February, 2021: Plans

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February is the start of birthday season here at The Glade which begins with the matching birthdays of me and my niece.  Then it’s Sug, Charlie, Charlie’s mother, my son.  Although not all in February I am imagining how we might celebrate.

  1.  Clean shower head in the master bathroom.

    The rain showerhead in the master bathroom needs a good cleaning from time to time.

  2. Get 2020 tax information to our accountant.
  3. Read a book:  The Silver Chalice.

    The Antioch Chalice

  4. See a movie.
  5. Repair wood flooring at entrance to conservatory.

    Can you spot the damage?

  6. Celebrate my birthday.
  7. Wash down comforter.

    Our king sized down comforter is needs a good cleaning from time to time.

  8. Travel to New Orleans.

    We have reservations at a boutique hotel in the Central Business District.

  9. Pick a word to focus on for the month. My word: BALANCE.
  10. Write a goal list for March.

January, 2021: Check

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January plans are always ambitious.  I was careful to rein in my enthusiasm so I could start the year with a win.

  1. Get my watch fixed and start wearing it. My old band was broken — I remember getting it in Florence, Italy in 2005.  It was lovely. The battery was easy and cost under $10 to have replaced.  Replacing the old band was a bigger deal than I thought it would be.  The watchband is a very particular size, 11mm,  and I couldn’t find one I liked at the store that changed the battery so 2 more trips to local jewelry stores convinced me to order online. 

    My watch runs and has a new strap.

    I have been wearing it every day.

  2. Organize and remove 2 blue bins from back bedroom. I organized and moved 3 bins from the bedroom to the attic.

    Only one more partially filled bin in the back bedroom.

  3. Contact friend or family each week. 5 contacts made and enjoyed. 
  4. Read a book:  Pirates on the Chesapeake by Donald G. Shomette.  To quote another reviewer: “Fascinating story unartfully told.”  Frankly, I thought I’d never get through this book.  While the subject should be engaging the text was difficult to navigate.  

    The notorious Blackbeard — Captain Teach.

  5. Take down, organize, and store Christmas decorations. 

    Ready for next year.

  6. Remove 5 items from clothing closet. I made a small dent with 6 items I haven’t worn in years.  I also decided to remove the rolling hanging rack that I kept on my side of the closet for added space.

    Before

    After

    That decision alone was a big improvement.

  7. Make a cover for my sewing machine.  I made a padded cover entirely with fabric and supplies I had on hand.

    Sewing machine cover for my new machine.

  8. See a movie. Since our theatres are still closed I decided to watch a movie on video I had never seen: Amelie.  It is a quirky little film that takes place in Paris.  The language of the film is French so it has English subtitles.  The front of the DVD jacket said it is a feel-good movie so I’m not giving anything away by saying it has a happy ending. I enjoyed it; Charlie would not have.
  9. Pick a word to focus on for the month. My word: SIMPLIFY.
  10. Write a goal list for February.

Jo

Bed Nook: 2

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The bed nook inspiration and preliminary plans for the second floor landing are well under way.

The landing at the top of the stairs is covered in dark paneling and the ceiling is about six and a half feet tall.

While necessary, priming is seldom satisfying.

First Sug and I primed the walls with Zinsser 123.

Sug rolled I trimmed.

While the primer was drying we painted the ceiling with a color I mixed from leftover paint.  It turned out to be a very pale gray with undertones of blue/green very much like Sea Salt from Sherwin Williams.

The closet has a trap door to the eaves of the house.

My closet is being used to store off-season air conditioners so I was unable to paint it.

The shelf was sticky and discolored from old contact paper.

However Sug washed off the top shelf.

The top shelf is ready to house the paint clothes we leave at the shore house.

I peeled off the old contact paper and replaced it with new shelf paper.

The first coat of Head-Over-Heels.

We painted the walls with Head Over Heels, very pale pink by Benjamin Moore. (It’s the color I have on my smallest bedroom at home and also on the ceilings on my second floor. )

The landing area is 114″ long on the window wall and 106.5″ wide.

One of our main tasks on this first day of redecorating was to carefully measure the space so I can make a design and purchase lumber for the project.

Before

After

We painted the walls with one coat of primer and 2 topcoats of Head-Over-Heels.

