And this is the railing all painted up!
My husband made a very nice cherry cabinet for the fish tank to sit on, and I love how he made a matching detail on the side of the fish cabinet with what he did on the bookshelf he made some years ago (which is right beside it):
The cabinet & tank were brought up from the basement last night, and the tank is now full of water and will run for the next couple of days before we can put the fish in.
The whole assembly is quite tall ... and hides my lovely painted railings :[ I put the black basket on the shelf for those ugly fishy necessities (fish food, net, etc), but think I'll get a couple of wicker baskets instead (Ikea has a nice selection).
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| A nice comparison of what the railings used to look like & their improvement! |
This is the view as you come in the front door. I don't particularly like that black filter hanging off the back like that, but nothing can be done there. I've always wanted to make a small wall hanging to hang off this banister so that it blocked the view straight into my kitchen. The fish tank blocks the view very well now. Still, it hasn't made me change my mind about the wall hanging ... maybe this winter I can work on that. Can you see that tiny glimpse of yellow through that doorway on the kitchen walls? Next project :\
And just because I'd like to brag about my husband's craftsmanship a bit more, here is the beautiful low bookshelf he made several years ago:
All cherry. The best thing about cherry is that it darkens with age. Our grandfather clock is also cherry so these three pieces will all darken away as the years roll by. This is a good example of the furniture clutter in my house ... tucked wherever we find room for it!
I couldn't give up the green brocade chair from my mom's house. As kids we used to call it the "Queen's Chair". I have this photo of my grandmother sitting in it too. The fabric was different then ... a beige brocade, but you can't really see that from this old scanned slide.
Anyway ... back to the present ... we just need to add the fish to the tank, and it's getting cold again out there and was even snowing a bit this morning! The fish are waiting patiently out there under the leaves & debris falling all over their pond.
One more day little guys ... hang in there!
Thanks for stopping by! I hope you all have a great weekend. My daughter is coming home and we're going on our annual mother-daughter trip to the Royal Winter Fair Horse Show tomorrow!! Ball gowns are optional :) seriously.
Wendy
Looks like the perfect spot for those fish, hope we are a long way off snow! :) x
ReplyDeleteThanks Ada ... the snow is starting a little earlier this year
DeleteSo many things to say Wendy, your banister/handrail painting looks great, very classy. Your husband's furniture making is amazing, he is very talented - must be the thing in your household! - and how nice that the fish tank stand matches the other pieces and that it is useful too. I love the way that you have displayed your books and pretty things on the shelves that your hubby made you previously, you have a good eye! I hope that those fish appreciate all of the work they have caused you! xx
ReplyDeleteThanks for all your kind comments Amy :) I'm very happy with the results, and today (in the rain!) is the day that the fish will come inside. I do love the pretty shebunkin fish with their very fancy tails & fins, and it'll be nice to be able to see them regularly again indoors :)
DeleteIt looks fabulous Wendy your husband is very talented to make such beautiful furniture. The railings are looking good too, I hope you will show a picture of the fish once they are in their new home. Have a great time at the horse show and is one wearing a Ball gown, if so I want to see a picture of that too. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Linda, yes I'll take another photo of the six little fish swimming in their new place (I hope we find six live fish still swimming in the pond!). Sorry, but I will not be wearing a ball gown as we got the cheap seats. I don't think I'd want to wear an expensive gown and sit in those old wooden seats that would catch on delicate fabric!
DeleteThe railing looks great! I think the fishtank is an excellent fit there too. Your husband is a very talented carpenter, wow. My husband likes to build things too. I really like how the tank stand and the other cabinet match each other, it's very nice. I think a wall hanging would still look great up there on the railing, so you should go for it. I say that like wall hangings are just a snap to whip up, haha. Thank you for the view from the front entry area, by the way; I got that good old raised-ranch feeling from being able to look toward the lower level of your house. My bedroom was in the lower level when I was growing up. It's like going home again. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Jennifer! Yes, I think I will go ahead with the wall hanging, and it's going to be a quilted one. I even have the pattern in mind, but haven't got further than that. We only have half a basement as the other half of our house is garage. How we wish that it was a full basement! My husband's workshop is through that door straight ahead, and our family room is off to the left. He's very cramped in there for a workshop as he shares the space with things like a furnace, washer & dryer etc. I'm glad he does a little bit of woodworking though, since he's very good at it :)
DeleteWow, great work there, Wendy! I like the white and brown contrast- that is quite striking. And how fantastic that your husband was able to custom build a cabinet that matches the rest of the furniture he has made. My husband talks about wood working a lot but that will be a ways down the road when he has more room for his tools. Do you plan to dress up in a ball gown this weekend? Oh how I wish I had occasions in my life for ball gowns and just looking pretty. Have a great time with your daughter!
