New Year, Old Projects

Yesterday was 70, sunny, and we had our hike to Mount Mitchell planned again, but it did not happen.  I had a vet appointment scheduled for Princess on Monday, but she took a turn for the worse, and we ended up at the emergency vet.  This hike was originally planned for my birthday three Sundays ago, but it rained on my birthday, and last Saturday when we were going to try again it snowed up on the mountain making it difficult to get to. Today it's raining, but it is opening the camellias that I can see from my bathroom window.

I brought in a handful of mock orange and scotch broom branches that are loaded with buds to force them to open in the house adding a nice scent to the room.

Bob's reading room is first on the list to finish.  I still have some trim to paint and the ceiling needs scraping in spots and painting.  We replaced the antique hooked rug that was in the room, the moths made a mess of it.  It took me a while to get the courage to throw it in a dumpster, but Randy was having a sale at the Frog & Swan and I bought this one at a pretty good price and it works nicely.

I still get angry at our contractor and plumber, who when putting in the shower on the other side of this wall, destroyed the original wallpaper in this spot.  It could have been taken down and reapplied, that's what I would have done if I was here watching over their work, but I wasn't, so I have been looking online trying to find just one roll of flocked ferns in gold with a silver foil background . . . nearly impossible to find, so I hide it with a row of paintings, which looks ridiculous.  Need to get Bob in the attic on the off chance a roll is up there.  

I never planned for this room to go "gold" even with the color of the ferns on the wall, but then I found this antique lamp and then the shade, and it started the color theme.

The base is black marble and the globe is a swirl amber glass and I love it.  I just happened to have the shade in a closet and it looked perfect on it.

Then there's this shade that I just found for $3!!!  I had seen one similar a few years ago at an antique store on a lamp, they would not separate them, and they probably would have charged me a lot just for the shade.  Patience pays off, this one was in a thrift shop on a shelf in a back room, in perfect condition, raised velvet ferns and I love it!

Looks pretty good with the wallpaper, doesn't it?  

On a sad note, my bush was not going to make it, and I finally had the guts to start cutting it down.  This spring I will look for a replacement that matches the other bush.  Things are getting old around here, and they don't last forever.  

Busy week ahead.  My rescue friend George is on his way from Gulfport, MS, with a copilot and six chows who will be staying at the farmhouse Thursday and Friday.  Need to get it ready, make chili, get supplies for the dogs.   Norma and Darryll will be here Friday to get one chow, Molly.  Ben will be here from Ohio to get his adopted chow Preacher.   Carol is coming from Virginia to get the rest and take them to PA and CT.  Crazy!!