Before

Primed

After

Here’s the original plan with the finished items highlighted in pink font:

  1.  Choose a paint color for the ceiling and walls.  The trim will be Simply White semi-gloss to match the rest of the house.
  2.   Wash the windows and clean shades.  Measure to see if shutters would work.
  3.  Buy paint and prime and paint ceiling and walls.
  4.  Measure the room.
  5.  Draw a plan for the bedframe and nook frame.
  6.   Purchase lumber for the project.
  7.   Build the frame and facing. Remember to move the electric outlet.
  8.   Paint the facing and visible frame.
  9.   Make the bed with fresh linens.
  10.   Hang art inside the nook.
  11.   Add a lamp to the nook — wall sconce or small brass lamp.

The closet and stairwell.

I know what you’re thinking: Now comes the hard part!

Jo

Bed Nook: 1

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The bed nook I was inspired to install at the shore house will need to be finished in segments since I only have a few Saturdays to commit to its completion.

The 2nd floor landing area where I plan to add a bed nook.

As with all my projects, my first task is to make a plan.  Often I have to add or reorder the steps but a plan helps me to stayed focused on the process.

  1.  Choose a paint color for the ceiling and walls.  The trim will be Simply White semi-gloss to match the rest of the house.
  2.   Wash the windows and clean shades.  Measure to see if shutters would work.
  3.  Buy paint and prime and paint ceiling and walls.
  4.  Measure the room.
  5.  Draw a plan for the bedframe and nook frame.
  6.   Purchase lumber for the project.
  7.   Build the frame and facing. Remember to move the electric outlet.
  8.   Paint the facing and visible frame.
  9.   Make the bed with fresh linens.
  10.   Hang art inside the nook.
  11.   Add a lamp to the nook — wall sconce or small brass lamp.

This area of the house faces south and gets bright sun all winter on fair days.

I’m hoping I did not forget a step.

Head Over Heels is a barely blushing pink shade from Benjamin Moore’s Affinity collection.

I have decided to paint the walls Head Over Heels pale pink for which I purchased a gallon of flat paint.  The ceiling is going to be a pale gray with green/blue undertones which I’ll mix from leftover paint.

The landing at the top of the stairs is covered in dark paneling and the ceiling is about six and a half feet tall in this room created from a dormer.

Sug and I went to the shore house yesterday to paint the ceiling, prime the walls, and paint the walls.  We also measured while we’re there.

The closet has shelves on the left and a hanging rod on the right topped by another shelf.

I wanted  to give the closet a fresh coat of white paint and then cover the shelves with some shelf paper I found in my stash.

The left side of the room.

We had a very satisfying start to the project.

Three windows on the dormer are in the second-floor landing where the bed nook is planned.

Tomorrow’s post will feature the before-and-after of a painting day.

Jo

Bins and Boxes

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My task list for January includes lots of clutter control items.

Before Christmas the decorations in the attic were jumbled.

  • Put away Christmas decorations
  • Clear 2 bins from back bedroom
  • Remove  items from clothing closet

Most items are carefully stored.

I have carefully packed our Christmas ornaments for another year.  In the process I was able to downsize the number of boxes by two.

A big area of the attic was cleared and cleaned in December.

All Christmas décor is together in one area of the attic.

Charlie hauled them up to the attic where they are stored, out of the way, for 10 months.

My bin collection had been cluttering the back bedroom.

I have 6 blue bins with a variety of contents, some have paper files — genealogy, renovation — others have specific items like first aid/health related items.

Only one more partially filled bin in the back bedroom.

I have finally collected like items and binned them and sent 3 bins to the attic. (Overachiever!)

Six items have been removed from my closet.

My last task was to remove 5 pieces of clothing from my closet.  I have an almost full donation box in the mud room awaiting contribution to my favorite rummage sale.

The next area to clear in the back bedroom is the top of the dresser which has become a collection of disparate items. dresser

Seeing empty space in the bedrooms is freeing.

Jo

My Bucket List 2021

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Most of my bucket list involves travel which we have been unable to do for about the past 9 months since the Covid virus came to the US.

We are planning a lot of travel.

While we have completed a few items I have also added some new ones to the lsit.

To that end here is my Bucket List: Items in grey have been on the list for awhile; items in blue have been accomplished.

  1. See the pyramids in Egypt –  hoping also to cruise on the Nile and ride a camel.  Planned  for  2023.

    I’d like to visit Egypt.

  2. Inspire somebody to do something great.  I have a friend who credits me with her impetus to do mission work which I think is great. 

    Sug travels to a school in Guatemala twice a year.

  3. Own my house.

    The Glade is our home.

