My House!

News alert!  News alert!  Kay, maybe that's a bit dramatic.  Interesting-ish fact announcement!  Interesting-ish fact announcement!

If you've been sitting at home upset, fretting, weeping uncontrollably because you couldn't see my house in Style at Home  ... fret no more.   The stylish folks at Style at Home Magazine have released the article that features my  semi-stylish house on-line.
My feature is the "One-Month Makeover - Century Cottage Goes Glam".  'Cause I made over my house in a month.   Cause I'm weird.

You don't get the whole written article.  You only get part of the writing but alllll of the pictures.  But let's face it, how many people actually read decorating magazines?  You look at decorating magazines and read your horoscope.  Duh.   Unless you're me.   I actually read decorating magazines.  Again, that's that aforementioned "weirdness" popping up.

Now before I give you the link ... before I invite you into my house ... there are a few rules.

1.  Please wipe your feet.

2.  Please don't try to pet the cat.  She's surprisingly aggressive for a spoiled Siamese who was potty trained too early.

3.  Please don't mention my kitchen floor.  I hate my kitchen floor.  The kitchen floor doesn't exist.  Got it?

O.K.  having said that, I'd like to welcome you all to my home!  Come on in and please ... stay a while.    After you look at my house in Style at Home , come  back to read some insider information about every photo!   (Scroll down after you've seen the pictures)

Click here ... to see my house in Style at Home on-line, then come back for some stories!

The stuff you didn't get to hear about in the magazine ...

Photo #1 - Me in my foyer.  I'm laughing hysterically (which results in chipmunk cheeks) at something my niece said.  It's an inside joke which you won't think is funny at all but it involves  pee pee.  Classy, eh? And grown up!

Photo #2 - My Foyer.  It took me months and MONTHS to get my bookcases looking good.  If your bookcases don't look this good, don't give up.  Just keep playing with them until they feel right.  Leaning beside my chair is one of my most prized possessions. A set list I got signed at a Ramones concert.

Photo #3 - Margaret. Margaret is the massive oil painting in my dining room. When my father died of lung cancer 10 years ago, my mother gave my sisters and I some money. Her only stipulation was that we spend the money on a piece of art. I bought Margaret. I will never, ever get rid of Margaret.

Photo #4 - My dining room. Lord I love my dining room. You may notice, the star of the show is my Dollar Store Garbage Bag Table runner.   Again with the classy.

Photo #5 - My kitchen. Kay, um ... here's a real confession. That kitchen table? The tulip table? I don't own it. It ain't mine. My niece owns it. I have been looking and looking at flea markets and on Kijiji for the same one for AGESSSSSS but could never find one. Since it's the one I WANT in my kitchen, and will eventually be the one I HAVE in my kitchen, I figured a little borrowing would do just fine. Do you feel cheated? Suck it. As far as I'm concerned THAT'S MY TABLE. It's just a matter of finding it for the right price and buying it. Or stealing it. Whichever seems easier. Oh! And that white brick wall was natural brick until about 3 days before the crew arrived to photograph my house. I highly recommend painting ugly brick walls.

Photo #6 - My Living Room.  The huge mirror? I got it at a garage sale for $7. I almost didn't buy it because I don't like to spend any more than $5 for a garage sale item. That end table? The chopping block looking one? It actually is a chopping block. I made it. And in a couple of weeks I'll show you how to make one too.

Photo #7 - My fireplace.  The filigree vase on the left-hand side of the fireplace mantle was brought to my house by the prop stylist. I bought it as a memento of the event. It cost $89. The wooden bowl in the far upper left corner of the bookshelf is an antique camel milking bowl from Saudi Arabia!  Saudi Arabian antiques are kindda rare outside of Saudi Arabia what with people not being allowed to visit the country without an invitation by a resident.  My sister (who is an actual interior decorator ... unlike me) spent last summer in Saudi Arabia decorating the house of a Saudi Arabian princess.  She brought me back the bowl.

Photo #8 - My boudoir.  I don't own the 2 green pillows on the bed. One is patterned, the other one is a beautiful green velvet. The prop stylist brought them to add a little colour to my bed. I loved them so much I thought I'd ask how much they were to buy. The velvet was somewhere just over $400. I did not purchase the pillow. I am currently on the lookout for a green velvet pillow pricing in at just a titch under $400.

Photo #9 - My bathroom.  The bathroom is the only room in the house that isn't painted white. It is a mixture of white and Benjamin Moore Bar Harbor Beige. When I first moved into the house the bathroom had a wood toilet seat. Blech. Double blech.

All photos by Donna Griffith by way of Style at Home.

Okey doke ... don't let the door hit you on the ass on the way out!   Thanks for comin' by and please leave all hostess gifts by the door. Unless you have a white tulip table, in which case you can leave it in the kitchen.

You might also be interested in:

Style at Home Series Pt. I   -   "Oh Dear, I'm About to get Shot"

Style at Home Series Pt. II -   "Getting My House Magazine Ready"

Style at Home Series Pt. III -   "I'm Magazine Ready, I swear"

Style at Home Series Pt. IV -   "The Art of Having Your House Photographed for a Magazine"