T & A ( Tattoos and Aerosol)

July 15, 2011

I am always looking at tattoos, just for fun and for inspiration.

I have noticed a trend though.

All the tattoo pictures I am coming across are of girls with amazing hair!

Is that some sort of criteria for having ink?

I hope not, because I am way too lazy to get our my curling iron every morning.

I love everything about this photo.

See what I mean?! Great hair!

They are also all gorgeous girls… which I KNOW isn’t criteria to have ink done.

I live in Renton after all, I have seen my share of undesirable ladies, if you will.

I am glad that tattoos aren’t just for the *trashies* anymore though.

I just wish the rest of the world would catch on so I could stop getting the stink eye in Zumba when I take my hoodie off!

Just another reason to go to class drunk I suppose.

Garage Sale Weekend

July 14, 2011

This weekend kicked off with a much anticipated garage sale.

Only in Renton does a customer at your garage sale ask you if you happen to have any firearms or pot for sale or trade.

Unfortunately for him, I had neither.

Is it even legal to sell guns out of your driveway?

That seems sketchy.

Pot, I hear is illegal too.

When my husband and I acquired our house , the previous owners left an awful lot of “things” behind.

We had lots of tools and mechanical parts, wood working stuff and odds and ends.

After finally sorting out the items we wanted to keep, we drug the rest outside to make some money.

We did pretty well.

If anything, it was worth having the sale due to the fact that we met almost everyone on the street.

Since we have moved into our house, we have only met our immediate neighbors on either sides of us.
We go walking/running around the neighborhood often and I notice all the neighborhood homes but don’t know who lives in any of them.

This was a nice opportunity for people to stop by and say hello and every single one of them did.
Even the two meth heads 5 houses down came by to say hello… or to case the place.

We found out the house across the street from us is abandoned.

Which was news to me!
I thought they just worked weird hours.

(not actual house)

The house next to that one is kept really well outside but according to another neighbor it is like an episode of hoarders inside.

Which explains why the blinds on all the windows remain shut 24/7.

Everyone wanted to know if we were making any changes to the house or if we were keeping things as they were.

When we mentioned the upstairs each one of them would cringe and say something like

“ Oh what a mess it is up there.”

I guess they have all been inside the house before, which kind of creeps me out since I haven’t been inside any of theirs. (That they know of…..).

One neighbor came by and introduced herself and said “ I live next to the house with the yipping dogs.”

Later that day the neighbor with the dogs stopped by.

That person said “ I live down the street in the house with the dogs.”

I thought to myself “ Oh, I heard about you…”

I even had a neighbor tell me she would bring me plant clippings to add to my yard.

Maybe that was just a nice way of telling me I needed some landscaping done.

Kind of like how the guy 3 houses down asked our friend next door if he needed to
“ Borrow a lawn mower” because his grass was getting high.

It was really just a nice way of saying
“ Hey, mow your freakin’ yard, it’s ugly.”

I suppose an anal yardscaper is better than someone with dead cars and a boat covered with a tarp though.

So we really can’t complain.

Traveling in Style

July 12, 2011

The possessions of my heart…..Always on my mind.

Besides my Chevy, my two other transportation loves would have to be the Shasta ( aka Canned Ham) Trailer and the classic Vespa.

Behold.

Better than a tent

SO CUTE!

( It’s my kitchen colors too!)

(Side note- This looks like the car I grew up ridding around in, which makes this photo even more joyous)

This picture makes me so happy.

I want to be in it, with Steve and the cat.. and a bottle of Riesling and some sandwiches.

Perfect day.

(Yes, it looks like rain. Which I love)

Check out these adorable vintage signs I came across!

And Scooters

My dream Vespa is Old but in perfect shape, fast and boasts a sidecar

And of course I would take my trusty sidekick along with me!

She would just love the wind in her hair

Beep Beep!

Cutest room ever

July 11, 2011

I found some great home designs this week!

Like this adorable nursery

The perfect guest room

Can I have this closet please!?

