TONIGHT on Early Work Mercantile...

The Nativity



Folk Art Christmas Morgan Horse



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Hope to see you there!!
:> )

I have no idea what I'm doing...

But I'm throwing tiny, tile "stars" around like a Ninja and having a blast!



I still can't believe most of my Listello tiles were broken except for six which was the exact amount I needed to tile behind the kitchen sink!
♥ Thank you, Lord. ♥




Well, I've got the tiles up with ceramic adhesive and I don't think they're coming off. **fingers crossed** Tomorrow, I grout. Again, having no idea what the heck I'm doing. But I'll figure it out.



My sweet hubs will work on the plumbing and hook up my new cast iron sink tomorrow. YaY! I'm looking forward to doing dishes!! Did I just type that?? Who am I?!

I also need to measure and cut the new beadboard. That should go fairly smoothly since I've done that before.

Tomorrow is Halloween October 31st and that means I'll have new offerings on Early Work Mercantile! Woo Hoo!!

I've made something VERY special and close to my heart.
I haven't made this in a few years, so I'm excited!!

Well, time to get back to work.

Happy Friday, all!

:> )

YaY! Formica Soapstone Sequoia Countertop is installed...

and I'm very pleased with the look!!!

But again, it was templated incorrectly. I'll take that up with Home Depot.



Between creating some wonderful Christmas pieces for November 1st Early Work Mercantile and tiling/beadboard/kitchen sink installation I've got too much to tackle this week. So I won't be posting until all is complete. I promise I'll have LOTS of photos to share.

So eventually...
"I'll be bach."

(Yeah, "bach." That's my Arnold Schwarzenegger impression.)

((giggle))

:> )

A new addition...

I've always had a love for cows. To this day, I find myself driving these old country back roads only to stop and have a "chat" with some of the gals. No, they don't talk back. But they sure look like they want to.

I came across a very talented artist on Etsy. She does beautiful work. Her name is Colette and you can find her art HERE.
One particular print stood out and I knew it would have to adorn my kitchen. (That is, when it's finally finished.)

I love the expression on her face.



Moo.

:> )

Living in limbo...

Even though I purchased my new countertop on Sept. 6th, I'm still waiting for it.

I'm living with a partial, unsecured countertop and a makeshift bracket for my cooktop. I have lower kitchen cabinets "contents" peppered in every room (like my dining room above) of the first floor of this old farmhouse and I have painters plastic and tape blocking the small but gaping holes in part of the backsplash sheet rock. Unable to be repaired until the new countertop is installed. I'm also waiting to wake up one morning to find the painters plastic flapped back and wee, furry vermin pouring themselves a cup of Dunkin Donuts coffee. Thankfully that hasn't happened... yet.

Oh and one more thing. I've come to realize the closer I get to the grave older I get, the less patience I have.

No need to mention how wonderful it will look when it's done. "Keep a positive spin on it. It'll be worth all the aggravation."
I get it. ;> )

I'll try to remember that when I'm running from room to room frantically searching for a frying pan.


Happy Saturday, all.

:> )

Smile...

It's Friday.



Use a bottle cap if you have to.

:> )

For those unable to witness autumn in rural Central New York...

You're welcome.

♥

As much as I love the candlestick light look,

it's just not very practical for me. Especially when it comes to a light over the kitchen sink.

Since I had to make a Home Depot run to get my tiling supplies, I thought I'd take a peek at some lighting. They really didn't have what I was looking for in my (cheap) price range. ((hee hee))

So, I bit the bullet and stopped by Lowes. Glad I did.

Out with the old...





and in with the new.






Happy Sunday.

:> )

Enjoy...

I sure did.











:> )

Man, I can't wait to put up these listello tiles...

So what if I have absolutely no idea how to do it. I figure I've watched enough home improvements shows on DIY and HGTV channels, I could be a pro!
((giggle))


Besides, I'm only doing one row behind my sink and under the window casing which at the moment is missing. To the left and right of the sink will be beadboard and I'm confident enough to say I have that down to a science.



