was lacking an eye-catcher. And I couldn’t stop smiling, because I saw the finished product in my head and thought it would be soo stinkin’ cute!

So I took some pictures of the process, just in case it turned out. And I’ll let you judge. I’m the mother of the silhouette children here, so my opinion is completely and unashamedly biased. :)

I took a side profile picture of both of them, put it on the computer, then enlarged it to the size I wanted. Then I traced the head shape onto copy paper…

Zoe is at the age where she is wanting to be involved in every project I do. Sometimes it’s a little much, but I really want her to learn to love to do creative things, and she’s only going to learn that if I let her work with me and make it a fun time…

Olivia doesn’t want to be outdone by her big sister. Even though she is disaster in a 12-month old body when it comes to stuff like this. :)

Then traced it onto black cardstock paper…

Then glued it onto these canvas boards. They come 3 in a pack for $6 at Walmart. I used the flat instead of the raised canvas because they were cheaper.

Nailed these tacks on the back to hang it on the wall, and wound wire around them. Added two on the bottom as well so the whole mat will stand out from the wall and give it more of a 3-D look.

But then it needed a little edging. The wall is colored, but the white mat board against the wall needed a little “umph” to let it make the statement I was looking for. I looked in my ~~messy attic~~ piles of boxes but I didn’t have 2 – 11 X 14 frames to put them in. And I’m trying to decorate my house with not spending much money at all, so I didn’t want to spend $30 to buy the frames…

So I just taped the edges and painted about 1/3” on the sides and bottom to give it sort of a framed look.

And put them in the Candy Shop bathroom – it’s the one the girls use. We call it that because of the colors – so many people have walked in and said, “Oh, this looks like a vintage candy shop!” We chose the tile because I wanted a more vintage-y look in there with the clawfoot tub. This room was a mere shell that was part of the laundry room… Before & after pictures another time!

Zoe – age two. Love this so so much. Her open mouth makes it look like she views the world while gaping. Her tousled hair…

Olivia, age one. Little tiny nose. Little tiny head. Little hair forever falling down across her eyes.

Can you say darling?? I stood in the bathroom with my hand over my heart after they were hung, making all sorts of ooo-ing and aaaa-ing noises. :)

Zoe’s finished product. She wanted it right up there with the big girls.

Slay me, oh, slay me!

Silhouettes of my two girls are more than I can take in cuteness levels!

Button-nose girlies, do you know how much I love you? Your silhouettes are darling, but YOU are what makes them darling!

And perhaps one day you’ll stand with your hand over your heart, being slain by the cuteness levels of one and two year old silhouetes, thanking me for these heirlooms.

–clarita

July 13, 2010March 20, 2013

Making: Biscotti

This is for those of you who have seen biscotti pictures on my blog and asked for the recipe. :)

There’s no great secret – I just got this recipe online, I think. It takes a little bit of time to make, but oh so worth it! Take it from me – I’m not much of a baker, but I’ve had biscotti on hand almost every single day since November of last year when my friend Bek first sent me some. That’s dedication. My morning fix.

To sit in my living room, surrounded by soft morning light, soft music, soft couch, in the mornings before my children awake, and to sip hot coffee and have a delicious biscotti… Ahhhh, this is the start of a good day!

Chocolate Chip Biscotti

2 3/4 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder (don’t forget this… like I did once. ruins your batch. :( )
1/4 teaspoon salt

Combine dry ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. Set aside.

1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar (I usually cut in half)
3 eggs
3 Tablespoons amaretto (almond flavor, which I omit and add 1 Tbs. vanilla instead because I’m not an almond fan)
1 Tablespoon water (mixed with 1 Tbs. instant coffee if you want mocha biscotti)

Beat butter and sugar in large bowl wih electric mixer until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add liqueur and water. Gradually add flour mixture.

1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips, plus 1/2 cup for coating
1 cup sliced almonds, toasted and coarsely chopped

Stir in 1 cup chips and the almonds.

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Divide dough into two parts. Spread each half on a greased baking sheet with floured hands, shaping into a log about 4 inches by 12 inches (this takes a little experimenting to get the shape right: too thin = too flat, but too thick = too fat because it will raise? rise? (someone help me out!) a bit from the baking powder.) I fit both logs on cookie sheet the short way.

If it helps you shape them, greased a sheet of wax paper and roll the dough back and forth in that until you get the desired shape. I did this for a long time.

(I did say two logs. Below is a double batch, just in case you were wondering.)

Bake approximately 1/2 hour, until the top of the logs are firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and cool.

(I made big batches, thus the long way on the cookie sheets. I’m really going to confuse everyone…)

Cut each log with serrated or electric knife into 1-inch thick pieces. Return slices, cut side up, to cookie sheets.

Bake until the top of slice are firm and hard to the touch. Turn slices over and bake again until cookies are completely dry. Cool on wire racks (or countertops on cookie sheets).

Side notes: I usually do the second baking overnight on warm or 200 degrees. It never burns that way, and I don’t even have to turn them over.

Final step: ice and decorate as you desire! The fun part, even though it takes a little time.

I drizzle a bit of olive oil over the chocolate before melting it in the microwave.

You can ice just the bottom…

… or you can be creative and add fun words or names of boys to send to your sister. :) I used a plastic sandwich bag with the corner cut off for this, since I don’t have all the fancy shmancy baking items.

Another kind of biscotti with white chocolate.

And it makes a lovely gift! Leftover chocolate is great for throwing a few strawberries on the plate.

There are endless options with biscotti. Take the basic recipe and add your favorite cookie flavor: lemon, white chocolate macadamia, orange and cranberry… I also double the recipe all the time – we go through the biscotti so fast around here since both of the girls already ask for it, and I love to give it away.

So there it is, ladies with a biscotti craving! Have fun with it!

Category: Projects

Living Room {before and after}

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Making: Silhouettes

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Making: Biscotti

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