There's a Blue Bird on My Windowsill

 

 This song is my new favorite! It has been stuck in my head the past week.

 

The view from my room.

Wood Floors

We spent a lot of time on the floors in my house; carpet removal, staple pulling, washing, paint scratching and sanding, more mopping, staining and finally shellacking, but it was worth it!! I love love love wood floors. I love the timeless look of them. The ease of cleaning and the peace of mind, knowing that whatever dirt we track in is not going to be with us for years to come. (Sorry the floors aren't too clean, a little construction dust still.)

This is the living room and dining room floors. I didn't get a chance to take pictures before the furniture was moved in as they were done just in the nick of time. I worried for days while the stain dried and then worried again while the shellac dried. But everything came out beautifully in the end!

 

 The floors upstairs are pine.

Oak in the living and dinning room.....

 

And maple in the downstairs bedrooms. 

It is very typical in old houses for the living room and dinning rooms to be oak or pine, the bedrooms to be pine and the kitchen to be maple. We aren't sure why there is maple in the bedrooms, very unusual. It certainly was fun to work on all the different woods!

We are hoping this week to get the quarter round (the small round piece of trim next to the floor) back on in the living/dining rooms and the bedrooms. When we refinished the floors it all had to come up, as the sander can't get that close. And of course 90 year old trim does not come up very well! Not to mention there was holes drilled in it and cracks and gouges. So all new has to be put back in.

What you think of wood floors? Do you love the look but not the housework? Or are you all for it?

Upstairs Bedroom-Before Pictures

Look at that carpet! Yikes! It was quite old and full of sand and pet hair. Ugh. One of the first things I did was get rid of it. I am happy to say my house is now carpet free!

 

 The landing. Did you notice the door? We flipped it to open into the bedroom instead of out, giving more room to the landing. That is quite the story!

 Window in the lading.

 Bedroom.

Bedroom looking the other way.

I know seeing all the woodwork I painted is making some of you gasp. It was a tough decision for me too. But the trim is nothing fancy, just flat boards and not even a nice wood, just pine. There were portions of it already painted, but painted a brown to match the unpainted part(?!?). And the other reason, my bedroom furniture is wood, so to keep the room from looking to dark or rustic I decided paint it!!

Looking into the closet.



House Update: Upstairs Bedroom

 

Mom likes to say I get the whole second floor of my house for myself. People always go "Oh!", very impressed. I roll my eyes and then explain, the upstairs consists of a landing, bedroom and a closet half the size of my room. I call it my Nest!

 In the entry next to the front door is a little door leading upstairs! Isn't everything so fresh looking?!

I absolutely love my twisty stairs! They turned out so pretty. And once one gets use to the wedge shaped stairs, they aren't to bad.

I love how light filled the stairway is. No skimping on windows here!

 

This is the little landing, which we hope one day to turn into a book-nook! It is always so bright and sunny. Too bright to take good photos.

 

And my bedroom! Which is so cozy it is hard to get good pictures of. As you can see the ceiling is very sloped, but that just makes it feel like you are tucked into the rafters.

 

The other side of the room going into the closet. There are still a few more things to do, like put in outlets and light fixtures.

Looking into the closet from the bedroom. Yes! It is huge! And also has a window. So nice for sewing!

 

Looking from the closet into the bedroom. On the right is the door to the attic (still needs another couple coats of paint) and the door that is open on the left is the bedroom door going back onto the landing. I love the contrast of the white walls with the darker floors.

 

The stairs with a fresh coat of shellac on them.

 

 

Now that we have seen the fresh, clean and pretty, are you ready to see the before? Up next is a before look at the upstairs with all it's nasty green carpet!