Pumpkin Art

So, the "real" bloggers have long since dashed to be the first to begin posting all things Christmas, oy! But I love my house best in Autumn and am very sad when the time comes to put the Fall decor away. I have collected pumpkin themed decor, not bright Halloween orange tones, but deep, rich pumpkin colors. Best of all, pumpkin themed original art!

The larger painting is by Cathy Horvath Buchanan, found on Etsy. The collage pumpkin is by Elizabeth St. Hillaire Nelson of Paper Paintings. 

This sweet framed stitchery was made by Jody Leavitt, also on Etsy.

The painting on the right is also from Etsy but I can't seem to find the source. Those fabric pumpkins are by Woof and Poof.

Uniquely Nancy on Etsy made this favorite quilted piece with three dimensional leaves.

I also love and collect Autumn books. You've got to read Thanksgiving Day is Here by Diane Goode. She's charmingly captured the day!

I wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving!

Missing you!

Hello, hello!! I've missed you and my blog so I'm giving it another try here on my iPad - wish me luck!

It has been a glorious summer and fall around here.

I've loved my garden and plan to add many more dahlias next spring.

In the early spring, I was worried about being able to care for the garden. Oh these old knees! But I kept working and got stronger - yay! It's what I love most!

And blue skies. . . And sunshine. . .

And these boys. . . The grandma gig. . . Happy!!

Finally!

Seemingly magically I just now was able to log into my blog - YAY!!!! I will attempt to figure out how to post here on my iPad now that my laptop is toast. Wish me luck, or maybe brains, heheh!

Dining room lighting

I have mentioned in the past that when we built this house in 1988, I was "into" Victorian style. If I could have, I would have had authentic Victorian furniture and all the ruffle and bows, dark oak furniture and curlicues available. Now it sounds rather cloying, oy! What remains of that era in our house are the shiny brass light fixtures. 

I loved this chandelier way back when.

Entrance light - there's a matching one in the hallway.

Bedroom lamps.

I am on the hunt for a new chandelier, new table lamps and hall fixtures. 

But I think I've looked at way too many lights and thought about it so long I cannot figure out what I want or like or love. Decisively indecisive, yup!

My Pinterest board, Illumination, has dozens of selections.

I really like the lantern style chandeliers but wonder if they shed enough light.

I also am thinking a candlestick type fixture. I just don't want it to look too Colonial or formal. Joanna Gaines of Fixer Upper chooses some lovely ones. Sadly, no sources are available. 

 Maybe an industrial type light ala Barn Light Electric? White porcelain may be nice.

What would you use for a small dining area in a small cottage?

Closets

Oh dear, I am a "bad" blogger since I don't have any before photos. But I do have after photos of all the organization going on around here.

Behind this door. . .

. . . the coat closet.

 25 baseball caps were on that shelf, now sorted and in baskets.

We also had a huge basket on the floor for shoes ever since our sons were young. 

A shoe rack is going to work well for us now.

The linen closet was a work in progress. 

I discovered I am too short to have everything in containers since I can't see what is in them!

So I ended up with this. Lot's of old towels going to the wildlife center down the road, too.

Presently I am going through files and refiguring where to store monthly paperwork. I found the coolest basket for hanging files. Stay tuned!

February

Hello!

Before February completely zooms by I thought I'd share a quick update of things around here.

Projects:

Spare Oom bookshelf materials are here and ready to be assembled this weekend.

The coat closet storage has been updated.

The linen closet is in progress. I am totally inspired by Joy's linen closet.  http://joythomashomes.com/home-/2015/2/18/how-to-create-a-functional-linen-closet

The living room hardwood flooring is stacked in the house to climatize.

The household files are being sorted while waiting for a new file basket to arrive.

Other news:

Signs of spring everywhere! Crocus, Indian Plum, Ornamental Cherry trees, daffodils in bloom.

Record warm temperatures around here make it feel like Spring.

My wrist is getting stronger every day.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

The adventures continue.

For Pete's Sake!

If it's not one thing it's another!

Holy Moly!

Cripes!

Enough archaic expressions for ya'?

Oh wait, Alack and Alas!

Why all this? Because I've had yet another misadventure.

Remember when I said someone was coming to clean the deck, porch and ramps? Well, they did and it all looks great. Except we forgot that the spigot was open in the green house .  .  . for several hours .  .  . while he was running the water for the pressure washer.

Now, we always remove the hoses around the yard and open all the spigots in preparation for freezing temperatures that do occur here on Puget Sound.  Almost every year I forget about the one inside the greenhouse when I hook up the hoses and turn on the water for the first time. But I usually catch it within minutes of my mistake.

I wish I'd remembered it this year.

Since the greenhouse was full of plants and debris, the floor drain clogged and the greenhouse flooded. The man cleaning and I were oblivious until he went to the back of the yard to clean the greenhouse ramp. 

Hubby happened to stop by about that time. He scooped away the debris blocking the drain so the water could recede, propped open the door and got a fan running.

I didn't see it until the water was gone but everything was soaked. 

My new red cart!

You might not be able to tell but all of this was soaked.

This forced me into greenhouse cleanup immediately. 

Much of this is drying in the woodshed or behind the greenhouse for now.

Spent plants removed, pots emptied. Potted perennials pruned and set on the bench or up on plant stands to keep the floor free to dry.

Door and windows open, fan running.

Thankfully we are in the midst of record high temperatures for January - perfect timing, heh! The sun is beginning to shine in the greenhouse for a bit more each day. So before we know it I'll be doing this:

I've been buying seeds!

 And this:

My favorite spot in the world.