Adventures with Drop Cloths

I finally got my drop cloth curtains done over the weekend. Which is really saying something considering that we had a surprise Welcome Home Party for Teen1 Saturday night. Lots of friends, lots of laughing, lots of fun. See, there were a few issues with the drop cloths....

I had painted the vintage rod, brackets, and rings last week and LOM had already installed them so that wasn't the problem...

I had plenty of free fringe from Travel Bug so that wasn't the problem....

The problem was there was a huge seam down the middle of one of the drop cloths, so I had to go back and get another one. I'm sure I looked like a dork feeling all the drop cloths there at Home Depot, but I didn't want to get another one with a seam!

Obviously other decorators have had my problem and resorted to inspecting before purchasing so they have this message written on the shelf. And after getting burned on one, I was tempted to start ripping them open, but I resisted and got a good one. Oh, and then there was the wildly different sizes! After I'd attached the fringe, folded the top over 8", and sewn all the rings on I discovered one was 3" longer than the other so I had to rehem it.

So all in all, I'm pleased with the project, but I have a few words of advice. First, make sure you select drop cloths that are the same color and weave. Then feel for seams but be prepared for surprises. Launder them before you use them. Not only does it preshrink them, but it makes them softer. And check the length and be prepared to rehem to make them all the same size.

In spite of all that, I like the fabric so much I'm thinking of making a table cloth out of one too.

Painting Too

Remember our cottage/studio/guest house? Well, that's what else we have been working on here Amongst The Oaks. The Lord of the Manor has been painting, painting, painting. And it is now all Cottagey White inside.

Here is the dining area with the old table and the new green chairs.

And here is the china cupboard painted green.

And here is the other side of the room with the second hand sofa covered with an old quilt. And now the fun can begin: decorating, fluffing, and finally crafting! I can hardly wait.

Chair Project

Some of you may have wondered where I've been. Aside from just being lazy and irresponsible, I've been doing some projects here Amongst The Oaks. Like painting and reupholstering these chairs.

I bought these chairs about 20 years ago and have recovered them many times as you can see. It was like an archeological dig taking the layers of fabric off. Each one was greeted with an exclamation, "Oh, I loved that fabric!"

But I took them ALL off and started from scratch this time. I also...

sanded and sanded on the chairs and repainted them green. I'm putting them in the cottage out back and the theme there is green and cottagey.

So here they are. It is Behr's Boston Fern and it looks very old fashioned to me. I also painted the china cabinet green. I'll show you that later.

For the new fabric I "shopped the house" and found this stuff that I've had even longer than the chairs! It was the upholstery fabric for the settee cushions on a boat we had back in the early 1980s. I'd saved it all these years because I really like it. It may not be "IN" but I like it.

So here are the finished chairs with their new fabric. I rather like the combination and I think it's going to look just right in Acorn Cottage.

Shed Chic

I read a blog called Shedworking nearly every day. Not long ago I entered a contest there and SURPRISE! I won. The prize was a new book published in England called Shed Chic. It arrived Saturday just in time for Mother's Day. What a perfect gift!

I opened it that night and spent two hours pouring over the beautiful photos of amazing sheds.

I thought of Lucy at Attic24 when I saw this colorful photo of the gypsy caravan. See, it's got bright crocheted throws like she makes.

I like this idea too. They have simply hung what looks like a sheet from the roof as a sun shade. And little table with its flowery cloth is so homey.

Or if you are so inclined, you could make a fantastic Wendy House for a lucky child. Isn't this tiny timbered cottage just too cute?

The book is full gorgeous ideas for turning a shed into a more usable space. Apparently sheds aren't just for men anymore. I am suddenly inspired to get out there and finish my shed. Yes, that is this summer's project: FINISH THE SHED!

Thank you Shedworking for the wonderful Mother's Day gift.

Cottage Progress

The Lord of the Manor made good progress on the cottage yesterday whilst I merely held the tape measure, swept the dust. polished the sign, installed two light fixtures, and cleaned the windows.

We also went to the High School to watch Teen1's band perform. It's the beginning of their season so all the parents showed up to support, volunteer, and check out the new show. I generally ride on the bus to the out-of-town performances to help with costumes, hair, makeup and chaperoning. It takes a lot of help to make it all happen, but I really enjoy it.

So back to the cottage; here is the kitchen area, all finished and waiting for paint. The sink will be where the black pipe is. The refrigerator will be to the far left with a counter or dresser between the two. Today we hope to put up the wallboard in the bathroom area. We'll soon be covered with dust again here Amongst The Oaks.

Acorn Cottage

The Lord of the Manor has decided that his shoulder is healed well enough to begin working on Acorn Cottage. Maybe I should explain Acorn Cottage a bit...


When we moved to this house 12 years ago, there was a decrepit old shed on the property. It had a cracked concrete floor, lots of rotten boards, and spiders everywhere. All the windows were painted shut, one door was falling apart, and the roof leaked. We used it to house the gardening tools, camping gear, bicycles, and other assorted clobber. Eventually we remodeled the house and the shed looked really tatty. Suddenly it was way worse than before, so early in 2007, we decided to renovate it into a studio/guest house.

First we cut the shed roof off and suspended a wood floor over the cracked concrete. Then we cut new openings for windows and a door, built a new roof, and made two bump-outs to gain extra space without increasing the footprint. The photo above shows the kitchen bump-out. We put in all new vinyl windows, painted the outside, roofed it ourselves, and tiled the floor. Then the Lord of the Manor's shoulder started giving him trouble. Hmmm, I wonder why?


So over the three day weekend, we started working on the interior finish work. We got a fair amount of wallboard up in the kitchen area. And the Lord of the Manor made these window casings. Most finish carpenters take the little pieces and cut them to fit the window, but my finish carpenter just makes the whole unit and slips it into place.

And here it is in place. Isn't he brilliant? And now I've got to get busy with the paint. I'll keep you posted on the progress here Amongst The Oaks.

Lazy Blogger

Greetings gentle readers,


Sorry I've been such a lazy blogger lately. Can we blame it on too much turkey? We had a nice Thanksgiving; everything went well. We had three capable men doing the cooking and all the food came to the buffet hot and delicious. And we had plenty of pie for dessert - the apple one made by Teen1.

Having three more days off meant time to devote to the latest remodeling project - Acorn Cottage, also known as the guest house. So I finally finished laying the floor tiles. I only have one little area left to grout and then it's ALL done. The Lord of the Manor got the water heater and copper water pipes installed. So we are making progress slowly.

I guess now we can start thinking about Christmas, but we won't put any decorations up until at least December 1st. And I didn't go anywhere near the Mall last weekend either. I simply refuse to be sucked in by all that crass commercialism.

So that's what we've been doing here Amongst The Oaks.

Acorn Cottage

I haven't shown you my studio yet, have I? It started life as a shed in the backyard and boy was it ugly! We're still renovating it, but it should be done soon. The goal is to have a combination studio/guest house. I really need a place to spread out the current project and not worry about messing up the house. The sewing machine has always been a problem. Where in the world does one put that ugly but essential piece of machinery? And what about scrap booking? It seems to expand all over the house if I'm not careful. Where can I store of all the papers, photos, tools, bits and pieces? All this is presently in my bedroom, and hubby is starting to roll his eyes about it. My dream is to move it all to Acorn Cottage, cleverly stored but easily accessible. I want it to look like a tiny cottage, but be dedicated to craft projects. And if we have guests, it should be easy to store everything away in decorative boxes and built-in shelves. Then just pull out the bed, and Voila, a guest house. Won't it be great? I'll let you know how it's progressing here amongst the oaks.