So This is the Dining Room

Remember a few days back I said that I had decided to makeover my dining room? Well, I am getting ready to do it. I have taken everything off the walls Steve has filled in the holes that I made when I hung stuff on the walls. When I moved in I was in such a hurry because my ex was forcing me out of the house that the landlord didn't have time to paint. So Steve has agreed to help me paint. We are starting with the ceiling and working our way down. He told me we could start tonight depending on when he got here after work. I am keeping the ceiling white due to the rental thing. By the way we are going to use wall paint on the ceiling instead of ceiling paint... have any of you done this and found it didn't work? Steve thinks it will work but I'm undecided. The walls are going to be a color I already have a gallon of so saving a little money since I won't be buying any more paint. I will be using Bamboo from Lowe's. I used it before in my old house.

See the cream color in the middle that's the color... These are the colors I used in my old house that I just happened to have the picture of.



Also the same cream color in the signs... The white walls behind the signs is what will be painted. I unfortunately must keep it neutral for the landlord. Oh and I haven't told him yet that I will be painting so shhhhh.



My dining room seems so naked and it echoes...



Little did you all know you were helping me with my curtain dilemma yesterday during my poll. I have this huge window in the dining room that slides open on the right. I have had the long curtains on it, but I think with the redo I'm going to go with valances and shutters below. Though not sure with the way the window opens it will work. Don't mark my words it is not done yet. LOL.



I didn't realize I had so many bowls. And this isn't all of them!!!



Alright see the wall with the window? I had plans for this wall on how I wanted to do it. You'll remember me saying I have NO drawing ability whatsoever. Well, I will give you a rare view into my inability. LOL. I drew picture for Steve of what I wanted so he had an idea of what I was talking about. READY???? Laughing is allowed!!!! Crayons and everything. The thing in the middle with the green scribble is the window so you know what you are looking at. LOL.



Now the drawing has turned into this... This is Steve's drawing. The plans have changed to incorporate furniture pieces I already have and try to save money. He was a little leery in my drawing because I wanted a ton of shelves and he said I change my mind way too much and like to move furniture around. What ME????? LOL He knows me all to well. So we will be adding a few shelves and peg racks. I think I'm gonna use a peg rack to hang my curtains from that way during the warm months I'll use valances, and during the cold months I can slide long curtains on under the valances for warmth. That is if the shutter thing doesn't work. I will also be painting my green pie safe (Seen to the right in the Mercantile picture.) I don't want to give away too much, little by little you will see progress along the way.



Last week I also made a change in the kitchen. I brought up my table I've been storing in the basement. I usually keep my sewing machine on it. So I don't know what I will do now for my machine. The table and bench are one of the first items I ever bought when I switched to primitive. You would of thought it was Christmas to my kids. They were excited to have a table in the kitchen to eat at instead of the dining room all the time.



I also went to the prim shop here in town to buy candles for my candle holders. I need to finish the decorating around them, but I just wanted to show you how they turned out.





Well, off to the shower and then start washing down walls. I am so hoping I can start painting tonight! If not we will this weekend.

Thank you to everyone who participated in the poll yesterday. I will be doing that periodically so that I can get a feel for all of you and your decorating style. If there is something in particular you want to see or want me to show please feel free to ask.

Just a Fun Little Poll

I thought this would be a fun post today. I like to know about the people who visit me everyday. Everyone can vote even if you don't have a screen name.

What type of curtains do you prefer for your home?

• Valances
• Long curtains
• Blinds
• None

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The style of my home is?

• Primitive
• Colonial
• Country
• A mix of all of the above

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The color I use most in my home is?

• Black
• Barn Red
• Mustard
• Blue
• Brown

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I like visiting Blogs because?

• I like being a "window peeper" to get ideas from others how to decorate my home..
• I like the tutorials so that I can make things for my home.
• I like visiting people from other parts of the country and reading about what they are up to.
• I have no life and this is my entertainment. LOL.

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I would like to see more of this on Mary's Blog

• Home pictures
• Tutorials
• Items for sale
• About her family and life

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Thanks for your votes I really appreciate them!

