Destroying My House

So several months ago I purchased a dollhouse off Craigslist for $20.  It came with the house and 3 huge boxes of supplies.  All the supplies were from the 80's or early 90's.  Some of it I'm sure will be useful but I don't like the wallpaper included and a lot of the paint was dried out.  The person that built the dollhouse originally made them for a living so there were a lot of bits and pieces and the dollhouse was put together rather well even though it is a slot and tab constructed doll house.  The dollhouse is a Greenleaf Jefferson house.

When I got the doll it it was in much better condition than it is now however I have been very, very, slowly taking it apart.  Let me say it has sat around for awhile with me doing nothing with it.  I would pop off a window here and there but last night I really went to town taking it apart,  This is  photo heavy post.

So this is the house, missing some of the windows and front door.  It is painted a red color which I don't like.  The photos were taken at 1am, I was up till 4am taking it apart...I couldn't sleep.

The windows and door way that are still attached to the home are still there because they are glued in really well and I am trying to figure out a way to remove them without damaging the siding, even more than I already have.  If you look at the photo below you can see at the bottom right window that there is a piece of siding missing.  It tore off when I removed that window.  I kept it to glue it back together but it seems to be missing now.  (My nieces have been playing with the house.)

In the below photo I had also started removing the electrical wiring.  I had to remove that to get to the layers of wallpaper stuck to the wall.  I don't know how a dollhouse is supposed to be decorated but this one had several layers of wallpaper and floor coverings that were coming unglued because of age.  The wiring was over top of some of it and under some other layers.

Here is the top two floors.  There are pieces and parts of furniture, wallpaper coming off the wall, dusty flooring, and some really stuck on trim.  The attic was not finished so that was the easiest room to tear apart.

This was supposed to be the kitchen area but I think it was used as another living room.  The room had some plastic paneling that was coming off the walls.  The piece on the floor was the last piece removed from the house.  The paneling was all warped so I won't be able to reuse it. 

The downstairs hallway.  Some of the spindles were missing from the stairs and others were broken by the kids.  Some of the bead board is painted and some not.  The bead-board is warping but it is also really stuck to the walls, along with the ceiling trim.  Any ideas on how to remove them and the wallpaper?

The right side upstairs bedroom above the future living room.  My photos are out of sync and my computer wouldn't allow me to adjust them.  This shows the wallpaper coming loose exposing the wiring.

The other living room.  My plan is to not have any colored painted trim in the house.  It will all be white.

The left side bedroom above the future kitchen, again pieces and parts.

The upstairs hallway.  I can't get that piece of green trim off the end above the window, or even remove that window.  I broke my nail really bad trying to remove the stuff. 

The picture before the deconstruction.  That roof flap doesn't normally come on the dollhouse, or at least the ones I have seen but the builder added it to this house.

With the flap up so you can see the attic.

Demolition!

Trim and furniture pieces removed.  Is this what a normal house demolition looks like?

The after photos of what it looks like now.  You can still see the wallpaper and trim stuck to the walls.  Any ideas on how to remove that would be greatly appreciated.  I have been doing research but I haven't found any good ideas yet.  I want to start with a blank canvas.

Future Kitchen.  This room is the biggest problem.  I can't get the stuff off the walls, the non working and broken windows out and the old flooring is still there because it is glued down well.

Another big problem area, the downstairs hallway.  I have removed the staircase.  This is exactly how it looks right now.

The future downstairs living room.

The bedroom above the living room.

The bedroom above the kitchen.  The wallpaper in here is horrible.  It is very thin and does not peal off well.  It feels like computer paper.

The upstairs hallway.

So this is the project I am working on now, very slowly.  I have realized this is going to cost me a fortune to renovate, just like a real home, because everything needs to be replaced.  I thought I could  just go in and decorate but nope it needs a total overhaul.

The windows in this place don't leave much wall space downstairs in the kitchen and living room area for decorating so I have been thinking of filling in those spaces.  Has anyone done that before and have any recommendations?  I want to do this right.  

I have been looking on Pinterest and Google but I am willing to take any helpful suggestions or links you may have.  I will try to keep you guys updated as I go along.

Investment:

Dollhouse              $20

Delivery Fee         $10

Paint                       $16

                            +_____

                                $46

  

Did someone say SNOW? Jinx!

So I just wanted to say that I jinxed myself and everyone else in Western NY and surrounding areas.  

If you remember from the last post I wrote, I stated "When I got home I ran to the grocery store.  I needed supplies to make my version of a Greek salad and chicken gyro.  I had chicken marinating that I needed to use up,  I only make these recipes in the spring and summer time so it was a nice reminder that the snow is finally gone!  I hope I don't jinx myself and others with that statement." 

Well guess what I and many people in Western New York woke to this morning? Can You guess?

SNOW!  To me it seemed like lots of SNOW especially when I was driving in a blinding white out this morning while going to work.  But it is mostly gone now.

Sorry I do not have any pretty pictures of the SNOW.  I didn't feel like taking any pretty photos after waking up to this.  I am so over the snow and I am seriously thinking of moving south.  Facebook people were exploding with complaints about the snow today.  