Have I mentioned how much I love this Soapstone Sequoia??!!
No???
((hee hee))



Even my sweet hubs was impressed. He kept running his hand over it saying how real it looked.
Then when I told him since the installer made the measurement error, we get to keep this countertop that doesn't fit. His eyes lit up as he said, "Oooooh, I could really use that." With all the plumbing/cooktop connecting and reconnecting he has done for me this past week, I'm more than happy to let him have it.

Happy Wednesday, all!

:> )

Yeah, I know you're smiling too.
Those little boots are what got me.

:> )

I am not a happy camper at the moment...

Well... my countertop has to be remade. All my giddiness went right out the window. This is going to be a short post since I am beyond aggravated.

First, let me state I absolutely LOVE the Formica 180fx Soapstone Sequoia laminate!! Great color! Great pattern! I couldn't be more pleased!

The problem (I think) lies with the man who came to measure. When I mentioned to him about the cast iron sink I ordered (but didn't have yet), I said it does not fit a standard rectangular cut. It has to be curved. I pulled it up online to show him the sink and he read the specs. "No problem. No problem at all," reassuring me.

Well guess what??? The sink cutout was the standard rectangular cut so my new sink doesn't fit. Which means it has to be remade.

So now my sweet hubs has to reconnect the cooktop and old sink again. Then he'll have to disconnect them when the new countertop comes in. Then reconnect them yet again! Which is a big pain in the *ss!

They offered to buy a new sink that would fit. But heck, I want the sink I bought to fit! I know many of you can understand my frustration and quite frankly being ticked off!!

Let me also state the team who came for the install were very nice and were embarrassed by what happened.

So now I have to wait. Who knows for how long? The "idealedge" is a special order.

But here are some close up photos of the actual countertop.








I have photos of the old countertop demo my hubs and I did. But I'll save that post for another day.

For now, I need to grab my camera and go take "Betsy" for a spin and look at the beautiful autumn foliage and try to clear my head.

"Happy" Monday, all.

Monday's the big day...

It's so long Rustoleum Countertop Transformations countertop and hello Formica 180fx Soapstone Sequoia countertop!
YAY!!!
The install company called just a day ago wanting to know if I'd like my countertop installed on Monday.
Does a bear sh*t in the woods???
Why of course I do!!

Then I had to break the news to my sweet hubs. You see, I have to remove the old countertop before Monday. When I say "I", he knows it means "him."
He works so hard during the week, he really values his weekends. So removing a kitchen countertop isn't high on his weekend priority list of things to do.

But he will help me tackle it tomorrow. Since this farmhouse was built in the 1800's I pray we don't run into anything major because neither one of us knows what the heck we're doing. ((giggle))

Thankfully, I know myself well enough not to do anything too permanent when it comes to cosmetic updating this place. So when I put up the beadboard backsplash, I tacked it on and didn't use any glue. WHEW!!! So when I removed it, it came off like buttah.



I thought I'd snap a few pics of her one last time before she goes.
Man, I put a lot of muscle and sweat into that countertop.
She served me well over these past few years, but it's time to say goodbye...





Remember those listello tiles I had to have for under my kitchen window and behind my sink? I found them! But the store that carried them required "pick up only." Oh and guess what else? The store is in Ohio. So I really had to put my thinking cap on.

This is where my wonderful sister-in-law and brother-in-law come in. Not only do they live in Ohio, one of the chain home improvement stores is only a mile away from their home!! Yippee!!

So I ordered the tiles. They picked them up, wrapped them up and popped them in the mail.

The box arrived yesterday and when I opened it, half the tiles looked like this.



Sigh... This answers my question as to why they were "pick up only."
The blood stain is from when I sliced my finger open on them.

But believe me when I tell you, the ones that aren't cracked are absolutely beautiful!

So tomorrow I'll be tackling the countertop removal.

Here's a heads up...

If by some chance you hear cursing in the faint distance, you'll know it's me trying to tackle the countertop removal.

Wish me luck!

:> )