So Sweet Sofa

Pink, pink and more pink!

This chair is amazing

Pink and turquoise love

The cottage loft

Yes please!

Adorable Retro Kitchen & my new sink!

July 8, 2011

Steve and I are making some great progress on our kitchen.

I got a new sink and faucet put in!

Old sink:

Standard shallow stainless steel junker that I can’t fit a pot or pan in

Here is the new sink.

I wanted an apron front… but just couldn’t bring myself to spend $500.00 + on it.

So I got this awesome white single basin sink off craigslist for $20.00!

Then i bought a new industrial faucet off Overstock.com.

I also got all of the cabinet knobs and drawer pulls this week too!

Brushed nickel cup pulls for the drawers

Vintage glass knobs for the cupboards

Before we can install them, I have to sand and paint the cupboards white.

Any volunteers?!

Here are some cute retro kitchen inspiration pics I found

This one is my favorite

I like the bright colors with all the white.

There are so many cute little cupboards too!

And I would love to have this oven.

Ahhhh… it’s all just time and money, right!?

Working on the “Lodge” part 2

July 7, 2011

As usual, the fourth of July weekend in Seattle was the kick off for summer weather.

Steve and I headed south to his parent’s house to help work on the “Lodge”

(The huge ass house they are building themselves)

I avoided working too hard by wandering around the yard taking photos of things.

Tah Dah

My expert photo skillz

Here is the house in it’s current state

(This will be a circular driveway out front eventually)

We spent the afternoon getting all the insulation in the walls so that they can get sheet rocked this week.

The front porch flanked by huge logs off the property

The back side

This wedge area will be a paved patio with a fire pit in the center.

I particularly liked this little addition over the back door

Inside the great room looking out front

Looking towards the back

To the right will be the kitchen, up above is a loft space and more bedrooms

Stairs to get to the loft

Steve was working in the corner of the great room building the base for the fireplace

Monday ( the 4th) I slept in and was totally worthless.

Steve and his dad got up early and worked though.

Then we all headed over to Steve’s relatives summer house on the lake!

It was a gorgeous day.

Heading out on the boat with Steve’s aunt and mom

Unfortunately I had to work on the 5th, so we didn’t stick around for fireworks that night.

I think this was the first year I missed out on that!

Weekend Warriors Pt 2 & Water front property for less than a thousand bucks!

July 6, 2011

“I meant to post this last week but my Internet wasn’t working and I couldn’t get my photos uploaded!
So here it is, a little belated and outdated.
Just pretend it is June 29th. “

What did you do last weekend?

Did you relax, enjoy the sun, go to the Pride parade and sip Starbucks?

Well, I sure as hell didn’t!

My family and I busted our butts working on the house all weekend long.

I did happen to find a small treasure though.

I was hoping for something more along the lines of money or vintage jewelry.. but I uncovered an old Seattle newspaper and Seattle PI from April of 1930.

Real Estate classifieds…. Look closely. That is 4 1/2 acres Water front property in Seattle for $975.00

Job listings were separate for Male & Female

And this was just weird.

Divorced Asked & Granted Listings.

There was also an article on Hitler in there too!

I have seen a million old papers and never paid much attention to them.

They are just old and smelly.

What I thought was really cool about this paper is that chances are it was delivered to this house and read by the family who lived here and it never left!

That’s kinda neat to know where it came from.

Then we scraped down wall paper, exposed studs and sanded moulding and window frames.
Then I primed and painted.

Check out the upstairs:

Before

After

Looks like a hot mess doesn’t it!?

You might remember the original post about the upstairs.

Also

I drew where I wanted the electrical to go 🙂

My mom and I pulled all the vintage linoleum up.
Some of it crumbled into pieces but there are a few pieces that were salvageable.

Dad getting all the windows to work.

They were painted shut.

Here I am working hard and trying to avoid breathing in possible asbestos & lead paint

( I am re Model ing. Get it !? HA!)

