Paranormal Activity?

I'm hesitantly writing this post.  Let me give you the back story first.  When we first looked at the house it was at the estate sale.  An elderly woman had died and her son and daughter were running the estate sale.  When we went inside I told the lady that I thought the house was beautiful.  She said, "thanks, the house is haunted".  Um, ok.  We just thought she was nuts.  Later though when we were negotiating for the house I asked her what she meant by "haunted".  She said that she had been up in the third floor room where there is a pool table and the door had opened and closed.  Ok, rationally, this could be either from a draft or an improperly hung door.  We decided that this wasn't a case of a haunting...which we don't believe in anyway.  That's important to understand.  We are very scientific, rational people who don't believe in much.  

So let's cut to this weekend.  Here's how the conversation went.

Husband:  I have something to tell you, but if you don't want to hear it just stop me"

Me:  What?

Husband:  I saw something in the house today and I took a picture of it.

Me:  Does it show up in the picture?  (I've seen too many vampire films)

Husband:  Yes.

Me:  Ok, well is it something you can rationalize?

Husband: I've tried and I really can't.

 My husband was moving boxes from the second floor up to the third floor to make room since we are starting to work on the second floor.  On Saturday he moved a few boxes to the attic and the third floor bedroom with the pool table.  On Sunday morning he went back to get another box to move up to the third floor room.  When he went to the room, this is what he saw.

I'm glad he took pictures because this would be a little hard to believe.  He said that he thought that if he moved around it surely the floor boards would move and it would fall.  But it didn't.  He moved the broom and went on with his work.  

Now, someone just told us that the planets were lined up recently and something about  the gravitational pull is allowing brooms to stand up.  The thing is though that my husband is not really sure that the broom was even in the room on Saturday.  And, even if it was, he didn't prop it up.  People who have done this "experiment" have been putting the broom upright and letting go.  This broom was not propped up.  Is it possible that this is a gravitational thing because of the planets?  Hey, I'm not ruling it out.  In fact I prefer this explanation.  We're still a bit freaked out, but we have to continue on.  If something else happens though we're going to have to rethink a few things.

What do you think?  

You Could Eat Off Of My Newly Refinished Floors

Yes, they're that clean and shiny and awesome.  Let me have this moment for just a sec.  This has been (and continues to be) the longest and most difficult project we've ever taken on, so the little things like clean floors makes me want to cry from sheer joy.  Our floor guys did an AMAZING job of trying to match the original wood and inlay in the other rooms.

This last picture is of the kitchen.  This is the space where we're going to work in a farm table/bench.  Yes, it's still on the to-do list.  What can I say?   We haven't gotten much (or any) of the diy stuff done.  

While I'm at it, here are some pictures of the kitchen.  It still needs some tweaks, but this is the best and cleanest that it's been since, well, ever really.

My husband started putting the island light up but for some reason there's no power to it so it's kind of half way installed.  

So, you know what this means?  Dun, dun, dun....I have to go back to finish the stencil.  I can't promise that I'll get to it this weekend.  The powder room is so small I almost get claustrophobic trying to work in there with my ladder and paint.  Anyone want to come and finish it for me?  No, I didn't think so.  It's all me.

The Next Projects (Even Though We're Not Done With The Ones We Started)

The kitchen, bathroom, powder room, and family room have been on hold while the wood floors are being sanded, stained, and polyurethaned.  I think we have a few more days until we can walk on the floors.  They really are looking amazing, but I'll save them for another post.  

For now I thought I'd share with you the next phase of projects to start (and not complete-ha!).  We're starting to work on the second floor.  First up are my daughter's bathroom and the laundry room.  Here's where they're at right now.  

This is the bathroom.  I know, it's terrifying.  Especially when you can look down through to the first floor.  But, we have big plans. 

Here's what we're thinking.

via decorpad.com

via amazon.com

via restorationhardware.com

via shadesoflight.com

via shadesoflight.com

Or this..

via shadesoflight.com

via subwaytile.com

Now, on to the laundry room which is to the left of the bathroom. 

Scary huh?  All new plumbing and electrical, but peekaboo floors and no walls to speak of.  I don't have any grand plans in here...yet.  I know we're doing the washing machine/dryer on the right wall.  I'd like to get a counter top and maybe some upper cabinets to store things.  On the left wall we're putting this sink.  

