Hello.

 

Hi, I'm Annie.

Mother of 3,
spouse to G,
writer of things,
former batgirl,
sister,
daughter,
lucky friend,
and American
living in Australia.

Basic Joy = my attempt to document all of this life stuff, stubbornly looking for the joy in dailiness. 

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Mama, Ph.D.: Women Write About Motherhood and Academic LifeMountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, a Man Who Would Cure the WorldThe Sweetness at the Bottom of the PieThe Island: A NovelThe PassageSecret Spaces of Childhood

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Tuesday
Jul102007

Home sweet {quirky} home

It's always an adventure (sometimes painful, sometimes fun) to turn a new house into your own. We knew going into this one that there were some...shall we say...quirks that we were inheriting. The previous owner is an artist and she definitely used the house as her canvas. Before we start painting and redoing, I had to share some of the unique aspects of our new home. As my humanities professor always said, "different isn't necessarily bad...it's just different!"

1. (Starting at the top left.) This light, like many of its friends throughout the house, has been painted over...shade, cord, everything.

2. Likewise EVERY PLUG in the house. Not just the faceplate, mind you, but also the actual, wired, plug-goes-in-here thingie. I think this will require a bit of electrician work.

3. Look closely and you will see the kitchen mural of a big daisy, very Farrah Faucett-like with the wind blowing the petals back from its face. I'm sure if I were an adolescent male flower, I would want this on my bedroom wall but since I'm not, it's going to have to go.

4. Another mural that is directly across from the main entry to the house. Before I got a chance to take the picture, the kids (okay, I helped) took off all the fake jewels that were intermingled in the mural. That's right, I bought a home with a bedazzled wall. When we first walked through, there was a little pedastal in the lower left corner with a fairy on it.

5. (next row) This isn't so bad, actually. The colors aren't me, though, and I think the way the chair rail molding zigzags up the staircase is a little distracting so we're going to take it down.

6. That's right, folks. That fan is painted: the paddles and the fixture itself. I'm very excited about this room, though. It will be our project/homework room. We just got several IKEA pieces that will house all our art-sewing-craft materials, etc. Then we'll put a couple of tables in the middle of the room with stools. I'll post after photos in August once it gets painted, etc.

7. This is the little fireplace in Sam's room. Nice, huh? Well, here's the quirk:

8. It has tiles with soft-core romantic scenes on it. Yeah, we'll be at least painting over those.

9. (next row) This is the view from the master bedroom, through the see-through french doors, to the master bathroom. Clearly these people haven't heard that a little mystery, a little privacy is a good thing.

10. Another mural, this one in the master bedroom complete with glow-in-the-dark stars.

11. Also another painted light cover. It kind of defeats the purpose of lights, doesn't it?

12. Finally, this is the fireplace in the family room. I actually kind of like the harlequin-style painting on the mantel and my kids love it. Maybe this quirk will make it through. For now.

Stay tuned for the next installment...things I *love* about the new house.

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Reader Comments (4)

Oh, you've got to keep the harlequin mantel painting - if anything, just as a reminder of the house's quirky period.

07.11.2007 | Unregistered CommenterMatt

Oh, you can totally paint tile. Remember that bathroom on the main floor of our Boston house? I painted the shower tiles, the floor, everything. Much less repainting to be done when it's fireplace tile and not the floor that everyone scuffs up all the time. So, so cool to see bits of your new place. Can't wait to see what you do with it.

And yes, privacy is a very good thing (especially when one is on the throne).

oh I love it. Only in New England could you find all those cute little quirks in a home. I am excited to see what you do. I love the layout of all those pics too. I have so much to learn with this blogging stuff.

07.11.2007 | Unregistered CommenterBridget

i love a house with personality! congrats to you for seeing the potential underneath it all...keep it all documented, so we can enjoy the metamorphosis!

07.14.2007 | Unregistered Commentergab

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