The Leisure Seekers

Our title today refers to a wonderfully poignant movie with Donald Sutherland and Helen Mirren.  Helen's character busts her husband out of the nursing home and they set off on an adventure in their family's ancient RV to Ernest Hemingway's house in the Florida Keys.  

When we're in the woods, I often sit quietly and just absorb the nature around us.  At Buck Pond, we listened to loons call each other for hours until we fell asleep.  In the Smokies, we enjoyed our morning coffee with a herd of deer and several titmice.  We try to get a campsite next to water if possible and are completely spoiled when we wake up to views like this:

Minister Creek Campground
Allegheny National Forest

I don't want the interior of the camper to compete with the views outside the windows, but I don't want it to be basic either.  I've seen more than a few remodels on Pinterest that I like a lot but won't translate well in a small space.  So, I'm focusing on a simple aesthetic on a very tiny budget.  Our biggest expense will be recovering the cushions and we're going with an upholsterer for that because we want them to be in the hands of someone that knows what they're doing with upholstery weight fabric (aka. not me).  

Since the Apache is straight out of the 70s, I wanted to honor that with what is probably the most popular DIY craft of that decade: macrame!  I found a tutorial on Pinterest, spent $5 in supplies, and learned how to tie a square knot.  

Am I seriously going to put a plant hanger in the camper?  Unlikely, but I like the idea of it and it kept me busy before I brought the camper home, so it's a win-win.  I ended up with an unspent gift card leftover from my birthday and did a little shopping, coming up with this:

Not bad for an initial idea

I quickly changed my mind on the peel-and-stick paper there, and while I love the gold metallic spray paint I don't think there are a ton of accents that I can spray paint gold.  

I love this.
Snagged from Pinterest that redirected to a sketchy not-original-post site
so I have no idea who to credit it to.

This is gorgeous.  I love how airy it all looks, but there's too much white for the amount of dirt that our kind of camping and hiking generates.  I have white kitchen cabinets now and it seems impossible to keep them really clean.  But overall, I love the vibe that this gives off.  Simple, understated, restful.

There are four more months before our next camping trip.  

Let's Do the Time Warp

The interior of the camper as I mentioned before, is straight out of 1975, except for the previous owner's application of Contact paper to the cabinet fronts and the frame above the bed ends.  I would like, if I may, to take you on a strange journey...

Let's start with the cushions.

Woah.  The photo of the cushion detail really doesn't do it justice.  It was nighttime in my garage and let's just say that the only benefit of the cover of darkness is the muted effect it had on the green and yellow.  Step back and appreciate this for all its worth.

Where to begin?

Okay, that isn't much better light-wise.  This was taken when I went to look at the Apache for the very first time on a bright October day.  While I may appreciate the light-blocking effects of dark grey curtains at five in the morning in the summer, I'm a firm believer in things being light and airy when it comes to window dressing.  The curtains are now long gone, but just appreciate the sheer visual cacophony of the plaid mixed with buffalo check mixed with tile.  While it looks like there are holes where the light leaks through on the bed end I can assure you that this puppy is tight as a drum.  Onward to the other side:

The bags are filled with the original curtains. 
The weird grey lump is a sofa.

I think the photos make this look smaller than it actually is.  The beds are full-size beds, and that sofa is six feet (2 meters) long.  The cushions on that are also the same green and yellow plaid, but they were covered by a fuzzy grey sheet.  An improvement, but I think we can do better for the long term. The little countertop that you see on the left of the screen folds down, and there are a stovetop and sink as well.

I don't know what color the counters are, officially.
They're a bit yellowy beige.

This photo gives you a taste of just how visually stimulating everything is at once.  It nearly gave me a headache.  The doors on the cabinet slide to either side but aren't a storage option since the sink guts are behind it.  Here's what it looks like with the doors removed.  

There is a piece of foam board in the back (that white thing in front of the vent)

 So, there's the furnace.  I don't know if we'll actually use it very often, but it does work and keeps everything toasty.  It would have been welcome this past April when we woke up to temps in the high 30s.  The open cabinet with the particleboard shelf was where the previous owner removed the original refrigerator because it wasn't working and made a platform for an air conditioner.  I think we're going to install a 12v/110w refrigerator as I hate having to drain and restock the cooler a couple of times a day when we're camping.  We even have one of those coolers that are supposed to keep ice for 5 days, but I'm sure that would be accurate as long as it remains unopened.  I also hate it when my carefully prepared food items get waterlogged. 

The stove lid is visible here.  Sort of visible.

 The original stovetop is pastel yellow.  I don't love it, but I don't hate it.  The stovetop lid is yellow.  While I don't mind yellow, I don't appreciate shades of yellow on the same appliance.  Changes are planned.

