Old

I keep finding things around here that I think are pretty cool and I sort of think other people might think them cool too. So I'm going to make some old rustic fence board signs and advertise them and hope someone will buy them. God knows I have enough materials around here to do a bit of craft work.

Here is Dave inspecting some old fencing.

 

 

I've got rolls and rolls of this rusty barbed wire and plans for a lot of it.

 

These steps came from our old farm, no idea how they ended up here. I'm going to get them into the barn and let them dry, then sell them.

 

And this fence! It is INCREDIBLE!!

 

I have no clue what it was used for before but someone might just want to purchase it for $10.

 

If I can sell these rusted out water troughs for $50, then I should be able to sell some of these old things for a few bucks.

 

Then I'll have a few bucks to use toward getting more of this same stuff into my home.

 

 

Mirrors for the downstairs bathroom

I bought these two matching mirrors last week for $20, knew they might look good in the bathroom.

I liked the frame but not its color.

 

And I got this blue star from a friend but wanted it brown.

I used Rustoleums 'HAMMERED BROWN' paint on them and I think they turned out pretty good. 

 

There is still a ton of work to do in the bathroom but I am slowly getting it at least started. Before I hang these I need to put another coat of Silver Charm paint on the walls and ceiling.

Numbers Post In Action

The Fireplace

This is the first picture I ever took of our fireplace, on October 21, 2014. It was a chilly wet day, I had only heard of the farm the day before from a FB post of a friend, a lady who used to board her horses at our old farm.

 

 

 

I had put this picture up on the mantle but it was too dark, it didn't brighten up the house like it needed and these bricks are very dark.

 

So I had Lan drill screw holes into the bricks and we hung up this rod.

 

And we hung up this Bison Skull that's been waiting for its place of honor.

 

And We attached this Pendleton blanket to the rod.

 

This was my Uncle Mels blanket, my sister got it when he passed away. But it was nicer then, she had it dry cleaned and they ruined it (in her eyes, its still beautiful to me).

 

After everything is put where it goes, this is now my living room.

 

I LOVE it.

House Number Post

 

Someone blew up our old mailbox on the July 4th weekend.

 

That was OK with me, it was awful and UGLY. There were CD's nailed to the post with reflectors over them and the box was painted silver with the house numbers painted over so you couldn't see them and the door wouldn't stay closed.

 

It was an embarrassment.

 

 

Last week we got a pressure treated 4x4 post

and chose a topper from Lowes.

 



 

I found numbers that were nice, the most WESTERNY I could find.

 

And we got 5 gallons of white semi gloss exterior paint.

 

I painted one coat on it & we realized we didn't have them put any pigment into the bucket!! So back it went and they poured a bunch of white color into our bucket.

 

Yesterday it got a couple thick coats of paint.

 

It looks pretty good.

 

Here it is, almost finished. I will run a coat of paint under the topper and over its screws and then it will be ready to put out beside the driveway.

Down Stairs Bathroom

Before




Now. Wall color SILVER CHARM.



before

now. wall color PEACOCK FEATHER.

before

 

now



before

now
this photo doesn't show the right turquoise

Front Yard plants

I took this photo yesterday.

All the azaleas have finished blooming and after Googling for the info, I discovered it is prime time to trim the bushes for optimal growth next year and to make them look nice again. They were really gangly looking.

 

I didn't have my hand clippers so I used the loppers to start whacking the branches off. I was ruthless.

Afterward, I wrapped a new soaker hose around the bottoms of them and left it on for a few hours. This is the first time I've watered them.

 

Our porch rockers are much more noticeable now.

 

We put the log behind the bushes so it can be seen but its not the main focus of the bed.

 

The Rhody beside the steps really got whacked, it's just sticks now. I still need to deadhead the remaining plants.

 

The hanging baskets are looking awesome but I need to move each basket toward the centers of the areas by at least 6 inches, they are all crammed into the pillars.

 

Out in the rest of the yard there are many more Rhodys and Azaleas, I have a couple of each that I'd like to move and a couple huge ones to really start whacking on. One is tall and skinny so we were thinking about making it a Rhody tree. I will start trimming on those soon, before it's too late.

Downstairs Bathroom, May

I found this photo on Pinterest a few months ago and fell in love with this bathroom.

Its so pretty and perfect. Ok, maybe not the leopard print shower curtain but I love the wall with the wood trim, tin and rustic look to it.

 I spent a lot of time, energy and money finding just the right turquoise color paint for my bathroom, I had 3 sample colors before I chose PEACOCK FEATHER.

And the color is the middle is the SILVER CHARM I used on the dining room wall that I love. Turquoise + Silver, always a good match.

 

It looks bluer in this photo than it is.

(Don't mind the wetsuit, I soaked it in the tub before I swim in it for the first time this season tomorrow, helps to get it loosened up so its not strangling me when I get it on.)

 

The photo below is truer to the right color.

I've got the corogated tin in the barn and I'll use old fence boards for the trim.

 

And the wetsuit is going to become a regular thing in there. I'm putting that dowel across the top of the shower so I can clean it off & leave it hanging in there.

Night Lights

So here are the photos of the lights at night...

 

It took them a while to power up but eventually they all came on.

 

And they look pretty dang cool.

Solar Fence Lights

 

Today we decided to install the solar fence lights we purchased in January. We started at the bottom of the driveway and put one on every other post, then screwed them to the posts.

 

I can't wait until its dark so we can see what they end up looking like.

 

The fence will look fabulous in the summer when I get to repaint it.

 

The neighbors horse has a bird on its withers.

 

The house today. Azaleas are starting to wilt and fall.

 

The flag, without wind.

Porch Flower Baskets

We've got a beautiful long front porch across the entire house with white railings and columns. I've been working on getting flower baskets growing so they can be hung and enjoyed all summer. Today I got the hooks installed and hung the baskets only to discover that they each need a piece of chain to make them hang low enough that they can be seen and watered easily.

 

 

This is what it looked like the first time I was ever here. October, pouring rain. No garden work for 2 years, just mowing once in a while and they didn't care where the grass clippings went.

 

This is the porch earlier the other day, I had placed the baskets approximately where I would be hanging them.

 

This is one of them. First I had just flowers in it but it had more room so I added Sweet Potato Vine. That should really help it fill out well.

 

Linda gave me two baskets on April 8th, the 9th anniversary of my twin brothers death. They are beautiful baskets.

 

And here they are hung. I have one rusty old chain but its not going to work for all of them so I'll be stopping at Lowes this evening for10 chains that are 8-10 inches long. A couple of the baskets have longer chains or hooks on them already and I'd like all the bottoms of the baskets to be the same height.

 

 

 

And this is the 2nd of the bushed below the railing to bloom. They are gorgeous! After the flowers are dropped I'll be trimming these back so they are below the level of the rail.