  4. Write a book and have it published — I don’t know what the actual subject might be but I think I would write a fictional story about life among the very wealthy.
  5. Visit the Louvre in France — I have been to the Louvre and have seen the Mona Lisa, Winged Victory, and Venus de Milo. 

    I’ve seen the Mona Lisa.

  6. Ride in a hot air balloon.

    Our hot air balloon ride was magical.

    We enjoyed this sunrise trip on a glorious day in Maryland.

  7. Take a ride in a gondola in Venice.  We visited Venice in September, 2019.

    I have taken a gondola ride in Venice, Italy at sunset.

  8. Go on a cruise — Our cruise was canceled twice in 2020.  We will reschedule when the world gets back to normal.
  9. Audition for a movie — I would have to check the local casting calls.  Getting the part is not as important as auditioning.
  10. Own a beach house.

    The shore house.

    It’s not exactly a beach house but we’re fixing it up and it’s 2 miles from the beach.

  11. Invent something — I’m hoping I could invent something that would be useful and bring in some cash.
  12. Have a million dollars — working on it.
  13. Go whale watching.
  14. Buy a stranger a meal.  I’m not sure how to go about it except to just be brave and do it.
  15. Do something I know is reckless! I would love suggestions on what reckless thing other people would consider doing.  I’m thinking  of doing something like parasailing or paragliding. Charlie thinks I’m nuts.
  16. Fly in a helicopter. I think we could do this on a trip to Hawaii while seeing fantastic scenery.
  17. Read the Bible — I read the entire Bible in a year. Very inspirational and enlightening.
  18. Save somebody’s life.  Who knows how and when an opportunity might arise.  I pray I’m up to it.
  19. Fly 1st class.  Saving my money for an upscale trip.
  20. Make and sell a product.
  21. See the Southern Cross in person.  We  saw  it  in  Puerto  Rico.

    The Southern Cross.

  22. Visit Greece. 
  23. Visit London. We visited London in September, 2018.  It was a wonderful trip. 

    Tower Bridge over the Thames River.

  24. See the Northern Lights — I’d like to view the Northern Lights — the Aurora Borealis — from Iceland.  Planned for the October, 2021
  25. Visit New Orleans.  Planned for February, 2021.
  26. Learn to Tango.  Charlie and I have enjoyed a 6-week tango class.    Perhaps we’ll dance again in the future.

That’s 26 items.  I reserve the right to add more.

Jo

Sewing a Sewing Machine Cover

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Since I planned to make a fabric sewing machine cover my first item was to watch a few  tutorial videos about covers others had made.

Charlie bought me a new sewing machine for Christmas after my old one died.

The steps seemed to line up as follows:

  1.  Measure the sewing machine.

    I made a cheat sheet for myself of all the measurements and notes. (The pocket measurement was altered from the one shown.)

    In addition to height, length, and width, I made a measurement that went from the bottom front over the top of the tallest part of the machine to the bottom back.

  2.  Make a paper pattern.

    A paper pattern helped me make the best use of the fabric.

    I cut 2 pattern pieces from drafting paper: a rectangle with with rounded corners for the side pieces and one long rectangle for the front, top, and back.  After making the side pattern I adjusted the length of the long rectangle to match the length of 3 sides.

  3. Decide whether to add pockets on the outside.  I decided to add a pocket on one of the short sides.  I cut out a 7-inch tall rectangle the width of the side.
  4.  Select fabric fors right side and lining.  I used fabric from an old batik sundress for the outer fabric and a pieced bit of navy cotton from my fabric stash for the lining.

    I was careful to lay the pattern on the straight of grain of the fabric from this bias cut skirt.

    I was going to purchase fusible fleece but found enough pieces of thin batting to interface the project.

  5.  Cut the pattern 3 times: from outside fabric, lining fabric, and interfacing.

    Two side pieces and one body section cut from the lining (navy) and the outside (print) fabrics.

  6. Pin the pocket to the outside fabric and sew into the side seams when assembling.
  7. Sew the lining together.

    I pinned the lining together and checked it for size on the sewing machine.

    I sewed the lining first to make sure the fit was good.

  8. Sew the outside fabric and interfacing as a unit. 

    The outer fabric was interfaced with fleece.

  9. Make a hole for the handle. Place the outside fabric on the machine right side out and the lining on top with the wrong side out.

    The cover right side out.

    Mark the handle of the machine on the inside of the lining.  Sew the lining and outside together with right sides facing each other.

