Country Life

96. One Ox-yoke chandelier for sale — cheap

/ Apple Hill Cottage / 2 Comments

It will be a big day in the renovation of Apple Hill Cottage when the Ox-yoke chandelier comes down…
Ox yoke chandelier
Is ox-yoke chandelier an oxymoron? In truth, it is a faux ox-yoke chandelier. Does that make it a faux oxymoron?

Well, faux or not, it IS really ugly. And, not only is it ugly, it hangs low. Ouch! (Well, I don’t mean to say it’s ugly; it just doesn’t fit the cottage decor. And we have no plans to get any cows. It’s for sale…)

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Mr. H.C’s dad, Joe was 6 feet tall. He hung the chandelier so the bottom dowels were hanging at 6’1″. Not only does it hang low, but it hangs right smack dab in the middle of the walkway from the kitchen into the living room. Every tall person who walks into the room bangs their head on one of those wooden dowels — usually more than once.

It is fortuitous that Mr. H.C. isn’t tall, and I am really short; that’s probably why it is still hanging. It has one good point and one good point only. It holds four 100 watt bulbs. Light is good when there is painting and wiring and sanding to be done. Lotsa light is lotsa better!

IMG_3742Ox yoke chandelierThat lamp is a beast, but I gotta say it’s as sturdy as an ox. It has been hit by boards, sheets of dry wall, and ladders at least 597 times. It swings in the breeze and rattles away, but it has never come close to falling. This weekend, I actually thought it was coming down. Mr. H.C. had hit his head, and he immediately climbed the ladder to mess around with it; I started a celebratory dance and grabbed my camera, but no dice. It’s still hanging… I have a beautiful copper-based schoolhouse light that will hang there when the new ceiling is finished. But it won’t be 400 watts. I think Mr. H.C. is leaving it up as long as he can — he even insulated around it this weekend, so it could stay up and provide plenty of light while we finish the ceiling.

Now if anyone out there has a ranch in Montana? Or a rustic cabin in Texas? This light chandelier might be just the thing! Here is a beautiful artistic rendering…(blue insulated ceiling and all)IMG_3746
But you gotta have high ceilings…
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Even Mr. H.C. has taken to wearing a hard hat…

95. If one wall takes six months, how long do six walls take?

/ Apple Hill Cottage / 9 Comments

I’ve been thinking about this dining room wall for at least six months.
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  • First, trying to figure out a color that was bold, but not too bold.
  • Second, getting the brainstorm of vintage wallpaper and even sending away for samples. (And asking you, dear readers, which one you preferred. See Post 79. The Corner Dining Room. Some of you sensibly said, “No Wallpaper!”)
  • Third, chickening out on the time, money, and effort to decide on and actually DO wallpaper.
  • Fourth, back to picking a paint color that was bold, but not too bold.
  • Etc.

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In the meantime we worked on other walls. Mr. HC did wiring; I did priming; we both did painting. And for the last two weekends we’ve been working on The Wall (aka Wall # 4). I can’t show you the complete pictures until it is all finished, but here is a teaser:
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There are some details to be finished because, when we left today, some of the paint was still wet. Also, the mirror has to be hung between the sconces, and Mr. HC won’t hang the mirror until the ceiling is finished. (Sometimes he is so unreasonable!) 😄 And the ceiling can’t go up until this wall is finished:

Wall # 5. It won’t take as long to finish this one as it did Wall # 4.

It’s always something!

91. 14 for ’14

/ Apple Hill Cottage / 4 Comments

Reblogged with additions for 2014. Happy New Year everyone! Thanks for reading.

There are two kinds of people in the world:

1. those who would go to Times Square for New Years Eve, and those who couldn’t be paid enough to go…last sunset of 2013

2. those who go out for New Year Eve, and those who stay home…Beaujolais in crystal

3. those who would rehab an old vacant house, and those who would look for a new one instead…Peeling paint

4. Cat-lovers and Dog-lovers…Henry bugging Michael

5. Savers and Pitchers…pottery pitcher

6. Dreamers and Doers…priming the cottage

7. those who love city streets, and those who love dirt roads…
Joe's sign

8. those who stay, and those who go…
vacant lawn chairs

9. those who love snow, and those who, uhmm… don’t…Snow on porch

10. those who take naps, and those who feel superior to those who take naps…Henry the cat

11. those who believe and those who scoff…Cross

12. those who look up and those who look down…Clouds and trees

13. those who eat their fruits and vegetables, and those who eat their meat’n potatoes…groundhog eating apple

14. those whose glass is half-empty and those whose glass is half-full…Crystal goblet at Christmas

At different times in our lives, we can be any of these.
Me? I have been all these people–a city lover, a country girl, a scoffer, a believer, an optimist, a pessimist, a cat-lover, a dog-lover, a dreamer, a doer…(Though I would have to be paid a lot of cash to go to Times Square on New Year’s Eve.)
Can we remember this?
Can we remember that our differences make this beautiful world what it is?
Can we let go of our prejudices, our prides, our preconceptions, our (fill in the blank here)… and love each other?

May grace and peace be yours in abundance in 2014.