Chrome Feet Make Me Smile

Oh how I wish I'd taken before pictures of the tub feet. They were humorous. Spray painted shiny silver (barf) so for me to see these in true chrome just makes me sigh with joy. They are sooooo lovely. A splurge, but totally worth it. The above pic shows the floor color we've chosen for the master bath, the color of the outside of the tub, the new chrome feet and the cultured marble we've chosen for the shower. More sighs...

For now the tub and sinks sit in the master bath. Waiting to be installed. Waiting for their new or refurbished faucets. Below are a few before and after shots for your viewing pleasure! I love before and after moments...but I'm sure you know that by now.

Decisions Married People Shouldn't Have to Make Together {Floors}

Let me begin by saying that the floors, especially in person, are phenomenal. The shine, the grain, the color, the history, the texture, the imperfections...I love them. But I didn’t come to this place on day one. Oh, no my friend, much emotion was put into these floors. Please remember one of the decision makers is 8 months pregnant!

Looking at the before pictures you can see the old floors are darker than the final product. That's due to a build-up of wax, dirt and age. In the front rooms of our house, the previous owners restored the floors themselves and added a stain to mimic that color. So, for the last six years we've been looking at dark floors. After many conversations about what we wanted from the new floors Steven and I agreed (yes agreed) we wanted to let the original floors BE what they are. No stain. We'd been told that heart of pine floors darken with age and take on a lovely reddish hue. When sharing our home with others we wanted to be able to say "these are true, unedited, 100 year old heart of pine floors," but it was a visual adjustment.

The day the floors were sealed the crew wiped portions of the floors with mineral wax to show us what the floors would look like after the seal was applied. We liked the look, left for lunch and when we came back the floors were sealed and the crew was gone. That evening was filled by staring into the windows and comparing the pros and cons of the new floors verses the old. We called friends over for their input. Steven and I both wanted the other to be happy and in LOVE with the floors. In the end, we went back to our original desire: "To have unedited, 100 year old heart of pine floors."

The scratches and dark spots tell a story. High traffic areas are darker than the rest of the floor which gives you a little glimpse into the traffic and flow that the house once saw. Being a sentimental fool, I loved that the history of our home shows in the floor and makes me daydream when looking at these areas. Did they like the view of the back yard from the office windows? Why doesn't the hall have more darkening? My guess? The maid in the house did all the work and her path was through the back rooms. This maid, will be using the hall!

Oh, and yes, that's a refinished tub and two BEAUTIFUL sinks sitting in our master bedroom, ready to be installed in the master bathroom. More to come on that topic!

Easter Fun! {Easter Egg Animals}

Marin and I made these animal Easter eggs last night. Marin was in charge of spreading felt and pom poms all over the floor and telling me if the animal was cute or not. She really wanted to use the hot glue gun, and didn't appreciate me hogging it. Once they were complete I had to hide them away for Easter morning, otherwise, I'm not sure that Bunny, Chicken, Mouse and Pig would have survived "playing."

These were designed so that the plastic egg still opens. My plan is to fill them with goodies and place them in her Sunday morning Easter basket. She'll be excited to see them again!

Only items you need to make your own are: plastic eggs, felt in various colors, scissors, a hot glue gun and your imagination.

Jesse and Katherine {Save The Date}

I have been working with Katherine and Jesse to design a series of pieces to announce their July wedding. This save the date design was mailed a couple weeks ago. Katherine expressed the desire for something semi formal with bold block letters in navy and yellow (their wedding colors). She provided me with an inspiration board of images and elements they wanted to incorporate into their wedding. This is my interpretation of her wishes. More to come!

10 Year Wedding Anniversay {World's Most Romantic Husband}

On March 25, 2000 I married Steven Evans.

On Thursday, we celebrated 10 years of marriage. With the house deadlines and my pregnancy, planning something special to celebrate fell by the wayside. I suggested a simple dinner and movie night. Steven reluctantly agreed to the simple "date night" but requested that he plan all the details. I became suspicious that he had other plans in mind when he told me to dress casual. As we pulled away from my mom's house, after leaving Marin to spend the evening with her Aunt "Biff" and "Kay, Kay" Steven presented me with the first of five "clues." Clues?! My amazing husband had created a "memories scavenger hunt." Each clue lead us to a memorable spot during our dating years. We had so much fun running around Polk County reliving our teen years and "driving" down memory lane.

The evening culminated with an exclusive dinner for two in an abandoned building in downtown Livingston. Steven had created a quiet candle light dinner complete with a display of pictures depicting various "firsts" in our relationship. Our first valentine’s day banquet. Our first symphony, winery tour, sailing excursion and pet. Our honey moon and the birth of our first child. I was completely overwhelmed by all of the thought, time, emotion and attention to detail that went into planning such a wonderful evening. I'm so extremely blessed to have such an amazing partner. Thank you Steven...I could not ask for more.

Plumbing {The Good the Bad and the Ugly}

The floors are finished! Hooray! But you'll have to wait to see pictures, just like we are waiting to walk on them! In the mean time, we are focused on plumbing.

Above is a photo of the old sink we've been using daily since we moved into the house. I remember walking into the bathroom and asking the lady that was showing us the house "is, um, this bathroom useable?" She seemed surprised I would even ask such a question! Funny how people adjust to the unusual over time. Anyway, we've grown to like this old sink and were elated when our plumber offered to give us a "couple old sinks I have sitting around." One of those free sinks matched our old faithful! It was decided right then and there, that these matching sinks would be used in our new master bath! Free sink picture below. Pretty close match eh?!

On Sunday, the three of us piled into our old 1995 GMC truck and hauled old faithful, it's new matching partner, an old, 5 and a half foot, claw foot tub and the world's smallest (cutest) sink to Houston for refinishing. We had a blast that day crossing our fingers that the truck would make it and enjoying the closeness. Kevin Jerding of Gallaway Porcelain Works in Houston is handing the refinishing work on the tubs and sinks. The plan is to paint the underside of the sink and tubs an almond color and have the feet of the tub chromed. Can't wait to show you finished pictures!

What happened to the bathroom we are currently using you might ask? Well, that's where the ugly comes in. Yuck!

Steven spent most of Saturday taking down the old sink and installing a NEW, old sink in it's place. The wall was super yucky so we took the opportunity to clean. You never know what to expect once you dig into old plumbing, so we began the project with the worst in mind. In the end, Steven replaced the drain line and replaced seals in the faucets to prevent leaking. Hoping this new setup will suffice until this portion of the house is remodeled. Separate hot and cold faucets. Hum...just another unusual to adjust too right?

Speaking of faucets. We've searched and searched for shelf back faucets (see below) to replace our old faucets, and have finally decided it would be best to just have the old ones rebuilt and re chromed. Stay tuned!

Sanding!

Exciting! Loud. Smelly. Amazing. Beautiful. Progress!