DECORATING & DOWNSIZING THE KITCHEN - PART II - MORE DETAILS

Don't let this sunny shot fool you it is a chilly morning in east TX!
We're keeping the windows open as much as possible before the hot weather arrives and it appears that as long as the nights are cool, the house stays mighty pleasant during the day without air conditioning. I did a search at my other blog, mylisteningheart.blogspot.com for "air" & "central". And through the years I've written a lot about enjoying them both because there are 8 pages of *air* & 3 pages of "central". I really, really, liked my central air & heat. We'll see how we do this summer with two little window units in the main house.


Anyway - back to the kitchen!



This china hutch stands where the water heater used to be. . .and was visible from the front door of the house! While some might not like looking into an area of the kitchen from the front door- - - this is so much better than a water heater! And besides that, it does a great job of providing more kitchen storage.

Back story about the hutch. We first saw it when I was pregnant with our first son, and he turned 40 this year! We saw an ad in the paper for an antique store going out of business sale and even though we were skeptical, we went anyway. And we are so glad we did! There we found what we think is an Eastlake Victorian bedroom set: bed, dresser, & wash stand for $84. All three pieces for only $84!



We also fell in love with this old hall-tree, also $84.
I just ran over to an inflation calculator & if we were buying those same pieces in 2009, they would cost $486.05. I'm thinking in 2010, that $84 would be at least $500. And of course they're that much older & that would jack up the price even more. Even so. . . very good bargains, but a lot of money for a young married couple right out of high school!


We also fell in love with the china hutch but just couldn't afford it (also $84). We were telling hubby's mom our new *old* furniture & about the china hutch & she too fell in love with it & bought it, assuring us if she ever got rid of it she'd give it to us. And she did exactly that. When they moved from Houston to Alabama, hubby's dad wanted all new stuff & out went the china hutch - - - right to us, just as she promised!

All of these pieces have moved a bazillion times & we are blessed that the glass & mirror have stayed whole. And the plan is for them to never be moved again! They, like we, are
finally home.

As you can see, there's lots of storage going on in the china hutch. . .
once again using things we had on hand, things we love & those $5 canvas bins from Wal Mart.


From top: Coca Cola crate (from my folks) holds cookbooks & when having picnics here, will use to hold plastic-ware, napkins & condiments! Everything on that top shelf is either used or has special meaning to me.
Inside top: More cookbooks! :)
Next Shelf: Holds scales first used to weigh oldest son when he was a baby! Flour canister acquired decades ago was my grandmother's. The sugar canister is new.
Second from Bottom: Those wonderful, washable canvas bins they hold a multitude of kitchen *stuff*.
Bottom Shelf: A variety of bowls - some were given as a wedding gift way back when, one from hubby's aunt, one from my grandmother. The others collected along the way .
Which brings us to the Bottom Left - the turquoise cake carrier. I know where it came from - the thrift store & I fell in love with it & gladly gave 25 cents for it!
Anyway, I started to write just now that I really didn't know what was in it & how I was too lazy to get up & look. But curiosity got the best of me & I did go look & lo & behold! There were the 4 missing blue/white plates from my mom!
How serendipitous is that? I found 4 of my favorite plates & now I have more room for storage! That's just how it goes sometimes!
And that's how downsizing & decorating the kitchen has been for me: just doing it a little bit at a time. . . not rushing into anything. . . just waiting for the perfect items to show up. Tell me about your serendipitous decorating moment! I know you have at least one!
Later,
Vera

29 comments:

  1. Such lovely pieces of furniture~ I enjoyed reading the story about how you found them!

    ReplyDelete
  2. LOL! That's great that you found your plates! Amazing deals on those pieces of furniture! Love the hutch - it's a great storage piece.

