I Swear I Have an Excuse... and the Built-Ins are almost done!

 

Oh hi there! It's been a while,  but I swear I have a good excuse. So, one of my biggest pet peeves in the 'blog world' is when a blogger just randomly stops posting out of nowhere- especially when people are at least used to a consistent schedule. You mean to tell me that these blogging people actually have a life outside of their computer that would constitute them associating with the real world? While I doubt any of my 2 blog followers went through withdrawal (Nathan and Mom, you can be honest), it's still way annoying and I hate that I took two months off….  IT IS BLOG BLASPHEMY!

 

Anyway- when I started this thing I swore I would never be one to drop off the face of the earth, but then I was introduced to the "First Trimester" and became good friends with my couch. Not to be dramatic- well maybe a little- but I literally didn't do any productive project from the end of October to about a few weeks ago. I even had so many plans for Christmas posts, but eventually the thought of putting up decorations made me want to vom. Thankfully, my mom and dad came down and helped get my house into the holiday spirit, but no blog posts were produced. Maybe I'll do a Christmas in July special since I did manage to get a few pictures of some décor.  Scratch that- I'll have a newborn baby in July. Sooooo Side Note:  Looks like I will also be taking a blog hiatus this summer too.  I hope you survive it.  

 

Back to blog stuff and an end to my rambling…. One thing that we were productive on was the built-ins. (And by we, I mean Nathan and Josh). I know it's not the most exciting project in the world and has taken a while- but we are almost complete! You can see the previous posts here, here, and here.

 

 

 

 

The only thing left to do is install new doors on the existing cabinets, add some hardware, and finish off the legs of the NEW cabinet!

 

 

 

Yes- the new cabinet has arrived in all of its glory. It was constructed in Josh's workshop and those handy guys measured it to fit perfectly up against the existing bookshelves. They're so smart. We did have to mount it to the wall to leave some clearance above the floor vent, but I think it works pretty well. I don’t really like the "floating" look of it, so we're investigating some leg options which shouldn't be too difficult to produce. I'm glad we also go rid of the old, dark, existing cabinet- The new white cabinet just pulls it all together and actually gives us more storage than before… and it's white- so yeah. 

 

Below is the a picture mid-progress and you can see the old TV cabinet. Not working.

 

 

 

I wanted everything to be closed off and finished, so we added this 'flip down' detail when we want to use the Blue Ray player. I did not want the equipment to be showing if it didn’t' have to be, so when it's not in use, it's closed back up just the way I like it.

 

 Open...  ( and yes this is all of our equipment)

 

Closed.

 

Below you can see the difference in the doors. Sooner rather than later, we'll be replacing the old cabinet doors so they match... and get rid of those exposed and painted hinges.  

 

 

 

Looking at the Before picture, it's crazy how much of a differencce this little makeover has made- and the TV is still "eye level" so all are happy in the Weldy home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I wouldn't allow myself to put anything on the bookshelves until the cabinet was installed. (It was intended to give us motivation, but ended up really just driving me mad)- so as my first "Second Trimester" project, I dusted everything off and filled up those shelves. Now that this whole conglomeration is more to my liking, I'm going to pay a lot more attention to what I'm actually putting on my shelves. A TON of it is just what I have had lying around the house, but I'm definitely wanting to do some editing and maybe invest in some nicer pieces.

 

I will say that it definitely makes a difference by putting up stuff that you really like- and using meaningful pieces. I try to stay away from random objects just to fill up space, but sometimes its unavoidable. Hopefully soon I'll do a more 'in depth' post about some of the meaningful pieces we've put up on our shelves.

 

 

In the meantime, I have a plan to make a pretty cool mirror to hang above the mantel… I stole the current one from the guest room just to get an idea of size... but I'm liking it's temporary home for now.

 

And FINALLY- if you haven't seen this on facebook- here is our New Years Baby Announcement! Nathan LOVES photo shoots... and we also really need a tan!

 

Due June 2014! 

 

 

-Tricia 

 

From Farmhouse to Our House: Dining Room Table

Last December- after a long first week of work at my new job- I walked in the door on a late Friday afternoon to an early Christmas present....

 

A farmhouse table!

 

I can handle these surprises....

 

I don't know if I was more shocked at the beautiful piece of furniture in front of me, or the fact that Nathan tied a really great bow on top. The guy is a great gifter. You may think he's sleeping on the couch- ok maybe he is- but he's really good at listening to those little things I unassumingly mention... or notice my eyes get big when I'm scrolling across something on the computer screen. Meanwhile, I'm over here trying to find something for his birthday that's neither a man tool or car part. Why are guys so hard to buy for?

 

Check out that bow!

 

His dad was able to salvage some wood from a barn on Nathan's brother-in-law's family farm in Nancy, Kentucky (close to Somerset where he is from). I love how the origin of the table traces back to the area where Nathan grew up. It definitely makes the piece more interesting than a few pieces of lumber from the hardware store. All of the wood- even the legs- came from the barn so there was no need to buy any extra lumber. You can even see some of the old nail holes in some of the planks.

 

 

 

To keep it secret, Nathan utilized Josh's workshop...and his help of course. (Told ya there would be more Josh mentions.... they must really enjoy their male bonding time) There also wasn't a need to stain the wood. One side of the wood was very faded from facing the sun, but the interior side was still a rich, dark color. He made sure to utilize that side for the table top. (I bet the faded side would have looked just as good with a great sun-washed look) From there, a clear coat was sprayed over the entire table.

 

 

 

 

Removable extensions were also constructed. They aren't that heavy and they easily slide in and out whenever we need them. They are just inserted in the slots that were cut into the frame of the table. We've already utilized these quite a few times and are able to sit at least 10 at one time... with a maximum of 12 if you put two people at both ends. Who's cooking?

 

Slots were cut in the frame of the table.

 



 

 



Added extensions....

 

This table is huge... Go Big or Go Home...

 



It's great that we don't have to be too careful with it since a few dents and dings will just add to its character. I have to say- my favorite parts are the details of the knots and the natural edges- they really show the table's history and roots. Yes that was a pun.

 

 

 

 

 

It's without a doubt the most "rustic" piece in the house... but I think it really fits us to the tee. Nathan is just manly and rustic (He'll hate me for writing that... haha) and I'm always wanting to have some warmth in a space which this definitely provides. I have a feeling tablecloths may be used once kids come into the picture to avoid crumbs and messes in the cracks- but right now we tend to keep it pretty clean. I will admit I have used a vacuum hose for a few areas holding crumbs, but I usually just use a damp rag and it's good to go.

 

Now that we have this awesome table- it leads me to chairs. I'm currently living with some that I'm not the biggest fan of, but they're working (and pretty comfortable I might add). I have some pretty cool chairs in my mind, but I'm trying to keep the budget at the forefront before I make any drastic purchases... made that mistake before! So I guess in the meantime I'm in search of some new replacements... and by 'new' I mean something I can find for dirt cheap to recover and makeover! Stay tuned.... 

 

 

 

-Tricia