ReplyDeleteThanks Stacy! I've admired this look for the railing for a long time. It would finish it all off even better if the stairs were hardwood, but they're just plywood under our old dated carpet. At least this little bit of paint brightens it all nicely :) If your husband really does like to do woodworking, he should just go for it. My husband has a small space full of hulking tools, but he still keeps at it. If you wait till everything is perfect, you may never get at it. No ball gown for me I'm afraid. I think the people dressing up are probably the owners of the horses ($$). I'm good with jeans to these things ;)
DeleteYou did marvelous work, with the railings. And your husband does simply marvelous wood working.
ReplyDeleteMy husband has been a woodworker all his life, and I had to call him in, to see your husband's work. He also thinks it marvelous. I knew he'd enjoy seeing someone else's work.
Oh and we love cherry too!!!
Tessa~
Thank you Tessa! It's so nice that your husband also does woodworking ... you must show some pieces that he's done sometime. I tell my husband he should start a blog on woodworking, but he looks at me like I'm nuts ... I guess it's not a "manly" thing to do! If I had my wish I would have cherry cabinets in my kitchen in the Shaker style and cherry interior doors on all the bedrooms! Have a great weekend!
DeleteGreat job,both of you!
ReplyDeleteI've often wondered if,after the RWF Horse Show ,dry cleaners wonder why the ballgowns they are cleaning ,smell of horse poo.
Jane x
Thanks Jane :) The ladies in the ball gowns don't get near the horse manure, so it's just a delicate odour of ... hmmm ... horse & leather polish ;)
DeleteWell done to both of you! You are both very talented and I love the way the railings look as though they are in the fish tank from the side, great effect. Enjoy the horse show - don't get too mucky! xx
ReplyDeleteThanks Chel! I didn't notice the railings showed up that way in the photo until you mentioned it ... it really does look like the railings are in there! I will enjoy the show ... lots of booths to wander through before it starts this evening!
DeleteGreat job - well done, the railings and bannister look fab! And how lucky are you having such a talented hubby. Have a lovely time with your daughter at the weekend,
ReplyDeletexx
Thanks Gilly! We'll definitely enjoy ourselves today :)
DeleteOnce upon a time we had a huge fish tank in each house we've lived in. I miss it. So relaxing. Your mister is a handy dandy fellow. Gorgeous work.
ReplyDeleteWe've had tanks since my son became more interested in fish than hamsters (I hated hamsters ... too many escaped episodes!). So he has a heated 20-gal tank in his room, and now we have this monster in the hallway ... that's it, I tell him! I like watching them swim around too ;)
DeleteYour railing looks wonderful in white! and how wonderful that you have the chair in that photo of your grandmother - I love things like that!!! Have a fabulous weekend xoxo
ReplyDeleteThanks Anne! I'm really SO happy with the change :) I wonder if that chair came from a previous generation than even my grandmother's. I never did ask my mom. I love that old couch shown in the photo too, and wonder where that ended up (hope it's still surviving!). Enjoy your weekend too!
DeleteYour entryway is similar to ours and I know what it's like to paint all those spindles white. It looks nice finished. Our grandson went to the RWF on a school trip and I haven't been myself for years. Hope it is as good as I remember.
ReplyDeleteOur entryway is so tiny, so I've really wanted to make it nicer than it was. The spindles are a pain to paint, but two coats did it up nicely. I can't wait to get the rest of the railing finished now! How lucky for your grandson to go to the Royal ... that was something our school never did. It's not as good as it used to be when I was younger ... no poultry or small animals (they used to be a favourite for me). And for security reasons you can no longer see the horses in their stalls (mostly the owners cover over the fronts to keep people away). So it's a lot less "hands on" now. The evening horse show is what we're going to, and that is still pretty good.
DeleteHave a wonderful time with your daughter Wendy! That sounds like a hoot! And your husbands work is so amazing! As is yours I might add! That before and after on the banister is gorgeous! It is shockingly different! And that chair oh that chair! I love it! That photo of your grandmother sitting in it says it all! A very happy weekend to you friend!
ReplyDeleteWe always really enjoy ourselves there ... and the evening horse show is quite good. Thank you for all your kind remarks! Always so nice to have you visit :) I read once that if you have a piece of antique furniture and you also have a photo of that piece with the original owner, it increases its value (or at least in my case, it's interest!) . Enjoy your weekend Nicole!
