Get Thee To Craigslist!

I admit it.  I have been hogging buying all the good stuff on Craigslist.  This has been previously established.

My deepest apologies to those who came after me...

Alas! My conscience can take no more!

Before you start to think I have come to this decision based on my selfless, giving, magnanimous nature I must reveal the truth.

I have everything that I need! Well, with a few exceptions.

I know it's difficult to believe, but I am done (ish).

Disclaimer:  Blogger reserves the right to change or modify the aforementioned statement at her sole discretion at any time. Any change or modification to the Terms will be effective immediately upon posting.  For any material changes to the Terms, Blogger will take reasonable steps to notify you of such changes.

(Just in case Blogger sees something Blogger didn't know she needed.)

Now that that's out of the way...

Please use this handy guide to help to navigate through the hallowed halls of the towering monolith that is Craigslist.  Most of us have Pemberley tastes on an Ikea budget but that needn't stop us!

Here is a sampling of recent Craigslist finds to inspire...

The Montgolfier hot-air ballon chandelier, the table, dining chairs, armoire, armchairs, Louis XVI parlor table, altar candlestick lamp...even the marble that is in the front, left side of the photo; all of these came from Craigslist.  The remainder came from ebay. Except for the cat toys scattered on the carpet.  Can you see them?  Can you see Atticus, our beloved black and white kitty?  Look behind the chair.  Hi Atticus!  Gosh, how I love that cat!  Such a little gentleman!

This French cabinet is almost five feet long and  four feet high.  See the raven-drawn pumpkin carriage that I made for Gracie last year?  The chairs came from Craigslist, as did the French brass candlesticks.

The cabinet is perfect for the entry!  I had the pier mirror- turned French trumeau there but I really wanted something that I could use to display seasonal decor.  

The pier trumeau now blocks off the front stairwell.  I like it there.  Handsome Husband says it can stay!  We have two staircases leading to the second story.  How many staircases do we need?  I mean, really?

The painting is almost six feet tall!  It is perfect in the foyer, with its 18 foot ceiling!

Handsome Husband bought the painting for me from a local shop after my daughter was born.  It is a reproduction, done in oil, of William-Adolphe Bouguereau's La Charite. 

I originally wanted to hang one of my large French pier mirrors over the chest but they are the kind of heavy that would make me neurotic. 

The kind of heavy that would make me worry day and night.

The kind of heavy that cannot and will not be  hanged hung installed on my walls. 

There are many ways to die.

  I will not accommodate any arrangement that risks a loved one being crushed by the massive weight, whilst simultaneously punctured by shards of antique mirror. 

But, honestly, what a way to go!

Seriously.  Have you seen those mirrors?

Everyone is gearing up for Halloween!

Craigslist mirror, painted with Annie Sloan Paris Grey and Dark Wax.

The chandeliers are finally hung hanged installed.  However, a few are from Europe and I am waiting on my socket adaptors from ebay.  The bulbs in Europe are a different size than in the States.  I had no idea how much it would cost to hang all 25 chandeliers! Well, it's worth the peace of mind to know it was done right!  

That's what I keep telling myself, anyhow.

With that kind of money we could have adopted this perfect angel and even fed her for a week or two!

This is Sadie, one of our recent transports!  I wish we could have kept her!

I am so pleased with the way the Library looks!

Sometimes, I go stand in the Library so when Gracie or Handsome Husband ask me where I am, I can say "I'm in the Library!" in a falsetto, fake British accent.

It's just something that I have wanted to do since I was a child.

It never gets old!

Guess who?

French chest from original Craigslist ad.  

I practically stalked the poor people who were selling it until I was certain they got my emails.

It was so inexpensive that I feel like I stole it!  I half expected police helicopters to hover overhead on the ride home!

I added escutcheons that I happened to have on hand (doesn't everyone?).

One of six French Walnut Cane Seated Fauteuils (foh-TAY'-yuh) from Craigslist.  I didn't need them but for $200 they came home with me!

Now what?

I have carried them into each and every room of my home and remain uninspired.  There just has to be a place for them!

I need a flow chart  Yes!   A flow chart!

All my problems would be solved if I had a flow chart!

Finally!  This chandelier has been waiting a long time to be hanged hung installed!

Here is her transformation...

The image on the far left is what she looked like on Craigslist.

Not sure if I like this chandelier hanging in the Breakfast Room.  

Now I want to trade it with the one in the Master Bedroom.

Ugh!  Make up your mind, Andie!

I have yet to install the grisaille ( gree-zah-yuh) panels and repaint the secretary.  So please stop asking, Betsy.

This has been a very good Summer to work on the gardens, so the inside had to wait.

I promise to take photos in the next few days! Wait until you see the potager!

I am sitting at this table at this very moment.  I think it's the first time I sat down all Summer!

