WHAT IS CALIFORNIA SHED STYLE?

For all of you that have asked-

WHAT IS CALIFORNIA SHED STYLE?

It might be called something different

in a different area.

Here, it is a late 1960's/1970's style

that has a rustic exterior with a

more modern interior.

It has a slanted roof in the back

and soaring ceilings inside,

usually with a loft (open or semi open).

I am attaching pictures

front and back so you can

see what I am talking about.

People either love the style

or hate it.

LOL- Guess I am an

OLD HIPPY 

at heart 

(although I never lived like a hippy-

too much of a chicken-lol).

because

I like the style.

I have lived in traditional,

coastal, Florida style,

colonial, two story,

ranch style & modern-

but nothing like this.

I will keep posting pictures

as we go along.

All changes will be interior

because we have to abide by

condo rules to not change 

"the look" from the exterior.

Front-We have a lofted area-

each unit to the side is a single story.

Our main living area,

including 2 bedrooms/2 baths,

is on the main floor.

The big windows upstairs overlook

the river one street over,

and that is where my sewing/craft area

will be---whoo hoooo---

finally a place of my own.

I have never had a dedicated space

like this before.

There were always kids, etc.,

to think about and contend with.

FRONT VIEW~

Back-

Units are staggered so we will

not see our side-by-side neighbors

unless we chose to do so.

Upper windows are in the loft area

where there is 3rd bedroom/bath

in case we need live-in care at some point.

Hopefully not-but life 

throws things at us sometimes

that we don't expect.

So...here ya go---

CA Shed Style Back View

There you have it, kids.

Be back with more soon!

I know y'all are dying to see the inside.

Did I say DYING?

Remember...there is a graveyard

right behind us...

and I have a shovel if needed!

BIG NEWS- WE BOUGHT A CONDO

Listen-

Grab your coffee or tea

or vodka-

this is more wordy than most of my posts.

I am the person that has always said,

"I will NEVER live in a condo"~

Yep!  That was me!

NEVER!

Plus, after selling our home on the bay,

we have been renting from

the greatest landlord(s).

A brand new twindo that is gorgeous--

but not ours, you know?

I sure hate letting them know

we are moving.

So-Why are we moving?

Life changes.

Health changes.

Needs & wants change.

There is a small complex

that I have always loved.

45 units total-

3 or 4 blocks from my daughter's home.

NOTHING ever comes up

for sale in this complex.

Well, guess what?

Being in the real estate business,

I pull up new listings everyday

in the price range I am 

interested in.

Lo & Behold (don't ya love that old saying)--

a WONDERFUL UNIT came

on the market in our price range.

I jumped on it.

In less than 30 days the unit 

was ours-

signed, sealed and delivered.

Here's the best part-

the original owner's daughter

is one of the nicest people

I have ever not met.

We have texted and emailed

and she is thrilled that we will

LOVE THIS PLACE

like her mom did.

She is going to come see us

after we get the work done

and we move in.

So-the condo---

California Shed Style Condo.

It was build in 1976 and the

original owners took 

excellent care of it.

It is in wonderful condition

but dated!

My son, Ryan, has graciously

stepped up to the plate 

and is overseeing the work being done there.

The best part is that it has a 

PRIVATE FRONT PATIO

and an even more

PRIVATE BACK PATIO.

We don't back up to any other condos.

However, we do back up to 

A GRAVEYARD.

My wonderful son has said that

"when the time comes"

he can just throw us over the fence.

Yes-it is true!

I raised a kid that has my 

warped sense of humor.

Not everyone thinks we are funny---

starting with MyHero~

So, I will be doing lots of

BEFORE & AFTER 

pictures as this reno progresses.

We are slated to move in by 

the end of March.

Meanwhile-

I have to get busy 

a-sortin' & a-purgin'.

Wish me luck cuz you know 

I will need it.

Just a little teaser for you---

Our backyard---

OH DEER!

Jan's Bathroom Remodel- GREAT Before & Afters

Quite a while ago I helped my friend,

Jan make some decisions

on her kitchen remodeling project.

