Christmas came and went, very fast. We both were sick by the 27th with a nasty cold and cough that lingered almost 3 weeks. We had promised ourselves that as soon as we could after Christmas we would start the renovations on our den. As with everything we have done so far, there are surprises along the way and we are learning more and more about our 160 year old house. Who knew there was such a thing as "early" gyproc? The wallpaper is gone (that was a job that required a lot of patience), the carpet, tiles, linoleum and sub floor are all gone. Then the walls had to be repaired, the mantle came off (there was no fireplace) and where the door to the kitchen was has been filled in and repaired. The painting is now done and the floors have been sanded. Peter has applied the first coat of Verathane, two more to go. Hopefully we will be able to move back in by the end of the week.
The mantle was original to the house, we hated to take it out but we really need one wall where we can put a couch! I managed to save a small piece of the wallpaper to add to my collection!
We found a layer of newspapers under the linoleum, check out the prices!
Remains of the fireplace, we were able to use some of the wood to fill in the holes in the floor where the fireplace was.
Peter has done a super job with all this work. I have helped where I can, cleaned up the mess and tried to keep the rest of the house in some sense of order. I have been able to get some quilting done. My big project, an Amish version of Heather Stewart's "Fireside Log Cabin" is done and back from the long arm quilter's (Lynn Jones) and I am very pleased with it. It was great to go back to using solid fabrics again, I had quite a stash from my "Amish" phase.
"Making Do" is machine pieced and machine quilted. I wish you could see the wonderful feather borders. The quilt is 84" x 100" and has the new Hobbs Tuscany Cotton/Wool batting.
I have several other projects underway. Both grandsons need bigger quilts and I am looking forward to their input. Ben has picked a quilt from "The Quiltmaker's Gift", a delightful children's book by Jeff Brumbeau. I have lots of work ahead of me!