Cabinet next to the dinette, and the laminate flooring

This little storage area is nice and roomy but has a single shelf inside.  I'm researching the best options for organizing it so I can fit dinnerware, utensils, cleaning supplies, pots, pans, a mixing bowl, French press, food, fire extinguisher, and everything else we'll need to be functional and safe.   Also, I love the new flooring.  

There are storage areas under the benches of the sofa and dinette as well as a storage lid with a hole in it which I assume is for a composting toilet.  We try to get a site as close to facilities as possible so it'll probably end up as easy access for a storage container that will reside beneath it.

All of the wood-appearing cabinetry/frames are metal, which is lightweight compared to wood but also poses a challenge for redecorating.  I usually spray paint metal, but I'm not sure that using spray paint in an enclosed area is a good idea.  We'll have to see.

I'll be posting my mood board tomorrow, but I'll leave you with a photo from this summer's trip to Buck Pond State Park in the Adirondacks (NY).  It started raining soon after this was taken and didn't stop for days.  We loved this park and hope to visit it again.

One Shade of Grey: A Progress Report

The day I posted my last post, I finally closed on the house.  In fact, about 15 minutes after I posted about how impatient I was, my attorney's paralegal called to let me know we were good to go.

The first thing I did was remove the weird shower curtain rod + too short regular curtain rod above the living room window, as well as what we have dubbed, "the Jesus curtain" which I'm pretty sure was a shower curtain, but it had bible verses all over it.

two different lengths, two different rods... the stuff nightmares are made of

Currently, the window is naked, and a new rod (one that'll fit) has been purchased.  It is the same exact rod that is in the dining room, which I just love.  In fact, I love just about everything that is going on in the dining room now.  Gone is the tomato soup orange-red, the apple-trimmed cafe curtain, and the feeling that the room is a lot smaller than it actually is.

The only thing this color should be on is a Barchetta (it's never too early for Rush humor)

The dining room is now light, bright, and definitely updated.  First, I covered the walls with Behr's Ultra Premium Plus paint that was color-matched to Benjamin Moore's Edgecomb Gray.  I had no idea that you can just walk into Home Depot and ask for a color from a different paint supplier, and had samples mailed to me from Benjamin Moore first, which cost a pretty penny--the shipping was more than the paint sample!  Now, I just find colors I like, go to Home Depot, and buy an armload of samples until I figure out which color I want.  Consumer Reports rated the Behr paint as their first or second interior paint, not to mention that Home Depot is a mere 30 minutes from my house (the nearest Benjamin Moore store is over an hour away).  It's a light grey/beige that looks equally good with the blues, wood trim, and beige ceramic tile in the room.  Since you can also see the kitchen cabinets due to the open floor plan, it was important that those colors work together until I figure out what I'm going to do with those cabinets.

The only red things left are the apples

 My dining table has a story, of course.  In the summer of 2014, I went to Massachusetts to visit my mom.  Whenever I visit my family there, I stop at what I think is one of the best Goodwill stores in the country, just over the border in Nashua, New Hampshire.  I walked in during that visit to see this gem in the window with a price sticker on it for $9.99.  TEN FREAKING DOLLARS!  It just so happened that it was marked down on the color sale for that week, so for five bucks, that puppy was MINE.  Unfortunately, as the employees moved it from the window into the area that one picks up large items, one of those tripod legs snapped from it's attachment.  When asked if I still wanted it, I said, "well, if you can knock half off..."  The manager said, "Done."  So that's how I got my dining room table for $2.50.  My friends Jason and Trinda helped to take it apart and load it into my minivan, and we made the trek back to Pennsylvania with three kids and a table.  Some Gorilla Wood Glue and an overnight of clamping fixed it right up.  It has been well worn and loved, and still extends another foot for when we have guests.

I love, love, love my table.  Oh, and the seats of the side chairs match the stain

The first time I saw the chandelier on the Young House Love website, I gasped.  It's flipping gorgeous.  When I saw the price at West Elm, I wasn't sure if I could swing it.  I slowly started saving for it, but at nearly $400, I wasn't confident that I'd have enough money to buy it before it was discontinued.  By my birthday in September, I was about $175 from my savings goal when I gifted myself $100 (hey, it's my birthday, I do what I want).  The following week, it was on sale for 20% off, and I snagged it for $75 off of the original price.  Sometimes waiting has it's benefits.  Everything else came from Overstock.com.  The table runner and fruit basket came from trips to HomeGoods and T.J. Maxx, respectively.

curtain detail

This window is eventually going to be a door to the backyard.  Currently, I either have to walk around from the front of the house, or to go through the garage, onto the back porch, then out that door if I want to access the back yard.   I think a door and a stairway here would provide a faster route, and once there's a patio there, a great extension of our dining room to an outdoor dining area.