We also revamped her living room a bit

because it flows into the kitchen/dinette area.

There is a post about that project here.

You know I am a coffee drinker, right?

I KNOW you know THAT!

You know what coffee drinkers need, right?

Yeah- BATHROOMS!

Well, let me tell you something,

Jan's bathroom needed a makeover

even worse than her kitchen.

as much as her kitchen did..

I was nice enough to point that out to her here.

Anyway, how do you like THIS?
Isn't it classic and gorgeous?

We decided on a black and white color scheme.
Do you see the shelves above the toilet?
You can cut the drywall out between the studs
and gain about 3-1/2" of depth for shelving.
They do that for medicine cabinets all the time
and you can do it for shelving, too.

Here is what she started out with.

The window was replaced
with a waterproof one that still lets in light
but doesn't give the local
Peeping Tom a show,

There was new white subway tile put in.
The wallpaper was all stripped away.

This was the old vanity and countertop:
Makes you want to poke your eye out with a stick,huh?
Ain't never gonna be 1970 again.....
Janet was ready for a change.

We went from that to this:

Jan's son, Nate, came home for two weeks
and did this project for her.
Isn't he a great son?
He does this sort of remodeling for a livelihood.

The walls are a soft grey.
Jan likes purple (cuz she's a royal kinda gal)
and pulled some nice pops of purple into the room

No more THIS!
Look at that Jan- she jumps into the picture
every chance she gets!
Oh- she is gonna KILL ME-
more than once!

.But she will calm down
as soon as she slips into her new
spa-like bath retreat.

After our discussion(s)

Jan picked out everything herself.

She has really good taste

and just needs to trust her own instincts.

Her hubby is my hubby's best friend.

That's MyHero and Mikey.

 

I wonder if that

SPA TUB

is big enough for both of them?

OH! There's another "picture" that makes me want to

poke my eyes out!

Have a great Monday.

Pick a project and go for it!

A Peek At The Dining Room -It's PURTY- I Promise

Some of you know that I purchased some 

WAVERLY FABRIC

for the dining room

last Fall before Thanksgiving

and BEFORE I got pneumonia.

You can see that post by clicking here.

So, I DID get the drapes made

and I DID get them hung.

I had enough left to make a

"runner" for the center of the table.

It's actually a big square that I placed in the center

because I also want to be able to use it as a topper

on my round dinette table.

Yeah- I'm dual purpose clever like that.

I will do a whole post about 

the whole room shortly.

Meanwhile,

Here is the edge of the curtain over the

dining room doors that lead to the side porch.

I guess I should have pulled the curtain back a bit 

off the picture of the 

FRENCH RABBITS.

That's what that picture was sold as
when I bought it about 15 years ago
 but I am pretty sure those are

HIMALAYAN RABBITS!

The little collection below all has meaning for me...

Clear glass from some of the kids- candles in crystal

from some other kids.
The cutting board was a gift from our good friends,
Jeff & Barb.
We visited their beautiful home in 
the Carolinas here.
He is a wood worker extraordinaire.
Also on that cutting board is a

 Green Bay soda bottle 
from my friend, Kris,

@ JunkChicCottage..

She left the price tag on so I would know how much she loves me.lol

Anyway,

I did set the table with some dishes

I have had for a while.

These suckers are HEAVY!!!

They are sitting on chargers that are monogrammed

that belonged to my hubby's grandmother Clara.

The dishes are Isabella by JCPenney
(believe it or not)

My daughter might, or might not be, trying to get them away from me

too bad for you, baby girl.

 And..here they are again-

those wonderful monogrammed napkins

that my oldest son gave me for Christmas.

Just so you know-

this is what that dining room wall looked like when we moved in.

I know- crappy picture.

Here is a brief after...

Side by side:

That is NOT all I have to show you but I do have a

few things to FINISH because I certainly don't want you  to 

SEE THIS!!!!

Yeah--THAT would be embarrassing to have you

SEE THAT!

Have a wonderful Thursday...

and remember YOU TOO can show the messes

real life creates.

