q is for quandie

As I explained in an earlier post, I often fall victim to the domino effect when re-doing something in my own house. Change one little thing, and next thing you know you’ve redone your entire first floor.  I know that you can all relate to this concept.

So, now I’m moving on to what I’m going to call phase 3 of project ‘domino effect’.

The front hallway.

Here is what you see while sitting on the sofa in my living room.

My front hallway.  Not awful.  But it could use some perking up.

Last winter during my ceiling painting frenzy, I also painted the front hallway.  So, the ceilings in the living room and the walls in the front hallway are the same paint … Hirschfield’s Favored One.  I’ll be keeping this color as is.  As you can see, the only trim I freshened up was around the window and the front door itself.  This is even more apparent in the following photos.

In case you were wondering, the mirrored door on the left leads to a giant closet that goes all the way under the stairs.

So, job numero uno will be to repaint all of the trim, which is going to be a monumental undertaking.  OK, maybe that is a slight exaggeration.  Are you getting the hint that I really don’t enjoy painting trim?!  But there is a lot.  Baseboard, crown molding, railing spindles and two doors.

Next, I need to tackle the stairs themselves.  The white carpet has seen better days and needs to go.  I have a couple of ideas.  One is to do a faux painted runner on the stairs and the other is to add an actual striped runner.  Here are some examples from pinterest.I (and when I say I, I really mean my husband) will rip out the carpet and see what I find under it before I make any final decisions.

While we’re on the subject of the stairs, I have considered whether or not to paint that newel post.  It is the last remaining bastion of unpainted woodwork to be found in my house.  I know I would love it painted, but I also am rather fond of it as is.  Anyone want to weigh in?

I am also considering painting the front door black.  I’ve been admiring black doors for a while, but I’m just not sure I can go there.  Will it look odd to have a black door with white trim?  I found these examples on pinterest to get an idea of how it would look with my white trim and aqua walls.

I’ve got to say, I think I like it.  I’m pretty sure the door is going to go black.

And can I also just say, how much do you love that ceiling light fixture in the picture on the left?  Fab.  And it would look great in my hallway too.  Unfortunately the one I have out there is fairly new and I was intending for it to stay.  I wonder how expensive that one in the picture is??

The final pièce de résistance will be the window.  At least I hope so.  My mother-in-law makes stained glass windows.  Now that she has moved back from New Orleans, it will be much more feasible for her to make a window for this spot for me.  As soon as she has her workshop set up, I will be asking begging her to make a window for me.  After all, that spot just cries out for a fabulous window.  After watching an episode of Rehab Addict (does anyone else love this show?) I am leaning towards a simple leaded glass window with little to no color (pictures from pinterest).

Something that still allows all the light in, but looks gorgeous while doing so.

Are you noticing a lot of black and white?  Just outside the front door is this floor on my porch.

So bringing more black and white into the hallway makes sense.  I’m kind of a big fan of black and white in both my decorating and my wardrobe.  But will it be too much black and white?  I wonder.

Once all of these bigger items are tackled, I’ll decide on the fun stuff.  What to hang on the wall above the radiator for example.  Currently I have this vintage board game on the wall.  I might keep it, or I might not.

I’m going to have to get crackin’ on this project because if I don’t get it done before spring, I won’t get it done.  Once the weather turns nice, I’ll spend all of my time either in the carriage house painting furniture or in the garden … and then there is garage saling … you get the idea.

Let phase 3 commence!

I never consider a room DONE.  There is always some detail that still needs to be tweaked.  Rooms are continually evolving.  And in the end, I’m never quite completely happy with them.  The perfectionist in me has a problem with that.

So, that being said … I’ve ‘finished’ project ‘domino effect’ … sort of.  But not quite.

As you can see, my living room is small.  This is a 1904 farmhouse.  There is nothing extravagant about my house.  These windows face the street (and north).  I have an enclosed porch out front and that is what you are seeing through the windows.

If I do a complete 180 from this spot, I see this view.

The wall and trim paint is finished in both rooms (thanks to a little help from Lacqui and nnK).  As you can see, I carried the same stripes from the piano room through the archway into the living room.

 I’ve decided that I can keep my sofa …

and chair for now.  I was worried they would look dingy and too beige, but they actually just continue to look neutral.  They still match each other, and down the road I’d like to replace one or the other.  But they are really super comfy and aside from being filthy, still in pretty good shape so I will get them professionally cleaned and call it good for now.

My big splurge for this re-do is the new coffee table.  I struggled with this purchase.  Part of me felt like I should get creative, and find something fabulous to re-purpose as a coffee table on my own.  But, I’ve always admired these factory carts, and when I saw this one on craigslist I knew I had to have it.  I’ve mentioned that I’m usually a complete cheapskate, but sometimes I’m not afraid to spend a little more on something that I absolutely must have.

  I sent my husband to Minneapolis to pick this up from Josh and Heather of Ferrous Furnishings.  You can see some more of their very cool stuff here:  https://www.facebook.com/FerrousFurnishingsMinneapolis (check out the amazing bar cart!).  I was a little nervous because I couldn’t go with him, and I was entrusting him with the final purchase decision.  But I had exchanged several emails with Josh, and he answered all of my questions and was super nice to boot.

The hubby thought the cart was fab on sight and brought it home and it’s perfect for our living room.

Now, you may have noticed a couple of things.

First, I haven’t added much to the top of the factory cart aside from a wooden box full of my fav magazines, Jeanne d’Arc Living.  I’m struggling with what to place on it that won’t block my view of the TV (hey, a girl has to be practical!).  Do I need something more, or should I just leave it?  You’ll also notice that I haven’t shown you the TV, here it is in it’s own little corner.

As you can see, I don’t bother to try and hide it.  Candace Olson, when asked what decorating items to get rid of, said “a big monstrosity of a TV cabinet with the television concealed behind doors. Get over it, honey, TV is here to stay.”

Next, once again I am in a quandary about the window treatments.  I’ll leave the three front windows bare, but I must have something on the window behind the sofa.  Unfortunately the neighbor’s living room window has a bird’s eye view straight in through that window.  For now I have used a vintage linen tablecloth hung from a simple tension rod.  It’s lovely when the sunlight is shining in through it, but is it too delicate for this room?

Finally, I started out with my grandfather’s watercolors on the wall above the sofa.  They may look OK in the pictures, but I felt they were too small.  There was a lot of empty space above them.  So, I pulled out this old mirror frame, quickly painted it in my new favorite color, Kitchen Scale, and threw it up on the wall.  It’s the perfect size, but now I need to come up with something to put inside it.

A reproduction vintage map of Rome?  A collage of ironstone plates?  Some vintage family photos?  So many possibilities … what do you think?  See what I mean?  I’m never really done.