So much more to share!

            In the coming days and weeks, be prepared to gasp in abject awe and admiration!

                                               

xo,

Andie

Sharing with Sherry, at No Minimalist Here, Open House Party Thursdays!

Pamela, at From My Front Porch to Yours, Treasure Hunt Thursdays!

Yvonne, at Stone Gable, Tutorials, Tips and Tidbits!

Kathryn at The Dedicated House, Make It Pretty Monday!

Courtney, at French Country Cottage, Feathered Nest Friday!

Cindy, at My Romantic Home, Show and Tell Friday!

I Can Explain!

Hellooooo!  Remember me?

 I haven't been myself lately.  Well, actually somebody else has been me.

I can explain...

My computer was hacked.  My email accounts were hacked.  My ebay, paypal and Amazon accounts were hacked.  Thank the Good Lord they didn't hack my Pinterest!  That would have been the last straw!  For cryin' out loud, though!  Don't people have better things to do with their time than to attempt to steal from random strangers?  If they spent that kind of effort on getting an education or a legitimate job instead of indulging in illicit activities the world may have already had the cure for cancer.  Geesh!  Some of my accounts are gone forever but I think they actually did me a favor in the long run! I never realized how much I depend on my email for things like phone numbers, addresses, passwords to all my accounts!  I do now, however. But I digress...

I still had Craigslist.  Wait until you see...

Anyhow, I am mostly back.  I've missed me so!  LOL!

I have been able to read your blogs but I had not been able to reply since my gmail account was compromised.  I actually got it back then it was hacked again.

Being offline gave me the time I needed to get off my derriere and get some work done outside.

Why, yes!  This is the Aidan Gray Laura Mirror that I found on Craigslist for $30!  I have two!

We have been working on the potager, our formal kitchen garden.  There were myriad challenges associated with that one!  Translation: If you have a bad feeling about your contractor you're probably right.  *sigh*  I have to say that it looks better than I could have imagined!  I couldn't even look at the potager bed for almost a month until I came up with an idea to fix it!  I am much happier than if it had gone my way in the first place!

We also planted a total of  forty Limelight Hydrangeas, thirty Arborvitae, sixty Hicks Yews,  twenty-one red Knockout Roses,  twenty-five Annabelle Hydrangeas, sixty more boxwood, over 200 perennials, apple trees, pear trees...

When I say we, what I really mean is me.   Someone has to go to work to pay for all this.  Handsome Husband worked a lot of overtime this Summer!  

Speaking of overtime...the weeds were neverending this year!   I actually used Preen, a pre-emergent that prevents seeds from germinating, in the front parterre.  I hated to do it but I could not keep up with the weeds!  Mr. Toad hopped through the Preen granules when I applied them.  I panicked!  I ran after him and gently washed him off with the hose, then set him in the side gardens.  I was so worried he would suffer adverse effects!  Not Mr. Toad!  He is happily hopping around his parterre domain as I type. I love that little guy.

Unfortunately, it is difficult to photograph our new plantings because our neighborhood is so new, all you see is the neighbor's houses. The plantings need to grow a bit more, I suppose.  I will try to get better photos.  I am really excited to get your feedback!

The hedges to the right of the parterre are computer generated. In real life they are only two feet tall and three feet apart!  Also, though my neighbor recently had a new fence installed, it merely highlights their primary colored swingset, enhances it, if you will.  I edited that out too...In time the Limelight hydrangeas will grow to cover the view.

I already harvested the first crop of lavender from the circular beds.  The second crop will be ready in September.  The Lilac Standards were Handsome Husband's Mother's Day Gift to me!  The Autumn Blaze Maple in the left rear was my Birthday gift to him.  The leaves stayed red since it was planted in Spring. 

Remember when the parterre was just a baby!?  *sniffle*  Look how much it has grown!  I trimmed it for the first time this Summer!  First haircut!  *sniffle* *sniffle*

Tomorrow, I will rearrange the boxwood surrounding each lilac standard.  The linear shape is a distraction.  I am shaping them into curliques!

It's good to be back among my Blog friends!  I have missed you!

xo

Andie

Blossoms...

"Let us be grateful to people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.”

 ~Marcel Proust 

For my friends...who make me very happy indeed!

xo

Andie

In the Gardens...

The good, the bad and the ugly!

A work in progress...

Learning as I go!

Two hundred tulips waking up!

We had three stamped concrete patios installed last Summer. The color is integrated as well as applied atop the uncured cement.  We chose three colors to mimic the patina of slate. The boxwood will eventually form a lovely hedge. Boson Ivy will soon flow over the wall and column like a green wave!

Close-up of one of the patios.  I love the results!  I really labored over the colors. The gentleman at the concrete company talked me out of going darker but I think I would have really liked it darker.  I still love this, however!

