The Pink House

Finally, the rain has stopped and I can post a picture of the pink house. It's a bungalow style, built in 1928. There used to be four big maple trees out front, but one died of old age and now there are three. They give great shade in the summer and turn a beautiful golden, yellow in the fall. I try to eat as many meals on the front porch as possible, since there is always a breeze and a constant stream of car and people traffic, my entertainment. A big wicker sofa and rocking chair on the opposite side of the porch are perfect for sitting and reading, knitting, or napping.

Garden Cloches

Williamsburg, Virginia is a great place to get gardening and decorating ideas and inspiration. On a recent visit, I saw these garden cloches and fell in love with the idea of glass in the garden. A cloche is a bell-shaped glass cover placed over a plant to protect it from the frost. When not in use, it doubles as a piece of art for the garden, as the sun bounces off the surface and creates great plays of shadow and light. I especially like the old green glass ones. They were selling reproductions in the gift shop, but they were a little out of my price range, so I'll have to come up with a DIY way to make my own.

Bath Day for Peaches

Sunday was bath day for my toy poodle, Peaches. She's such a good sport and takes bath day in stride. We have an old claw-foot tub, I'm pretty sure it's original to the house, so it has be 85-years old. A few years ago,I painted it pink (of course...). It is really deep; the perfect place for a good, warm soak...ahhhhhhhhh...

Have a great day!!

Before & After Furniture Part I

In 2004, I picked up the knitting needles again, something I haven't done since 1977. Just like riding a bike, knitting and purling came back and I was addicted. For the next five years, I must have knit 50 sweaters and countless scarves, mittens, socks; I even made a knitted, felted suitcase! But, my favorite things to knit were baby sweaters. My own grandchildren grew too fast for the tiny sweaters I was knitting, so I rented a booth at the Wilcox Emporium in Boone, North Carolina, and proceeded to sell them to the tourists and visiting parents of the college kids at Appalachian State.

So what does this have to do with painted furniture?  To help fill up the booth, I began painting little tables and chairs in whimsical patterns and fun colors. Soon I was addicted to that too! Both knitting and painting furniture has outlasted my booth at the Wilcox Emporium (I lost my lease when the owner decided to turn it into apartments).

Now, my favorite pastime is going to yard sales and flea markets to find "sad" furniture that needs to be lifted up by a new look. I love using different techniques, letting each piece "speak" to me about what it wants.

This metal bench was very sad. I found it in an antique shop that was going out of business. The beige, vinyl seat looked like something that should've been in a boat. A fresh coat of Valspar spray primer & paint and happy floral fabric re-do and suddenly I have a happy bench, or a bench that makes me happy!

Welcome to My Pink House

It's a rainy day in the foothills of North Carolina. I'm sitting on my back porch watching wet birds on feeders thankful I won't have to water the garden today.  This is the first post of my new blog "Musings from a Pink House." I hope to share my love of gardening, painting furniture, and musings about life as I know it with you. I hope I can add some inspiration and ideas to your life as so many other blogs have added to mine.

After weeks of planting and tending to his 25 rose bushes, my husband, Miller, has gotten his first bloom of the season! This is his first foray into gardening. But, even though I have been gardening for over 25 years (even taken gardening classes at the community college) I still get excited to see the first flowers. What is it about these newest blooms that give me so much hope for the rest of the garden?