So I will apologize now to everyone for jinxing them with my previous statement and hope this is the last of the SNOW till October or November.  I hope everyone else had a better day than the people in Western NY!

Greek Dinner...My Way

I have been enjoying the nice weather we have been having, doing some yard work, cleaning, buying other peoples garbage.  Today I went to some old cemetery looking for family plots in my genealogy search.  Note to self, "make sure when you go out walking you wear proper footwear."  I wore sandals and some snakes found me.  There were a few squeals and some awkward sideways dancing on my part when I was trying to get away from the snakes.  Of course the snakes would be surrounding the tombstone I wanted to see.  It had the family name on it.  I walked away hoping they would go away but when I went back there were even more.  I'm not sure what type of snakes they were but I did not stick around to find out...I will go back another day.

When I got home I ran to the grocery store.  I needed supplies to make my version of a Greek salad and chicken gyro.  I had chicken marinating that I needed to use up,  I only make these recipes in the spring and summer time so it was a nice reminder that the snow is finally gone!  I hope I don't jinx myself and others with that statement. 

So when I make this food I follow no particular recipe.  It is just a little of this and that and it is never the same twice.  For my Greek Salad I use:

English Cucumbers

Red Onion 

Black Olives

Garbanzo Beans

Tomatoes

Feta Cheese

Ken's Greek Dressing

I chopped up 1 3/4 English cucumber, a 1/4 of a red onion, thinly sliced and in sections, I used 1 can medium sized black olives (retain some of the juice), 2 Roma tomatoes, 1 can garbanzo beans- drained and crumbled feta.  You can use whatever amounts you like, add or delete ingredients.  I toss it all together, sprinkle pepper, garlic salt, a little of the Ken's dressing and some of the black olive juice.  I toss it all again and let it sit for an hour before eating.

Doesn't it look yummy?   When I first started making this all I used was the English Cucumber, Red Onion, Black Olives, and Feta.  Then just made up my own dressing with whatever I had on hand.  My family likes garbanzo beans and I thought it needed a little color so I added the tomatoes.  Did you know I am not a fan of raw tomatoes?  Now you do.  Even though I don't like them my family does so they still get eaten.

I also made up my own version of Tzatziki sauce.  It's not really Tzatziki.  I don't want anyone yelling at me, because the only thing in my sauce that's in the Tzatziki sauce is the cucumbers.  Again I have no particular recipe for this, it's just a little of this and a little of that.

My Tzatziki Sauce:

Sour Cream

Mayo

English Cucumber

Sweet Onion

Garlic Salt

Pepper

Oil/Vinegar Dressing

I throw the diced English cucumber and a little sliced onion into a food processor, garlic salt, pepper, and a little of the dressing.  I blend till it's a pulpy mix.  If I have fresh garlic I will add that.  Once it's at the consistency that I like I put it in a bowl (I don't drain or de-seed the cucumber,  I like my dressing on the thinner side)  I then toss in some sour cream and mayo.  Make sure you use more sour cream than mayo.  you don't want to taste the mayo.  I then mix, taste and adjust the seasoning.  The longer it sits the better it tastes.  I will sometimes add sugar if it's really sour.  Again this recipe is taste as you go.  My family and I really enjoy this version of Tzatziki Sauce.  I usually have these ingredients on hand so it is easy to whip together, 

Now for the Chicken Gyro!  I grill marinated chicken breast, and slice it...

...next chop up some lettuce, tomato (Yuck, but I will eat it on this), and some sweet onion...

...I then grill a pocket-less Pita with a little oil and garlic powder, then top with veggies...

...add the cut up grilled marinated chicken breast, some Tzatziki sauce, and some feta...

...fold it up, serve with a side of the Greek salad and enjoy!

It was really Yummy!  As soon as my family found out I was making this I had a few unexpected guests.  Luckily I don't know how to cook for just one and had plenty of food to share.  I also have enough leftovers for a few more meals.  If you make any of these recipes let me know if you liked it.  Again the Tzatziki Sauce is not your normal sauce so don't compare it to the original ;) and go ahead and make it your own,,,add dill if you like!

This was my first official spring meal.   I can't wait for more enjoyable weather and dinners outside with family and friends!

10 Minute Stop

So I will apologize now for the crappy pictures but I wanted to show you what I found on a quick stop at a resale shop.  The pictures were taken at night without any good lighting.  Once I get some good pictures I will be listing these in my etsy shop.  

I've stopped at this resale shop before and have bought a few things but I have never found any good vintage stuff that I could afford.  While I was shopping I stopped at this one booth.  I wish I would have taken some pictures.  They had great displays.  I wanted to buy the table and shelving they were using for the displays but they were not for sale. :(  They had this one display with all these New Old Stock vintage rolls of Duro Pre-pasted Wall Borders.  The designs on the borders are fabulous and I love the boxes they come in.  I was staring at these boxes trying to decide which one to by.  The price they were asking for each one was decent but I didn't really need them...but I wanted at least one.

So as I was staring at these boxes the owner of the booth came out.  He asked me what I was interested in and I told him I was trying to decide what box to buy.

