Stained Glass ~ sort of…

Our guest bathroom has a pretty view out to the patio and backyard, which is precisely what creeps me out about it.

A little more privacy was needed so I decided to block the bottom half of the window. With help from Favorite Girl, it took less than 10 minutes and I love the change:

Another good thing is there’s no adhesive so it will come off easily in case the renters (or John since he hasn’t seen it yet) hate it.

It’s hard to capture the stained glass effect with the camera, but it really does looks like stained glass with the bathroom lights off and the sun shining through. I’m looking forward to seeing it from outside at night with the light on inside.

COST: $22.44 ~ includes Military discount (-10%) and VA sales tax (+4%)

White Ginger Plant from Hawaii

Ginger, the white ginger plant from my mom’s garden, has bloomed again! Seems October is the blooming season for her.  I’m especially attached to this plant because my mom imported it from her hometown in Hawaii and now I have it.  I close my eyes, take a whiff of the flower and I’m immediately transported back to the town of Mountain View on the Big Island. It’s a smell like no other ~ smells like home.

Quickie Project ~ Spray Paint

I did this project in early August when we had a break in the heat wave.  Glad I did this project before the rains and humidity came to town.  It’s best to spray paint when it’s under 90 degrees and with a lower than 50% humidity. Something we haven’t had for several weeks.  I would also highly recommend taking a break between sprays ~ I developed “tennis elbow” from keeping my arm/finger in one position for so long. It’s still hurting me.

Here’s the before:

  

The happy yellow after…

………………………………………….

Cost:

• 2 cans of yellow Rust-oleum          $7.96     ($3.98 each)
• Military discount                                   ( .80)     (10%)
• VA Tax                                                          .29      (4%)

                                                               Total:   $7.45

Goodbye Wood!!

Wood panels ~ UGH! I got so tired of looking at the wood panels in the “kitchen nook” so John took pity on me and started this project earlier than we’d planned on tackling it.  Here’s the BEFORE:

A very pleasant surprise (and cost savings) was finding dry wall behind the panels! We were able to skip the dry wall experience this time around. 

A little spackle, a little sanding…

At first, I envisioned a sunny, yellow happy kitchen nook but with the large antique (from the late 1800s) hutch, we really needed to stick with that motif.  We went with more traditional style that reminds me of the East Indian Bombay Company. 

John wasn’t planning to add the crown molding but was happy (after it was done) that I insisted on it. To me, the molding makes a room look finished. This is an AFTER photo but I can’t say the kitchen nook is completed since we still have the pantry to add shelves and organize. Then there’s the lighting.  But for now, we’re loving the new look.

Total cost of the room:

• Curtains  $105.71
• Clock         $37.38
• Crown Molding   $ 82.04
• Paint             $44.99
• Shoebase    $1.46
• Stain              $4.58
• Coax Wall Plate    $4.02
• TOTAL: $280.18    (we did get a 10% military discount for everything except the paint)

Back Yard Project #1

Memorial Day weekend was just long enough for John to work on one of flower beds in the backyard. We were still able to squeeze in tennis, golf, dinner out and a few other activities. Total time on this project was about 10 hours. Here’s what the area looked like just two days ago:

   

The azalea in the first photo is staying ~ it’s a beautiful red one and we couldn’t bear to dig it up.  We originally thought about surrounding the entire bed with a slate wall but it would have added another $200 + to the project so we didn’t use it and I’m glad because it looks great the way it is. This project required:

•  25 bags of brown nature scapes mulch $4.02 a bag at Lowes
•  one roll of weed barrier  $16.32 at Lowes
•  one bag of Fabric pins (clips to hold down the barrier)  $9.88 at Lowes
• 13 rolls of sod $4.48 a roll at Lowes
• 2 bags of lawn soil  $5.37 a bag at Lowes
• Bird Bath $59.99 at Holly, Woods and Vines in Alexandria
• 2 bags of Mr. Natural Complete Landscape mix for $18.99 at Holly, Woods and Vines
• 1 Azalea plant $ 26.97 at Home Depot
• 1 Rosy Barbery plant $25.00, 2 Camellia plants $40.each, Azalea (red) $30, Lilac $30. at Hybla Valley Nursery
• Total with tax $516.42  

Work in progress, placing the weed barrier:

Here’s the final result ~ notice how Maya likes to be in the photos:

 

The pagoda in the photo below was my mom’s ~ she was an avid gardener and it’s comforting to have a few of her items in our garden. The potted plant to the right is a “white ginger” flowering plant from Hawaii. We dug it up from her garden in NC when we sold the house last October.  It actually bloomed!! Here’s hoping it blooms again this summer.

No birds have come to visit the bird bath but we’re hoping they will while Maya is inside…

Ahh…always feels great to have another project checked off the list.