Believing that WHITE WALLS in a home are truly a SIN, and since no Early American Colonial would be caught dead in an off-white kitchen, I busted open my first can of $4 a gallon Oops Paint from Lowe's. It's a little dark, but I love it... and so the Kitchen gets painted Lyndehurst Green, the trim gets painted soft white, and a new vinyl floor tile goes down over the horrible old light floor (that showed every scuff, mar, speck of dirt that was there.) The new floor was inspired by Mrs. Hilde Santo de Tomas of Trading Spaces on TLC. She used the exact same tile in a family room she redid.... on the CEILING!

If you could also please take notice of the beautiful 100% real plastic flower arrangement on my table. I rescued this from a Goodwill in Bridgeport, CT. They wanted a whole $4 for it, but it was dirty and disgusting and I was able to get it for $1. Such modern luxurious appointments are not easy to come by!

Mrs. Denise Beaudoin-Brown was with me when I purchased this and did not recognize its beauty instantly. In fact, she still does not seem to recognize it :(

Now, you may be saying to yourself, "Paul! Where did Early American Colonial in the 1960's put their keys????!!!??"

Friends, to that query there is no easy answer. :( But not to fear! With a little ingenuity, a solution is not far away! In this case, a Men's tie rack I purchased for $0.59 at the Sal's in Springfield, MA was converted to a key holder by removing the tie rack part, and adding a few hooks for keys!

Oh my dear gentle visitors, so much has happened to the kitchen here at The Estate over the past year or so! Let's go back to March of 2005. Many, many times over the spring I kept noticing what seemed like a "wet wood" smell in the last of my kitchen cabinets near the outside wall of the house. My sister, resident of the second floor of The Estate insisted that the smell was just wood. I begged to differ... especially the day that I went to reach for some Pyrex and noticed my hand was wet! I took the cabinet down to see what was going on. I exposed the drain pipe from the kitchen above.

The Estate Manager, Christopher D. Brown, conducted further investigation, and discovered the problem when he put his thumb right through the bottom of the pipe that had rotted away over the past 105 years!

Thankfully he was able to fix the problem and then I had to put the cabinet back up. But wait... ideas were a'brewing....

I took all the cabinets down that were oddly hung up in this corner, serving no particular purpose...

...and I hung them up in this right-hand corner! This actually makes some sense visually, and is far more practical!

The cabinets that I took down on the wall where the sink is, I hung up where the refrigerator was, and put my small hutch base under them.

It looks better, and makes for a more efficient work triangle, having the unsightly "Radar Range" (microwave) here, all my pans in the hutch, and all my Pyrex in the cabinet above.

Ms. Jane Wilhite isn't too sure about the new layout. She preferred the previous arrangement which she felt was more conducive to her constant yelling at me. She's a bit of a nag.

Two amazing finds in one day!

I started out the morning of Friday, October 7th with a trip to some of the Sal's in Springfield, MA. At my first stop, I found this DELICIOUS 100% Genuine Plastic tabletop arrangement! It's got everything! Big apples! Tiny apples! Big lemons! Tiny Lemons! Big Limes! Tiny Limes! A pineapple that is in scale to nothing... and tiny pears! It really takes one's breath away upon viewing.

Find #2 was this vintage toaster from the Stafford Springs, CT "Swap Shed." Class, all the way... But it works and it's in great shape. The canister was a housewarming gift from Mrs. Denise Beaudoin Brown last year. Oh... and did I skip over my vinyl brick-like wallpaper? Thanks, E-bay!

Early in September 2005, I happened upon this item below at the Sal's in Rockville. I wasn't sure what it was at first, and actually I am still not. I think it may have been a hamper at once in its life. I also think it may have been hand made, but am not certain of that either. At any rate, it makes for a superb hidden trash receptacle!

When I had rearranged the cabinets back in '05, I lost one cabinet. I put it down in the basement, and there it sat for a while.

When I got my new stove that autumn, I needed more storage space since I lost the drawer (it's a broiler on the new stove). So, I dragged up the cabinet and hung it sideways! It works perfectly! :)

No, that's not a microwave! That's my new Danby Designer Countertop Dishwasher!

What? You never heard of a Countertop Dishwasher?

Well, neither had I until I saw it listed for sale on Craig's List.

I love it! When I have all my family over, I can fit the whole service for the seven of us in here!

I added a frame and casters to the base it's sitting on in order to wheel it over to the sink when I need to run the dishwasher.

When I first moved in, I had these pair of drapes on the window. I never liked them because there was no privacy. When I found this orange pair of tiers, I thought, "Oh! perfect!" And this was the result....

Yes. This would not do. Simply would not do. So off the window they came and sat in the front closet for a year and a half until September of 2006 when I busted out the Singer and got put the Gay gene to work full time!

This is much, much better! I hacked away at the drapes and made a set of valances and tiers!

The leftover scraps were used to make doilies! For these I was finally able to put the bric-a-brac fringe to good used given to me by Mr. Joseph Macey, of New Britain CT!