He stated that they were vintage wall paper boarders from the 40's and probably worth some money.  I think he wanted to make a sale because he offered me a really good deal if I bought them all.  I couldn't pass it up.  So much for me just buying one!  Now I just need to decide which one to keep.

This is a southwest style of boarder.  There are 3 boxes of this style.

This border is smaller than the others.  Here is a view of part of the detail.  There is more design to this border but I couldn't capture it all.

This border is an under the sea border, with fish, seahorses, and shells.

I have two boxes of this style.  I love the seahorse and goldfish.

Now this is a western themed boarder.  There is a chuck-wagon, singing cowboys, and a bucking bronco,

I only have one box of this style border.  :(

Here is a great color combination of hurrying chefs.

I have two of this style.  Don't mind the laptop keys in the picture.  The laptop helped the rolls of paper to stay open so I could take the picture.

I love this next border!  It is a pretty pink and blue lace border.  I wish I would have taken a panoramic picture of this border just so you could see how pretty this looks.  It also has some texture to it due to he amount of paint used to print it.  I have 9 boxes of this style.

This is a pretty country border that looks to be in the Pennsylvania Dutch style. 

The colors are amazing.  I have 4 of this style.

I only have one of this style.  The teddy bears and marching soldiers are so cute.  This would have been so cute in a nursery!

This is the print that originally caught my eye and led me to buying the whole display.  I love the Dutch theme.  The girl and her dog are so cute...   

...and you have to love the boy courting the girl.  I have six of this style.  I think I will be keeping at least one of these!

If your interested in a roll or two let me know.  I hope to have these listed in my etsy shop soon.  I also bought a pretty blue vintage clock from the same dealer that I can't wait to use.  I got a great deal on everything.  It was one of my best buys in a long time.  I hope the guys wife doesn't get upset with the price he gave.  I guess going late in the day pays off! 

Thanks for stopping by!

Girl's Day Out

My Sisters and I live 2 1/2 hours apart, so it is hard to get together for some sisterly fun.  My sisters are the ones that usually drive to my home for visits because I live in the family home.  

Yesterday me and my younger sister decided to get together at the last moment for dinner and some shopping and agreed to meet in between at what I term "the city."  It's the closest place near me with malls, shopping centers and my favorite stores...the craft stores.

We went out to lunch/dinner at Joe's Crab Shack.  Have you ever been there?  It was my first time there and I can't wait to go back.  It was delicious for a chain restaurant.

My sister and I shared the classic sampler platter appetizer which consisted of Calamari, Crab Dip and Crab, cream cheese, and jalapeno balls (there are no pictures of the platter because I didn't think to take any).  It was the first time I tried calamari and actually liked it.  We also shared the classic steam-pot for two.  Which had crab legs, shrimp, sausage, potatoes, corn on the cob, a side of fries and hush puppies.  

We were so hungry that I didn't think there would be anything left but we had leftovers of everything and we never even touched the sausage.  I tried a hush puppy but I didn't like it.  My Niece, who is 3, got an order of chicken tenders.  It was a very large basket but she didn't touch any of it, she wasn't hungry.  She had it later for dinner. 

 My niece entertained herself with my phone and took lots of pictures and videos.  Here are a few of the pictures she took.

She loves making faces and I joined in.  Don't mind me wearing my bib, eating seafood is a messy job and I didn't want to wear any of the seafood.

She makes me laugh!

After dinner we went to a few stores.  Here are a few things we got from Michael's.  They have their summer line out and I picked up two different color and shrink sets by Creatology.  

I thought they would be cute on a bracelet and they were only $1 each.

They also had little paint posters for $1.  I always get these for my nieces and nephews because it keeps them entertained and they are easy to do.  All you need is some water and a q-tip to complete the pictures.  The paint is provided at the bottom of the poster sheets.  These are just small poster sheets with cute images.

I also spotted these different foam building sets while there.  I hate to admit but I bought the next two sets for myself because they were so cute and I bought a doll house set for my niece.

This is a toad stool home.  The roof is a paper bell with pom pom's glued to it.  I haven't put them together yet.  They were only $4.49 each on sale.

A sailing themed one.  I saw the whale and had to get this one too.

These were also made by Creatology.  I'm not sure what I will do with them but they are easy projects to do with the kids and they look so cute.

The next pictures are of the Doll House set I bought for my niece.  My sister sent me these pictures last night.  She put this together for my niece in about 30 minutes.  My niece had found a wooden castle at Michael's that she wanted but it was $25 and unfinished.  We looked around for something that would be cheaper and easier for her to do and found this.  Again this was on sale for $4.49.  It came with people and furniture to play with and all it needed was to be put together.  It is small but the perfect size for a 3 yr. old.

Here is an image of the interior.  My niece loves it and I won't feel bad if it gets destroyed.  I told her we would get her a real one when she is bigger.  She already likes to play with my Doll House.  My "Doll House" is a work in progress and the kids have helped to make it more of a project with their interest with it.  They are good at demolition.  That is another post entirely.

But for now I will leave you with a picture of this beautiful face!  I hope she makes  you laugh as much as she makes me laugh...

...see she can be lady like when she wants to!

Have a good day and thanks for stopping by!