Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Before and After

Here's the completed project I worked on yesterday. The above is the Before picture of our office/craft room. I didn't even take a picture of the Before of the desk area because, frankly....well, there are just some things you shouldn't have to see!
Here is same shot -- AFTER -- Cleaned up, straightened and "fluffed". The antique shopping cart in the foreground holds the ironing and mending piles.
Moving to the left, here is the finished and much improved desk area of the room. I made a little skirt with some leftover black and white gingham and a shower curtain rod. I just found the right length for the curtain and "sewed" the rod pocket and the hem with fabric glue -- one of the wonders of my world, along with stitch witchery. Great inventions!! Anything that prevents me from actually sewing at the machine is a great invention!!
The skirt hides a multitude of sins -- the computer "business", the paper shredder/trash basket and a couple of banker's boxes that store all those pesky papers you don't know what to do with, but can't EVER throw away.
Still moving to the left, this is a shot of one of my better ideas!! There on the corner where the blank looking strip is -- that is where my parents measured my children through the years. I live in the same house I grew up in and so, this house was "the grandparents house" to my kids in their growing up years.


When we moved in nearly 8 years ago, I wanted to paint in this room, but knew I could not paint over the "growth chart" of my children. So I just kind of painted around it and since no one could see it from the door, it was okay. THEN one day I found a bunch!!! of old give-away yardsticks, some old, some newer. AND I had my solution......
I got William to make a "border" of sorts using the yardsticks. So on both sides of the growth chart, there is a line of yardsticks....pretty cool, I think. This is, of course, also where Lily Kate gets measured from time to time. Good Stuff!!!
As you come past the "growth chart" corner, there is this old, old chest of drawers. It was my grandparents and it was old then....no tellin' .
My son, Devin's, antique typewriter that he left in his things. Better displayed here than picking up dust in storage, right? A stack of old books I picked up at a Friends of the Library sale in College Station, an old random teacup filled with potpourri and a tiny picture of pressed flowers from Israel.
Above the chest is a hat I found in my grandmother's things......very, very Audrey Hepburn-ish......framed by an old ornate frame I found at a flea market somewhere.
Well, that's it! Hope you enjoyed the tour of our completed office/craft room. I can now check this room off the "To Do" list.
What kind of project are you working on? I really desire this to be an inter-active blog, so "comment" and tell me what projects are in process at your house. It is also my hope that we can inspire and encourage each other in our tasks as homemakers. Let me hear!
Thanks for visiting!
Gwynie Pie







3 comments:

  1. I am currently working on painting the outside of the house to sell and have painted all my wall yucky antique white so it will sell. Yuck I hate plain walls! The boys have exclaimed "this doesn't even look like our house anymore!" They are so right! It's someone else's house now! We just don't know who!
    JJ

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  2. Great to hear from you! sounds like you have a lot of fun projects going! i look forward to keeping up! My latest project was fixing up an old wooden playset for my son to enjoy -- we replaced some old boards, added a canopy, parascope, and gave it a nice dark stain. Good as new to us - and a lot cheeper! Hope your family is doing great -- think about yall every so often! Really enjoyed getting to know your family for that short season -- a true inspiration of what a 'family' should be.

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  3. Catherine Martin VeazeyOctober 23, 2010 at 11:30 PM

    Hello Gwynn, From Toyah's baby, catherine. i finally looked at your site today and love it!!! What memories flooded my mind as I viewed pics of your beautiful home. All the many summers we spent there as kids with Collin and Devin. What wonderful ideas. You'll have to come to chilly Colorado and help me with my house.... I'll give you free rein:-) Love you bunches. You are an inspiration. God bless you all. -Catherine V.

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