You know what I dig? Well yes, flowers... but beside that? I love design, aesthetics, color palettes, furniture shopping, fabric swatches, the feel of the paint brush in my hand. I love creating vignettes and cozy corners. I love pulling a room together, telling a compelling story, and planning a garden in the middle of winter. There is nothing more exciting to me than a blank wall, page or plot of land. I love creating and the satisfaction of seeing a vision come to life. I also love sunsets... and lobster... and date nights. Oh my!I also love Central Illinois where we recently relocated. I'm not a full time resident at The Regal Beagle yet, however. {That material is for another blog post.} And because of my transitional position, I have had to step up my game as champion weekend warrior. I'm not new to this kind of temporary lifestyle, but that doesn't make it any less challenging. But I digress. The Mighty Oak and I have been busy bees working on the new house every chance we get, with the intent of getting most of the main floor of the Beagle painted and furnished by Christmas. Our authentic farmhouse furnishings aren't blending in too well with suburbia, contrary to what current trends might dictate. Which is fine with me, because I love starting fresh... it's that whole blank canvas thing.We have a big family with seven adult kids between us, plus grands. We were happy to host our Christmas Weekend Extravaganza at the farm in Southern Illinois the past three years. This year however, no one has to travel three hours away to see us. We are a short car ride away. This year we are hosting at The Beagle! So we are hustling, and whistling while we work, or at least putting on smooth seventies jams to keep us motivated. {I'm stuck on Wings and Bob Welch right now.}I know it's not all going to get done by Christmas, but that's okay. We are on track to knock out most of it and that's good enough for me. I've already painted the living and dining room in October. I'll share those pix another time. This past weekend I tackled the family room and kitchen combo, taping and knocking out two coats of paint in less than 24 hours. {Don't worry about that hole in the cabinetry. The former owners took their trash compactor and we've already ordered a new door!}Friday, TMO, Jack and Ethan palled around, while I painted. Saturday, while I continued my coffee/paint/coffee/paint marathon, The Mighty Oak got back outside into his natural habitat. We are both withdrawing from the labors of farm work. So I know he was happy to finally be back outside working in the yard, firing up the chainsaw and sizing up our little neck of the cul-de-sac.And the second coat was complete. Early Saturday afternoon, we then cleaned up and hit the town for some furniture shopping. Between stops we decided to reward our hard work with a stop Alexander's Steakhouse. Oddly, after being a Blo-No resident/visitor for seven years, I had never been to this restaurant. And we eat out a lot! Alexander's is a Blo-No staple, and it was one of the best meals I've had in a long time. Beyond the pleasing food, the conversation was top notch. Do you date your spouse? If not, you should start... stat. It's a game changer. Though, I think I need to work on my food photography.Back to furniture. I had my heart set on a rustic brown leather sofa and we were looking and sitting and contemplating, and then we thought... Poppycat! Doh! Y'all, when it comes to style, I'm not overly adaptable, but I conceded. We then found a crescent shape conversational couch, which TMO had been fancying. It grew on me. And then {and then} we found the perfect mid-century set of our dreams. Ahhh... throw in the lamps too please. It's gorgeous and perfect, and I can't wait to see it in our family room. We are also on the hunt for a mid-century record player console. {We love vinyl.} I have a gorgeous rug in mind too. However we are disagreeing on the curtains. We'll figure it out. We always do.The day seemed to fly by, it always does when you are having fun. Did I mention the sunset? That sunset! Here I thought that because we had left our paradise at the farm and our beautiful views that I was going to be deprived of natural beauty. Not a chance. It's there. It's what God has created with His blank canvas.I'm going to have a lot of upcoming before and after posts. You can watch the poetry in motion on my Instagram stories. In any case... watch for updates of The Regal Beagle. It's going to be fabulous.NEXT POST - LAST POST |
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