The dining room is no where near completed yet.  I still need to put something on those walls and maybe add a buffet or something that'll add some personal touches to the room.  I love how it's turning out.

Sources:

Upholstered Chairs

Side Chairs

Curtains

Curtain Rod

Area Rug

Chandelier

Paint Color

Pittsburgh Trip

Late last night we got back from our shopping trip to Pittsburgh.  It is a bit of a hike for us, so we spent the night at the Hyatt Place-Pittsburgh Airport.  We were quite happy that they upgraded us to a cafe suite, so we had a nice living room area to hang out in.  The girls, however, had other ideas:

The girls breaking in the beds at the Hyatt

My eldest daughter's best friend moved there last year, so her mom and I conspired to surprise the girls with a sleepover.  I'm happy to say that that went off without a hitch, and our two girls stayed up until 3:30 in the morning catching up and eating a giant cookie. 

They are too flippin' cute.

On the way to Liz's best friend's house, we passed a candy shop called Andy's Candy in Burgettstown.  It is the sort of old-fashioned, handmade chocolate shop that is a rare sight now... so of course, we stopped.  

I couldn't stop laughing at these bunnies!

With the egg-hiding rabbit holiday upon us, there were loads of springy sort of chocolates... bunnies, eggs, chicks, flowers.  I was gobsmacked, though, when Evie, the middle kidlet, picked up this:

BACON!

Hold the phone.  Chocolate.  Covered.  Bacon.  And not just teeny tiny bits of bacon swimming in chocolate, either.  This glorious creation is bacon strips enrobed in the creamiest milk chocolate around.  

I bought 3 packages of it.  Before you scream glutton, only one package is mine.  My BFF, Lola, gets one, as goes my other partner in crime, Corey.  Everything goes better with bacon, and that includes friends.

On our arrival day, we went to HomeGoods to scope out their offerings.  I ended up getting most things for Lily, who needed a new harness, leash, and some dry shampoo.  Since it is nearly time to start foraging in the woods for wild ramps and mushrooms, I got her a dayglo orange harness so that any spring hunters won't mistake her for a turkey.  

I think she's embarrassed

Sadly, the console tables were pretty picked over at the HomeGoods we went to, so I didn't get one.  I was excited to find the Cynthia Rowley quatrefoil towels that I had picked up at a HomeGoods in Florida, so I got a few more of those.  I didn't find a jewelry box that fit my standards, but I did find a necklace tree to keep them in check for now.

On day two, we went to Ikea.  I forgot the camera in the hotel, so the pics I did take ended up on my Instagram feed.  Fair warning, it's mostly cake-related.

Ikea was PACKED with people since they were running a new event (Bring Your Friend) and the kids even had to wait 20 minutes before they could get into Smaland (the little kid playground inside).  I was armed with my list, most of which was to replace the Ikea 365+ dishes that have broken or chipped, bigger bowls for pasta, some food storage bits, another roll of paper for the easel, and some bits for the front porch remodel.

food storage bits

I generally cook a few times a month, in huge portions so that they can be divided and stored in the freezer.  Dinner in our house is a simple affair:  I just pull something out of the freezer the night before and either finish cooking it, or heat it up.  These food storage containers make that job a lot easier.  The red-rimmed 365+ container has a little vent at the top to make reheating in the microwave that much easier.  It seals like no one's business, and freezes without any freezer burn issues.  It is also under 5 bucks.  It comes in a few different sizes, but the one I rely on is the 10x7x4-inch badboy.  They easily store a main dish for 4 people.  There are larger and smaller sizes, so you can easily find one to fit your needs.

The bowls are the Reda food containers (they have all sizes), and they are the nesting set of 5 different sizes.  These are about $4 at the store, even though the website states that they are $2.99.  I use them to store leftovers, extra egg whites, and veggies that I've pre-cut for dinner.  

I stocked up on some must-haves:  Ribba frames, Bevara bag clips, and Kassett magazine files.  

My most favorite thing I picked up was a set of Dinera bowls for pasta.  They didn't have 8 in the beige that we originally wanted, so we settled for the green, which has grown on me.  I am really happy that I got them.

They're already washed and in the cabinet.

The other 365+ bowls and plates are on the 2nd shelf next to the owl mug (West Elm).  We wanted to have a set of 8 so that we could entertain comfortably, since there are 5 of us, and six of everything just isn't enough.  In case you're wondering, the hobnail-looking mugs are from Target.

Today, I've been getting the raised garden beds put together and prepping to get that all set up before Wednesday.  More to come on that note.  I hope it is just lovely where you are!