Before & After - Come Sit With Me In My Little White Sitting Room

Get yourself a sedative
this is a LONG post!
Matter of fact, I think it is the 
LONGEST POST
I have ever done.

I don't do a lot of pictures of my house.

It's just not my thing, I guess.

I do pop in little bits and pieces sometimes.

This house had been on the market 
and sitting vacant

for three years before we bought it.

It was the "cleanest" pre-owned home

I had ever seen.

But- it was dated.

AND it was a tri-level.

We rehabbed this house from a

tri level and made it into 
a functioning two story.

It was a long journey and one I won't tell today 

BUT

I will show you bits and pieces of my little

sitting room.
This is my little ESCAPE from life.

This is to the left when you enter the foyer.
It is not a big room
12x13 - I think.

I ended up with rose colored accents
in here by a fluke really.
It started with the leaded glass window
that was damaged 
and came out of another house we rehabbed.

This sitting room used to be a dinette.
Here is what it looked like when we started.
This was taken standing in the same spot.
We removed the door and window and replaced
them with a big bay window.
The wall to the right was solid.
We put in a wood burning and/or gas fireplace.
The fireplace is the centerpiece for this room
and for the dining room on the other side of the wall.

Side-by-Side

The foyer used to be the old kitchen.

Too much to tell in one post...lol

SO- we will just settle on this sitting room!

This is a close up of the bay window area.

The porch you see outside is off the dining room 

that is on the other side of this room.

The wall color is a very light cream.

The chairs I have had for almost 20 years

and I still love them.
I did crackle before crackle was cool~

The little table belonged to Grandmother Clara.
The crocheted topper was a gift from my
cousin Marguerite that visited last year.

Along the other wall is the two way fireplace.
This is solid stone and was carved out of
8 or 9 different stone samples.
It was a model used to show what a fireplace
would look like in the different stones.
When I tried to order one they no longer
made them.
I said what about the model?
They said NOTHING MATCHES..
You don't want THAT!
Yes- Yes- I do.
They gave it to me for a song.
I painted it and it looks great!
Let me tell you -they did a little whining when they
had to off load this thing at the house.
IT WAS HEAVY.

The picture above the fireplace was a
gift from my kids.
The crystal candelabra belonged to
Gramma Hazel.
The lamp in the corner has a cream and rose colored silk shade.
That was in Grandmother Clara's piano room.

Gramma Hazel & Grandmother Clara
were mortal enemies.
It all started with a hat purchased for 
their children's wedding- don't ask.
I love that their things are all intermingled now!
They are probably both spinning in their graves.

The walls look yellow here but in real life
they are a very, very light cream.
The rocks on the hearth 
are from my son & his wife.
One is a huge amethyst and one is petrified wood.

 That little TV is the one I painted white here.
(I know- I know- who paints a TV)
 I escape in here at 3pm to watch
Dr. Phil and blog.
The guest cottage sign is from
Kris @JunkChic Cottage.

The little bookcase was my daughter's discard.
I fixed the back piece and now
it holds my gardening books.
I planned on painting it till I hauled it in here
and noticed that it matched the old window frame.

The doll was made for me by my friend, Ruth.
She was an excellent dollmaker but gave it up
several years ago.
Pouring those molds is hard, heavy work.
She sold at doll shows all over the Midwest.
Her dolls always had the most beautiful faces.
She has her little witch hat on for Halloween.
Sorry- this is taken through her veil 
and so a bit obscured.

This is looking towards the front porch.

This is the same view taken when we 
purchased the home.
As you can see there was no porch there
when we started.
We replaced the windows in the same opening.
and now the sofa sits in front of them.
I will tell you the "sofa story" another time.

Side-by-Side

MyHero actually bought me some roses.
hmmmmm....wonder what's up with him....
That book is one I won 
from Ron @ Uptown Acorn.
His house is featured in the book.
I love it!!!!

Here are some bits and pieces in the room.
The rose art is an original pastel that I have had for several years.

The children by the beach 
is a giclee canvas- a gift
from my kids.

