Fabulous Bunny Downspout

I need this kind of whimsy in my life. Bring back the bunny downspouts! I could spend DAYS on this page looking at other examples. Have fun looking when you need a break from Thanksgiving preparations. xo

Black and White Perfection

Love.Every.Single.Thing

via

Pantry Envy

I recently read something that said the three things that give you great returns in home improvement are LIBRARY, LAUNDRY, AND LARDER. This pantry (larder) is a great example. via

The Most Wonderful Laundry Room

I do love a stacked washer and dryer! ‘Cottonwood.’ Jackson and LeRoy, home builders, Salt Lake City, UT. via

Cool Sunday at My Cottage

Freshly picked lilies of the valley. It's amazing how two stems can fill the room with their intoxicating fragrance. This year my patch has finally started to multiply. So happy! I got this old hotel silver fish platter a long time ago at a church rummage sale. Isn't it fabulous?

Here's the desk area in my pantry. I had fun organizing it recently.

Another view of the pantry with the dutch door closed. This was the only spot in the house where my tall case clock would fit. My ceilings were too low in my living room. I actually love it in this spot and it 's the first thing that greets me each time I come home.

Enjoy your Sunday. It's very cool and the sky is full of clouds. Perfect weather for my afternoon real estate showing. My difficult transaction will be closing on Friday with any luck. Fingers crossed. It has been consuming me of late, so much so, I haven't been blogging each day as I normally do. I hope to get back on track and will try my best. xo

Bedroom Office

I like it. A bedroom and home office all in one.

Via

Beautiful Embroidery

Flower Detail: Top Panel of Jane Nicholas Mirror stitched by Lorna Loveland.

Middle Panel

I wish I could see the entire finished mirror surround, don't you? Oh, the power of a woman with a needle!

UPDATE: I found the entire mirror!!!

It's beautiful, isn't it? via

Reasons for Staying at Home

I adore these excuses. via

It's here. The giant floating head head is looming over my cottage today, right on schedule.

Tom Gauld (Scottish, b. 1976) - The Reason I Stayed In The House All Day Drawings (All perfectly valid reasons) His website is fabulous.

I adore staying in the house all day and I do it all the time because it's my favorite place to be. Have a great Sunday. xo

Apple Cake Recipe Revised - So Good

I wasn't ready to give up on that low sugar German Apple Cake I posted several days ago. My first one was too dry but this one was perfect. I mixed it in my Cuisinart with the metal blade and it was less messy than bowl and beater method for such scant ingredients. I decided to make oat flour first by whizzing one cup of old fashioned oats in my food processor first and reserving them in a bowl. Then I followed the old recipe...Cream 3 Tablespoons Butter (last time I used coconut oil) with 1/4 cup of sugar and a pinch of salt. I used salted butter. Add one egg and continue mixing. Combine one cup flour with one teaspoon baking powder (my oats did not make quite one cup so I was forced to add some white flour -- darn). Next time I will grind more oats. Add dry ingredients to the sugar mixture with enough milk to make a stiff batter. I just dumped some soy milk from the carton and made a thinner mixture than last time that was pourable into a 9" round cake pan that was pre-buttered. Top with apples. This time I had to use 1-3/4 apples. I had a tiny bit of cinnamon sugar left over from the last time and I sprinkled it on top. I forgot to add the pats of butter on top but that was a good mistake because added butter was not needed. Bake at 350° for one hour. It was perfect and delicious. Will make this again and again. Not too sweet and very healthy. It had a cake texture instead of a shortbread texture like my first attempt. Try it, you will like it too. 

If you eat 1/2 of this cake, it will contain the same amount of sugar as one container of blueberry greek yogurt which has 20 grams of sugar or 5 teaspoons. I measured the number of teaspoons in 1/4 cup of sugar and it's 10. I think it's super healthy made with the oat flour and I'm very excited that I can eat this and not feel too much guilt. It would have been gluten free if I hadn't added the small amount of white flour. I used Pink Lady apples that are one of my favorite varieties. Don't have any apples on hand? Try peaches, plums, nectarines, blueberries, or even bananas. I hope I have the will will power to save a big wedge for tomorrow's breakfast. I'm posting this early in case you want to bake one for your Sunday supper dessert. xo

I just found a great article about oat flour and how to use it in baking written by the Self-Reliant Sisters. It's very informative and timely -- read it here.

