Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Twins, Curtains, and Hobby Lobby in KC

Last week I went to Kansas City to visit my little sister Susan
and her one year old daughters.
Its been a long time since I ran a household that included little feet, 
and two sets of little feet running in different directions is another story.
I tried to take a lot of pictures, but they would never stay put, and 
as soon as I would snap the picture one would look away or run away.
My  sister Ellen and I traveled from Boston to spend 5 days catching up
with Susan and her family. Also on my agenda was a trip to Hobby Lobby!
I  just love Hobby Lobby, and there are no HLs on the east coast.
 About 7 years ago Susan and Tim bought this house,
 and I went out to help them decorate.
I had window treatments made up, and we selected most of their furnishings. 
Their house was an example of House Beautiful...
fast forward 7 years and now it is a baby play zone. 
My how things can change!
 
 The dining nook off the kitchen has a turreted roof with full length windows.
I  picked out a pretty aqua blue and beige toile and
 made open swags and jabots on the tops with silhouette shades
 on the larger windows underneath.
 The upper windows were allowing too much sunlight
 into the kitchen causing annoying glare,
 so I made up some simulated solar shades to allow diffused light in, 
and keep the glare at bay. 
You can see the left two windows have the solar panels in place. 
I made these by stitching a simple rod pocket at the top 
on a flat fabric square that was made exactly the size of the glass.
 Susan plans to keep the glass covered by the panel, 
so there was no need to purchase a shade that would lift up. 
This was a cost effective savings of over $100 per window. 
 Finishing the installation of the last panel. 
The fabric is 100% polyester with a beige strie pattern.
The polyester will not fade, as cotton or linen would.
My god daughter is a budding window treatment installer.
This is the bank of living room windows that I made
 ultra long panels(135")  for with attached swags. 
The crooked lamp is bungie corded to the table! lol
I love the drama that super high ceilings create in a room,
 and the draperies were an elegant choice.
While visiting I also made some panels for the upper windows to 
eliminate the harsh glare. I forgot to take pictures of those~
Once upon a time...yes elegance reigned!
There were no slipcovers on each upholstered piece of furniture....
no toys scattered everywhere you looked, no baby gates....no babies!
 This picture shows the layout of the living room to the eat-in nook.
This door leads to a second floor deck overlooking the golf course.
This view is very picturesque. 
The whole time we were trying to get the two girls together
 to take one good picture of them wearing these 
darling wrap sweaters that my mother knitted for them. 
One twin would run off in a different direction, 
usually heading towards planters with dirt she could eat.
The cutest wrap style sweaters! 
Susan's husband Tim took this picture of Ellen, Susan and me.
 Do you see any family resemblance between us? I didn't think so!
Although most of the trip was about feeding, changing, and playing with the girls, 
I did get to go to Hobby Lobby as well as a wonderful antique co-op.
 I picked up a few treasures that I brought back home.
I loved this wire and wood handled tray from Hobby Lobby, 
so that came home in my suitcase.
This beautiful silver plate tray was waiting for me at the antique co-op. 
Purchased on hour before I left, it made my luggage exceed the 50 pound limit!
This large vintage mirror was a Craigslist find that 
I made arrangements to get the day I returned.
It will be getting a paint job (of course)
 and the reveal will be coming this week.
I will miss my little muffins! 
Spending time with them was the first time I have not blogged 
since I started last May~some things are just more important.


22 comments:

  1. They are just adorable, Amy! Priorities I can totally agree with, too. When I have my granddaughter over I don't even go near my laptop; not even when she's napping. You found some great things though. Don't you hate that we don't have an HL here on the east coast? Even though you can buy some things online from HL, it's not the same home decor stuff or the great sales that go on in-store. Looking forward to seeing what you do with your "new" mirror. It looks like it fits really well over the chest.

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  2. Your little nieces are too cute! Looks like you had fun. ~ Merrilee

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  3. Your nieces are way to cute...It's nice to be all together... Looks like you all have a fun visit.

