First impressions

After our bathroom ceiling started peeling last spring, Jeff and I decided a facelift was in order. So far, we've "facelifted" the ceiling, walls, vanity and counter trim (goodbye old oak) and I plan to paint the baseboards and window casings tomorrow. I think it looks brighter and fresher, but somehow still incomplete.

After waffling back and forth between bamboo and roman blinds, the cheapskate in me won out. Roman blinds it will be. Because the bathroom is right off our front entrance, I think it makes most sense to use the same fabric for both. Hence, my dilemma. Neutral? Bright? Black and white?

Here are my four finalists. Votes, suggestions and opinions are most welcome!

Existing space















pretty boring, huh?!?!










Option #1 Safe, neutral and a much better match to the bathroom than appears in my bad photoshop. It also matches pretty well with the light beachy feel of the kitchen and living room. AND... it's a really good quality designer fabric on clearance for $3 a yard. Cheap yes... but also not quite right?














Option #2 This fabric has been one of my favourites for a long time. It's so cheery and happy- but is it better suited to a kids playroom than the front entrance? It's also a pretty big pattern that might get lost on a small window.













Option #3 If you look in my closet, most of my wardrobe is black, white, or a mix of the two. I love this in the bathroom but wonder if it is too boring for the entrance.











Option #4 I love Amy Butler's retro fabrics and have not used one in my home.... yet. I wonder if this might be a good compromise on all fronts, leading both into the grey master bedroom across the hall and ahead into the blue, white and green kitchen.












The plan for the master bedroom (also off the front entrance... weird, I know) is a mix of grey, white and black. The furniture is in place but the pillows and curtains are still lying by a heap beside my sewing machine. Here is my photo board plan to help with a visual until the real thing is complete.



Looking at this... I'm thinking Option #4 but I'm still just not sure.

View out my kitchen window

My very wise sister-in-law once told me that in order to feel close to far-away friends and family, she needed to envision the view out their kitchen window- that view that accompanies both the mundane and the exciting parts of every day life. I think she's really on to something. This past summer, I looked out the kitchen windows of several close friends and family members, all for the first time. Recalling that view is comforting and really does help me feel a little more connected.

Here's the view out my kitchen window this morning.

Preferred transport

One more Ontario photo... on our way to Pearson to catch our flight home, we were passed by a number of interesting vehicles. I was immersed in a magazine until Jeff cheekily asked, "In which van would YOU rather ride to the airport?"!!

From Autumn to Winter

I was just getting used to fall being here, when this happened.










Maybe it will encourage the mama and kidlett raccoons that hang out in our yard (and chatter noisily at night beneath our bedroom window) to move along and find a different home for the winter.

Past Home for the weekend

Ontario is my "past home" and it was wonderful to spend part of Thanksgiving weekend there for my dear friend Pam's wedding. Jeff and I had such a great time and while the weekend was short, we were able to fit in a few visits with friends and go to my church on Sunday morning. And- kick up our heels at Pam's wedding. It was a great time and Jeff's practice whirling me around the kitchen paid off, with our first ever dance to a whole song. Pam should be proud- Jeff doesn't dance for just anybody.

Pam's family adopted me during my decade in Ontario, and it was so wonderful to see and spend time with them over the weekend. Our time was so short that I was focused on spending time with people rather than capturing the beauty of an Ontario autumn. I think in the end, that's what counts.

Autumn

It's most certainly autumn, and the sadness of putting my sandals away until next spring is tempered with how beautiful (and colourful) this West Coast fall is turning out to be. Jeff and I are going to Ontario for the weekend and I can't wait to be back in Waterloo County in what was always my favourite time of year. Happy Thanksgiving!

Grapes and Plums and Peaches, Oh my

Our grape vines enjoyed a hot summer, and tripled their yield from last year. While the idea of stomping them to make wine was tempting, we have instead filled ourselves with pies (a repeat of our favourite from last year), jelly, syrup, and ice cream. I admit- the vibrancy of the ice cream (pre-frozen in this photo) is a little scary but it tastes pretty good.















Jeff perfected a method of seed separation using the salad spinner. By the end of the run, with some help from a favourite cousin-nephew, he had it down to an efficient science.













We realized out of the blue that one of our trees had produced a crop of yellow plums that were hidden under the dense foliage. Those were quickly turned into sauces (one a spicy Chinese dipping sauce and the other, a fruity mango mix) and canned along with 3 flats of Okanagan peaches. Thank goodness for knowledgeable mother-in-laws... half way through canning the peaches, I realized I had no clue what I was doing and Jeff's mom talked me through. She's the greatest.

Ready for Phase 2

I realize that more often than I'd like, I bite off more than I can chew. Jeff has "the look" that he shoots my way- a combination of worry and exasperation. It's always good when a project gets finished, as this one did this past weekend.
My friend Sandy got married in February- she and her dashing German have graphic, modern tastes in most things and so the quilt had to be just right. I designed the pattern from a photo (found while lurking Google photos) and made several mistakes along the way (like miscalculating the number of 4-patch quilt squares by half!). Even with imperfections, I'm quite pleased with the results.

Now it's ready to travel across the country with me for phase 2 (quilting).

Instruments

I live with an instrument builder. It's an interesting phenomenon, watching a mechanical mind mix with a music-loving heart. Jeff can spend hours researching medieval instrument design and has come up with his own harp string tension theory. One of the best afternoons of our marriage was watching him in the Instrument Museum at the Royal Academy in London. He was like a kid at Christmas and it was so fun to watch. Seeing instruments through his eyes has made me appreciate the craft behind the art of music in a whole new way.

Some of my Ontario friends have been requesting a tour of the harps and organs so here goes:

Harps: Jeff's first harp, styled after Brian Boru's traditional Irish harp, is strung with phosphor bronze wires. It sounds a little metallic but is easy to play because the wires are so far apart.

The tall one, "Bronwyn ", is the only one with a name. She is made of maple and is the only nylon stringed harp of the bunch. During construction, her neck wasn't able to successfully stand up to the string tension (~1200 pounds) and she needed some extra braces. Jeff built her during our engagement and that, along with her comfortably playable nylon strings and melodic, warm sound, makes her my favourite. We're told, by a few experienced players, that she's a real beauty.

Jeff's favourite is the double harp (double= two sets of strings for each note). It's also strung with phospor bronze and while pretty to look at, a little too confusing for me to play.

Medieval portatif organs: I asked Jeff to describe differences between the two and he said, beyond decoration, it's a simple difference in compass. Translation? The blue one has 29 notes and the brown one has 22!

Jeff designed both key actions, using double leavers for the brown one and metal "stickers" for the blue one. The brown one has a very light touch that I like a little better. It's also the patriarch of the bunch as the first instrument he ever built. And then there's the Pipe Organ! Made of copper and PVC water pipe, it's rather unique. It probably needs some further wood finishing and the pipes could use some tuning, but it's still a conversation piece. It wasn't so successful sweeping me off my feet (I think it sounds a little like a caliope!) but it certainly made my mom swoon the first time she saw it. Jeff and I joke that if we ever lost our jobs, we would move to one of the coastal islands and build a cabin where he would build instruments and I would grow things, sew things and bake things. Sometimes, it doesn't seem like a half bad idea.