Vintage Pottery Bowl with Pumpkins

I wanted to share what will be my last vignette on the coffee table/trunk that's here in the Living Room. We've been here at the lease house since the middle of January, and if all goes to plan, we'll start moving some things over to the new house this weekend. We're waiting on carpet for the upstairs bedrooms that has been delayed. That's thrown us back about 3 weeks, but at the same time gave me more time to finish up the kitchen cabinets. Last weekend I touched up woodwork throughout the house, while Aly  (our younger daughter and right hand helper) was on floor cleaning duty. So, all in all we're done, other than waiting for the carpet.

So I have to tell you about this amazing find from last Spring. It's the bowl to what I assume was a "bowl and pitcher" set. I found it for just a few dollars because it has a pretty big crack running along the center half of it. But I'm promising to be extra careful with it.  I thought I had a photo of the mark, but I didn't and now it's too late to turn it over and shoot it.

It's Doulton Pomegranate Burslem. I did a little research and Burslem is the name of one of the towns in the Staffordshire Pottery region of England. I couldn't date it exactly because I couldn't find an accurate image of the exact markings.

It's similar to this one but says Doulton Pomegranate Burslem on the banner instead of what's pictured. It has the letter A and then 1717, which dates it to the 1880's or 1890's. I fell in love with the Autumnal colors and designs.

I had packed all my velvet pumpkins in my wicker trunk that we're using in the entry, so I just scooped them up with some bittersweet to fill this wonderful bowl for a fresh Fall look for the Living Room.

My paper mache squirrel is still in the Pottery Barn lantern.

...chewing on an acorn from a couple of years ago. I heard horror stories of nasty little creatures in the acorns, but thankfully I didn't have that problem.

 Here's a few photos from a couple of years ago of my little squirrel

with a vintage muffin tin and some tea light candles.

I've been bummed because I couldn't decorate much for Fall, which is my favorite time of the year. I've had to get my inspiration and Fall Fix from you all and Pinterest. So, thanks for being there for me! 

And Hey, if you haven't entered 

the Pillow Give Away 

with Elliott-Heath Designs

then CLICK HERE!

Dining Room, Kitchen, and Family Room furniture will be heading to the house; wow, I've missed those pieces! Hopefully from now on my posts will be coming from the new place. YAY!

Joining in on these great parties:

Share Your Cup at Mrs. Olson's

Treasure Hunt at From My Front Porch to Yours

Home Sweet Home at The Charm of Home

Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage

xoxo,

It's a Pillow Thing...and you can win!

Fall is definitely here in the MidWest and there's no better way to add some warmth and coziness to your home, than with a few fun pillows in Autumnal colors and designs. Let's just say that I have a Thing for these great graphic pillows from Elliott-Heath Designs!

The super talented Heather of Elliott-Heath Designs has been a sponsor of Common Ground since I found her wonderful pillow creations several years ago. I've had several Pillow Give-Aways with Heather, the first of many, her Sunflower Pillow, has become iconic for Late Summer decor.

I have quite a few of Heather's wonderful pillow covers, and I've purchased several for gifts too. She has beautiful and unique designs for every Holiday, Season, and Occasion. Here's my latest, just waiting for the new house and the start of the Christmas Season.

Here are just a few more designs for the Christmas and Holiday Season.

... it's the perfect time to start thinking of snuggling by the fire this Fall.

Heather has so many fun designs for Halloween and Thanksgiving, 

you'll want to check them out, too!

This is a super easy Give Away with 3 chances to win:

1. Run by Elliott-Heath on Facebook and "Like" her page. Let me know in a comment if you have done this in the past, or if you're new to the page.
2. Head over to the Elliott-Heath Etsy Shop and Pin at least 3 Pillows for one of your boards, like Fall Decor or Christmas. Then come back and leave a comment saying you did.
3. Post on your own Facebook Page about the Give Away here at Common Ground, then let me know in a comment.

Hope you'll enter to win this beautiful pillow cover,

 it's perfect for Autumn into Winter.