    Pattie

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  4. That was fun hearing about your trip and seeing you and your sister and her gorgeous home. Those window treatments in the dining area are to DIE FOR! And those funny little babies going in 20 different directions, are cute as can be. I can tell they keep all three of you women moving constantly. I remember those days of two sentence conversations. I love that last picture of the two little co-conspirators. Cute little Hobby Lobby find, precious tray, looks just like you... and that mirror is AMAZING! One of the best I've seen.

    Cindy

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  5. Looks like you had a great time. Your sister's house is beautiful. And those sweet twins are adorable! They look very busy and make me smile just thinking about how you described them. Thy are definitely more important than this little thing we call blogging.
    Love your mirror!

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  6. Those window treatments are gorgeous- you have a wonderful eye...but those babies steal the blog show! Darling...lvoe their chubby little cheeks and their wrpa sweaters from Gramma! Wonderful post! Diana

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  7. Wanted to add-we had 6 sets of twins in our family and now I am hoping that one of my kids will have that joy!

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  8. What a sweet post!!! The two cuties were front stage!!!
    Thank you for sharing your story and the two cuties!!
    Suzann ~xoxox~
    BTW the window treatments are lovely!!!

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  9. Those babies are just too cute!! Looks like a great time :)

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  10. What a beatuiful home she has, and what a great job you did with the draperies. I know it had to be a fun trip, so glad you got to go be with family. Ok, now I have a hobby lobby close by, when can you come and spend some time here and transform my home? LOL. I certainly didn't know that ya'll had no hobby lobbies, it is definately one of my favorite places to shop, of coarse we do have very limited shopping resources here.

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  11. The twins are so adorable!;) Looks like you had a wonderful time visiting~ Great finds at hobby lobby tooo~ Hugs,Rachel

    French Farmhouse 425

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  12. Your sisters house looks fantastic...I can see beyond the baby clutter. Those sweaters are darling! I'd like one in my size. When you said you got a tray at Hobby Lobby....I was picturing just this one. I had looked at it just last week with my Mom. Absolutely adore the huge mirror you found. Super great.

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  13. What sweet babies! Lovely home, and the curtains are amazing!
    Hope you are having a great week!

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  14. What sweeties! I'm sure they're bundles of energy! I have two sisters as well and like you three, you can see a bit of family resemblance but not much. You're such a great sis to help with her window treatments. Those tall windows are beautiful but can often cause an issue with light control. Your solar shades were a great solution.

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  15. What fun you must have had with these darling girls!! I love the sweaters your mom made too!
    Your sister's home is gorgeous even with all toys thrown in!
    Lovely job on the window treatments!!

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  16. Amy! My sister lives in Kansas City, too! I love that area! I always demand that we go to Nell Hill's - I prefer the Atchison location because I enjoy the hour drive through the countryside. So sorry you are without a Hobby Lobby. I have two to choose from, here in my part of Georgia.
    -Trish

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  17. Amy, The twins are so adorable and your sister's home is lovely! You did a fabulous job with the window treatments and what a wonderful mirror you found on Craigslist.
    Hugs,
    Sherry

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  18. Now her house is a home! such fun pics, thanks for sharing!

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  19. I've posted the first finished wallpaper project and know you wanted to see: http://4theloveofwood.blogspot.com/2011/04/vintage-victorian-shabby-chic-dresser.html
    Have a good morning.
    Kristy @ 4 the love of WOOD

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  20. Amy they are just adorable - love the hand knitted sweaters ;) The swags and jabots in toile are perfect for those windows and may just be the 'updated' swag & jabot style I've been looking for - (a bit more casual, not so stuffed shirt like they 'can' tend to be). Welcome home, and no, I see no family resemblance except maybe a slight one between your two sisters?

    Michelle
    www.newengland-style.com

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  21. The babies are so adorable and your sister's house is gorgeous. I love the toile you put in her kitchen. Wow what a lovely nook and the view is incredible. Thanks so much for sharing and welcome home.

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  22. Your nieces are little cutie pies!! The first thing I thought when I saw the picture of you and your sisters was, they don't look anything alike!! It happens. The window treatments you made are gorgeous, as always!

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