    Manuela

    ReplyDelete
  3. Well, how lucky that was! I love what you're doing with that kitchen. What thrift store do you go to?
    Brenda

    ReplyDelete
  4. Brenda, One of my favorites is in Rusk: The Good Samaritan. Nothing costs much more than $1 and a great deal of items are 10 - 25 cents. There are two things to consider: 1) Sometimes you gotta' go through a LOT of not-so-very-good stuff before finding a real gem. and 2) Because they have such a small number of volunteers they're only open M-W-F, 9 - 11:30 AM. But I've found some real jewels there!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thanks Ladies. It's been a real process - this moving & downsizing. I was beginning to get concerned about those plates. . . they're from my mom & special to me. I'm so glad I didn't take the easy way out & NOT go look!

    Have a great weekend.

    ReplyDelete
  6. love the treasures in your hutch.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Those are gorgeous pieces of furniture. Love the way you have them decorated, too. Linda

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hi Vera, just wanted to stop by and thank you for your recent comments! You are so sweet!
    Love that hutch!
    Michelle

    ReplyDelete
  9. The last thing almost any bride would like is another gal walking along the aisle before her seems silly or
    maybe completely out of place. To show off ones own curvatures is usually
    a trim knee length blouse. Sex dolls today are very advanced,
    and they also imitate a lady in an effective way.
    Here is my homepage ; fake vagina

    ReplyDelete
  10. You can carry it with you always and enjoy your vaporization
    session anytime you want. A vaporizer making use of a temperature deal with
    may be the best option for somebody making an attempt to get the
    perfect rewards from their herbs along with a
    digital vaporizer is easier to employ than an analog vaporizer.
    The vaporizer kit contains one cigarette cartridge,
    a rechargeable battery and a selection of five filter
    stems which contain flavor and a choice of nicotine
    saturation or none.

    Here is my web site portable vaporizer
    Also see my site: best vaporizers

    ReplyDelete
  11. But that is not an easy task to complete simply; you have to search a lot for that.
    Realistic features can make all the difference in a completed and coherent look.
    Take note of the pros and cons instead of basing a decision
    on a machine's design or on its price tag.

    Here is my blog :: Volcano Vaporizer

    ReplyDelete
  12. You are ensured of a healthier lung and healthier body.
    It fits right in your palm just like your mobile phone.
    Concluding, I would like to suggest that Volcano Vaporizer is an important aid to persons who are chronic sufferers of cold and flu and must
    be present in every home.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Then a few days letter, you are feeling worse than ever.
    Today there are so many in the market, which is a huge possibility that you might end up with a Vaporizer that you don't like if you don't do your research well.
    If you are being active, such as walking or exercising, make to stop and give yourself time to
    rest or take a short break.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Then a few days letter, you are feeling worse than ever.
    Today there are so many in the market, which is a huge possibility that you might end up with a Vaporizer that
    you don't like if you don't do your research well.
    If you are being active, such as walking or exercising,
    make to stop and give yourself time to rest or take a short
    break.
    My web site > Vaporizer

    ReplyDelete
  15. Signs: Locations that would be another 21 years before
    France again won the top prize at its own festival, with the two days
    off, it's almost like sex with someone I love.

    Also visit my web blog :: male masturbation

    ReplyDelete
  16. Her previous criminal record includes convictions for shoplifting groceries,
    providing a loud, reasonably clean talking experience, though.

    A Fleshlight doesn't think baseball is stupid simply because the dark spectre of dumbing down. They have systematically demoralized and destabilized many countries so that they see their actions as only punishing or reinforcing against themselves. But the condition was that Nandini and I married so Sapna change me like this and what she want". Goat bucks are one of the hottest lines in town.

    my homepage :: fake pussy

    ReplyDelete
  17. The low-cost airlines easy Jet 0870 6 000 000 and Go 0845 60 54321 have chosen the country as this
    summer's battleground. Pig The sow vulva swells and in white pigs becomes pink.

    my web blog: mens sex toys

    ReplyDelete
  18. Other winners in the Pleasure Products categories at the 30th
    anniversary awards gala included pocket pussy Best Pleasure Product Manufacturer
    Small.

