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Decorating

Antiques

ironstone pitchers | which way should the handles face

This post has been sitting in the drafts for a while and I opened it up, looked at the pictures, and it made me smile.  So, let’s dust it off.  This post draft came from a few comments I’ve received over the years about the direction of the handles on the ironstone pitchers in my photos.  Obviously, I place things carefully and intentionally but had never thought about which way the handles should face.  I just arrange them in a way that looks aesthetically pleasing to me. Over the years, though, several blog readers have pointed out that most of my handles tend to point left.  Then people ask if I’m left-handed.  I’m actually right-handed, but I play several sports as a lefty.  I do left-handed cartwheels (when I did cartwheels), play mini golf, and hold a bat as a lefty.  I throw with my right hand, though.  All of

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1970 home renovation

front garden plans | 1970 home renovation

When we tell people that we moved to Maryland from Minnesota, the first thing they mention is the winters.  “Oh, I bet you’ll enjoy these winters a lot more!”  Well, actually, no.  I’m one of those rare people who prefer the cold.  I am pale, blonde, with light eyes, and I just melt in the heat.  I turn beet red, I burn, I break out in hives, and too much heat makes me feel nauseous.  I’m already missing the snow.  But, I am looking forward to having a longer growing season and a wider variety of plants when it comes to gardening.  Gardening in Minnesota was hard for me!  We had some particularly harsh winters that killed even hearty boxwood bushes.  Since I broke my gardening baby teeth just about 40 minutes away from here at our former PA house, I feel like I can make a pretty good go

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1970 home renovation

new lights for the hallway | 1970 home renovation

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Lamps Plus.  As always, all words and opinions are honest and my own. As I shared yesterday and in other posts about our 1970s home, one of our goals is to brighten it up.  So far, we’ve removed unnecessary window coverings, added recessed lights in six rooms, and pulled out or trimmed overgrown landscaping that blocked natural light.  Little by little, we’re noticing a difference and the house is becoming well-lit, which is not only welcoming, but it’s practical.  We can actually see what we’re doing! An area that still felt so dark, though, was the hall.  It is the only space in the house (excluding parts of the basement) that doesn’t have any natural light.  It relies completely on the windows from the adjoining rooms.  My boys like to keep their blinds drawn and doors closed (they are teenage boys, after all), so

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Antiques

my favorite source for antique European antlers

I was at an antique store years ago with my mom and I spotted a pair of antique German stag antlers.  I immediately felt drawn to them.  I couldn’t express why at that particular moment, but I kept going back to them and finally took them carefully off the wall of the booth where they were hanging and claimed them by tucking them into a cubby by the checkout counter.  When I took time later to reflect on that purchase, I found vague memories of antique stag antlers mounted on beautifully carved wooden hangers in places we stayed when traveling around Germany and Europe.  I remember them hanging on the wall over corner benches, next to checked curtains.  I remembered them in restaurants and Gasthauses (a German “guest house” aka bed & breakfast that was often like staying in someone’s home.) I don’t remember taking great notice of them at

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1970 home renovation

the paint colors I selected | decorating

Several people have been asking, so let’s talk paint colors and which ones I selected for our house.  I didn’t feel much urgency for selecting colors since I had so much wallpaper to strip, but now that the job is completed, I am ready to get rolling.  It was nice to have that unhurried time, though, so I could firmly make my choices.  Paint is one of the most cost-effective ways to transform and update a room, but it still costs money and it still takes time and energy.  You want to get it right if you can! After living with paint swatches for a while (you can read about my paint swatches HERE), I selected Farrow & Ball’s Card Room Green for the living room.  Truth be told, that was the color I had in my mind the whole time, but I needed to live with it a bit,

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1970 home renovation

tips I learned from the pros stripping wallpaper

I told you I would only write a couple more posts about stripping wallpaper, so let’s just get one out of the way.  This post is prompted by the people asking if I snooped and picked up some tips from the pros who were stripping off our wallpaper and glue. The bad news is that they didn’t have some magic product or technique that made the paper and glue magically fall off.  It was still messy, laborious, tedious, and challenging just as it has been for me and every other human who has had the misfortune of having to strip wallpaper.  There is just no way around it.  I did pick up a few things, though, that I thought I would pass on. If you missed it, you can read how my mom and I removed the wallpaper glue in the primary bedroom HERE.  We’ve since been using a steamer

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1970 home renovation

new bedroom windows | window world review | 1970 home renovation

This is a non-sponsored review of working with Window World to replace the three windows in our Master Bedroom.  Since I wrote this post, we have been repeat customers, and I’m now working with them as a blog sponsor. When we first started our home renovation projects, I felt like we had more than enough saved and dedicated to comfortably do all of the projects we wanted.  As I’m sure many of you have experienced in the past, that money can go a lot quicker than you expect.  Some projects have come in delightfully under our expectations, but the ones that have been over have been way over.  The floors cost about double what we anticipated.  And the roof, which we weren’t planning on doing for a few more years, came in about 30% higher than what we expected.  All of the little projects, materials, and required tools have also

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1970 home renovation

the jewelry of the house | grandeur hardware

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Grandeur Hardware.  As always all words and opinions expressed are honest and my own. The projects on our house slowed down a little bit over the holidays, but we’re starting to ramp up again with more wallpaper removal, a few new windows, the installation of recessed lights, dining room built-ins, and a kitchen renovation.  While there are so many big things to do, we’re also working on some of the little details like sewing and hanging curtains and replacing some rickety old doorknobs with some luxurious solid brass doorknobs by Grandeur Hardware. I was excited about replacing some of the key doorknobs in the house, those to bedrooms and bathrooms, but I underestimated how stunning they would be in person.  We have very simple hollow core doors, which we’d eventually like to replace, but just adding a beautiful knob with a classic Carré short

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I’m Marian, a painter, writer, and lover of all things creative. From art and antiques to home projects and everyday life, I share my journey in hopes of inspiring you to embrace your own creativity and make beauty in the spaces you live.

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