I will be back tomorrow with the torn apart dining room almost ready for paint!

The Mercantile Has Been Updated

Just a quick note to let you know the Gettysburg Mercantile has been updated. Take a look as I have added some items you all have been asking about!!!!

The Gettysburg Mercantile

New Displays

I haven't been up to much except working. I've rearranged a few spots and thought I'd show you. I have made a decision that I'm ready to redo the dining room. This is where I ask you my faithful friends for help. Does anyone know where I can get a bunch of dried tobacco leaves? By a bunch I mean a couple of leaves to tie together to hang. It is not grown around here so if any of you can help me out please email me. I am also in need of some black walnuts. I know it's past season, but keep it in the back of your brain if you see any cheap. I have decided I'm going to go with a tavern/cellar look in my dining room. I am drawing up the pictures because Steve will need to help me with a few things.

Anyway on with the show...

The kitchen displays... I am working on tearing down the border in the kitchen as you can tell.









I wanted to use my new things I just bought so for now this is the dining room.



Next I wanted to show you the signs Char from The Pickled Pepper Patch made me when we did our trade. She traded me signs for bonnets. She made them exactly how I wanted them.





I have a class tomorrow, but I am hoping to update the selling blog on Sunday since it's suppose to rain all day.

Flea Market/ Antique Store Finds

In my last post I talk about being a hoarder right? By the way the show Hoarders Buried Alive is on TLC not A&E. I watched last nights episode AND... one of those ladies was a fabric hoarder too. How ironic... LOL. Anyway, Steve and I were going to go to the Home and Garden show in Wooster, but instead decided since it was rainy we would go to the indoor flea market and antique store here in town. We go quite frequently because you never know what you might find. Most times we don't find anything, but yesterday we made a haul!!!!

Where am I gonna put all this stuff???? LOL

First of all I LOVE wooden spoons and some day Steve is going to make me a spoon rack... LOL The most expensive one was $3.00 but most were $1.00.



I need to make a few small repairs but I really liked how it was printed on paper and burnt around the edges. Sure I could've done it myself, but I would have never thought of it. LOL. $4.00



LOVE my boxes too. I like setting lights on top of boxes just to get them a little higher. $1.00 and $1.50.



Don't ask me what I'm going to do with another candle holder... LOL Steve wanted it because he liked it and wants to make some like it. On the bottom it says it was made in the historic town of Zoar here in Ohio. See the little dowel rod on the top you pull on it and it raises the candle holder up so you candle light and blow out your candle since the sides are all glass. Not sure if I'm going to paint this one or not.



Next is my pride and joy bargain of the day... Looks like a Betty lamp ( I think that's what it is called)... $1.00



Last but not least of the flea market and candle snuffer and candle holder $1.00 and $2.00.



Next we went around to the front of the building where the antique store is. Of course prices are much higher as compared to the flea market. LOL. I did find two things.

First ANOTHER candle holder. I think I'm gonna need some more candles. LOL I know it's not old but I liked the patina on it.





Then I found this cutter coverlet for $25.00. Not so sure I'm gonna be able to cut it though. Maybe if I fold it just right I can hide some of the holes and ripped edges.





So yep many of you are right. It is the thrill of the hunt. Now I just need to purge out some other stuff so I have room for this new stuff. LOL. Easier said than done.

On the Next Episode of HOARDERS

I LOVE this show as well as my son too. If you are unfamiliar with it is on A&E on Mondays with reruns on Sunday. OK it is interesting only to the fact that I know there are people who actually live like this. I have been in their homes due to my job. My Mom is a hoarder but not to the extent that some of these people are. She has piles everywhere the stove, the dining room table, her desk, anywhere there is a flat surface. BUT her aunt was too. When we went to clean out her home when she went into assisted living she had saved all kinds of things, but she also grew up in the Great Depression era where you did use and save everything. I have one of her dressers and not to long ago I noticed a piece of plastic hanging out under the bottom of one of the drawers. The drawers were empty when we moved it so we didn't take them out. So I pulled out the drawer and lo and behold the entire back behind the drawers was shoved full of dry cleaning bags! I pulled out 12 or so. She also saved the old foil type potato chip bags. What she would do with those is beyond me. I have noticed I also have some of these tendencies. Which leads me to the next episode... LOL

It all started in this home in a small quiet town in Ohio... A 35 year old woman, who lives here with her 2 kids. You would never be able to tell from the outside, but once you get inside you see this woman is a hoarder.