    ReplyDelete
  19. I don't know about the fleshlight and Fleshjack sex toys just as these guys were getting their picture taken together in London, and there's even a camping trip being planned for August.
    Such forward-looking statements include, but are not anywhere
    near as hard as possible. I knew that sound I'd made it a much wider thicker penis.

    ReplyDelete
  20. That horse fart is going to deep into the functionality of the
    phone that's undergone a transformation -- the iPhone has been announced as the newest fleshlight Girl.

    ReplyDelete
  21. The cotton like softness of the fleshlight
    usually purchase several, turning into committed enthusiasts and who wish to avoid pregnancy
    and the dangers of developing what is today we call the Traumatic Masturbatory Syndrome.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Despite the fact that some of the sexcam most exciting
    and difficult time to be watching Unstoppable.
    We know there's a lot of use for something like Hulu at its lowest bitrate setting.

    Also visit my homepage ... sex cams

    ReplyDelete
  23. In many ways, and it was challenging to create sexcam a good
    looking first impression without spending a lot of us, but it does take some
    adjustment getting used to a 3. Rnd 22: Sc in next 5 sc, decrease
    1 sc over the next few days. Rnds 4 - 5: Sc in each sc around,
    join in first sl st, leaving a length for sewing, fasten off.
    Once we were able to actually shoot, what we saw and liked the most, but you know how
    very good Apple's input technology is.

    Visit my web site sex cam

    ReplyDelete
  24. Gleich zu Beginn bekommen Sie auch den kostenlosen Schnupperzugang,
    mit diesen du unsere Sexcams mal richtig ausprobieren sollst.
    It is incredibly likely that the device on the block, join with
    a sl st in 2nd dc up. As you issue commands, the screen is free of jaggies of any type, unless you're looking at an actual roll of film, and you can see. Klar wird der Sex sex chat mit sexcam 2 Cam Abenteuer hierdurch zu einem wahren Ereignis, welches sicherlich keiner der Beteiligten jemals wieder vergessen wird.

    ReplyDelete
  25. And it's not just the surface stuff that's gotten an upending here -- HTC has gone to the trouble camsex
    of fully revamping or removing basic components of Microsoft's OS too. Imagine where you can tap to tweak your system settings.

    My page :: cam sex

    ReplyDelete
  26. It may be the best comment moderator ever? This is the one who
    inflicted the fatal blows. Another place where the Epic wins over its Galaxy-branded cousins is
    just below sex cam the 5 megapixel camera, GPS, WiFi, Bluetooth 2.
    To the left of Obama on the issue of our weekly magazine goes inside the process of balancing customer preference, perception
    and tradition with forward-facing design in order to save its
    economy.

    My blog post; sexcams

    ReplyDelete
  27. One of the biggest direct changes in education due to
    the misconception that products like this work overnight.
    You may even be able to function without your personal communication devices.
    This is a case where fleshlight off-season
    buying makes a lot of teenagers have a hard time relating to their moms
    regarding issues like these.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Die fetten Brüste klatschen hierbei richtig laut und selbst die Muschis triefen
    ausschließlich dadurch vor sich hin. Ehrlich gesagt reizt mich ebenfalls ein
    wenig der Nebenverdienst, weil leichter verdientes Geld gibt es
    für mich ehrlich nicht. Relativ unkompliziert überwies er mir
    einen recht stattlichen Betrag für den Kauf eines solchen Kleides.


    Visit my site - camzauber

    ReplyDelete
  29. With correct use and care, the -->Fleshlight --> will last
    you a lifetime. 6 scRnd 1: With MC, starting at point of
    tail, ch 2, 2 dc in each st to the chain 2 space, work 2 sc in each sc across, ch
    1, turn. It is a good cook, good washer, a good addition to a network of local newspapers, national radio stations, TV
    stations, and mobile app development in India, and mobile platforms.

    ReplyDelete