Sunday, October 25, 2015

Bamboo Floors in the Cabin

One more project done......the bamboo floors are in and looking great!
We did it ourselves and it took two days but I can't tell you what a difference it makes.
Everything just feels so much cleaner.  That's because it is-so much cleaner-cuz we had plywood floors before.  Yuck.

Here is a shot of the kitchen area.  We still have all the molding to do but that should go pretty quickly.
Just in case you forgot what we started with.......   We did all the work ourselves, once the shell was built.  We didn't want it to look too fancy.  More like it was completed and furnished by a family over a long time with things that made them happy and had a lot of sentimental value.  Which is kind of true because it has taken quite a while to finish and we got a lot of the stuff at auctions, antique stores and our own homes (and the clearance section of Lowes).
 We added a kitchen and a bath.  That meant putting in electrical and plumbing.
 We put in a stove and covered all the walls and ceilings in pine tongue and groove.  This cabin is solid!  The rocking chair was a gift from my family years ago for Mother's Day.  The log table was built by an Amish guy.  The crock in the corner used to hold sauerkraut.  I love that everything has a story and was bought over time..  The picture on the ledge were painted by some of our grandchildren.
 The chest was made from barn wood, again by the Amish, and the couch is a hide a bed for extra sleeping.  Plus it is a great place to cuddle up with a book (or Kindle) for some quiet time.  The blanket was crocheted by my grandmother who passed away this year.  She made it for the cabin.  I made the picture over the couch from a poster that I modge podged onto canvas.
 I so love the kitchen!  Behind the little curtain is a fridge and microwave.  I don't have a stove but the toaster oven and a hot plate have worked great for small meals.  And small meals are about all I want to do here anyway.  I do have a crock pot, electric skillet and rice cooker too, just in case.  Oh, and a Kitchenaid......  I always have to have a Kitchenaid.
 Here is a peek into the bath.  It is small but the shower is huge so that makes it nice.  We have an on-demand water heater for the cabin so it is hot showers for us!
 We refinished this cute medicine cabinet for some extra storage above the itty bitty sink.
 Jenn and Chuck bought this cool light that is great cuz you can direct the lights where ever you need them.  
 Another look at the kitchen.  We made the shelf from some antique shelf supports I got on ebay and pine boards.  You can see the water heater on the wall in the corner.  The crock that holds my wooden spoons and such was a gift from my brother's family and has a picture of Kirtland on the front.  We all went there the last time his family came out here to Ohio.  The vintage red plastic canisters were an auction find.  We keep little treats in them.
 A close up of the bamboo floors.  The rag rug was picked up at an Amish auction and is handmade.
 Upstairs is a sleeping loft.  We put a queen sized mattress up there and it is so comfortable.  We even have a view of the pasture out our tiny little window.  In the winter the heat from the stove keeps the loft so warm we often don't even use blankets.  We are talking Ohio winters!
 This ladder is suspended from the ceiling with a rope and can be lowered when we need to go upstairs.  It can slide along a metal pipe to the center of the room (that's where the headroom is the highest in the loft) and then can be tucked out of the way when we don't need it.
 I love that we have a small entry area to take off shoes and stow away some of our stuff.  We put in a tile floor in that area to protect the bamboo floors from dirt.  That little bench has a lot of storage and was built by some students at our local developmental center.
 Where you see the trees outside is the creek bed.
 The shelf on the left holds some plates and cookbooks.  Behind the door is a pegboard made out of a log that is real handy for hanging stuff.
 One of the last things we got was a cuckoo clock.  I bought it on ebay and it wasn't working so I got it cheap.  My husband replaced a few parts and now it is one of my favorite things about the cabin.  I love to hear the tick tock and the squeaky little bird.
 The colors were so garish when I first saw it but up against the pine walls it really pops.
So Kitschy!
Hope you enjoyed the tour.
Diana

Friday, October 23, 2015

Another Baby Quilt Heading For China

Another of my husband's secretaries is expecting a baby!  And since this is his last trip to China (he is retiring early!!!!!) I needed to rush and make a baby quilt as quickly as possible.
 Nothing is faster than a strip quilt and it goes even quicker when you use a jelly roll to make it.  Even though it took a little more effort, I decided to round the corners and piece a section of the back.
 The muted palette of greens and browns looks so pretty and should work for a boy or girl.
I machine quilted it in simple swirls.  
The most time consuming part was figuring out why my thread kept breaking (dull needle) and hand sewing the binding.  I was about to lose my mind trying to resolve the thread issue.  Of course it is always something you should have thought of right away but somehow never do.  Thanks to my local quilt shop for giving me some support and not laughing at my duh moment! 
Hope Belinda and baby enjoy the gift!
Diana