DeleteOkay, I am NOT showing my eldest the photos of your aquarium. As it is, she's got 3 smaller ones bubbling away in her room. She insisted she had to get the additional ones (to the ONE she had before) to be nursery aquariums for the fry. That girl would have a zoo if given half the chance.
ReplyDeleteYour banister is transformed! It's gorgeous! As is your husband-crafted furniture. AND the queen's chair, including the queen sitting in it :-)
Have a FABULOUS weekend!
Oh go on! Show her the tank! I show my daughter all your pretty ponies & she hasn't got one of those yet ;) Thank you for your wonderful compliments! Makes the effort all worth while. My grandmother does look quite grand sitting there, doesn't she. I keep wondering what book she's reading ... probably a poetry book as she used to read poetry in public, an "elocutionist". Enjoy the rest of your weekend Wabi!
DeleteWhat a transformation Wendy, the stairs look amazing. The perfect place for the fishtank. Your husband is so talented. Thank you so much for sharing with us the "Queens Chair".
ReplyDeleteluv
irene
xxxx
Thank you Irene :) I'll be passing along all these compliments to my husband on his cabinet. Glad you liked the bit about the Queen's chair ;)
DeleteHello Wendy - I was so pleased to see you over at my place, thank you, and have now enjoyed a browse through a couple of your very interesting and enjoyable posts - I was really taken with your little knitted dolls back there, they are sooooo cute and full of 'attitude'!
ReplyDeleteYour painting has transformed the railings and your husband is quite the craftsman with his furniture making skills isn't he. I think gazing at little fishes in a tank is so peaceful and relaxing - nice that you have space to place it. Your Mum looks so elegant in her 'Queen's Chair', doesn't she. I'm looking forward to catching up with more of your lovely posts soon. Wishing you a happy week, Joy x
I'm so glad that you came for a visit Joy, and that you're enjoying browsing through the posts. I have yet to get those knitted dolls out in the mail, but that is on this week's "list". I enjoy watching the fish too as does my son. He has another tank in his room with the more interesting fish (angels, shark and even 'glass' fish which are transparent!). Enjoy the rest of your weekend ... although you most likely will be ready to start a new week when you read this with our time difference!
DeleteHi Wendy! Don't you just love the idea of giving something in your home a "new" color, how it just changes the feel of the home?....It looks great! Your husband sure did a great job on the cabinet, both of them actually! You are lucky to have such a talented handy man around the house....mine...not so much.
ReplyDeleteI really love how your living area is in the upper part of your home, not something you see in the homes around our hometown!
Wishing you a wonderful week, xo Shari
You're so right Shari, a bit of paint is the cheapest & most effective way of bringing new life to a room. I'll pass along your comment to my husband (he won't admit it, but I think he's been quite pleased with the responses!). Our home is actually a raised ranch, which is just a bungalow raised out of the ground a little higher than a regular bungalow, and our basement windows are above ground (in the front). So that's why there are a few steps up when you first come into the house.
DeleteYou have done an amazing and beautiful job with your spindles-made all of the difference in the world and I love it! Your fishy friends are very fortunate to have such a dedicated caregiver:) and your husband and his talent is something to brag about because that is a true talent to be able to create such gorgeous finished products!
ReplyDeleteStay cozy!
xx-
Jemma
Thank you Jemma :) The fish came into the tank on the weekend ... they've grown SO MUCH since the summer!! But they look very cool swimming around in there, and now their true caregiver (my son) can take over their management until they're back outside next spring.
DeleteWow Wendy! Cool railing painting and the water might magnify them from some angles - the cabinet and book shelves are really professional - what a talented hubby you have! Love your idea for a hanging. Great picture of your grandmother in your cherished chair and fab colourful painting on your wall!
ReplyDeleteHope the fish enjoy their new home and you enjoy their calm swimming around their tank.
Ali x
Thanks for all your wonderful comments here Ali! The fish are doing well, and tonight when we went out, we could actually see them all swimming around as we drove out of the driveway!! Rather a neat effect as we left the blue "night" light on in the tank ... very atmospheric!
DeleteAmazing how a lick of paint can freshen things up - looks great and ties in nicely with the front door too. I really love that photo of your Grandma. Honestly I can't get enough of looking at 'old' photographs. Hope you had a lovely weekend with your daughter and that the fishies have settled into their home again :-) Mel x
ReplyDeleteI agree ... paint is the best way to change & freshen up a space. My daughter & I had a really great time together at the horse show. And the fish are happily swimming away in their tank (which has gone somewhat mirky :[ ). Enjoy your day Mel!
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