Okay, I don’t even know where to begin with this post. There’s been so much going on here & so many changes I can’t keep up with it myself! I had told myself I was gonna take my time with the redo’s before we moved in but who was I kidding? Ha! I don’t think I’m capable of doing that…once I get on a roll there’s no stopping me!…..until the money runs out that is! ( But then again there’s always plastic ) Lol!!! Of course it doesn’t help that I’m hosting a huge party here in two weeks so I’m really scrambling to get it as pulled together as possible! Nothing like a party to force you to put it in high gear.

Here is the dining room the day we moved in. The French doors lead to a slate patio out back & also our grill area. The yellow walls & brass chandelier had to go…

The kitchen is beyond, as you can see there’s plenty to redo in there. That won’t be happening for a while unfortunately. All I can say is I LOVE my painters! Not only have they brightened this whole house with a fresh coat of paint, they also removed wallpaper from my kitchen & office area. I will show those rooms in a later post. Anyone in the Northern Va area looking for a wonderful painting crew, give these guys a shout. They are very professional & meticulous :
Fitzgerald & Sons Painting
Larry Fitzgerald
540-349-4342
Tell them Heidi sent ya!

This is what it looked like with my furniture before any paint & still with the brass chandelier

The room now, a paler coat of paint, my chandelier which came from my previous home ( I just removed the shades for a cleaner look) & my sconces which were wired for last week. The chairs, sideboard & sconces are antique. I found the drapes at Resto outlet last weekend for a steal! They are silk tafetta multi stripe although you cant tell in the pic. I need much longer drapes in this house so i wont be able to use most of the ones i brought with me. The art is one of my favorite groupings I own. I found the tiny portraits of various biblical figures years ago at an antiques booth & had them double matted & framed. I’ve had them for about 12 years & still love them as much as the day I bought them. The room wouldn’t be the same without them, they really pop off the pale chalky walls.The ceiling was painted a darker color & I went with a pearl finish which I love the look of!

Sorry for the half blurred picture. I’m still using my iPhone to take all these pics! One day I will get a real camera..promise you can see more of the ceiling in this pic. I love the way light bounces off of it & it has an iridescent look. My painter thought I was crazy when I told him I didn’t want flat, he said it would show off all the imperfections but truly I don’t notice any & the look is so worth it!

A close up of my antique brown transferware. I started collecting it about a year ago. Can’t wait to make a pretty place to display it in my kitchen

Close up of the curtains (that still need to be ironed) & art

Reflection through the mirror of my shell & coral collection. I have some very old shells that my mom gave me from Greece (which is where we are from originally, for those of you that don’t know). One in particular was given to her from her Godfather, so these really have special meaning to me. And a few I found in Va Beach where my parents have a small summer home

Here is a view from living room into the dining room.You can really see the ceiling in this pic. The dining room steps up from living room & separated by the railing….notice the iron balusters which I LOVE…..BUT as you can see from the pic, I had the handrail painted black & I hate it!!!!!! :( Major mistake on my part! I feel it cheapened the look of the house & I literally cried about it on Friday!! I called my painters in a panic & they are coming back out today to strip them…( did I mention how much I LOVE my painters??) I’m just sick about this but I’ve had the weekend to calm down & my painters are pulling up as I type this so I better go

Here is a spot where I started stripping it myself over the weekend just to make sure it was gonna come off! Lol! I’m so impatient! But I have full faith in my painters that it will be just fine. I will keep you posted on results. Oh….& before I go, a quick look at what got installed recently…..

By my PAINTERS!! Larry & the crew…it took 5 guys to get it up there! They were nice enough to hang it since I couldn’t get my electrician to come back out & do it! These guys really do it all & go the extra mile! I’m gonna miss them when they leave but it will be nice to get my house put back together. Thats it for now, I’ll keep you posted on the handrails. Have a great week

H~

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