Our Minimal Mansion...on Vacation

Every year for my entire life, my family has taken a one week vacation to Fort Myers, Florida. Fort Myers is a special place for our family not just because we visit every year, but because we own a home there. Now, let me clarify, by "home" we are not talking about a beach house with a stocked mini bar and pool boy; no, we are talking about an early 1900's home that has been in my family for over four generations.

As you can imagine, the house has character. Within the house, there are four apartments, two of which my family rents out. One of the apartments is recently vacant, which we have decided to keep for our family to use. The last apartment has always been reserved for our family vacations and in past years has made a perfect spring break headquarters for countless college girls.







So why are we including a tidbit about our vacation in the MM blog, you ask? It's quite simple, really; we have a love for historic homes. Each year, my father takes a one-two week "vacation" down to Fort Myers. He spends well over half his trip working on the house. Anyone who owns a home knows that houses require your full dedication to maintain, especially when they are aged. Whether it is replacing screens, patching up walls or re-doing floors, the grand old Fort Myers house demands our family's full attention, vacation or not.



This year, Chris and I  wanted to help out as much as possible with the house. We love it and we want to do our part in helping preserve it for the next generation (the pig and the shih tzu, of course). While Chris was busy replacing ceiling tiles and monitoring a leaking pipe, I decided to give the bathroom of the recently vacated apartment a little face lift.

The canvas I had to work with was quite dismal; it had been occupied by a single guy (no offense guys), so it was completely void of color and actually kind of "blah".  In addition, the bathroom also faced several challenges that come with any old house; chipping paint, old wallpaper in various places and nail holes that are likely decades old.

Here are a few pictures of where we started with the bathroom project:

You can see how I felt there was a need for a change here.









so....a couple quarts of paint and one trip to the flea market later:

And there you have it....and afternoon of cleaning, painting and sprucing and it looks a little more comfortable than before. It isn't grand or luxurious but it will do. As we continue to slowly rehab and preserve the Fort Myers house, I am sure that this will be further updated. 

Moral to the story: a fresh coat of paint and a few accessories and you just might have yourself a decent looking powder room. 

Old homes require work and attention but they return your love ten fold; this house has a story (lots in fact) and more character than any beach bungalow with a mini bar and a pool boy. It is our little "minimal mansion" away from the Minimal Mansion.

Serious DIY-Mode

If you're a homeowner (or even a very invested home-renter), you know home improvements and projects never really end. By the time you are happy with a room, a chair, a paint color, a rug or a flower bed, you have either already changed your mind OR something has broken and needs to be fixed.

Over the past couple of months, we have been in serious DIY mode (well, we always kind of are but this time it is REALLY serious). You have not heard from us in a while because we are currently in the middle of several major home improvement undertakings. Now, I do not want to spoil the outcomes of some of these projects by posting prematurely so,  this post is just to inform you that yes, we are still alive and no, we have not moved out of the mansion. Our current projects have not only kept us very busy but have also provided us with several new adventures and as always, a few lessons learned.

Stay tuned for what are sure to be either delightful or disastrous DIY adventures at the "mansion"....

The day I discovered stainless steel spray paint...

Today will forever go down in history as the day I met what is sure to be a lifelong friend, stainless steel spray paint. We met on the paint aisle in Michael's craft store and it was love at first site. I was originally in the market for regular metallic silver spray paint, which I had planned to use for several pending projects around the house. The stainless steel captured my heart though, and walked me down the paint aisle all the way to the register.

Not only did the stainless steel woo me from the beginning, but my new friend at the cash register ("Chrystal," I believe?) gave me a teacher's discount, on top of my 40% off coupon. Today was a good day.




So the spray paint and I came home and got to work immediately. I had intended to embellish some old bottles (and re purpose them into vases, etc.), as well as a couple of lamps. I started with a wine bottle and a Crown Royal bottle, just to test out the paint.

I figured it would look pretty good, but had no idea how real it would look once dry. The paint was super easy to apply (made only one mistake) and once dry, really did look like stainless steel! Needless to say, I am addicted. I am suddenly finding myself wanting to paint everything stainless steel!

Not sure how I am going to finish these. I feel the need to add something else (not sure what yet) to a couple of the bottles (namely, the Crown bottles) to make them less recognizable as adult beverage containers. 

There you have it, folks: MY version of recycling!

A Two Hour Investment for a Lifetime of Sweet Memories (Poetic, right?)