I'd also like some drying racks like these.

via ballarddesigns.com

So that's what's starting in a couple of days.  I'm exhausted just thinking about it.  I'm even more exhausted by the idea of the downstairs floors being done and having to go and finish the stencil in the powder room:(

Do you have any new and exciting projects planned?  Hopefully none as involved as mine.

The Ollo Clip- A Way To Take Wide Angle, Fish Eye, Or Macro Pictures Without Going Broke

Let me preface this post by saying I'm not a techie...but apparently our plasterer is.  He recently whipped out the Ollo Clip and slapped it on his iPhone to take some inside pics of the house.  My husband was in awe and did the smartest thing he could do.  Buy me one.  

So you might be thinking "what the hell is an Ollo Clip?"  Well, my friends, it's a 3-in-1 lens accessory for the iPhone.  Obviously if you don't have an iPhone this really isn't going to be useful to you...sorry.  But if you do?  You're welcome.  This thing is awesome.  It has a large fisheye lens on one side and a wide-angle and macro precision lens on the other. 

 I've been hemming and hawing over buying a wide angle lens for my DSLR, the camera I have yet to use because it's buried in a box somewhere.  I've been wanting one to take better interior pics where you can see the whole room instead of taking random pictures to try to piece a room together.  The thing is, a wide angle lens is like $800.  Hence the reason I have yet to buy one.  I know you can rent one, but I also know myself very well.  If I rent one it will never find its way back to the owner.  I'm just that lazy.  So when I got this little gift the other day I was just ecstatic.  I normally take my crappy pictures with my point and shoot.  I suppose I could take better pictures if I knew the camera better and did some editing, but again, laziness.  And, I know that the iPhone doesn't take the best pictures ever, but having the ability to take a wide angle photo on the iPhone at a fraction of the cost of going out and buying a lens is great.  Is it better than a DSLR and a wide-angle lens...no, but it's 10 million percent better at showing my rooms than without it.  

Here's some pictures I took yesterday with and without it.  Please excuse the mess that is our living room.  Still a work in progress, obviously.  

Without lens

With wide-angle lens

So you can see the difference in the ability to capture the room.  I took these pictures from the same spot.  And, no, I didn't edit these.  They probably could look a lot better with a little editing love, but you get the point.

So what do you think?  Did I mention it's $69?  That's 3 lenses for $69.  I know I couldn't be happier:)

I've Been Featured, And Tagged!

I periodically look at my stats which are usually around the same number.  The other day, however, I noticed the number jumped dramatically, like over a thousand which is about a thousand times larger than the number usually is.  I thought for sure there must be a mistake but then noticed that Apartment Therapy was where the traffic seemed to be coming from.  Uh, ok.  I really couldn't imagine why so I took a gander.  Turns out my post about cleaning antique glass was featured.  I have to say I was pretty shocked, but totally excited.


In addition, I've been tagged!  Suzy from Saved By Suzy has tagged me in a little "get to know you" game.  The rules are simple:  Eleven is the magic number, answer eleven questions, tag eleven other bloggers, and figure out eleven different questions to ask them.

So first I'll answer Suzy's questions. 

1) If you could visit one place in the world, where would it be?

    I've actually done a fair bit of traveling, but one place that is high on my list of places I still want to visit is Morocco.  I love all the colors and designs and food!

2) What is your dream job?

     It would definitely be a travel host.  Traveling all over the world, experiencing different cultures and most  importantly, food.  If you haven't noticed, I'm a big foodie.  Samantha Brown has my dream job (wench!).

3) What is your favorite book?

     My favorite book is Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte.  My grandmother gave me this book as a kid and I just fell in love with it.

4) Name an item on your bucket list.
     To go skydiving.  Problem is I'm afraid of heights.  

5) Do you speak any other languages?

    Sadly, I don't speak another language.  I lived in Italy for 2 years so I picked up a fair bit, but since I've been back in the States, I've lost most of it.  

6) If you could live anywhere, where would it be?

     My dream would be to live in the States for part of the year and somewhere in Europe the other part.  Probably in Italy.

