What A Beauty-What A Beast

And I loved them both.  OK, I will buy you.  I take a look-see at her price...sorry sister, at about $1,500 we must part ways.

Met this beauty at Brimfield Antiques Fair, MA.  Yeah I know I should have posted these fantastic pictures already but just to darn busy lately.  Also my mom is in town.

Now meet the beast.  Oh, he was part of a pair from a manor in France.  This mean old guard dog and his sidekick were chained to the front entrance of their grand home.  I was very tempted to chain them up to my humble abode.  Grrrr!

As you know, I am always on the look out for garden urns.  

I really enjoyed this vendor and all of his garden statues.

Ceiling light that I was considering.  Looking for something like this.

This is another beauty.  This vintage lamp stopped me in my tracks with its beautiful color.  Some other bloggers also posted about this lamp too!  I was over enjoying goodbonesgreatpieces blog and they also thought this lamp was fabulous!  We all think alike!

This vendor from Georgia had a great furniture selection.

This ottoman was so adorable with its metal legs!

Some vendors really had it together with a great presentation.

I loved these nautical lights.

Row after row of antiques.  We walked for hours and I left with nothing.  I was really looking for larger pieces for my home such as a mirror.  I am glad that I was able to restrain myself from buying little things.  I highly recommend this antique fair.  Did you go?  Do you wish you went?  I am going back next time.  I think they have another in June and September.

xoxojamilyn

Photo's taken by Living It At Home

Gone Antiquing At Brimfield!

I am off to Brimfield antiques fair here in Massachusetts!  I have always wanted to go and would you know the first time I am going and it is raining!  I am out the door anyway!  Will post soon!

Keeping my eye out for a mirror for above my antique sideboard~

Also I would love to make my mudroom more interesting with a unique bench and some old coat hooks!

Keeping my fingers crossed that I will find something wonderful!

jamilyn

Photo's taken by Living It At Home

French Floor Lamps

Finally the moment has come where I was able to make a decision on floor lamps (go here to see more) for our reading area.  What a time I had and let many months pass (maybe years) unable to find what I wanted or make a choice and stick with it.  I am very excited to report that we placed our order for these gorgeous floor lamps hand made in France (second photo).  They are very simple yet perfect for the space next to each chair {current lamp in picture next to chair is only temporary from Restoration Hardware}.  The worst part for me is waiting for them to come.  Figure sometime at the end of June maybe July.  Oh gosh, that seems so far away.  Did you ever have to wait for something and felt you couldn't?  I am going to have to really busy myself so I won't think about it.  

My reading area in the living room.  Manor wing chairs from Icon Group.  Velvet ottoman-custom made.  Linen shades-custom, Wall color- Camouflage by Benjamin Moore, Trim- White Dove by BM.

Slowly but surely, we are furnishing our home.  Next, I have to go to the Boston Design Center to look at fabric and a chair for next to our sofa.  Can't seem to get myself over there.  Intimidation is the barrier for me.  It is a extremely large building with miles of fabric choices.  On the positive side, I  am keeping it simple with a solid fabric and it will probably be in the white family.  Woohoo!  When I get my lamps, you know I must do a post on it.  So, stay tuned for more!

What do you think?

Antique Brass Grasshopper Floor Lamp 

Gallerie Des Lampes

Isn't this grasshopper lamp cute?
So happy!
xojamilyn


Photo by Living It At Home

Come Take A Walk With Us

Maggie has trained me.  Here she is looking all bossy.  After morning drop off for school, she starts with her "huff-huff's".  Translated from dog to human means...take me out!  She has developed this routine for me {thank you Maggie}.  Take a ride with us for drop off {she is very insistent about this}, come home put on leash and sweater {still so cold here} then go for a walk.  When we get home from our walk, I have to give her fresh water otherwise she won't drink.  She just stands there staring at me with her piercing and oh so cute three dot expression.  I feed her next.  She has got my number because she won't eat unless I put a dollop of yogurt on her food.  

What a character.  

Thought you might enjoy a walk through our neighborhood.  There are some whopping large houses here.  Very beautiful homes and the pictures don't do them justice.

Rumor has it that this home has its own basketball court in the basement.

The older homes are more my thing.  I enjoy the character and details of the architecture.

Sweeping front lawns

New homes are just flying up around here.  They are tearing down cute homes and putting up mini- mansions.

