MacDonell House

During our visit to Ohio last week, Nathan and I had the privilege of touring the historic MacDonell House, built in 1893, with my grandmother. She volunteers as a tour guide at the local museum, so she was able to give us a private tour! To me, the most striking features of this Victorian Mansion are the use of natural wood and intricate wood carvings. It's a total dream house- I wanted to move right in!

A Picnic Playsuit Kind of Afternoon

Nathan and I are at my grandmother's house in Ohio for the weekend...it's been jam packed with vintage-y things! Yesterday we toured a historic home built in 1893(post to come soon!). My grandma and I spent some time looking through my mom's and grandma's childhood things as well....what a treasure trove of vintage! I snagged a few things for our house and my grandmother gave me her childhood doll and wardrobe from 1947. We're also taking some of my mom's things back to her when we return home tomorrow.

I've always loved my grandma's house! They have a lovely house built in the 1920s with lots of land and a pond. This afternoon I decided to take advantage of the beautiful setting and model my playsuit from QsDaydream. It's the perfect summertime outfit!

Playsuit: Q's Daydream

Lipstick: Limecrime Pink Velvet

Family Table

Our dining room is finally starting to take shape! We recently acquired my parents' old table and chairs which is very exciting, because we don't have to eat on the couch (but I now need to find a new spot to do my yoga). It's funny how a family table can bring back so many fond childhood memories: I played fort under it with my brother, watched my Dad grade chemistry papers with his red pen, and watched my mom sew many of my school clothes on that table. There are even still chew marks on the chair legs from our first dog.

We've done a few minor updates to the dining room: the fireplace wall had a small hole near the top so we filled that in with a piece of brick and added molding. We also repainted: one wall grey and one wall dollhouse blue to tie the kitchen and hallway spaces together. Here's a before and after:

The place mats were left over from my wedding reception as were a bunch of glass vases so I painted a few of the vases with leftover paint samples and sealed them with clear nail polish afterwards(I'm sure that is not the proper thing to use haha!) I filled them with fake hydrangeas even though I prefer real ones because there is no way I can keep up with fresh flowers all the time. The metal frames were a bargain for $1 a piece at a thrift store and I love them. The fireplace screen is a thrift store find that I repainted.

I sewed the curtains for the french doors; I wasn't sure what style of curtains I wanted and then one day I happened to be watching an episode of Gilmore Girls one day and noticed ones like these in the Gilmore's pool house (you know, when Rory moved out of Lorelie's house and in with her grandparents?) I chose a light weight cotton to let in plenty of light and keep the room from looking too formal. Once you start making your own window treatments, you'll never go back to buying them! I love being able to customize everything. If you can sew a straight line, you should give it a try! 

We still want to make a lot of changes in this room(a new mantle, perhaps replacing the brick hearth with tile?) so if you had any ideas or suggestions please leave me a comment!