I am by nature, a very sentimental person; not with everything though, just in regards to things that really matter.  As a result, I still have every single wedding card Chris and I received (two years ago).  I stashed each one away in a box, along with the leftover programs, save the dates and wedding invitations. I also have a few 'Amy and Chris, November 6, 2010' cocktail napkins and some match books.

So...what can you possibly do with dozens and dozens of wedding cards?

Collage them!

Now, before I go any further let me say this: I did NOT get this idea from Pinterest. This one is all mine!

I started with a large frame from Michael's. You could use any size. We chose an 18"X24" poster frame. The next step was actually the hard part; I pulled out ALL the wedding cards and one by one, decided which ones would fit into the frame. Honestly, I would have included every single one if I could have. Unfortunately, however, this was intended to be a framed collage, not an entire wall mural. The rest of the (unused) cards are still being saved in the original wedding paraphernalia box.

Once the cards were arranged to my liking, I began placing them carefully on the board. I just used the blank side of the poster insert (the paper that comes inside the frame), but you could do it any way you'd like. I also added black and white scrapbook paper into the blank spots of the frame, covering the cardboard of the backing. I secured the pictures with Scotch brand adhesive pads (the little squares with the double backing), and scotch tape. I centered all the cards around a photos, program from our wedding ceremony, an invite and RSVP card, a cocktail napkin, and a newspaper from our wedding day (I used photos and paper to cover some of the front page headlines from that day...economic recession=major wedding collage buzz kill).

I completed the collage by printing out copies of the lyrics to our first dance and cutting the lyrics into random strips. I arranged the strips throughout the collage to give the frame the finishing touch.

Once the collage was framed, I used a metallic silver paint pen to draw small hearts on the glass of the frame, making the collage look more three-dimensional.

< Cards and wedding "stuff" in frame. I have been planning this project for about a year now. Looking through all of these cards evoked so many great memories. Nothing could possibly make you feel more loved than to re-read 100+ cards from those you hold dearest, each offering blessings and words of wisdom.

Funny...only took me about two hours. Procrastination at its finest, people.

And here's a close-up:

Now I just have to figure out where to hang this thing...

Update on the tragic tale about the Washing Machine(s)

After our long journey through appliance shopping hell, we have finally settled with a brand new, fully functioning washing machine. It is a ge and we did get it from Lowe's. When we returned the "lemon" that Lowe's sold us from the scratch and dent section, they were very apologetic. They happily took the washer back and refunded our money.

They also gave us a great deal on a new washer (see Washer #4 below).

Now Washer #4 has settled in nicely in our laundry room and is washing away as quickly as it can. I do not miss the singing, chiming and beeping of the old fancy washer. This one is very standard, with turn knobs and nothing digital. True, this whole situation could have been avoided if we had just gone to Lowe's and purchased a new washer to begin with but that just isn't our style. We like the adventure and, eventually the humility that comes with owning a house and trying to make it a home.

Moral to this story: Yay, Lowe's!

Now, I have to go. I have LOTS of laundry to catch up on.

-THE END-

Because I saw it on Pinterest....

Ok...I'll be the first to admit that I enjoy Pinterest BUT I am NOT obsessed with it, by any means. I think most of us use it as a mindless escape from whatever it is we are supposed to be doing. I try never to "re-pin" anything that I won't actually use, do, buy, copy or laugh again at. With that said...

So I saw this thing on Pinterest a few months back. It was a wall (in an entryway, I think), that someone decorated with framed fabric remnants. I am a BIG fan of photo walls; in fact, we currently have several photo walls in our home. I liked the idea of the fabric though because it seemed easy, cheap and unique (my three primary requirements for just about everything).

So...to Wal-mart I go (side note: I absolutely HATE Wal-mart). I wanted to use this project for the master bedroom because I thought it might add a little color to the wall, without overwhelming the relaxing blue/green/grey theme we already had.

So a few fabric scraps and a 8 cheap-o frames later....

 Fabric scraps from Walmart. 

I spent about $3.00 on these babies.

And there you have it!

Easy, right? Total cost: about $30.00, for eight frames. If we get sick of the fabric, I can always change it out or re-purpose the frames for another use. Not bad for a quick fix, if I say so myself.

An Unfortunate Tale About the Washing Machine(s)...

Once upon a time... a nice young couple purchased a brand new washing machine for their "new" home. It was an overly fancy but reasonably priced "high efficiency" model with lots of buttons and a song and dance to indicate a finished wash cycle. We shall call this washing machine Washing Machine #1.