Stepping inside... (camera is panning the house) FABRIC!!!! Oh the horror. Piles on the floor of fabric. You see Mary can't help herself when it comes to fabric. For most people it's clothes... but for her this is the weakness.



Mary keeps everything... and buys all types of fabrics... in the bag are old hand crocheted lace ruffles... Christmas items what ever will she do with all this stuff!!!!



Fat quarters and scraps of fabric that might be able to be used for a small piece of finish fabric, or small quilts, you just never know but she THINKS she will use them!



Homespuns, felts, and wool... she doesn't know what she will be using these for but one time she made a stocking out of felt. Oh and then about 4 years ago she small red stockings as gifts for all the children in her son's class at school. The homespun she will use for some type of craft.



And of course you have to have solid fabrics. You see Mary shops at thrift stores and just can't help herself. She sees fabric and she has to buy it. Or she goes to the fabric store and it's on sale so she buys it with no real use in mind. Certainly she must be Amish as she has denim in her piles. Does she think she will be making her own jeans to wear? Or better yet she will be making Steve jeans to wear to work. She even has kept an old mustard linen tablecloth because it is big enough to make a pillow case from.



Finally her biggest weakness... CALICO... Blue,tan, and mustard is the favorite choice. Once she buys it because she LOVES it she finds it impossible to cut. Sure she could incorporate it in a project, but what happens when that thing wears out or has to be thrown away. Then it is gone. They are beautiful to look at and she would LOVE to make a quilt for her bed with some of it. But of course that has not been started yet either. Oh the beautiful bonnets she SHOULD be making. But if she uses the fabric she won't be able to get anymore of it at the store because it will be gone. And she definitely won't be able to get more at the thrift store. You also buy many more yards then what you need for your project to be sure you don't run out and have extra.



Is there help for this? Sure, but she has to want to help herself. We decided here at the show that we would not be sending a psychiatrist to help because she is not ready to change. She continues to shop the thrift stores buying all types of things to redo so there is just no hope! LOL

I was actually going through my stash and reorganizing and thought this would be funny to show you. After Linda from The Keeping Room made a comment that if I had piles she would be calling Hoarders on me. LOL. So here you go I did it myself!!! LOL.

Some Finishes Finally...

I'll start out with the bowl I bought over the weekend that I forgot to show you. It was actually a brighter blue and you know me... gotta prim it up and darken it. So I brought it home and used my trusty stain and here it is... I was just telling Steve I need a new bowl rack made... wink wink.



I have decided I am a hoarder... Yep you heard me and I am admitting it. I go to Goodwill, which by the way, I am now a preferred customer and have a card to prove it. LOL. For those who live in Wayne and Holmes county in Ohio you to can be a preferred customer. Just ask the cashier. You get 10% off your first purchase after signing up. Then they take your email and send you advance notice of sales and extra discounts that others don't get. Sorry I digress... LOL. HOARDER!!!!! I buy things at the Goodwill thinking "yea I could make this over" or "yeah I'll paint that" and then it sits for months. So I finally finished some items I bought.

First is this basket. It was one of those really cheap unfinished baskets. I think I paid a buck. A little brown and black spray paint and... Need to sort through my stuff to find something to go in it.



Next I did finish my $.35 tote. I really like it. A little brown and black paint with furniture wax on top. Looks old don't you think?





Last but not least... and now.... the almost finished new item Steve and I made... No we didn't use anything old... We still need to put the wire handle so that it can be hung. I actually have two of these. We are currently working on some other designs of these.

Without a flash...



With a flash...



I need to get moving and get some errands done so I can clean my house. Yep that includes the dining room table. LOL.