Back patio off the sunroom.The pergola will be built this Summer. The armillary sphere is encircled by boxwood and three types of reblooming black-red daylilies.  See the Wisteria in the lower right corner, waiting for something to climb?

View from sunroom door.  I planted the arborvitae close together so they form a hedge to block the view.  I have not mowed around the boxwood because there is a mama bunny under there!  This area will be pea gravel.  The grass does not like the clay soil.

I need to block the view of the neighbor's swingset. This is the beginning of the pea gravel path and Shakespeare Garden that lines the side of the house.  There is another just like it on the other side.  The front and back yards are formal and the sides have an English garden look. All garden ornaments found on Craigslist, including the limestone column capitals from a bank in Wisconsin, to the upper left in this photo.

Lion on the left side of the driveway.  The 200 tulips I planted in November are about to bloom!

I need to block the view of the other neighbor's house and garbage cans on this side.

Newly planted Autumn Blaze Maple toward the back of the front parterre.  Hopefully it will block the primary colors of the neighbor's swingset! You can also see the English flower garden path, closer to the house.  There are hundreds and hundreds of perennials ready to burst into color!

Oh!  How I love garden ornaments!  I am in the process of thinning the herd! THAT is the hardest part!

Craigslist gates, installed at the front of the English pea gravel garden path on opposite side of house.  You can see the roses in their packaging that I am going to plant today!  The espaliered apple trees will go against this wall.

It has proven difficult to get a photo of the entire boxwood parterre!  It is over 20 feet long!   The boxwood circles are six feet in circumference to give you an idea...

The circles are filled with lavender, which has just begun to wake up after a long, cold Winter.  I will be changing the design somewhat.  Also, the larger boxwood will be replaced with lilac standards, which are lilacs grown into tree form.

This is the view from the parterre.  :(

We will also be planting a Yew hedge from the sidewalk and around to where the new tree is, to block the neighbor's yard (see the swingset?) and view from the street. I am still trying to decide what type of Yew to use.  Any advice?

We are also having a retaining wall built so we can plant our potager, which is a fancy French word for fancy French vegetable garden!  

Our entire backyard is on a slope and it is not very large.  That's why the large boxwood parterre was planted in the front.  

Once the retaining wall is built we can plant the potager and build the reflecting pond.

This pavilion was free on Craigslist!  It is difficult to tell but it is surrounded by boxwood.  Soon the red rose garden that encircles the pavilion will be in bloom! This is the third year for the climbing roses, so I hope they begin to cover the iron facade!  The grass will be replaced with pea gravel.  What was I thinking when I put grass there?

The dog statues represent our beloved Max and Lola, our rescue pit bulls.

Lovely view of the empty lot next door, don't you agree?  We are planting more arborvitae behind the structure to block the view.

This cherub fountain spitter from Craigslist has been patiently waiting for the reflecting pool.  Most likely, next year. See how close my back neighbor is?

I just purchased this patio set from Craigslist!  This is the Craigslist photo. I think I will paint it black.  It sits near the pavilion. 

This is where I have been spending my time!  How have you been, friends?

xo

Andie

Sharing with Alison at the Polo House Blog, Favorites On the First!

I Want to Be Her Friend!

“You've gotta dance like there's nobody watching,

Love like you'll never be hurt,

Sing like there's nobody listening,

And live like it's heaven on earth.”

~William W. Purkey

xo,

Andie

Ways To Help Victims of Boston Bombing

Just a brief post to remind you that if you Text REDCROSS to 90999 to give $10 to American Red Cross Disaster Relief, which helps people affected by the bombing in Boston, as well as disaster relief on a larger scale.

Please consider making a donation today.

Here is a list of local Boston organizations and ways they are helping.

A little assistance on how to pray when you want to scream instead.


xo,

Andie

Espalier! Yay!

Grab a cup of coffee and enjoy this informative video on espaliered trees!  Then try to guess who is getting new trees this Spring?

If you're unfamiliar with espalier, it's a way of training tiny, branchless saplings (called whips) into beautiful two-dimensional shapes. It's generally done with apple or pear trees, but other types of trees such as willow can be used, too. It can take up to four years to accomplish the desired shape, but the result is so stunning, it's worth the wait. Here are some different types of espalier:

This man is a font of knowledge on the topic of espaliered trees...

I could listen to Peter Thevenot's voice all day!  (Especially when he pronounces French words!) When I called the orchards, located in Tennessee, I had to listen really hard to understand what they were saying!



Eight thousand projects and only two hands!  If I were a patient woman I could espalier my own trees.  It doesn't look too difficult!  I'm not getting any younger, though!  I could die before I see the results!


Click here for more information on River Road Farms.


Going to paint my secretary now!


xo

Andie

Almost There!

