"What I like Best About My House" Party

Karla from Karla's Cottage is having a blogland party with the theme "What I Like Best About My House." I hate to say this but I don't really care for my house. . .architecturally that is. When we bought our house many years ago, it was one of those handyman specials and it needed tons of TLC. It is a modern style house and I am more of a cottage-type gal. So I have always struggled with combining the two styles. Then one day, my dear aunt who just happens to have a knack for interior design, told me to simply ignore the fact that the house is modern and do what I want to on the interior. So I did!

This is one of my favorite vinettes in the house. This is the side board in my diningroom and I usally always decorate it for the season. As you can see, Halloween has yet to come to my house, but soon it will be festooned with pumpkins, witches, ghosts, and rich fall colors. The wooden birdhouse and frame are things that I have made....the frame holds a favorite B & W picture of my grandmother setting her diningroom table for one of her fabulous dinner parties. Also on the side board (and on the plate rack hanging on the wall) are some of my collection of pink rose limoges china that I pick up at flea markets or antique stores, along with some of my other favorite plates.

The picture above is the daybed in my studio. Right now it doesn't look like this, as it is covered with trays holding supplies for the various swaps I am working on. The bed originally was in my daughter's room and when she opted for a more urban loft look in her room, we moved the bed in here. My mother always wanted me to have a white iron headboard for my bed when I was a little girl and now I have one! You can't see it in this picture, but I replaced the gold brass bedpost knobs with antique glass door knobs. Surprisingly, they were just the right fit!

Now, I know this picture is not of the INSIDE of my house, but I really have to say that my MOST FAVORITE place in my house at this time of the year is the OUTSIDE of my house! This gazebo sits in our side yard next to the perennial bed. Believe it or not, this gazebo didn't cost me a penny! It was on the property of some land that was going to be developed and it was just going to be demolished. So my DH and some friends literally picked it up, put it on a trailer and placed it in our backyard. After a coat of fresh white paint it's the perfect spot to sit and enjoy a cup of tea!

A few years after the gazebo was set up and after perusing through an issue of Country Living magazine, I found an article about a cute litte potting shed/garden house that a woman had built in her backyard. It just so happened that she lives and owns a shop in a town nearby. I visited her shop quite regularly after that and later attended a special sale at her home and got to see the actually potting shed from the magazine article. Well, I couldn't stop talking about that darling little building, so again my DH took it upon himself to build me my very own in our backyard! Of course, during the construction process, all the male neighbors would come over and inspect this macho garden shed that he was building and say how great it is, etc. etc. My DH never said a word about it's intended use and who it was actually for. Well, once we started staining the floorboards a wonderful shade of robin's egg blue out in the yard and I hung the lace curtains in the windows. . .well, the men stopped coming over and the ladies in the neighborhood came instead! It was all too funny!!!

Most of the furnishings in the potting shed are either heirlooms or from second hand stores, flea markets or the gift shop I used to manage.
I made the garden sign, chalkboard and the painted lampshade. The piano bench I use to sit on at the desk is great for extra seating at garden parties and also for the hidden storage under the seat.

The shelving unit in the corner is from the shop of the woman who owned the potting shed featured in the magazine article. The white bench used to sit on the patio at my dear aunt's house and the needlepoint pillows were made by her years ago.

I painted the tree branches and nest on the wall and the handpainted chair with the little chickadee sitting on the top is one of my all-time favorite pieces that I have.

The shawl on the back of this chair was a stole that I made out of a piece of white wool fabric and wore to my high school prom. Well, I hope you enjoyed the sneek peek into my little house. Now I am off to visit everyone else's homes.