Queen Without a Country

Top Ten Favorite Storage Solutions

 

Here are my top ten favorite storage solutions that I use to maximize storage space for my family in our 1658 square foot cottage where, it goes without saying, storage space is at a premium.  Some are fairly common solutions (everybody uses baskets!), and some use commonly available items used in unique ways.  Let me know if you have other ideas for me to add to the list. I'm always on the look-out for new and interesting ways to add storage to my home and would love to share them with Queen Without a Country readers!

 

Just call me Captain Obvious...these stacked picnic baskets hold candles, candle holders and linens...

 

 

These compartmentalized metal baskets carried bottled milk in the old days...now-a-days, utensils...

 

 

Metal floral containers from Hungary, found at an antique store, make an interesting place for kitchen utensils...

 

Commonly available glass jars store pastas and grains perfectly and prettily...

 

Forget holding hats and coats, try a hat rack like this in the kitchen or bath for linens and other useful items...

 

Part of a garden railing makes an ideal pot rack hanging from the ceiling, utilizing every inch...

 

 

Look for furniture with handy and sly lift-the-lid under-seat storage, like this banquette...

 

Thought you'd rather see the bed than the Ikea under-bed storage box that's hiding under the bed holding Christmas ornaments - the trunk at the end of the bed is a Top Ten Favorite Storage Solution bonus (#11!)...

 

This pretty antique desk (or sewing machine?) drawer holds books, but could hold all kinds of treasures...

 

 

This ladder makes a great place to store any number of bath necessities...

 

Don't forget to send me your storage solutions!  I look forward to hearing from you!

Things Left Undone

 

I'm not sure this photo does the old ceiling decor justice...

 

One of my holdover projects from last year is gnawing at me.  I hate leaving things undone but I lost momentum on this one.  Has that ever happened to you?  It's happened to me more times than I care to share, but perhaps talking about it will help me recapture some inspiration...

 

Off the foyer, to the left as you walk in the front door...

 

Last spring, I got it into my head that it was time for a change on the entry-foyer ceiling of my home.  The foyer is petite - only about 6' by 6' square with a small notch out of the square for a tiny coat closet -   and has five (yes, FIVE!) openings or doors off of the space - the ceiling is the only opportunity for any kind of adornment, besides the cool dentil moulding and pediments that are original to the house. 

 

 

Directly ahead as you come in the front door...the coat closet and, beyond, the stair hall...

Though I loved the reaction of visitors to the beautiful Wendy Addison German Glass Glitter "Chandeliers" (they were not electrified, really just wreaths hung from the ceiling, providing the impression of a chandelier and tons of sparkle!) and glass glitter stars I sprinkled about the ceiling on the field of decoupage American and French dictionary pages, I was ready to try something new.

 

 

To the right of the front door, the living room...

 

I recycled the chandeliers, finding a home for them as holiday front door decor, and reused the stars in a number of small projects - nothing goes to waste around here!  But then everything came to a grinding halt.  For nearly a year the ceiling has sat (or hung!) untouched, bearing the scars of where the stars were scraped off the decoupage pages.  I hoped people would think I meant for it to be that way, a kind of special effect. 

 

Back around to the front door...

I swapped the old etched glass globe on the existing ceiling light fixture with the school house globe from the breakfast nook.  Shopping in your own home is the best!  And the price is right!  That's as far as I've gotten.

 

A new home for the ceiling decorations...

Another reuse for the stars from the ceiling...

I toyed with the idea of doing translucent watercolor stripes, reminiscent of the watercolor stripes used by Anna Corba in her collage work.  I thought it might be interesting to leave the decoupage dictionary pages in place, then alternative a subtle tea-stained stripe with an untouched stripe.  What do you think?

 

The "new" globe and the ceiling as it is now...scars and all...

 

I could remove the dictionary pages (although the scraping would not be my idea of fun) and repaint, or wallpaper; replacing the light fixture with a new, fancy one - maybe a real chandelier.  Bradbury and Bradbury wallpapers would be incredible.  I could do a tin ceiling.  Or, and this might be the best, not to mention easiest and most economical, just patch the dictionary pages and call it good.  I'd love to get your opinion. I'm usually much more decisive than this...HELP!

 

Help me see the light...tell me your ideas!

 

Check out these two sites for tons of inspiration:

http://www.annacorbastudio.com

http://www.bradbury.com

 

A Song In My Heart

 

 

 

It was an ordinary morning:  A quick stop at Starbucks for a Zen tea to jump start my day - is that an oxymoron or what?  There I was stirring unprocessed natural sugar into my cup of morning inspiration, assuring myself that it must be better for me than the white stuff, thereby supporting my efforts to eat healthier this year, when I glanced up to see a flier on the bulletin board:  "Learn to sing in the New Year!" it said, along with contact information for the Singing Diva, who guarantees success.  Learn to sing.  Learn to sing.  I let the idea roll around in my head. 