Give Away ends a week from today, Monday, October 20.

xoxo,

Fall Front Porch at the New House

The landscaping is in (except for the new maple we're waiting for) and I had time to run by the pumpkin market for a few mums and pumpkins. It's not a huge display, but just enough to make it feel like "home". It's pretty sparse compared to year's past, but all my concrete urns are still hiding out in storage. I also still have to figure out what will fit on the small front porch. I will probably just paint one of my wooden benches the charcoal gray like the door and new shutters. I need some little something out here, but I don't want to clutter up the small space. We still have to repaint the outside lanterns, they have a pretty tired finish that needs spiffing up.

If you missed the before shots of the sad shutters and front door, you can see how the new Benjamin Moore paint, Iron Mountain, really enhances the brick and railing, and pulls it all together.

before

As our contractor so aptly put it. 

"The shutters and door are beyond "distressed, this is "neglect". 

New paint and newly built shutters...so much better.

I had a few Fallish silk florals that I stashed in my basket, then grabbed some wide bright orange ribbon. It helps dress up the porch a little, give some Fall color, and it also keeps someone from being able to see inside, when you're standing at the door. Sorry, I don't like people peeking inside....eck. (I just used one of the large "Command" hooks for this basket)

Hubbs carted over my concrete bench for the rocked area... What do you call this space between the walkway and the garage? This is a popular landscape feature around here. Anyway, I'm hoping to plant some lillies and a few perennials out there when I get time. The boxwood shrubs are baby size, but will grow fast. Now you can see the rock accent areas under the windows, instead of ugly dead shrubbery. yay!

Just imagine that there are lanterns, my concrete squirrels, and a few watering cans... but since we haven't moved in yet, I didn't want to have too much out here.

I found this big concrete container at Lowe's, I hope to use it for seasonal flowers, maybe adding some perennial ivy, next Spring. I'd like to add more to the porch and stairs, but probably will have to wait for Christmas. 

We're just so happy to have all this cleaned up and replanted.

 It was such a mess with dead plants and shrubs. 

OK, that's the extent of my Outdoor Fall Decor, 

not much, but better than nothing...

joining in on these parties:

Treasure Hunt at From My Front Porch to Yours
Home Sweet Home at The Charm of Home
Feathered Nest at French Country Cottage
The Scoop at Confessions of a Plate Addict
Show and Share at Coastal Charm
Tweak it Tuesday at Cozy Little House
Inspire Me Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life
Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style

xoxo,

Cabinet Painting....Done!

Hurray! the cabinets are "finished"! 

I'm just so excited on how the kitchen is turning out. We started last weekend and then I came over to the house and painted in the afternoons last week. Thank goodness, it's not a big kitchen! It's pretty compact, but after living in the lease house, I think I can get organized and make it work.

Remember, this is how it looked when we first got the keys.

There are still a few changes I'd like to make in here; the first being subway tile on the back splash. But we've been at this 6 weeks now, and the backsplash is just not a priority. We need to get moved in. The problem is that I'm not fond of the granite horizontal stripe, (I think it looks too "modern"), but I'm going to use my black tole trays again over here, (I've added a couple to my collection this week) so hopefully those will break it up a little bit.

I brought a few of them over to see how they work. By the time I get my other goodies on the counters, I'm hoping that stripe no longer jumps out and smacks me upside the head. There's still an option of painting the tile, so that might happen. I have to live with this for a bit before I'll know.

My new kitchen is starting to remind me of the old one,

 I just love a black and white kitchen!

Christmas 2013

Although technically, the cabinets aren't white, they are a light warm gray. (Benjamin Moore, Pale Oak) You might wonder why I didn't just use the same color as the wood work, and that would be because to me, that color just looks "dirty", and I wanted a crisper color for the cabinets.

Here's the kitchen eating area, just a few weeks ago...

Now it's painted and cleared out for my white kitchen china cabinet.We have the chandy raised up until the furniture gets here. How many times have I seen the movers knock around a light fixture?  (And we still have to get covers for the cable line).

