Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Sandy's Home Swet Home Tour

You're in for a treat this week.
 Today I am featuring a special bloogy friend of mine named Sandy.
 She has been one of my bloggy, artist friends for many years now.
Please put up your feet and sip on some coffee.
 Leave a comment and check out her blog.
Here's a very warm welcome...
Hello! My name is Sandy, I live in Toronto, Canada,
and I love to share my creations and antique collections on my blog;
I admire Mica's work so much and am very honored
 that she asked me to share my home on her blog.
 Welcome to my Home Sweet Home tour!
I am married with 3 children and because our
 family is growing so fast, we decided to move to a bigger home- just a year ago. 
We have a wonderful seating area on our front porch, and I wanted the patio set to give a hint of the colors that you will find inside the house. 
I felt that the creamy tones in the entrance- complete with a seating bench, old family pictures and custom burlap pillows- would give a feeling of welcome in our house. When decorating our house, it was important that we keep within our budget- so a lot of our furniture is second-hand and we sanded and painted them ourselves. This storage bench was a yellow pine and it was lovingly made by Mennonites. I purchased most of my furniture at Aberfoyle Antiques in Guelph, Ontario.

I really wanted our new home to be a glimpse into my mind. I love robin's egg blue, art work, and vintage items, so I made sure there were splashes of these- throughout the house. This hall console was once a vintage dark red wash table. I made sure to adorn it with a wash bowl and pitcher, and to paint it in my favorite color. I also hung some of my art work- on the wall-
that include some important symbols in my life.
As you walk through our house, you will come to our living room. It was important that each room be comfortable and functional, so here I used soft creams and comfy seating. I bought the old large Hotel parking sign for just $20, I had some chairs upholstered with fabric that had vintage writing, and I used a train station wagon as a coffee table. I chose the wagon as our table because my Grand Father used to be a train worker. My Husband made the lamp from a birch log that we found outside of our cottage- to remind our family of the great times we shared there.
What makes our house a home, is all the personal touches we put into it. I feel an intense connection with Horses, so I have symbols of them throughout the house. This large screen print is my favorite, (I like to call the  Horse 'Spirit'.) The dress form is also a treasured piece, and it is propped up on some old suit cases. I also really love how the larger windows allow so much light into the house. 
We added a stone wall around the gas fire place- and had a shelving unit custom built- to showcase my favorite antique collection of cameras, video recorders and view finders. I also have larger antique pieces, like the sewing machine and typewriter.
A house is not a home without a family- so I made sure to display many of our family photos on the shelf as well. I have also displayed photos and memorabilia from our family members who have passed, and I transferred some of our family photos onto old medicine bottles. 
The next room is our kitchen. A large harvest table was a must- since we have a large extended Italian family. The bench was made especially for our children. Behind the table is an extra table that is cream, and it folds on either side, (it was once shiny pink).  
The back wall is painted in a robin's egg blue accent color, but the rest of the kitchen is cream. I had someone make me a matching hutch- where I display my retro diner collection.
I wanted our house to have a lot of storage space as I don't like clutter- so we have a walk-in pantry. Also, there is plenty of room for my cook books- on this shelf area- and for the children's games, school supplies and art work- in the baskets below. Oh and yes; the telephone really works (I get asked that all the time).

My kitchen island was painted in the same blue as on the accent wall- and it is movable- so that I could have more space to host a huge dinner party. The lights remind me of something you would see inside a diner, and the drapery is in my favorite toile pattern. I added a personal touch with the Cafe sign too.
To the right of my kitchen, you will see the distressed creamy cabinets and stone back splash. A large range hood was a must- as we do a lot of cooking. I chose 'chicken-wire' for some of the upper cabinets- to keep with the farm-house look. I have always wanted to live on a farm, so this was the next best thing.
I have always dreamed of having a fire stone basin for my kitchen sink- with a skirt underneath- so this is my pride and joy. You could wash a baby in there! Although, I have only washed baby dolls in there so far. I made the burlap skirt and stenciled the pattern onto it. The stencil has my lucky No. 5 on it. You could also see my lucky number on the front hall bench.
People laugh when I tell them that my laundry room is my favorite part of the house. I even wash my garden vegetables in there.  
I love that I now ave an area to fold and iron clothes. I made the valance out of an old feed sack and I use old wooden crates as extra storage over the upper cabinets.
My laundry room also doubles as a mud room, so the children's coats and boots are kept in there. The bench was a great antique find and I love the antique framed mirror that is used as a coat hanger.

