Recycle. Refurbish, Repurpose. Reuse.
Winters in Northeast Ohio can be brutal. A visit to the glasshouse at the Cleveland Botanical Garden will warm your spirit and offer an escape to make you forget the snow and ice-covered landscape outside. The winter show, “Orchid Mania” is held annually. Whether or not you have ever had any desire to grow orchids,… Continue reading “Orchid Mania” at the Cleveland Botanical Garden
Last Christmas, my family decided to have a "white elephant" gift exchange. It wasn't about saving money, although we did save money. My siblings and I have simply grown less particular over the years. We have reached a point in our lives where we no longer need or desire a bunch of new "stuff." We… Continue reading Enjoying A White Elephant Christmas
I began this year wanting to set up a home office area and get piles and files of paper under control. I thought that the project might take me a week. Thinking that I was being overly cautious, I allowed myself a month to get the job done. Eight and half months later, I have… Continue reading “Organize it!” The Home Office
Sometimes I get the craziest ideas at 3 a.m. I woke up last night thinking about my art room. It's on the first floor between the living room and the kitchen. It occurred to me that it would be more convenient if the art room were adjacent to my basement storage space where I keep… Continue reading Organize it! Make Room for Hobbies
What began as an organization project with cleaning and sorting, recycling and donating, has somehow blossomed into a whole house makeover. One of the largest projects was a very messy kitchen re-do! We knew we needed a new kitchen floor. But a bigger problem was our sagging ceiling. It was too big of a project… Continue reading Organize It! The Kitchen Makeover
You don't like tomatoes? If your only experience with them are tomatoes from the grocery store or the wedges you get in your restaurant salad, well then, I'd have to say that I can't blame you. What passes for a tomato in most places during most of the year is a tasteless fraud with a… Continue reading It’s Time to Plant the Tomatoes! (Even if you Don’t Like Them)
It started with a simple sentence. "We really need a new kitchen floor," I said to my husband. A month later, I find myself in the middle of an entire first floor home renovation. I'd been worried about the kitchen ceiling ever since the day we moved in. Made from layers of plaster that were… Continue reading In the Middle of a Spring Home Makeover
If, like me, you live in an old, historic home you have to deal with many challenges not found in modern construction. One of the most common problems is damaged walls. Often, old plaster has been badly patched or walls are layered with difficult to strip wallpaper. One solution is to knock down the old… Continue reading Patchwork Wallpaper Project
Home at the WhackyShack 