Area Built-ins Recreated!

Holy cow! Yesterday our front room looked like this:



and today it looks like this:


Even though this project has been planned for years, I still can't believe the transformation!

When we first moved in, we knew there should probably be built-in cabinets between the living & dining rooms, and once we started stripping away the ubiquitous white paint, we discovered there had once been cabinets, and got an idea of what they had probably looked like.

We based the design on our neighbor's wonderful built-ins, and after years of watching the local craigslist and ebay, we finally found antique cabinet doors of the right size to use as a starting point.


We handed them off to Rick at Shadowhill Custom Wood, and I set out to sand and refinish the existing posts and beam, (and agonized over how to hide all the damaged wood on the left hand post-- ugh!!) so they would look ok with the new cabinets attached.

Here's the post with the worst damage and discoloration (just after I got it sanded):


Oh, and once I got the wood stained and varnished, it became apparent that it wasn't oak after all! So far the best guess is that it's all chestnut! (I'll someday get a slice under the microscope to tell for sure).



Meanwhile, Rick created the posts and cabinets in his shop, and yesterday Team Shadowhill got everything installed and made it look like it has been part of the house since the 1920's!

Here are a few photos of the installation process:








and a couple closeups of the finished cabinets, which let a lot of light through, and open to either side.




Here's the view from the dining room-- now a separate space from the living room & entranceway!


I have been informed that these cabinets have now upstaged our fireplace as the centerpiece of our house. :D

Area House gets New (Old) Chandelier

The generic brass-looking chandelier that came with our house has finally been replaced



I found this funky older one on craigslist for $35, cleaned it up and painted it...


... bought some mica shades from Rejuvenation...


...and I love it!


We're getting close to being able to install the re-created built-in-cabinets between the living & dining rooms, and I'm really relieved to have found a more suitable fixture to help set them off. :)

Progress made on area backyard

Here are a few photos of the small improvements we've made to the back yard this year-- bamboo screening, a new compost bin and stepping stones.

It might not look like much in the photos-- the green doesn't show up and it's hard to tell that there is a tree canopy above-- but we really enjoy watching birds in our tiny backyard woodland-garden, and fixing some of the more unsightly bits makes it a little easier on the eyes and more peaceful.

Before:


After this year's improvements:

FANCY NEW COMPOST BIN: I tried for 4 years to grow enough holly to hide the compost pile, but since that hasn't worked (and it was so difficult to turn the pile that we'd get behind and tree roots would grow up through it), I gave up and installed a better looking and MUCH more functional compost bin that I won't even try to hide. It should weather to the same color as the fence.

The old compost pile:

New double-bin with removable cedar slats in front:

BAMBOO SCREEN: I'm really excited to have the neighbor's ugly privacy-screen covered up with a more natural-looking material! We used a roll of tiki-bar-looking bamboo fencing and attached it to the neighbor's chain link fence with tiny zip ties. It should weather to the same color as the fence, as well.

Area husband helping to install bamboo screen:

Stay tuned for photos of our next big project-- attempting to re-create the missing built-in cabinets between our living and dining room...