7) If you could change anything about your current home, what would it be?

    I'd like it to be livable.  That would be a great start!

8) What is something you've learned from blogging?

     That I really love connecting with people.  It reminds me of  when I had pen pals as a kid.  Oh,  and how to pronounce Ikat:)

9) If you could take any type of class, what would it be about?

     In the past couple of years I've taken some classes that I always wanted to try...pottery and oil painting. I think the next class will be on how to use my Silhouette machine.  I bought it a couple of years ago and  still haven't pulled it out of the box.

10) If you could have dinner with one person, who would it be?

       How about Leonardo Da Vinci so I can finally find out who Mona Lisa was and what she was smiling about. 

11) If you could change anything about yourself, what would it be?

      I wish I was more patient.  I think I've gotten a lot better as I've gotten older, but I still have my moments.

Here's my tags.  Caveat: If you don't want to play along I totally understand...no pressure.  And, if you've already been tagged by someone else, well then, you're just that popular...lucky you.


1. Jules from Pancakes and French Fries
2. Heather from Interior Groupie
3. Lisa from Trapped in North Jersey
4. Janet from House Four
5. Emily from Rue de Emily
6. Carrie from Hazardous Design
7. Kelly from Refreshed Designs
8. Shannon from Bungalow 960
9.  Melanie from Plum Cushion

Yes,  I only listed nine bloggers.  The last couple I was going to choose I know for a fact already got tagged so I'll spare them my lame questions.  


And here are my questions:
1.  What is your favorite color in clothes and design?
2.  If you could look like anyone who would it be?
3.  Are you a morning person or a night owl?
4.  Chocolate or Vanilla?
5.  City or country?
6.  Twilight or Trueblood( basically glitter or traditional can't go in the sunlight vampires)? Yes  I'm 12.
7. Do you prefer a home cooked meal or going out to a restaurant?
8.  High heels or flats?
9.  Have you ever received a really nasty comment and how did you respond?
10.  Summer, Fall, Winter, or Spring?
11.  What's the most adventurous thing you've ever done?


I tried to not make the questions too involved.  Looking forward to seeing if anyone participates and what their answers are:)

My Nemesis...The Stencil

Ok, so I gathered up the energy to start on the stencil.  What a giant pain in the butt!!!!!!!!  I've stenciled before, but this stencil was NOT made to go around a corner and is giving me all sorts of problems.  Without further ado here's what I've done so far.

I ended up going with the Chinoiserie one.  I painted all the walls of the powder room, including the ceiling, BM Chelsea Gray.   You may remember that this is the paint I originally used (and hated) in the kitchen.  It seems to be working well in here and I had it on hand so it was a win-win.  I used a white semi-gloss for the stencil.  Because the walls are dark I had to do a few passes on the stencil each time for the right amount of coverage.  Pain in the butt #1. 

 As I got to the end of the wall where it turns I quickly realized that this stencil wasn't having it.  I'm going to have to cut it to do the other walls and possibly freehand (yikes!) a bit in the corners.  Pain in the butt #2.  The good news is that my husband loves it.  What?  I know, right?    I tried to get him to tell me why all of a sudden he liked it.  He couldn't explain it.  I guess I shouldn't push it.

This was a difficult picture to get, but here's the new light.  Just ignore the ladder, unfinished stencil, boarded window and orange stained door (which is getting a darker stain) and the room looks great.  Ha!

The Kitchen Backsplash

I forgot to show pictures of the backsplash that was recently done.

We ended up going with a matte white subway tile.  Simple, clean, timeless.  

I love the herringbone niche.  Is it an original idea?  No.  Do I love it?  Yes, and quite frankly that's all that matters.  Still waiting for the pot filler to be installed.

And here's a close-up of the detail.  It's not extravagant but I think it adds a little something to the look.

One of the kitchen lights finally made its way up.  This is over the sink (and I think a bit crooked...will have to remedy that).  

So, no crazy progress, but steady wins the race.  I finally got the stencil and am going to try to muster up the energy to tackle it.  I don't know why I'm dreading it so much.  Oh, right, because it's work and all I feel like doing is sitting on my lazy arse.  

Hope everyone has a great weekend!