I am in love with the toile pattern I chose for our powder room, and of course we have a gorgeous old painting of a Horse in there as well.
That was the main floor, now lets head upstairs, shall we? A funny story about these gorgeous paintings is that I was drooling over them- when I saw them hanging in an office at a marble counter showroom. The owner told me they were originals and I begged her to sell them to me. I can't believe that she was generous enough to give them to me, and at such a good price. It was meant to be!
Upstairs, you will see a lot of art work. The hall end table was an old school boys' desk- given to me by the original owner of the house. It is where I display my collection of primitive pieces-
 from some of my favorite Artists.
This is my Daughters' room. In here, a window seat was a must, as they read all the time and wanted a comfortable place to do that. I had our seamstress make the drapery- to block off the area- and we both made the pillows.
We added wallpaper to the back accent wall. 
 The girls chose bright colors that would carry them into the teen years.
Do you see Mica's doll on the
 top right hand corner of K's bed?
The old mirror chest of drawers was once dark
 green and I made a frame from an old window sill. 
The girls have lots of collections (like their Momma), as well as books and photo albums, but it was important that everything had it's place and that it didn't look cluttered. I felt that (Ikea) shelves on either side of their desk- was a great way to do just that. The desk was once an old 
 dark brown secretary's desk.
"BEWARE of lots of doll heads- as well as the smell of antiques and art work splattered all over the walls!" That is what my Husband says, any time he brings a friend into my art room. I have to laugh because whenever I send my Husband to the store to buy strange materials for my artwork - he is happy to do it.
My art room is where I escape to feel at peace, as crafting is a form of therapy for me. As you can see, it is a sort of organized chaos.  Of course, here  you will see splashes of my favorite blue, as well as doll heads- as they are my favorite thing to collect. In this room you will also find  art creations- made by close friends- as well as my antique collections.
This armoire is my favorite piece, as I replaced the mirror with chicken wire mesh, I added shelves and painted it blue inside. It proudly displays my treasured art pieces, collections and art supplies.
This cabinet was once used as a jam cabinet in an old farm house. It weighs a ton but it is the perfect storage unit for extra art supplies and art books. It also has plenty of room over top- to display my collection of religious figures and doll heads- as well as one of my doll houses.
Here are some more doll houses. After all, dolls need a Home Sweet Home too! 
I thought I would also give you a small peek into my bedroom- as I covet the old luggage night stand I made- as well as the antler jewelry holder and lamp vase- filled with old memorabilia. 
I am pleased with the results of our new home- as I reached our goal of keeping within the budget, using my favorite colors, art work, antiques and personal touches, making sure the rooms were comfortable, had function- as well as lots of storage space. But most of all, I am glad that I achieved our goal of turning our house into a Home Sweet Home.
   Thank you to Mica for featuring my home
 and I hope you enjoyed taking the tour with me!
  Sandy xox

4 comments:

  1. Isnt Sandys home beautiful? Ive been there and it is even more beautiful in person. Sandys personality shines throughout her house for sure.
    Happy Thanksgiving Mica!
    xoxo

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  2. Sandy,
    How beautiful! Your house looks like something right out of a magazine. How exciting for your girls to have that window seat! Thank you Mica for providing us with the tour. :)

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  3. Sandy's house IS beautiful! I love the colors.... and all the collections.... it's so warm and inviting!

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  4. Absolutely darling..what a wonderful space..smiles..Renee

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