And So It Begins...

The closing took place on Friday June 29th. It only took about 15 minutes to sign the papers and off I went to the property. With keys in hand and enthusiasm in my heart, I couldn't get to the cottage fast enough! When I arrived the grass was chest high, the sun was burning in the sky and the driveway was blocked by a large oak branch that had come down from the heavy rains a few days before. Nothing deterred my enthusiasm. Making the way into the house my carpenter friend and I started tearing down wallpaper....and walls.

              This is Michael making the first cut into a bedroom wall that will soon become an entryway.
                                                         That window will become the front door.

 

This is the present living room which will become the kitchen. It has a beautiful view of the meadow from the windows on the left. The entry door is over to the right (not seen in this photo). 

You can see that I have stripped the wallpaper in this photo.  

This is before the wallpaper was stripped. This will soon be the kitchen!

This is the new entry (that we just cut open from the bedroom) into what will become the kitchen. The present front door (on the left) will be removed and moved to where the window, in the blue background, is in the 2nd photo. The other door you see on the right is presently a closet which will become the cellar stairs (when we turn the cellar stairs around).  

Before:

After:

 I decided that a large master bedroom with cathedral ceilings and french doors leading out to a stone patio, would be much more comfortable and alluring than two small bedrooms. 

            Here I am taking down the wall in the closets between two bedrooms.

By the way, I don't recommend ever wearing sandals when using power tools. 

     That window in the background will eventually become french doors after all those walls disappear. 

The New Cottage and the Meadow

I would like to introduce you to my new house! This is Catch Meadow Cottage. I know it looks plain and run-down but I assure you, in a few month's time it will be the most lovely little home. There is so much work to do. A new roof, new windows, new paint and new landscaping are just a few things that are needed.

This is the meadow behind the cottage. Here you can see deer, coyotes, owls and hawks pass by on a daily basis. It's just so beautiful. 

My Gardens at Beechwood Place

Beechwood Place is a big house in a small coastal village. I owned it for six years and then sold it in January 2012. While living there, Michael and I renovated the entire house from top to bottom as well as planned and planted all new gardens, bushes, trees and flowers. After that we built a carriage house and the sweet little potting shed you see in the background of this photo. This is just one of the lovely gardens on the grounds. Someday I will tell you the story of Beechwood Place and share lots of 

"before and after" pictures with you.