Considering what's best for Winsome Cottage

The initial blogs you have read are actually from journal entries I started when we first moved into our cottage so I could note the renovations and progress. But as often is the case, "the best laid plans...often go awry" and life gets in the way.

The first two years here, we worked when not at our other jobs. For Sir, that meant weekends and holidays as he commuted eight hours from a different state while working on a PhD in chemistry and as money permitted. A wonderful position in his field became available locally, a new start up with exciting opportunities. He decided to take it and write his dissertation in the off time from the new job. It was wonderful to welcome him home each night. The extensive work on the house was set aside for the duration. I did what I could to make it more livable and attractive, inside and outside in the landscape, knowing the "winsome" in our cottage name was being postponed "for the greater good".

Again, a change in plans occurred. Many of you have experienced something similar in the last few years. The company decide to close, a temporarily stop of operations, due to the economy. We assumed it would improve and all would be right again soon. However, several years later, my husband is still unemployed. 

That is not the worst of it all. During this time while going to get his eyes tested for a new pair of glasses, he assumed he needed because of all the reading and computer work, we learned the cause was related to a diagnosis of Type II Diabetes. He is an atypical diabetic, small of frame, not over weight, no extensive thirst or frequent urination. During blood tests his sugar was never an issue. The specialists believe he may have had it for up to ten years!  He is under treatment at the VA in Tampa, Florida, going every two weeks for injections. The medication is actually originally a cancer drug used to stop the development of the capillaries which feed a tumor. Similar to macular degeneration,  the diabetic retinopathy, is under control and the physicians are able to stabilize and slow further vision loss at this time with laser treatment and the injections. He is legally blind, seeing a bit peripherally. I praise the Tampa VA eye clinic physicians and the care my husband has received!

I have had my own issues as the result of a serious fall at work. Though I am much improved, the road to recovery has been slow. Following a few weeks in a rehabilitation hospital and home health care for several months, my husband has been my primary care giver. Though he had always been helpful about the house, this was a huge change for him! Instead of taking wash out of the washer and putting it in the dryer, he learned to spot treat, hang up, fold laundry and put it away. He cooked meals and did the dishes. Along with help from our sons to shop (hurray for them, too, since he cannot drive) He has done an amazing job. I have one more surgery ahead of me.

All the plans for the cottage have been modified somewhat. Our sons have helped with a few projects in order to make living more comfortable and accessible. A closet was relocated to make work space for the computer and apparatus' the the Center for the Blind and the VA have made possible.

Thanks for being so very patient with this Blog. In the months to come, you will see the Winsome Cottage projects left for another day completed, and new ones begin. Wait until you see what's instore for the kitchen. I'll share Ideas with you, and please, share yours with me!

A sunny yellow for Winsome Cottage

It's been a long, busy and productive weekend. Everything seems so different, because it is!

The walls have been painted in the kitchen, dining and living area. Open shelves and beadboard in the kitchen are up. The pennisula between kitchen and dining area is installed. The upper cupboards of my old kitchen layout look better than imagined, and divides the area slightly. It will hold everyday dishes, as well as things for entertaining. The Mrs. says her gift is hospitality and she wants everyone to feel welcome here. Already it feels like a party. Dear friends have been in to help with the projects. Through the years they have helped each other work on their houses, landscaping and gardens. The work can be hard but they always have fun working alongside each other. There is always laughter, and so many stories to tell!

                                                                   

Winsome Cottage colors

Bold?

I am not bold. I am surrounded and under the shade of several very old oak trees, draped in Spanish moss.
I am hidden from the cars that drive by, unless someone is really looking for me. Infact, even with directions and instructions, people often drive right on by.

Sir has won out, and my exterior will remain barn red, as it has been for a long time. However, as the trim is repaired, The Mrs. is planning to paint it white. It will "perk" my look up, part of my make over. Will I be more noticeable to those who travel by?

Inside, The Mrs. has settled on several colors. The paint is from Behr. It has a good rating and comes from Home Depot. They are the closest of any retailer, so much of the hardware, new construction products, tools and such also come from there. The Mrs. wishes there was a grocery store on the way.

Actually, there is much discussion about the growth of the area around here, one of the fastest growing in Florida. Though I sit in a rural setting, there are actually new subdivisions all about me. There are two advertised "world class" golf resorts within a mile. Disney World is fifteen minutes away. But the family likes the fact that they have a get-away-from-it all here within the shelter of the oaks and my walls.

Back to the bold, The Mrs. paint samples are up on the walls, as she examines them in the varying light of day and night. She has made bold color decisions, at least compared to the white walls I have had. The kitchen will have a lighter yellow called Whisper Yellow, since it is surrounded by shade all day. The dining area yellow is a deeper yellow tone, called Melted Butter. The living area, which gets western sunlight coming through in the afternoon, is  going to be Pollen Grains which is a richer golden yellow. Now that the rooms have been joined together as one great room, seperated by beams, windows and doors, there is not much surface to paint, about two quarts for each area. All the trim throughout the house will be white. The Mrs. likes white trim, inside and out. You can see some of the samples below. Sir likes the reds.

