Thank you, Cheryl and Sloane, for your comments on the last post sharing what you’re doing to keep busy. Please send me a text with photos, I’d love to see and share your projects! In the meantime, I’ll continue telling you all about mine.

I was going to share how I not only cleaned out the refrigerator/freezer in the garage but also the two indoor refrigerators. And then I looked back a found that I have not shared with you that in early January, I purchased a new commercial refrigerator for Harmony Boards. Once I’d made the purchase, I needed to have it delivered. The store wanted $250 for delivery! Um, no!

So I came home, cleaned out and measured the space, and called Cody Howard to see if he had time to pick it up for me. Of course, he said yes. (This was 10 days before his accident in Canada) Cody hooked up his work trailer and retrieved it. Connor came over to help us get it in the house. It was a tight fit all the way around; it barely fit down the hall and through the doorway into the office, and the top cleared the ceiling fan by less than an inch.

We prevailed and I could not be happier to have it.

It holds custom boards for grazing tables. And it holds up to 10 Harmony Board boxes ready for delivery on busy days. The kitchen refrigerator could only hold two of these boxes.

Which explains why I have so many huge ice chests in the garage and blue-ice packs in the garage freezer. I still need those for summer and large deliveries. But at least I don’t need to use them any longer on a daily basis to hold boards as I am creating them in the morning for afternoon deliveries.

The next project – polishing silver. Hate it but it has to be done.

I bought this egg cup set at Piccadilly Market at St James’s Church in London in 2007 when I took Marissa to Europe for the first time. I used the tarnished egg cups on their own to hold flowers for my Easter table. (the red arrow pointing to where one of the cups sits, shows how tarnished the set is)

I decided to polish the entire set before I put it away. One thing always leads to another and I ended up polishing all day long.

After all the effort, I treated myself to a fancy breakfast the next day. We all need to treat ourselves and use the nice stuff during this time. Really all the time!

Even though the entire exterior of my house was painted two years ago, it is already peeling in areas. I spoke to my friend, Jennifer, who lives in Illinois and owns Luxe Cabinet Finishes and she told me that the house wasn’t primed properly. Not by the most recent painter I had used, but by the one or ones before that. Great, that means it’s up to me to fix it. First, I peeled and then sanded off all the peeling paint.

Then I painted on the primer. This is the backside of the house, facing east.

Happy Veteran’s Day to all the wonderful veterans who have served. I thank you for your service. I especially thank a veteran who is close to my heart, Cody Howard. Cody is the oldest son of my dear friend and colleague, Kim Howard. Former Marine Sergeant Cody Howard served from 2002 – 2006. His service took him to Fallujah, of all the frightening places in the world! Thank you, Cody, and thank you to the entire Howard family who sacrificed during those sleepless and anguish-filled years.

I promised an update on the new bathroom that Cody put in. The glass shower doors won’t be installed until later today or tomorrow, but since I want to honor Cody today, well, today is reveal day.

It’s amazing how whenever I go to take photos, the cats show up and want to be the stars!

I love it all, but one of my favorite features and a complete surprise is the shower floor drain. Isn’t it beautiful how the drain disappears into the tile? Thank you, Cody, for adding that extra-special unexpected touch!

The porcelain wood-like tile floor, shower wall tile, and shower floor tile are from Floor & Decor. My son, Connor, helped me pick it out.

Cody’s wife, Chanté, turned me on to the fabulous mirror with a shelf from Target.

Chanté also suggested I look at Wayfair for pendant lights. I need to get myself to Home Depot and get Edison bulbs without the yellow tint though.

Speaking of Home Depot. That is where I found the vanity and the shower and sink fixtures.

The thing is, nothing Halloween-related is happening over here. I have put up not one decoration because remodeling is happening instead. So not scary unless you consider dust on every surface a scary thing. In fact, the only thing “Halloween” here is Halloween Harmony Boards.

When I bought my home on November 10, 2017, I had about a dozen remodel projects in mind. Here they are in order of importance to me, which translates into the order of completion.

• Build a courtyard in the front yard
• Install propane tank for gas stove and BBQ
• Resurface double-sided fireplace
• Barndoor to separate the main living area from the 4th bedroom
• Remodel the backyard, resurface the pool, add a built-in BBQ, etc.
• Built-in shelves for Harmony Boards supplies in what used to be a closet in 3rd bedroom – now office (see photo above)
• Flip the 3rd bathroom to better serve the 4th bedroom and to not open into the breakfast room … ew!
• New kitchen countertops!!!
• New carpet in 3 bedrooms * not yet done

You can click on the links above to revisit past projects.

The current projects are the 3rd bathroom flip and the new countertops. The photo above shows the old counters. It also shows the door that leads to the bathroom that is being flipped. It is between the two bookshelves filled with cookbooks. If you look closely, you can just make out the opening and framing of the door.

Below are the “before” photos of the bathroom.

I honestly think the tiny sink was meant for a trailer. The shower never worked properly and the glass doors leaked. And of course, the entry door was off the breakfast room which was my biggest pet peeve with it. Not to mention that it is basic and boring as hell.

At the July Sweet Salvage Occasional Sale, I bought one of those things you see on the roof of that building above.  Now you may be asking yourself, “Why on earth would she buy a wind turbine?”

Or maybe you’re not asking yourself that. Not if you recall this photo I posted from when Dave, Marissa, and I went to the Alameda Point Antiques Faire in July 2011.  Yes, it took me a year to find one and then another couple of months to make it into my new Wind Turbine Hanging Light!

Before I show you mine, check out these three hanging as pendants in this business.

Via
(check out the link for more cool lights made from a birdcage, baskets, Mason jars, mixing bowls, and more!)

And now for the reveal…

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