Now it is on to electrical and then drywall.

In the mean time, Steve worked on the Pantry and my dad cut down tree branches out back.

We had a surprise visit by my sister and her bf

Then my aunt stopped by.

Then our friends Andrew and Cassie came over.

You might remember their wedding from last summer.

We cleaned up and walked over to Red House for dinner and drinks.

See, it’s a Red house.. where I had champagne out of a can… with a straw.

Then watched Hall Pass on Demand.

Which was great btw.

You should see it.

You are going to put “that” on your head?!

July 5, 2011

Taxidermy Couture

Ever heard of it?

Me either… till a friend came across it in her quest to find the perfect wedding veil.

What is it you ask?

It is dead animals attached to some sort of fashion.

So, think less fur coat and more lucky rabbits foot earrings

It is creepy.

(Mouse head band)

(Antler Headband)

(Coyotes tooth ring)

(Snake Bite facinator)

(Bird Wing head peice)

(Snake skin cuff, head included)

There is some more extreme attire as well, but I really just couldn’t post it on here!

I am sure you get the idea

Bat Hat anyone?

Happy 4th of July!

July 4, 2011

Happy 4th of July everyone!!!

I am spending the weekend with the in laws working on “The Lodge!”

Pics to come soon!

Hope everyone has a safe and fun holiday and roasts some Delicious meats

Eats some delightful desserts

And gets a little sun

ouch!

A lesson in History from Miss Ethel pt 2

July 1, 2011

Last week Miss Ethel passed away.

(Taken in front of my porch)

If you haven’t read my previous post, her family was the one and only owner of the home Steve and I just bought.
Upon reading her obituary I came across some very old pictures of our house!

Recently I had been thinking about going down to the Renton Historical Museum to see if I could find any old photos of our street in the archives.

I have been curious what it all looked like 80 years ago.
I was lucky enough to find a few pictures of my house right after it was built in 1929 as well as the original home that stood on the property before our house.

The cupboards that we are using to build our new pantry came out of that first house, which was built in 1910.

I would really love to find photos of the original kitchen, I am dying to know what it looked like.

So now the real question is… will she be returning to the house??

I will let you know if I notice any unusual activity!

Anyway, it is a real treat to be able to share these with you guys!

This is a photo of the original house that was built on our property in 1910.

Ethel’s family tore down this house and built this one

Built in 1929, this is the house I live in now!

This is a photo of a young Ethel ( far right) and her family

Take in the driveway where I park

That house next door is still here too!

This was taken in our living room, that corner right behind her is where I have my leaning mirror!

Crazy to see these and know what the home once looked like back in the day!

(Thanks for taking such good care of the place! Wish we could have met you)

The Obituary:
Ethel’s long and full life came to a close on June 18, 2011 in Issaquah, WA. She was born in Renton on February 17, 1922 to Arvid and Christine Swanson. Ethel lived in the family home in Renton all of her life until moving to Merrill Gardens at Renton Centre in 2007. Ethel graduated from Renton High School in 1940. After graduation, she attended a business school in Seattle. Ethel worked as a bookkeeper for Custer Hardware store in Renton as a young woman. Later, she worked as a temporary employee at the Bartell Drug Company in Seattle. Ethel was eventually hired on as a full time employee doing clerical work in the main office. Ethel was a long time member of the Vasa Lodge in Renton as well as the Rebekah Columbine Lodge. Ethel was very active in these clubs for many years. Ethel loved to travel and made several trips to Sweden over the years. She also traveled to many places in the United States and Canada. Thanks to reasonably good health and care, Ethel was able to enjoy going to lunch with classmates, shop, attend Vasa meetings and participate in activities at Merrill Gardens until recent days. Ethel was a happy lady, always smiling and friendly to all.She loved animals, especially cats. Ethel shared 47 years of her life with her dear friend, Harold Anderson. He passed away in 2007. A half-brother and a half-sister also preceded her in death. Ethel is survived by extended family here as well as in Sweden.