The piece in front of it I found at a shop
several years ago. 
I like that the kids 
are headed in the opposite direction
of the kids in the painting.
That sculpture weighs at least 20 pounds.

The little church is an original (or so I was told)
by Charles Buchanan.

The sculptured marble plate belonged to 
Grandmother Clara.
It was meant to be mine because the image is of
Diana-Goddess of the Hunt.
yep-that's me all right!

Odds-n-ends
Pillows I love

and
Heisen footed bowl-Grandmother Clara
Silver tray-Gramma Hazel
snicker-together forever snicker
yes-I AM evil

Oh-My
I think that's enough for one day.
Don't want to put you on sensory overload.
Oh wait- the piano shawl on the coffee table?
That is from Gramma Hazel, too.
Lucky me.

And just to keep it real.
To the left just inside the opening
is my scanner and printer.
That is NOT pretty-but it  is functional.

Speaking of functional.
I love it when someone climbs up into the 
garage attic FOR me!

Don't fall, MrFunctional MyHero!
I might have a few more jobs for you.....
Notice the suspenders?
Those are to keep his pants up
cuz he is so skinny they are falling off
hahahahhahaha
Hope you all have a great Monday.
As for me?
I'll be hiding after MyHero sees this post.

Jan's KITCHEN REMODEL- Out With The Old-In With The New

My friend, Jan, is one of the

MOST PATIENT PEOPLE 

I know.

She has to be-she is married to

MyHero's best friend and movie buddy, Mike.

Mike & MyHero deserve each other.
I call them Itch & Scratch

and that's all I'm gonna say about that.

Anyway,

Jan has lived in her house for many years

and always wanted a new kitchen.

It had the older blond cabinets from the 40's or 50's,

harvest gold linoleum,
a wall with Spanish style wrought iron
that divided the kitchen and living room.  

Did I mention dysfunctional?

Her refrigerator stuck out along one wall
and she did not have a dishwasher
or much storage.

However, remodeling seemed overwhelming to her.

She does not like to have to make choices

(and argue with Mike about HIS choices)

She finally bit the bullet a while ago.

I helped her make some decisions

and helped her lay out the remodeled space.

She did not want granite ,

stainless steel or white cabinets.
She did end up with stainless steel
but mixed it with as much black
as she could on the appliances.
The refrigerator is solid black.

Janet & Mike both like warm earthy colors.

I won't tell you that she went with a more

"minty" green when left to her own devices...

even though it IS HER house.

I don't have many BEFORE pictures

but, in progress, it  looked like this

by the kitchen sink.

To the right of the sink and down the dinette wall-

Ceiling fan---GONE--

Win for Janet- Loss for Mikey

Across from this wall

the refrigerator stood alone like a soldier
with a small closet next to it.

Now it is surrounded by built ins.

She was NOT expecting me to pop in 
and take pictures.

I will say that she was a really good sport about

showing her real-life/lived in kitchen.

The kitchen, dinette and living room all flow

together so colors had to blend

with existing furnishings, too.

This is looking from the kitchen into the living area.

Mikey picked the rug-Good job buddy!

Isn't this just warm and welcoming?

And, this is how they live-
she wasn't planning on me
stopping by for photos.

The room is narrow so we chose pictures that

had a "deep" feel to them.

They visually expand the room.

uhhh...Jan...that pillow that is standing 

UPRIGHT needs to turn itself sideways...
just saying....

And...to add to her warm welcoming nature

she is also a gardener.

She has plants inside

and outside!

She sighed a 
BIG SIGH OF RELIEF
when all the decisions had been made 
AND
the kitchen and living room project was finished.
She loves it and is glad the mess is over.

Ummmm...Janet.....guess what's next?
Yeah- gotta bring that bathroom
into this century.

I can already hear Mike whining about
his bare bear getting tossed 
OFF the toilet.

However, IF he is nice to me I promise
not to tell that I saw him in his
tightie whities the other day....by accident.
And THAT, my friends is the REAL REASON 
I needed eye surgery.