We found the brushed satin nickel pulls at Lowe's. I thought about using bin pulls on the lower cabinet drawers, until I realized they weren't practical for bottom drawers. You'd have to get down underneath to pull them out, so I just went with the same pulls for everything.

The cabinets were a lot of work to paint, but I'm glad we had the time to do it. I'm so much happier with the kitchen now, it feels more like "my" kitchen. Hubbs had to agree; so much better than before. It just looks and feels "cleaner".

This week we're working on the deep clean, and I have to get the hardwood floors cleaned up. Paint splatters, workmen, and lot's of previous spills are making for some "on your hands and knees" time. The new carpet will be installed this week upstairs, then we're getting close to move-in. Hopefully, we'll start moving some of the furniture from storage in a week or two, then move our current furniture when that gets in.  

Hubbs was working in the garage with the doors up, when someone drove by and asked if we were going to put the house back on the market...  ahhhh, that would be a big, "NO". 

I have landscape and front porch photos, 

so I'll share those in a day or two.

Hope you're off to a wonderful Fall week!

Joining in on these parties:

Amaze Me Monday at Dwellings

Show and Share at Coastal Charm

Inspire Me at A Stroll Thru Life

The Scoop at Cedar Hill Farmhouse

Tweak It Tuesday at Cozy Little House

Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style

xoxo,

Visit Ribbonwood Cottage

Cabinet Paint Decisions

Hi Everyone, 

can you stand some not so pretty "progress" pics?

I'm sure some of you were wondering if and when this would happen... well, it has.

When we first looked at the new house, I knew the kitchen and adjacent kitchen/dining area would require some updating. We removed the line of cabinets and the study counter first thing, but I still was putting off the decision about what to do with the kitchen cabinets and large bar peninsula that dominated the space.

I tried a whitewash technique last week with semigloss latex that actually worked pretty well. The cabinets looked aged and somewhat more "pickled", but the finish on the cabinets was so scuffed and worn that it showed EVERY ding and dent instead of enhancing them. I was bummed, because I was hoping that the "white wash" would be a relatively easy fix. But no, it didn't work because of the poor condition of the cabinet finish.

Here's the bar area today, with 2 coats of the new paint. 

Sorry for the mess, this is some "real life" progress pics of the painting.

So as Hubbs and I sat contemplating the situation we agreed a paint finish was needed. If I would have had to make this decision a month ago I would have been overwhelmed, but now, with almost every thing else done, I could approach the project with some sense of calm and common sense. Painting the kitchen cabinets at the old house was a monumental task, and not an easy one. My paint choice was less that perfect so I had headaches with it from the get-go. Runs, drips, build up...I had to re-sand and go at it again. I didn't want to repeat that scenario.

So, I headed to my trusty Benjamin Moore peeps and they told me what and how to use their new cabinet paint, Advance. It's a thinner paint that requires no sanding or primer...I know, I know, but it's that good, and I've kept the doors up, and just sanded down the bad parts of the previous finish. I'm only painting the interior of the three cabinets with glass doors. I will put my everyday china, Studio Provence Noir by Royal Doulton and some ironstone in those, the other will hold some of my glassware and crystal.

* This is now 4 years later, and we are undertaking a renovation of a "new to us" home built in the 60's. We are researching paint again, so I've gone back to Benjamin Moore for advice and paint. The protocol now for painting cabinets is to use a coat of pre-tinted Primer before you use the Advance paint. I've had a few chips, but nothing much. I would have used Primer if the company had been advising that. Live and Learn. Just wanted to let you all know of the protocol change.

(love the black and white toile pattern)

Oh, and let me tell you about a new product I've found for clean-up...Krud Kutter. Some of you might be familiar with it, but I used this instead of TSP for prepping the cabinet surfaces. Took off all the junk that collects on wood cabinets and didn't leave any residue.

