Living room where gas heater will be installed.

 

 

 

This is the tile I laid myself for the gas heater to be set upon.  Not a long nor hard job.  I first had to put a leveler on the floor to support the tile so it would not crack.  The boards underneath were somewhat curved due to warping. 

Obviously I had the stove professionally installed.  I did however hang the sheetrock myself in this room. I did have help from my daughter to do the cement board behind the furnace.  That was a challenge to say the least.  Problems came up.  Something to think about.  I didn't know I needed an electrical outlet for the furnace so I had covered up the box.  Of course I then found out I did need it and had to remove the cement board and recut to allow for that.  Sounds easy, but believe me we were about to tear our hair out.

Now this was my tenants master bedroom.  The cabinet was in the master bath area, just moved for convenience to work.  The bedroom currently looks like this........

The walls are a very pale pink with wallpaper.  I will furnish pattern and company if anyone wants to know, but I don't have it handy right now.

Enough for today.  I'll update more shortly.  Making progress. 

Thanks for stopping by.  Hope your projects are also coming along.  Will be searching your blogs for inspiration that you all furnish me with.

The past year has been a really challenging one for me and my blog has all but ended, however, I hope to reconstruct it into a place where women  can see that they can do just about anything if they set their mind to it.

Background why it is changing from art to home renovation is because it's all I can do at the moment to keep moving forward with my life.  My partner of 23 years passed away in 2009 and didn't leave me with much in terms of financial security.   That comes from my belief that the Universe takes care of us if we just ask and I have been asking, believe me. 

Most everyone knows that the hurricane Irene came in August of 2011 and of course as luck would have it I lost every part of my downstairs apartment.  ( I own a two family and live upstairs.)  So not only did I lose my space, I lost a great tenant and the income from the rental of that apartment.  Another financial blow.

Of course the Universe wasn't finished with me yet as in May of this year in the middle of trying to fix things up I had a medical emergency and major surgery which left me with a colostomy and unable to do the work necessary.  Plus, of course I was absent from my paying position as an aide on a school bus for special needs kids. My job ended as the school year was over in June and so they terminated my position.  My doctors will not allow me to go back due to physical requirements I can not meet at this time.  Loss of my income from the work doesn't help either.  On the plus side, and there always is one, is that I do get Social Security income.  Just enough to get by without too many perks.

And so it is that my main focus besides keeping my health since the surgery is to get the apartment ready to move into.  I will move in it myself and then rent out the upper apartment and get back to some having more income.

Since art is on the back burner I decided to show pictures of my progress .  First I will post some pictures of the flood that took so much from our village and residents.  Then hopefully you can see the progress I've made.

I have to add that in the beginning I had family and friends helping out, but as time goes on, people get tired and slip away to work on their own projects.  Perfectly understandable, but leaving the "rest" up to me which is also ok.  Hard, but ok.

Some of the earlier pictures here.

 

 

 

 

For anyone wondering why no posts on my blog, there has been a very good reason. 

I entered into a health crisis that  put me in critical condition and in the hospital for a couple of weeks having had emergecy major surgery.  I am still in the process of recovery today June 4 and although I am home am unable to drive or lift anythinng heavier than a milk carton.

I had a flair up of Diverticulitis but was unaware of what it was so I spent 2 days at home in extreme pain before going to the hospital.  After 4 days of tryig to clear up an infection for a ruptured sack I ruptured another one requirig emergency surgery.  Removal of a section of my intestines has left me with an ostomy bag which I am hoping will be  a temporary fix.  The Dr's say that in about 3 or 4 months they can reverse the surgery and put me back together again.  I am hoping that is the case.

In the meantime I am unable to work so in my recovery I am hoping each day that perhaps I will be able to get back to doing some art and posting it here. I am now in a position to get back to simple things and checking out your blogs will be a nice past time for me and will hopefully inspire me to do more.

Thanks for your understanding.
Peggy

I just finished this baby sweater which I made without any baby in mind.  My sister had knit it in an army green for her brand new grandson Jaxson and I thought it so cute I had to make one for a little girl.  I don't really know anyone who is having a baby or a baby girl, but I will keep it for the opportunity to give it to someone.  Or I may sell it this summer in an Etsy Shop should I open one.

The yarn is not expensive.  When I make something for the first time I sometimes use inexpensive yarn to see how it comes out or if the pattern is easy enough for me to figure out.  This pattern was
called "Baby Sophisticate" by Linden Heflin.  I do not know the source as my sister gave it to me.
The yarn was Vanna's Choice Baby in Cherry Cherry and used 1 and 1/2 skeins.  I do still have to add buttons, but found I didn't have any in the right color and I thought white would be too contrasting.  Will have to shop for buttons which anyone who knows me will probably laugh at since my collection of buttons is beyond most people's imagination.

If you want to know more just leave me a post and I'll get back to you.  Thanks for stopping by.

Hi Friends,

It's been a while since I did a 4 X 4 piece and I was given the opportunity and asked if I wanted to make one for a friend who is going through some very difficult times right now.  This is really quite simple but I am hoping it will cheer her.  It will become a page in a book done with several of them from her friends in an art group.

On a personal note, since you see I have not been "producing" much in the line of art lately, I have been struggling with a word.  Why would anyone even "have" to struggle with a word.  It seems silly to me, but then the word is obsession.  That in itself could be obsessive. lol.   The dictionary says  it's an idea or desire that obsesses one.  And to obsess means to haunt or preoccupy the mind.  Well I have been doing that a lot lately, and I really want to stop.   I wish I could just tell myself to stop, which actually I have, but it is of no use.  It's almost like an addiction.  I have to mentally figure out what the payoff is to me for doing this.  If I can figure that out. perhaps the behaviour will end.  I wish I was obsessing about art, or my house that so needs to have work done on it, but instead I have taken up an obsession about men.  I am not dating, but would like to.  Have seen a few and met a few but so far the situations have not entitled me to anyone who could fill that spot in my heart. I know too that I'm better if I don't "look" for a man but just let mother nature or whoever takes care of that job, send me someone.  Maybe I'm just a little too anxious.  Another word I could use would be un-ladylike so I'll let you use your imagination.

So why I write this here I don't know.  Perhaps someone in Blog land will have some clues how to stop this obsessing and get back to what I should be doing and that is Art.