Friday, March 26, 2021

Some Spring Decor In East Texas/Living Room Reveal

Hi, Friends,
How are you doing? I hope you are staying well and encouraged.


We are well. I got two weeks past my second vaccine so we popped out for dinner. The first time in a year.
Life is slowly returning to a new normal. 
After three days of commuting to Dallas, Bill was ready to commute to the downstair's office. 
It was weird that he was out of the house and I was happy to have him home again. 
We can't have lunch on the deck if he is in Dallas. 
We like this aspect of our new normal.
On to the blog post:


It had been so gloomy out in East Texas so it has been difficult to get pictures. There are covered porches on two sides so the house is a little dark inside. These photos might be grainy, as a result, but at least you will get to see some more of the interior. 

We always enter the house through the back door. 


This sweet room greets us on Friday night after wading through traffic. 
The house is 2 hours and 7 minutes from our house. Typical Friday evening traffic adds another half hour to 40 minutes on to the trip. That may be too far for a weekend home, according to some, but there is really nothing rural within an hours radius from our town. Anything that used to be semi-rural is not any longer. 


Initially, I had a mirror on the wall behind the table but it ended up being too small. 
This frame was $4.99 at one of my thrift stores years ago. I popped a print from IKEA behind the glass. 
IKEA had four prints in a set for $6.99. The botanical subject matter is perfect for our little house.


Bill's grandfather turned the twisted candlesticks. 
He regularly won awards at the Texas State Fair for them. A huge collection was divided among many family members. We have his lathe in our attic. Someday, it will reside in Bill's shop and it can be used once again.


I made the tray out of some live edge that Bill found at a saw mill near Fort Worth.   


A hanging plate rack gets a little decor since there isn't room for a china cabinet. 

The clock face was an antique store find. It was packed away until I saw a video by The Little Blue Fly on YouTube. I love her channel. The green transferware piece is from one of my favorite antiques stores out in Quitman, Texas. The rabbit and green tray were thrifted. 


I love kalanchoe plants because their blooms last for weeks. 


A rabbit natural history illustration was printed from The Graphics Fairy. 
The frame was an antique store find last year for $5.00. It's one of my favorite frame styles.
It very fun with the rabbit print. 



The makedo cabinet is one of my favorite family pieces at the East Texas house. It holds our stemware, some china and our linens. 
Many years ago, it held automobile paint in my father in law's garage. 
My brother in law got it, initially, but passed it on to me because he knew I could "Macgyver" it. 
It is the perfect depth for VHS tapes, video games and puzzles which is what it held before its current function. 


The black cabinet was an estate sale find bought specifically for this house. 
It was a bugger to paint but it is adorable. 





 As soon as the groceries are put away we head to the living room to relax. 
We don't have a t.v. in the house. We have internet so while Bill reads an actual book made with paper, I'll peruse the internet. I used to be an avid reader before computers became the norm.

I don't know what it is about me and living rooms that are a tad dysfunctional. Every house we have ever had, except our first rent house, has a quirky living room. This one is cut in two with a walk way to the kitchen. 
Below is my cozy corner. 
The chairs were thrifted. The loveseat came from a local furniture store. In the store it looked gray. In the house it looks green which is almost a perfect match with the recliner. That was a happy accident. 


I slipcovered the wingback with cotton duck fabric from Joanns. 

We were going to take down the ceiling fan but ended up replacing the glass shades with some from another room. It can stay for now.


I reworked the pillows that came with the loveseat. They were too big and there were too many of them. It came with four big pillows. I took them apart and made two normal sized pillows with the fabrics that I liked the best. There was enough fabric to make Bill a lumbar pillow out of his favorite fabric. The green velvet was thrifted. It's color echos the loveseat and the recliner perfectly. 




We found Bill's comfy recliner at the same furniture store as the loveseat. It was only $250.00 because the zipper is broken on the seat. I can fix that but haven't gotten around to it, yet.


The mantel was such a wonderful transformation with just paint and caulk. 
I love it. The propane fireplace unit will be removed and the line capped. The former owner lit it but I'd never do that because I'm not sure it's vented properly. 


The mantel will be decorated through out the seasons but the art may have to stay year round. It is one of my favorite paintings. 



The needlework was made by my nana. My brother brought it to me from my stepmom's house but I had no idea where I would put it until we bought this house. It's a perfect genre for East Texas. I'm thrilled I kept it instead of sending it to the estate sale. 


That is all for now. I hope you enjoyed seeing touches of spring in our living and dining room at the country house.  


I'll be back soon. 
Katie 

6 comments :

  1. Really like your country home. Very homey and inviting.

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  2. Katie, I remember when we had our 5th wheel at a park that we could get away to every weekend. Those were the best times. I can only imagine how wonderful it is to have a whole house..Stay well..xxoJudy

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  3. It's really darling, Katie. I love your wingback chair (I've been looking for a used one in good shape for ages!) All the sweet touches, the prints, the bunnies, the light -- it's beautiful.

    We're about 2 hours, 30-40 minutes to the cottage, so about the same. It's really not bad, especially if you have some flex in the schedule to hit the road before the traffic. Sometimes we'd even come back home on a Monday morning. I know you'll love it.

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  4. Everything is just lovely. You and Bill have really worked your tails off at this little house. It has turned out so cute!

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  5. Your cottage gets better and better. You have worked very hard at making this cottage pretty.

    Cindy

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  6. I love your cottage. You have creatively design it. I love the antique touch in chimney. thanks for sharing.

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