Usually, when I find a piece of furniture, I know exactly what colors I will paint it, which hardware will be used, etc.  Not with this secretary!  After much ado, I have made a decision!  I thought the day would never come!

I have decided on the color...finally!  With the help of pixlr I am able to better envision my goal.  The secretary is currently painted in Annie Sloan Coco.  I will repaint the entire piece in Annie Sloan French Linen, including the finials. (It's the best I can do, Betsy! I cannot figure out how to cut them down!) 

The grisaille panels will be antiqued so they lose the glare.

This is the third set of posters I bought online! More on that later.

The inside will be painted Annie Sloan Louis Blue and Dark Wax!

I had better get to work!

Once it arrives, (from ebay) this mirror frame will have antique mirror added and then secured under the arch above the doors.

Deciding on which direction to take this piece, including color, was the most difficult part.  Now I can have some fun!

I should be finished soon!

Stay tuned!

xo

Andie

Andie's Folly

Though I love the concept of paintings in the panels I do not love the reality. This is something we would have to look at every day and it was a bit too much.  Furthermore, it doesn't match one single, solitary item in our home!  What was I thinking!?  

Sooo...

Back to the beginning...

and

Grisaille panels on the way!

Actually, they are posters from Zazzle.  The only three halfway decent candidates. I should know!  I looked at about 52,000 posters last night. There is probably a better place to find grisaille paintings but please don't tell me about it.  It's too late. The order is processing.  I might cry.

A few other changes as well.  Not too many!

Now, what can I do with the other panels?  I think I have an idea!

Have you ever had a project like this?   One that had you running in circles and shaking your head in dismay?  One that made you question your abilities and/or your sanity?

Please share your stories so I don't feel alone in my failure!

xo

Andie

Step Three, Then Step Two

I wanted to share the process of painting my secretary with my Blog friends!  This is actually step three.  I will show step two next time!

I didn't paint the exterior with Annie Sloan Graphite and Dark Wax until I applied the paintings.  I wanted to be certain I would love the color.  The Graphite is the color found in the background of Rembrandt van Rijn's paintings, as well as many other Old Masters.  I think it is perfect!

I guess we can call the style of this secretary Venetian?  Baroque? Florentine?  After much research I found many secretaries that inspired me, so I chose characteristics from each that I admired...

Niccolo dell’Abbate, Chimney breast 1552, Château, Écouen, France Painting...

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Petite Painted Antique French Louis XVI Ladies Secretary...

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This Venetian secretary is stunning!  I actually got the idea for the panels when I noticed how lovely the painting looked next to it in this photo!

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This color combination was an inspiration. 

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Though I love this panel from an 18TH century French secretary, I really don't have the time to copy it!

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I was also inspired by this Dutch Baroque inlaid walnut secretary cabinet. It sold for $77,000! 

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They are calling this a Venetian, Rococo, Baroque secretary.  I love the details and even considered applying acrylic mirror panels to the doors of my own, until I came to my senses!  It was challenging enough to cut the posters to shape!

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The exterior paintings are (L) Birth of the Sun by Corrado Giaquinto,  (R)Triumph of the Seasons by Baldassarre and The Triumph of Flora (Bottom), by Nicholas Poussin.

The entire piece will be painted in Annie Sloan Graphite and the trim, including the finials will be Old White.

This putti is five inches across...it will go near the crown.  I may apply a convex mirror under it but I don't have one here.  Once all the paint and decoupage is done I can look for a suitable mirror if I decide it needs one!  I am still recuperating from the cost of the torch finials on ebay!

I think Annie Sloan Aubusson with Dark Wax for the interior.

These posters are reproductions of allegorical paintings entitled Spring and Autumn, respectively, by Christian Bernhard Rode.

As you may have guessed, I chose a garden theme.  The secretary is in the corner of the Breakfast Room and the paintings are great conversation starters.  It faces the Sunroom and the back gardens.

I cherish your opinions!  What do you think of these choices?

xo

Andie

Trying Everything On...

Hi guys!  Happy April Fool's Day!  I had considered playing a prank but I really cannot top my post from a few years back! The comments are priceless!  I read them again today!  LOL!

Today I want to share the beginning process of the secretary I am working on.  The original factory finish was pretty but it was a little plastic looking.  Too perfect.  Also, the colors weren't working in the Breakfast Room.

I tried on the new (antique) hardware and the flame finials.  It is currently painted in Annie Sloan Coco but I am going over it in Graphite and solely Dark Wax tonight, then I will add the decoupage panels.   I still don't know what color I will paint the interior.  It's a toss up between Annie Sloan Duck Egg, Louis Blue or Aubusson.  Once I install the panels I will have a better idea.

Aren't the tulips beautiful?

This is a better view of the hardware.  I have aged the brassy escutcheons with burnt umber paint.

I am excited about this one!

I hope everything goes as planned!

xo

Andie