The dust is beginning to settle

After placing several Craig's List ads, offering furniture and accessories up for adoption, the dust is finally beginning to settle.  Don't you love Craig's List?  Where else can you sell something, to someone with like taste, and make a new friend?  I've met many amazingly talented, and warm people while trading on Craig's List.   Once the urge to purge, left me, we began the task of rearranging, again, and seeking out new treasures for our cottage.

We located this lovely settee by Southern at a small Houston shop.  Down filled, dressed in  solid taupe velvet,  it is as comfy as it is stylish.  At a mere 58" it fits nicely into the "keeping room", off our kitchen.  

For those not "southern" or familiar with the term "keeping room"; the term dates back to Colonial America when families often slept during winter near the kitchen stove for warmth. The keeping room has evolved into a gathering space.  In the south a keeping room is common; often punctuated with a fireplace and windows they serve as a space just off the kitchen to have a coffee, tea, read the newspaper or enjoy a lively conversation with the "chef". 

The cottage has a quirky plan, although renovated, some of the renovations are not working for our family, and the way that we live in our cottage.  Note there is a "pass through window" complete with bar, between the kitchen and our keeping room. I feel the design is a bit 1990's and too modern for an 1894 cottage.  Someday, one of my favorite words, we plan to address that pass through window and bar.  I am debating on complete removal of the wall, or possibly opening either side creating twin  doorways, leaving a bit of wall in the middle, where the sofa could be anchored. What do you think?

Please excuse the crudeness of this mock up.  My concept; create a twin doorway to the right doorway on the left side of the wall, then add open transoms over both the right and left doorways to add height. (We have 12 foot ceilings!) Creating openings on either end,  would leave a narrow width of center wall; the settee could be anchored here. The wall would provide a bit of obscurity to the kitchen from the remainder of our cottage. I realize dividing the house  is an uncommon concept in today's open every wall up design environment. I may chose to follow that open concept trend.   I need to put a sledge hammer in Jr's hands....I wonder if there's shiplap? hmm.

Nestled behind the settee is our sofa table, providing the perfect resting place our antique candle stick lamps.  We happened upon the pair in an antique in Bastrop, more than 20 years ago. Mr. GDC wired the candlesticks, and they've travelled about with us on from home to home.

The previous owner who renovated our cottage, took an original cabinet and installed the return air in the bottom. Our television fit into the cabinet well.  Someday, (there I go again) I want to switch the return air to the backside of this cabinet in a hallway.  I wish for decorative doors, or art to hide the television. Especially, since the television landed in such a prevalent spot.  I believe the previous owner intended this room to be the dining room.  The bar removes much needed space making the room a tight fit for a traditional size table and chairs. With few walls in the cottage, the original built-in was one of two spaces we could place a television.

Our style tends to be traditional; French is a large influence for me, I also adore rustic vintage pieces, and antiques.  Our style tends to get a little formal.  I like to mix a bit of rustic, and contemporary at times in an effort to keep it interesting, and more casual. Mr. GDC and I happened upon a sad pair of Martha Washington chairs waiting in a local downtown Galveston shop.  We adopted the chairs, brought them home, and refinished the frames in a grey wash.  I felt a little edge to our traditional, French style would be fun. I chose to recover the chairs in a velvet and linen fabric; the backing of the fabric is a heavy woven linen with a grey velvet key design atop.  You can find the fabric, "Kirkland Graphite" here.  The contemporary fabric on a traditional frame transformed sad chairs into snappy chairs.

A small footstool is centered in the keeping room.  The room being small I use it as an additional place to sit a glass, hiding spot for the remote, and with the tray removed you can raise your feet and relax.  There is nothing I love more than when someone comes by, and puts their feet up. A simple gesture, makes me feel friends feel welcome, comfortable here, and I'm heart happy.

The cottage is a bit of maze; when you enter the foyer, located right of the photo, you step down into a room in the center of the cottage. The original black pocket doors on the left open to Mr. GDC's home office.  The center room has three major pathways through it; to the foyer door, to the home office and from the front of the cottage to the back where the kitchen is located.  Notice there is but a small single wall section in this space. The room is open on two sides, features a large window to the world, and finally has pocket doors.  I tried all sorts of options here, and settled upon the dining room. We play cards, work jigsaw puzzles and Mr. GDC reads the morning paper at the table.  Locating the dining room in the center of the cottage is working well for us.

This photo was taken standing in front of the pocket doors.  To the left you can see the foyer. The dining room is separated from the keeping room by a pair of cabinets with columns atop.  Past the keeping room is the kitchen.   There's that someday wall staring at me.  With the wall completely gone the interior of our cottage would be an open concept.   The narrow center wall with doorways on either side would create a bit of obscurity to the kitchen preventing it from being in full view.  I'll ponder a while longer, before turning Jr. loose with that sledge hammer!  What are you thoughts on the someday wall?  I would enjoy hearing from you -  

   

Thank you for stopping by, see you soon -