Swan Queen

Walking With the Grace befitting a Queen and

Adorned in Tulle & Crown

She Greets Her Swan

Who Glides Her Highness to Fairy Island

Where She Reigns

Has it really been two years since I've posted here?  Is anyone still out there to see?

If so, HELLO AGAIN!

What have you been up to?

~ Violet ~

The Art of Home ~ a never finished canvas

~ Welcome to our home ~

My friend Anita from Castles Crowns and Cottages

{link is at bottom of my post}

 has invited me

to share our home renovations along with hers,

and our mutual love of decorating and whimsy.

So here is a partial tour of our renovations and updates

to this 30+ year old home we purchased last year

~ First the "After" of the exterior ~

New roof, excessive trees removed, new lawn,

larger upper story window with new trim around it

and the dormer windows, and more plants.

This photo shows that larger window up on the left

which my husband took out of the laundry room where he installed a door.

Below is a "before" photo

Good bones, but badly needing a new roof, trees removed so the sparse lawn could get some light,

and those light posts cut down 

Inside, with my husband doing the majority of the work

and me doing the painting, we removed layers of wallpaper,

had the wood floors refinished,

transformed a bedroom into the master bath

and turned the former bathroom into a master closet.

{All to eventually be shown here on the blog}

I painted the large oak built-in bookcases on either side

of the rebuilt fireplace surround and mantle in the great room

in white and gray, and the walls in pale gray.

{these can be seen in an earlier post}

Today I will show the KITCHEN

I fell in love with the kitchen at first sight,

and even more so now after we replaced the formica

countertops with quartz, replaced the worn 30 year old

Wolf range with a new Italian model, installed a new sink

and painted the walls.

I removed 2 layers of wallpaper

{not the funnest job in the world to put it mildly...}

A solid yellow had been applied over the tiny rosebud print

the yellow pulled right off ... but the underneath one was quite a task

Then after painting the walls a pale blue-gray

I painted a mural in the breakfast nook.

I spray painted this vintage chandelier aqua

and got rid of the not so pretty ceiling light

I titled this post the ART of HOME because,

like Anita, I love incorporating my love of art

and fun into my decorating,

we both love white and shabby chic and French decor.

My home has been my canvas this past year,

...my unfinsihed story...

The new Verona range, tile backspash, counters

and wall paint color

With Anita, I share a love of whimsy and

it is evident in every room of our home... here you can see

a shadowbox scene on the counter of an

Audrey Hepburn doll from "Roman Holiday"...

a horse and carriage on the range hood carrying 2 felted mice...

and a sign I made with a saying from Cinderella.

Below, the "Before" and the vintage range we sold on Craigs list.

The counters and tile backsplash were a cream color, although in this photo they look white.

The idea of a Wolf range was exciting, but it was quite worn and the 

kitchen needed a sleeker range.

Another "Before" photo

Here you can see the orangey oak floor, the old sink and rubber surround,

the black range and the black speckled formica island top.

The house came with a year old Sub Zero refrigerator and 2 wall ovens.

Below, as it is now.

We took out the island sink

and made the island a bit longer for seating.

There is another sink on the other side of the kitchen.

eventually there will be a chandelier hanging over the island

Anita and I also share a love of chandeliers, candelabras

faux cakes, and vintage trucks for decor

... The flower lamp was a flea market treasure ...

This is where I sit every morning with my laptop, coffee in hand,

emailing Anita... we correspond daily!

This door heads out to the garage, and is the 2nd sink area.

 

Fun thing about a neutral kitchen in white and gray,

I can change out whatever colors I'm into....  

such as my love of Aqua and Pink!

So, there's our kitchen!

Now, please go and visit Anita,

it is so exciting, her home is featured in

the new Romantic Country magazine,

and is even on the cover!

(and ... one of my paintings is on her mantle!)

Anita and I met through our blogs many years ago

and developed a friendship from our mutual sense of fun,

decor, faith and laughter.

Thank you Anita, for your beautiful friensdhip!!!

________

~ Violet ~

The Pond (and Island) T R A N S F O R M A T I O N

Welcome to my island, which I've named

~ Fairy Island ~

We went from the house we built on a small lot

to a 30+ year old home on almost 2 acres.

~Which came with a concrete pond and an island~

but oh it did not look like this

last year when we moved in.  Below is the "BEFORE" 

Solid green scum, debris and a huge mound of blackberry bushes.

and no way to get out there unless you trudged through the green muck.

Of course, what would be the point of getting out there anyway, 

to a forest of prickly blackberrys!

But after much work mostly on my husbands part,

(including a bridge to the island)

I planted flowers in pots and decorated the oasis.

Even the ducks were overwhelmed by too much scum!

And there was no going onto an island of thick weeds.

At one time this place had beautiful grounds, but

had suffered neglect for a few years.

but now

Fairy Island

is a place of beauty and whimsy!

At the end of August I will be showing the renovations

we did to the house and gardens,

with 'before' and 'after' photos.

I hope you will come back to view more transformations!

~ Violet ~

Mid Summer Happiness

Prince and Porsha

our Silken Windhounds

{Enjoying a Bed}

~ Outdoors ~

In Shabby Chic Goodness

Mid Summer Happiness!

I've been working on

House Projects,

Painting

and

Gardening

and today am off to a flea market

can't believe it's been this long since I've posted

Hello Everyone!!!!

You can find me on Instagram

where I post regularly on two accounts, one mostly my dogs

and the other with Home and Garden images,

~ see the upper left sidebar for links ~

~ Violet ~

Like Summer

~ April 1st. was like summer ~

So we took advantage of it and spent all day outside.

And planted the Lavender after the photoshoot.

Rain is in the forecast,

So glad we had a summer day

~ So early in the Spring ~