Another trip to Home Depot today. Sir will find a new tool(s). The Mrs. will bring paint home. It will be a busy place around Winsome Cottage again tonight!

Work on Winsome Cottage continues

Whew! Plaster, plaster everywhere!

There is always a mess when there is construction, or renovation. But plaster dust is a nuisance! It goes into every nook and cranny, no matter if you cover and tape off adjoining rooms, it's there! Sir and The Mrs. have renovated and remodeled, or added on to, several homes through the years. She says plaster dust has been her nemesis. And it has been the undoing of several Shopvacs.

The tearing out is over and my face lift begins! Mrs. wants to paint my outside yellow, with white trim. Sir likes my old barn red paint. He says it is just right for the fish camp look. Mrs. says they have almost always had yellow houses and though the conservancy and pond are behind me, I am not a fish camp. There are alot of fishing poles in the workshop. It makes me wonder.

Yellow is a pretty color though. The Mrs. has several samples of yellow paint for the kitchen. She says I must keep my small window over the sink, "for the time being" and yellow will make me look bright and happy. There is also a pretty tourquoise blue for a bathroom, and a deep royal blue for Grandson's room. They want him to be happy when he visits, often is the hope.

The Mrs. called in an electrician to add electrical to the outside and the utility area . The washer and dryer have been moved there. Though it means a walk across the patio, it is not much farther than a walk down the hall of the big house where they used to live. 

The old carport, is the new patio. That is quite a change for me. Within the shade of the old oak tree, it is always cool. There is most often a breeze, but Sir has put up two ceiling fans where the old carport light used to be, to make certain it will be comfortable on hot evenings. A new cement pad outside the workshop has been poured for parking. Of course, I have alot of ground to park on. But The Mrs. says it gets her shoes dirty!

The most time consuming for The Mrs. was the reorganization and placement of the old cabinets and cupboards in the kitchen. She says with a couple of coats of white paint they will look wonderful and serve their purpose. The sink is in the same place under the window, but that sink cabinet has moved to the opposite side where the refrigerator used to be. Two smaller cabinets from the oven area will now frame in the sink. All the upper cupboards are now on the back side of the oven, on the floor in what The Mrs. calls the penninsula, where the old wall was. They face into the dining area. It's like a crazy jigsaw puzzle. Apparently, the family all like to doing those jigsaw puzzles, but not with cupboards.

Reusing and repurposing things has helped the budget. The 2'x4' timber of the old walls has been used to frame the new pantry and refrigerator area. Sir says they are more solid and heavier than the new lumber available. The timbers of my foundation are that way, too.

My old heart pine floors need work, lots of it according to Sir, but worth the effort. He has already removed lots of nails and staples that were holding the dirty, stinky carpet down and replaced a few of the damaged boards with ones from under the sink so they would match. There are some pretty rugs for the floors packed away. I am too messy still.

Having the new beams go up was a lengthy process. But I am standing straight and tall now. The beams are laminated from more of my old wood and being dressed with a cover. I wonder what I will look like. Mrs. says she will hang Christmas decorations from them. It will be wonderful celebrating Thanksgiving and Christmas again. So much to be thankful for, so much to praise! I hope I will be done in time.

Winsome Cottage

It is an absolutely beautiful Saturday morning! The eastern horizon is just showing a scant bit of the brightening sky. It is amazing how the temperature can change from day to day. The air is slightly cool now, and on air such as this hangs my expectation of things to come. It's what calls Sir into my garden, and out to the animal pens, early. The chickens will be so happy to scamper out, racing like school children onto the playground. The cats will scoot passed them frolicking as kittens among them. But when their food is prepared, they all skid to a halt and trot back inside their respective pens like those school children, now called in after recess.

Today is a work day. The "honey do list" for Sir grows daily. Mrs. works along side. Team work gets the jobs done. I expect it will all stop in plenty of time today for Carolina football, a must this time of year. There is plenty of room for viewing since "my team" opened my floor plan. There is much more light and surfaces to sit things on. The Mrs. says we are not finished yet, I am a work "in process".

Winsome Cottage

This has been a busy day at the cottage. It is often said , "This is the dustiest place!" The porches needed serious cleaning as the result of the wind and the rain. Not everything got done, but I look much better. In time, now that the weather is cooler, the porch furniture and trim may be painted. For tonight, the family was all here, and it was nice for every one to sit outside for dinner. Tomorrow is another day. Scrubbery needs trimming. New plants will replace the old in my window boxes for the Fall and Holidays. This is the time of year when there is much activity about here. My rough edges don't look so worn and tired when they have a fresh scrub and pretty colors about. I am excited for the changes.