Tootsie Roll house (yes the live here)

They have their own golf course that takes up the whole block.  It is so beautiful in there.  I love to walk by and look in!

More new homes.  Reminds me of the Hamptons

Thanks for taking a walk with me!  I wonder what else Maggie will be training me to do next?

xojamilyn

Photo's taken by and property of Living It At Home

Come To Mama!

Mother's Day bliss....sweet hubby and darling daughter serving you magazines and orange juice in bed.  A wonderful selection that kept me occupied most of the morning.   I was also the winner last week of  Home Rules by Nate Berkus.  I just received it from Lindsay at  everythingLEB blog.  Thank you Lindsay{so happy}!  Just in time because today I am ordered to just sit and relax.  It is funny when all you are asked to do is nothing, all of a sudden you have to do everything.  Sat on the sofa for most of the morning after my wonderful family served me pancakes and bacon for breakfast.  Then somewhat reluctantly went about my day.  I will post later on more from my new buddy Nate!  He is very talented and inspiring.

Lamp-Restoration Hardware, Tray-antique,Watch-Baume & Mercier, Loop earings and necklace-Tiffany's, Bracelet-John Hardy, Nightstand-Bernhardt

Mother's Day just kept getting better with these gorgeous scented flowers from Winston flowers here in Boston.  I think that is a Peony in the middle there.  So cute!

Hope everyone had a day like mine.  Happy Mother's Day!

jamilyn

Photo's taken by Living it At Home

Happy Mother's Day, I am still cleaning, Day 5

Happy Mother's Day!

Mean Cleaning Tour~Day 5

Friday:

Today is the day to do all the odds and ends around the house.  Like clean toilets, remove cobwebs, dust ceiling lights, or wipe scuff marks and fingerprints from doors, walls, and moldings.

Here is a breakdown of my schedule that I started this week in my attempt to stay on top with one cleaning chore a day:

Monday:  Dust surfaces in all rooms and clean glass surfaces

Tuesday:  Vacuum all floors and rugs (carpets)

Wednesday: Mop all floors that need mopping with all in one cleaner like swifters

Thursday: Day off from cleaning but not other things like laundry ect...you know the drill!

Friday: Odds and ends like toilets, cobwebs, scuff marks on doors, walls and moldings

Cleaning this way has been an eye opener for me.  I see that I can do it and keep up better this way but not really get to it all.   I am definitely hiring someone to come twice a month (I have a 4 bdrm house ya know).  It is way to much to do.  I felt discouraged because I realized that I will be doing everything all over again almost every day next week {you would think from listening to me that I have never cleaned before}.  I really have better things to do (trying not to rant here)!  I also find it very boring and I keep thinking about other things that I want to take care of.  Even though I will have help, I know I will still have work to do in the cleaning department.  I will just be relieved to have someone wonderful to do the deep cleaning that I seem incapable of sticking with.  I really tried and will keep working at it. 

My distractions right now that render me insufficient at getting the cleaning job done:

Blogging!

Wanting to be outdoors!

Planting pretty-pretty flowers in my metal urns!

Landscaping my front yard!

Exterior painting of our house!

Furniture shopping!

Needing to travel!

Finding a gym to work out!

Organizing!

Being creative!

And basically everything else right now!  

Maybe it is just spring fever!

xoxojamilyn

Photo taken by Living It At Home

Day Off-Day 4

I am supposed to be taking the day off from my -chore a day- cleaning rotation that I have embarked on since Monday.  Getting my nails done is one of the only things I am going to do today.  Well, there is always the laundry and constant picking up and putting away...does not ever end!  My Mean Cleaning Tour (click here to read about it) is working out so far and keeping me on track with a daily cleaning schedule.  I will summarize tomorrow about what I have been up to and how I feel about cleaning.  Because, believe me I have a lot of feelings about it and I need to get it out!  Stay tuned.

Lovely nail colors cute for spring...just thought I would share!

Happy Thursday!

xoxojamilyn

Image from the fashionablehousewife.com

Moppin' and I Am Not Stoppin' Day 3

Moving right along with my Mean Cleaning Tour- Day 3!  I was a vacuuming maniac yesterday (Tuesday-vacuum all rugs and floors).  I was really getting into it because I only had one "cleaning chore" to focus on.  I really like doing it this way.  I am not so scatter brained. Which is happening way to often lately!!!!

Keeping it real...