Advance is an Alkyd which is a cross between the durability of an oil based enamel and the soap/water cleanup of a latex. It dries harder, so a little more difficult to clean up brushes, but the difference between this and regular paint is night and day. I've put on thin coats with a brush and foam roller and I've had almost no drips or problems. You have to wait 16 hours before recoating, but for us it's not a problem, since we're not living at the house yet. It takes about 5 or 6 days to fully cure, but then they said it would have a super hard finish.

I had originally chosen China White by Ben Moore for the cabinet color, but even though it had gray and taupe undertones, it was still too light. I ended up with Pale Oak by Benjamin Moore, here is the sample.

It's hard to see on the cabinets, but it's just a nice neutral "griege" that still gives the effect of an off white. We had to consider the wall color and woodwork color when we made this decision, since you can also see it all from the Living Room.

Before, when we first got the keys...

You can tell from this photo that the oak color was too orange and the black granite made it really dark in the prep area. It's not a very large space, but now it's so much lighter and brighter.

Before... there was a little "pickling" on the cabinets,

 but not enough to make it work.

Here are some kitchen inspiration photos from my Pinterest Board, New House Kitchen Inspiration. I have focused on light gray or beige cabinets and some with the black granite. I'd love to have subway tile on my backsplash, but that probably can wait.

I still have more work to do. You could tell by the photos I still have another couple of thin rolled coats to do, but I'm really pleased with the progress. I'm taking my time, and being vigilant with the process, keeping an eagle eye out for anything that even slightly looks like a drip. Hubbs and Aly have been helping, so I don't feel like I'm doing it all by myself. You have to be psyched up for a job like this. I'll be looking for new cabinet and drawer pulls in a pewter finish, then I have to find a couple of bar stools, as my other chairs are "counter" height and take up too much space. 

Most of the new landscaping is in except for the new tree, and I even have some pumpkins and mums on the porch, Yay, it's starting to feel like home! (I'll share those pics later in the week)

*(I have not been compensated in any way by any companies or product manufacturers; all decisions for product usage and opinions, are my own)

Have a great week, everyone!

xoxo,

Joining in on these great weekly parties:

Amaze Me Monday at Dwellings

The Scoop at Cedar Hill Farmhouse

Tweak it Tuesday at Cozy Little House

Show and Share at Coastal Charm

Inspire Me at A Stroll Thru Life

Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style

Beware the "Microsoft" Phone Scam

Hi Everyone, I wanted to let you in on something that happened to me yesterday...and that could happen to you.

I received a phone call from someone claiming to be from Microsoft. I was leary, 'cause I seem to get junk calls everyday. Right now I'm on Newt Gingrich's call list and for some reason someone out there thinks I just got my hip replaced and I need a new bath seating shower/tub. I used to try to be nice to these people, cause I know it's a job, but now they've turned me into a person I don't like to be, as of slamming down receivers and saying in a stern voice. "take me off of your list"!!

Anyway, this person claiming to be John Smith who has a decided Indian accent proceeds to tell me that my computer is full of viruses and that he is there to help me get them off. We went round and round for a few minutes (because even though my scam antennae was up, I felt like I needed to be sure that there wasn't something wrong with my computer for reals.) So he says all I have to do is hit a few keys and then he'll be able to show me how to rid my computer of the dastardly viruses. At that point I balked and said NO. When I said my hubby takes care of all this stuff they'd have to talk to him, "John Smith", said they could only talk to me since they only had my name. And by the way...how did they get my phone number (which is unlisted).

I told my husband and he said "scammers...Microsoft doesn't call anyone". So beware if you get one of these unsolicited phone calls. Hubbs says they give you a link and you click on it, then they can hack into your computer, all your passwords, and bank account etc. It sounds fairly legitimate, and they have you super scared your computer is about to blow up. But just hang up, they are the virus!

OK, heading to pick out some new carpet for the upstairs, since the old had too many untreatable stains and then, we're making a drastic change in the kitchen. I'm sure you all can guess what that might be! I'll check back with some progress photos. Have a great weekend!

xoxo,