Eighteen Months after the purchase of said washing machine, the machine began offering an error message. It was fancy enough to communicate that it was broken, but not fancy enough to actually repair itself. To make matters worse, the machine was exactly six months out of warranty. The sweet young couple talked to it, encouraged it and tried to be patient with it. Unfortunately, however, the washing machine eventually bit the big one and, if there is any justice in this world, will burn forever in appliance hell. Sorry...the wound is still a little fresh.




    <This washer is currently sitting on my front porch (I know...super classy). I invite anyone who's interested in a "fixer upper" to come and steal it. You'd be doing us a favor.









So...here is where the story really begins. The nice young couple (you probably know them), began talking about buying a new washing machine. As the laundry began to pile up, the need for a washer grew greater and greater. Chris (1/2 of the nice young couple), decided it would be a good idea to try a local used appliance dealer, as recommended by a close friend. Amy (me, obviously), did not think this was a good idea...so let it be documented in cyber space history forever.

Chris brought home what seemed to be a great deal.  A $200 "gently" used washer was hauled home, brought into the house, and plugged up. We shall call the great deal Washing Machine #2. .Chris began running a small load of "test" clothes and soon discovered that the great deal was actually a lemon. The "gently used" washer, in fact, had a crack and did not quite work....at all.

Not that I would ever say"I told you so," but this was quite ironic.

So, after a long household debate about whether or not to return the washer for a refund, or try to get another "good deal," in exchange...the refund team won.

The nice young couple then decided to head to good ole' American Lowe's...where prices are guaranteed and products are too.

Or so we thought...

We, being the thrifty folks we are, decided to buy a washer from the Lowe's "Scratch and Dent" section. We found an awesome deal on a brand new washing machine and were happy to haul it home after all of 15 minutes of shopping. We drove home, completely satisfied with our thriftiness and eager to make a dent in the accumulation of dirty laundry as soon as possible. We'll call this purchase Washing Machine #3 (that's right....#3).

We carried the new (Lowe's) washing machine into the house, placed it in the same space the first and second washer had been, and eagerly plugged it in. Much to our chagrin, nothing happened. We stared at the washing machine like it was about to say something. We could not believe our luck with something that should be so simple.

So back to the truck we go; we loaded the washer back onto the truck and headed back toward Lowe's.

Our neighbor, Chris and Marcie loading the Lowe's washing machine BACK onto the truck,
after its initial failure to launch.

We raced to get to the other side of town before the store closed. It was 9:30PM and we knew that at 10:00PM, our scratch and dent specialists would be turning out the lights and closing the doors. About half way to the store, I had a thought; I asked Chris if he had actually turned on the water before trying the washing machine. He paused. You see....we have made this mistake before, but with a dishwasher (we'll save that story for a later post). After a five minute discussion, we decided to turn around and head back home to try the same (Lowe's) washer again. We convinced ourselves that the washer must have some sort of sensor that prevents it from actually turning on, until the valve for the water is actually turned on and allowing water to the machine. We figured, obviously, this is mechanism which is designed to prevent the washing machine from burning up from being run without water (I reiterate...we have seen this show before, only with a dishwasher).

So we race back home, Lowe's washing machine still in tow. Chris and I unload the washing machine, carry it back inside, plug it back in and this time, turn on the water connected to the machine. No dice. We still have a non-functioning washing machine.

Needless to say, this story is not yet over. Chris will be returning the Lowe's washing machine today. I wanted to go ahead and post this story, though because I can already tell you how it will end. We will end up buying a full-price washing machine from a trustworthy store. We may try Lowe's again; it will all depend on how they handle the fact that they sold us a lemon to begin with. We will lovingly call the new washing machine Washing Machine #4, even though there should never be a washing machine #4, especially for a nice young couple that has lived in their house only two years.

Moral to the story, homeowners: Don't cheap out on things that matter. If its an appliance and you need it (like a washing machine), do your research, find something with a good warranty and buy a good machine.

Our first washing machine was, we thought, a great washing machine. It was a Maytag. It is the second Maytag product we've had a problem with (the first was the infamous dishwasher). I am not endorsing any specific brand, but we do seem to have rotten luck with Maytag and will not be purchasing another Maytag as long as we can avoid it.

Yet another lesson learned at the "mansion". Let's just hope we can wash clothes again before the week's out. I am not a washboard in the river kind of girl....