Posts
Greetings from the basement. Well, as you can see from the photo above, it's more than just a basement. It's the den/office/TV room where we do most of our living. My little operation (a slice of which is just visible in the right foreground) was moved down here so that my room can get The Treatment. Wallpaper is coming down, chinks and dinks in the ceiling and walls are being filled, and soon inviting, buyer-friendly colors will be up. Furniture will be switched around to create an illusion of more space. I'll have a new room to enjoy until it becomes someone else's. Sorry I have no "before" picture to show. Completely slipped my mind as we started moving things Saturday. I'll show the "after" when it's done.
Our goal is to have the house on the market by February, March at the latest. We want to be among the first that cabin-feverish house shoppers will see as they break outdoors, the holiday crush behind them. The inside work should be do-able in that time frame. Outside, a few slats of siding need to be replaced, and the old siding really needs a powerwash. I guess we'll have to hope for a freakish warm day to get that accomplished. Also, to show the house that early, we'll have to find a place to park the plants, which are now stuffed next to any window that provides some light. (Very few in this north-facing house.) We'll figure that out. If we have to, can even use my sister's east-Jesus house if we can renew our passports to get that far out into Vuh-gin-yuh.
It'll be a truncated week, with all of T-day being spent at my niece's house. (She lives even further out than my sister.) It'll be the first time she's hosted Thanksgiving for the family, and we'll be rooting for her. She wants to do all the courses herself, so I was doubly flattered that she asked me to bring my Pumpkin Custard and Green Tomato Mincemeat pies. (I know all anybody needs is another pumpkin pie recipe, but I'll share it anyway 'cause it's good. I don't think mincemeat is popular enough for anyone to be interested in....)
Friday we head to Delaware for just the day to get a few things left in the trailer.
And off we go. I'm headed out for some paint. Benjamin Moore's "Fresh Air."
10 comments:
A friend told me to put a layer of fresh Thyme and Basil on the bottom of the pan that holds the rack for the turkey and so I tried it. It was marvelous. Everyone commented how good the turkey was and the flavor had that little hint of Thyme. It also gave the house a fragrance I would call "holiday mix" better than scented candles. We had a blast all day and into the evening. Glad I took today off. We have no plans for Thursday, the real Thanksgiving Day, guess I watch football and eat popcorn. Good luck with your house chores. Do they still have those lovely Williamsburg colors up there for paint selection? I did every room in the Mt Vernon house with a different color. We loved them.
The room is so inviting. I found myself wanting to see the shelves filled with books. It is cozy, warm and well, I think I would be quite comfortable in that room.
One thing I sense may be missing in "advice" is a room that looks lived in. I think most folks looking for a home are saavy enough to know (especially flippers) that the seller is going for as close to "showroom" perfect. For me, I want a room (such as the one above) that shows me life and I get a sense of love from the home. I know... the smells of baking etc. etc. Yet, for me books draw me in like a magnet.
Thanks for the compliment, Linda. It is a very cozy room. And not to worry, we're not going for a totally sterile look. What you can't see is the enormous TV that that couch sits in front of--really totally dominates that side of the room and it will be here when we show the house because it's our only TV. have to have to have it! And we'll keep some books on the shelves, just not all of 'em. (The better to be packed as much as possible when the time comes!)
I love mincemeat - hint, hint!!
Linda in Chapel Hill
Yeah, like that cosy room :-)
But I never knew fresh air was pale pink. I may stop breathing.
Ravel, I was afraid it would be a mistake to try to show the color. Different monitors can do who-knows-what to colors. It's actually a pale cream color, not pink. So please, breathe!
And yr comment arrived as I was dark blue...
OK, Rita. Just for you!
Love the room.
Now its full steam ahead for you both as you've set February as your listing date.
Will you decorate for Cmas this year, or just bypass that for packing, moving out furniture and painting?
Mim
That's a good question, Mim. We were just talking about it last night. We seem to agree that as wonderful as Christmas decorations are, they're also a mess, and we're going be contending with enough of messes over the next few months. So we'll probably just put some lights in the windows and call the place "decorated." Money also always seems to be tight this time of year, and this year it's more so because of extra house expenses. So we're not exactly in much of a holiday mood.
I saw your post today. I empathize only too well with the unknowns you face.
Post a Comment