Hill Country Update, This Rocks!

This looks like a mess, but it's actually progress! My dad has been making cabinets that match the existing cabinets so we can add them in where we need them. The island will have cabinets only at the end near the range and he has made a red cedar counter top to go on top and extend past the cabinets to form a breakfast area. The cabinet that drops down a few inches will have our stone counter top and will also have a sink and dishwasher. (As you can see, the floor is not in yet. It will be the last thing to go in.)

The cabinets on the "living room" side of the kitchen have been set. The columns will have stone on them, so they are still bare.

The doorway you see here will lead into the butler's kitchen (also called a "dirty kitchen" or "working kitchen".) The built-in refrigerator will go to the left of it where you see the dry wall built out. 

This is the wall where the range and Vent-a-Hood will go. I will be painting all the cabinets to match. The areas where the dry wall is gone will be limestone. (We still need to remove some above some cabinets, but since I was the one doing that I had to stop when I got to the areas that I couldn't even reach with a ladder.) That has to go in after the counter tops. (They will be making the template for counter tops this week and then will put us on the list for installation. UGH! I hate this waiting game!)

So....

it doesn't look like much yet, but progress is being made. Just wait and see. It will all come together in the end!

During a little break, I found a couple of large rocks that really were interesting to me. It's not uncommon to find rocks in the hill country with all kinds of shapes and wear patterns. Many have holes and other beautiful and odd configurations. This held my interest because not only did it have holes,it had a very porous texture like a bone. I thought  it was a deer skull when I pulled it out of the ground. (It was half exposed.) 

See how porous it looks? 

Nearby was another interesting rock. These are both large rocks, about 10"to 11" wide. 

This also had an interesting texture and was full of holes. 

I can't wait to do some exploring with my grandson. I think this would be a great place for a little boy to find "treasures".

I am working on some quilty projects, but I am saving some to show for the See You in September blog hop! I hope you'll be surprised!

Tying Springs and a Mimic in Nature

My sister and I got a little bit more progress done on our chairs. We got the springs installed  and tied.

We also took templates of the seats and seat backs to the upholstery supply shop to have foam cut for them. We really thought they would just cut it while we waited, but they had a backlog and we will have to go pick them up later this week. That means the progress has come to a halt for now.

In the meantime, while in the hill country this last weekend, we saw even more wildlife. First a huge road runner ran by with either a lizard or snake in his beak. (Sorry, he's way too fast for a photo!) All I could see of the captured meal was a white underbelly.

While sitting on the back patio, we saw a Hummingbird Moth ( Hemaris thysbe, the Hummingbird Clearwing Moth or Common Clearwing) enjoying the little pink trumpet shaped flowers of a shrub nearby.

Can you see him? He hovered over each flower just like a hummingbird does and sucked the nectar with his long proboscis. This beneficial moth is often mistaken for a hummingbird. He is about 2 inches long. 

We're off today to choose countertops! I'm really nervous about it because this is an expensive item and I don't want to make a mistake. It will be installed after the cabinets are finished.  My dad is making some extra cabinets to match the ones we already have. He has also made an Eastern red cedar island countertop for us. (Have I told you my daddy can do absolutely anything!)

Have a great week!

Hill Country Finds!

Some of you may not know that way back in the dinosaur days, this hot, dry south Texas land was under the ocean. The hill country limestone used to be prehistoric sea shells. Just walking around briefly on our property, there are many fossils to be found. I just have to reach down and pick them up. I wonder what the native American's who lived around here thought of these? 

I also had the opportunity to visit the thrift shop in Kerrville as well as the thrift shop in Pleasanton. In Kerrville, I found the vintage Nebraska souvenir plate you see in the photo. The other two plates were found in an antique shop in downtown Kerrville. I have decided that a wall arrangement of vintage souvenir plates would be a lot of fun! So far, I've found the plates for between $1 and $5 each, so it is inexpensive as far as art goes! If it looks the way I envision it, it will add to the Texas hill country "look"! As far as my research and experience shows, that elusive "look" is a mixture of antique, western, French country, Tuscan, Mexican, Spanish and rustic. The operative words seems to be "mixture". It's the type of decorating that you recognize when you see! It is relaxed and casual with a mixture of rustic and formal furniture and accents. There is a huge retiree population in the hill country and most have traveled extensively, so souvenir plates make sense to me! We've also traveled a lot, so it will bring back memories for us. I will have to plan a lap quilt to go along with this theme!!

After coming back to Pleasanton last night, I made a "bee-line" for the thrift shop here and found a few more! I'm sure I will get pickier as I collect them for the wall. The three found in Kerrville are the best so far. I think some of the ones from here might not be as vintage and don't have as much color as the first three. They will work until I have enough to fill in a wall, though. I think it will be fun!!! I was told that they are getting harder to find in thrift shops!

Remember the porcupine last week? Well, this week left us feeling a lot more tender toward the wildlife on our property. We were walking around when we walked up on this tiny little fawn. He was the size of a cat!  He was staying so still and trying so hard to hide, that my husband thought he might be dead. Then his ear twitched. Poor thing was freaked out, I'm sure! We took a very quick phone photo and quickly left the area to let him get back to his mother or his mother to him, whichever was supposed to happen. He was gone the next day, so I guess they found each other. 
Electrical work is almost finished and we are waiting on a bid from a stone mason to see if we can afford to put limestone in the kitchen and on the support columns. It would match the fireplace limestone. If not, I may need to learn a few new skills! I am really wanting the walls in there to be rock. I think it would be fantastic!
I am also waiting on an iron summer cover to arrive. I have in mind putting it above the range, mortared in and framed with fancy limestone edging tile. Here is a photo of what I ordered:

When we lived in Georgia, we had a huge old Victorian house with 10 fireplaces! Eight of them had summer covers similar to this! Of course, we left them when we sold the house. I would love to have just one of them today!
I'm still very anxious to finish the kitchen, but I believe the day will come! Have a great week!
                                                         

We've Found a House!

We've found a house! I am trying to wait until we actually close on it to post pictures. We should close on either Friday or Monday, depending on when some work is completed. 
The house is in the Texas hill country, which is an area we have loved for a long time.

The house is on a hill and has a nice view of the hill country from just about any window. (The pictures on this post were taken last year and are not from the house. ) You will also see deer grazing freely on anything they find! I love watching them, but will have to confine my flower beds to a fenced area! (I'm going from bad to worse. So many people thought I meant "horse", I switched the pictures around. Now it looks like I think the horses are deer! I'm going to quit while I'm ahead!)
Best of all......I will have a large sewing/quilting room! It will probably be one of the last rooms we work on, but it will be wonderful having a big space! 

We are going to take our time updating the house. I'll show before and after pictures of our work. I plan on spending most of the budget on really quality purchases, then filling in by finding second hand furniture and sewing my own drapes, etc. I'll share this with you, too. Perhaps my successes and failures (and I'm sure there will be some!) will help some of you out in some small way. For example, I've already purchased a really quality leather sectional. It was on clearance at Ethan Allen because someone ordered it and then changed their color scheme. It was EXACTLY what I had in mind and although it had just come in and was in perfect condition, it was marked half price! Even at that, it was expensive, so I will need to search Craig's List for some side chairs that I can upholster. (I've never done that! Do you think I can?) I hope you'll stick around and share in my adventure! Can you tell I'm excited?
                                                 
P.S. - Please join me in the Don't Let the Door Stop you blog hop that is going on now. I will be posting my contribution on February 5. You can follow the entire hop, in conjunction with the She Who Sews hop, by going to Sew We Quilt.