 

 

A song ON my heart, hee-hee!


 

 

Of the talents I lack (and there are many) the one that causes me the most personal anguish is not being able to sing.  Not that my lack of ability has ever stopped me from belting out a tune, much to the personal anguish of those within earshot; I am under no illusion that I sound in any way good.  When I'm in the car, music is always on, and I sing as if no one's listening...even if my daughters' friends happen to be in the car.  I just don't care; it's the price they pay to have me drive them places. And they are too polite to say anything (not to my face anyway), which I love! 

 

 

 

 This might be necessary for me to carry a tune...

 

 

I never let tone deafness stop me from singing in glee club or church choir (I should say neither had a try-out process, accepting absolutely anyone), nor from winning a Pat Benatar contest (luckily for me actual singing was not a requirement).  I have learned to play up the fact that I have good lyric memorization skills, totally stellar rock moves, and wild crazy hair.  My friends and I were "performing" Bohemian Rhapsody (Queen) way before Wayne and Garth in Wayne's World, and we know every single word to Meatloaf's Paradise By The Dashboard Light, including the baseball game sequence!  If you're familiar with PBTDL, the nearly nine minute rock anthem, you know just how impressive this is!

 

 

I could-ah been a star...if only

I am awesome at karaoke, if I do say so myself...as long as the microphone is turned off.   It's tragic to think what a star I could've been had I been able to carry a tune!  Ann Wilson, Stevie Nicks, and Pat Benatar, I just know I could've given you all a run for your money if only...I could sing.

 

 

I need a singing milagro...

Oh, to be able to sing like any of these true singing divas.  Or like Florence Welch of Florence and the Machine who looks for all the world like one of Rosetti's Pre-Rafaelite muses and sings with the power of a banshee and the sweetness of an angel.  Or like Jeanette MacDonald (going way back!) whose supreme operatic gifts and business acumen paved the way for them all.  I am painfully aware that I sound more like a cross between Lucille Ball and Aunt Bea from The Andy Griffith Show and it makes me sad. 

 

 

 This might be when I'll learn to sing...

 

While I know I could never come close to sounding anything like these superstars, maybe this is the year to put my tone deafness behind me. I dream of being able to carry a tune that wasn't handed to me in a bucket!  My question is: can you really be taught to sing?  Or is it a talent you're just born with?  Should I give the Singing Diva a chance to work a miracle in 2012?  Actually, I think I already know the answer to these questions, but hope springs eternal. I can still picture myself teetering on six-inch platforms in flowing gypsy clothes like Stevie Nix, singing Stand Back.  I hold on tight to the fantasy of being Jeanette MacDonald in the final scene of the movie San Francisco, striding up the hill,  lifting the spirits of the survivors of the 1906 earthquake with a rousing rendition of Battle Hymn of the Republic, Clark Gable on one arm, Spencer Tracy on the other...Some dreams die hard.  In the meantime, whatever I decide, I'll have to be content in the knowledge that it's a happy heart that can sing, not just the right set of vocal chords.  

 

What new talent do you want to acquire this year?

 

Winter Whites

 

By the time the ball drops on New Year's Eve I'm ready for January and its simpler, slower days, and winter white hues. I'm longing for less visual clutter - much as I love Christmas with all the traditional decorations and bright lights!  I find myself wishing to be surrounded by all shades of white.  Every shade of white from ivory, to oyster, to parchment. 

Come January first my appreciation of gentle light, and reliance on texture, rather than color, to achieve visual interest suddenly knows no bounds.  I especially adore the billowing gauzy whitish-gray fog Benicia tends to be blanketed with this time of year; which serves to further simplify surroundings, doesn't it?  My strong desire for all things "visual low-impact" served to motivate me...so...so,I got crackin'!  

By the end of the very first day of 2012, the tree was down, the ornaments and garlands were tucked carefully away, awaiting next Christmas, and I was celebrating my efforts with a piping hot cup of cocoa, though cafe au lait might have been more appropriate given my wish for subtle color!  Give me magical winter days full of...well, rather than me telling you, why don't I let you see for yourself...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These are some of my personal winter wonders (with the exception of the "t.p. tree", ha! - just keepin' you on your toes!)  What are your favorite gems of "January"?  

Happy New Year!

 

                                    

 

 

 

 

 

Happy 2012!

 

According to the ancient Mayans we have about 350 days left...

What would you do if you knew that's all you had left?

Let's make the most of them...just in case they were right!