Taking the Day to Regroup

Ever since I got up this morning, I've been putting things back in their proper places. My kitchen table was starting to like the photo above. I'm making progress and am almost ready to vacuum. It's a dark and dreary rainy Monday, perfect for regrouping. My new real estate listing has taken all of my time lately with an Open House yesterday. It was great and hopefully we'll have a contract soon. See you later. xo

Moving Furniture Around in My Cottage

When my desk came back from the restorer after I snapped off the lid (yes, I did!), I decided to put it in the living room instead of its old location in the kitchen and I like it. The guys did a wonderful job repairing the lid and they fixed all of the drawer runners in the case so I can now open and close them with ease. I'm so happy! Have a great weekend. xo

After and Before from Country Living

I thought I'd shake things up and show you the after project first. From Country Living Magazine.

This is what the house looked like three years before the above photo was taken. That's how long the restoration took. I can't find a link to show you what it looked like inside. These photos were on Instagram today. You can't beat good bones, can you. Like the before, love the after.

The snow I had this morning quit by noon and didn't amount to much, thank goodness!

Magic Bathroom Ring Remover

What is this, you ask? It's a touchy subject and I'm not really anxious to discuss toilets or anything else about housecleaning on my blog but when I find a household hint that everyone can use, I feel I must share. I read about this magic sheet of drywall sandpaper and its ability to remove that ring around your toilet bowl when nothing else will. As you know, I've been cleaning the lower level of my cottage and there are two bathrooms down there. Since my mother's passing, I have only been going down to do laundry and neither bowl has been flushed regularly. Everything came sparking clean with little effort except for one ring around the water level and nothing would remove it.  I have very hard well water and no water conditioner. I looked around in my store room where all the construction leftovers were stored from my renovation and I found one sheet of this drywall sandpaper. I cut off a piece and followed these instructions and the rest is history. Both rings are GONE! The sandpaper did not scratch the white porcelain either. I am thrilled. This is great to know if you have a vacation home that isn't used on a daily basis. Sometimes the drudgery of housework has a bright spot to make you want to keep going. I can see light at the end of the tunnel and I'm feeling good! 

Absolutely.Wonderful.Cottage

I'm glad to see other people are putting chairs outside in the front. I would love to see the inside of this cottage, wouldn't you? via

WOW - What a Butler's Pantry

Exceptional butler’s pantry (with actual pantry) in North Carolina by designer Kathryn Long. I can only imagine what the kitchen must look like. via

Communal Spring Cleaning, pen and ink by W. Heath Robinson

Hilarious. I was watching the British Antiques Road Show and fell in love with this artist, W. Heath Robinson

Weeds, Woods and Snow

Walk and nap. That's what dogs do best, isn't it? I couldn't get a good shot of Webster and Henry playing in the snow so I took a few woodland photos. It has been a gray, overcast, lazy day. Very enjoyable too. My new year's resolution is to do one thing I hate daily, no matter how small. This translates into housework mostly. Maybe I'll strip the bed and put on fresh linens. Different linens too...not just washing and drying the ones that are on there now. That way I'll get the wonderful reward of sleeping between cool, crisp white sheets piled high with blankets.

Repurposed Door as Garden Gate

This is such a clever idea, isn't it? This would be a neat DIY project that is out of the ordinary. I like this entrance into a secret garden! Have a great weekend. via

Sign of A Nice Mother

with a sense of humor via

Cranberry Bread Fresh Out of The Oven

I baked Cranberry Bread today using fresh cranberries. It was a chilly rainy day and I wanted to bake something using the ingredients I had on hand. I didn't have an egg so I searched online for a substitute and ended up using 2 Tablespoons flaxseed meal, 1/8 teaspoon baking powder and 3 Tablespoons of water. It worked. I didn't have any orange juice so I used soy milk and a little crushed pineapple and a hit of lemon flavoring. I didn't have any nuts so I left them out. I used coconut oil as the shortening and to grease the pan. It was still very good even though I improvised quite a bit. 

I have such admiration for food bloggers who take detailed photos of the cooking/baking process. I am a very messy cook and for one little loaf I filled up one whole side of my double kitchen sink.