Design Week at Mosey House

I am no decorator.

I have a background in art and animation, and my current every day work is visual, but decorating is not a particular talent of mine. In fact, in the past it wasn't even particularly enjoyable. The Englishman and I embarked on a remodel/addition to our 1911 cottage back in 2003, and besides the fact that I was pregnant for most of it (we lived in one tiny room during the remodel, which is now the study), I just found the whole process of looking at gazillions of samples of tile, hardwood, fixtures and finishes mind-numbing.

But colour is a different story. Once the builders and sub-contractors were out of our hair, we went a little crazy with the colour wheel. Our dull neutral kitchen (not part of the remodel) got a sunshine yellow paint job with white cabinets and purple window treatment (and appliance replacement one at a time as they all broke down one after another. We're waiting for the stove to go anyday now). The bathroom became primary blue. The guest room became pumpkin spice. Sweetpea's room is a deep blue that in the right light has shadows of mauve.

Our house is great and there's not much wrong with it at first glance. But five years later, a lot is still unfinished.





The master got a coat of paint slapped on the walls and a new bed, but half of it is a catch-all for furniture and junk that doesn't fit anywhere else.


















The master bath has unpainted cabinets and holes in the wall showing the head-scratching position where the original electrician placed the electrical fixtures.














We have unpainted baseboards and an iron spiral staircase that is just dying for some wood treads.

















And the kitchen. It will not get a remodel (in our lifetime), but the rippled vinyl floor and the disintegrating countertops have got to go.










A few rooms (like Sweetpea's) need serious re-organization.

Because my husband is not willing to give me carte blanche to just go for it (can you imagine? he wants to have a say!!), I thought I'd use this forum as a creative way to start thinking of what we can do to finish up a few projects, and dream up a few new ones to make the Mosey House feel more complete.

Oh, and did I mention we have no money? So, inexpensive is part of the criteria. Flea markets, paint, and DIY. This week (and maybe dribbling into next if work gets in the way...) I'll be photoshopping and posting pictures of various areas of the house, perusing some of the enviable design blogs out there, and taking (very) informal polls on the opinions of my three loyal readers. Or maybe there are four now?

I think I'm close to talking myself out of the whole thing, but maybe with some input it'll be... fun? Here's hoping.