    Slit the handle hole and turn the lining to the inside through the hole.

    A nice neat opening for the handle.

  10.  Finish the bottom by turning the lining to the outside and topstitching.

    Turn to the front and topstitch the lining along the bottom of the item to finish the raw edge.

And Voila!

Note the pocket on the right end piece.

A protective and inexpensive free sewing machine cover that can be machine washed if necessary.

Jo

Inspiration for a Bed Nook

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The landing on the second floor of the shore house is my designated sleeping area when I stay there overnight.

The second floor has a large landing and 2 smaller rooms left and right.

It is at the top of the steps and separates the two upstairs bedrooms from each other.

The hardwood floor is in good shapes on the second floor.

The floor is very nice but the wall is dark paneling.

The bed fits under the window with some room to spare top and bottom.

Even though the walls are dark the room has a southern aspect  and 3 windows which allow sunlight to pour in on most days.

The closet is small but sufficient for a guest.

The room has its own closet which can also be used as a tiny private dressing room.

Paint chips for the shore house.

I would like to build the bed just under the windows and change the color of the room to match the sea tones of the rest of the house — blues, greens, and sand.

Head Over Heels is the color of our Diva Room at The Glade.

Or perhaps something warmer.

Making the bed into a nook would give privacy to a pass-through area.

Here are some photos I am using to inspire the reno:

I love the frame in front of the bed.

I like the color variation inside and outside the nook.

I like the shape of the ends of the bed that act as bedside tables.

I like the fresh white linens.

A bit exotic for me but lots of fun.

Lots of pillows make the space cozy.

A window arrangement much like the one at the shore house but I don’t want the bed so high that I need a ladder to get in.

First task:  Choose a paint color for the walls and ceiling.

Jo

Getting Busy 2021

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As I indicated in my post about last year’s completed projects, I have created a tentative list for this new year.

The Glade

I try to think about progress we’d like to make over the course of the year then assign specific tasks toward that goal in my monthly plans.

Grace Cottage aka The Shore House

Since I’ve decided to make “10” the magic number in 2021, I have a list of ten major projects to work on throughout the year.

In 2021 I hope to:

  1.  Design and build a bed nook in the upstairs landing at the shore house.

    The 2nd floor landing is begging for a bright and cozy upgrade.

  2.  Finish work on the master bedroom at the shore house so it can be used as a bedroom and not as a storage unit.

    The master bedroom has been used to stage building projects.

  3.  Have a deck built onto the conservatory at The Glade.

    I hope this is the year our contractor has the time to build us a deck.

  4.  Rebuild the castle dollhouse.

    The dollhouse castle is ready to be refurbished.

  5.  Install all trim on the first floor of The Glade.

    Trim: small item with big impact.

  6.  Finish renovating the kitchen at the shore house.

    On the list: new floor, paint walls, and ceiling, install glass-front cabinet.

  7.  Work on the Treetops Room at The Glade: Declutter, Repair, Repaint.

    We just discovered that parts of this room were damaged in the 2013 renovation.

  8.  Finish the septic installation at the shore house.

    We were hoping upgrading the lines from the house to the septic tank would take care of our drainage issue but it did not.

  9.  Work on the pond at the shore house.

    We tried a natural cleaner for the shore house pond but it needs more attention.

  10.  Repair side porch at The Glade.

These are not the only projects we’ll be delving into this year.  I make lists so I won’t get sidetracked but I often do.

January, 2021: Plans

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January 2021 Plans

One of the strategic changes I’m making to my monthly goal lists is to go from a dozen items to 10 each month.  Every month last year I fulfilled the list set out before me.  In 2021 my lists will be shorter and perhaps have a new perspective.  I still plan to make progress on projects and plans.

  1. Get my watch fixed and start wearing it. 

    My gold watch needs a battery and a new band.

  2. Organize and remove 2 blue bins from back bedroom. 

    My bin collection needs to be sorted then stored.

  3. Contact friend or family each week.
  4. Read a book:  Pirates on the Chesapeake. 

    The notorious Blackbeard

  5. Take down, organize, and store Christmas decorations.
  6. Remove 5 items from clothing closet. 

    Surely I don’t need all these clothes.

  7. Make a cover for my sewing machine. 

    My new sewing machine needs a better cover than the paper one it came with.

  8. See a movie.
  9. Pick a word to focus on for the month. My word: SIMPLIFY.
  10. Write a goal list for February.

Jo