I have to say that I may not get every corner of my rather large {realizing how much there is to take care of} home.  However, I really feel like I am getting something done and moving forward towards a much cleaner digs (just felt like using that word).  Waiting to the last minute to clean or to do it in one day was just to overwhelming for me.  I still may look into hiring someone to come twice a month.  I think it would be helpful.  I will still have my share of cleaning, that is for sure! 

Remember to listen to some music while you clean...put on a happy face!

Quote from a neighbor from where I grew up (hope I quote her correctly):

"Your home is like the tide in the ocean.  The tide (your stuff and dirt bunnies) comes in, and the tide goes out (clean house).  Then the tide comes back in."   

Photo I took of my yard a few weeks ago

This of course repeats many, many, times a day!  I like that analogy and think it is very true.   Here is me...sweep floors....10 minutes later my dog comes in from outside....sweep floors....30 minutes later my daughter makes herself something to eat....wipe and sweep floors!  Sometimes I don't sweep at all- yuck! It really is never ending, especially with 4 bdrms, 2 1/2 baths, kitchen, office, sitting room, living room, dinning room, ect...  That is many hours of just keeping up.  Let's not forget all the picking up you have to do and the piles of laundry.  I am also not a clean freak (can get pretty lazy about it).  Just trying to keep things comfortable and pretty.

How are you doing with your cleaning routine?  I really think one chore a day is the better way!

My teeny tiny mud-room

Mean Cleaning Tour-day 3

Wednesday

Mopping all floors that need mopping today with an all in one cleaner-no bucket required (wet swifters)...oh yeah! 

 May not be the deepest clean, but good enough to make a first impression that it is clean!

Keep up the good work!  Tomorrow is supposed to be a day off from cleaning....I don't think so.  You know how it is!

xoxojamilyn

Image from here via flicker.com -Photo of house and mud room- living it At Home

Let's Keep It Real-Day 2

My enthusiasm and energy towards my new endeavor....one chore a day, kind of got interrupted by all my other "things" I had to take care of yesterday.  If you remember or are just stopping by, I aptly named it my Mean Cleaning Tour because I wanted to be "touring" my home and not "choring" in my home (go here to read about it).  I wanted to get "mean and clean" by creating a schedule so that I would clean everyday and keep up by doing just one thing.  Best laid plans it seems.  I think I really need to plan my time better and actually block out the time to clean for about an hour a day.  My day started off hectic and I had to run here and there...take care of this and that.  Can you believe that I ended up dusting at around 9 pm at night?  Yes, I did right before NJ Housewives!  Did you watch it?  It seems they are going for another round of fighting.  Do you know any housewives like that?  I don't.

Can I keep it "real"? Yes, I hope.  What I wanted to post this morning was me being a picture perfect blogger doing what I said I was going to do.  Not the case but I am going to keep on trying to get it right! 

  I did do the whole first floor, though, and did some of the glass surfaces.  I planned on getting up early this morning to do the 2nd floor and finish what I started.  That never happened!  What I am realizing is that this is a big job cleaning this house.  My husband saw me dusting late last night and thought I was crazy!   "What are you doing?"  he asked.  "Dusting.  I am trying to keep to a schedule. I dust on Monday."  I said.  He shook his head and asked, "Why don't you just hire someone to do this at least twice a month?".  Mmmm.  Why didn't I think of that?  I think I am just to stubborn.  This house is kind of to big to do on my own and keep it the way I want it.  I may look into it.  Even if I do hire someone, the dust bunnies and cobwebs still accumulate.  And when did my floors every stay clean for two weeks?  It would be helpful to have someone come in, but I would still have to keep up...a lot!   I don't know, I just don't like having someone in my house in my stuff!  I also think that I could spend the money on something else!  

OK- today is kind of starting off like yesterday.  I have a painter coming to give me an estimate on the outside of our house.  I have tons of errands to run.  Wanted to plant some flowers now that the weather is pleasant.  WHY DOES IT SEEM THAT THERE IS NOT ENOUGH TIME IN THE DAY?

I am determined to stick to this schedule.  I actually did feel good knowing that most of the dusting was done.  My home actually looked better and I wasn't overwhelmed.  I may be a bit hectic today because I have to play catch-up!  But that is ok.  On top of it all, I am having trouble with my computer.  What is that saying?  "A clean home is a sign of a broken computer."

Maybe I will take off the high heels today!

Mean Cleaning Tour-Day 2

Tuesday:

Vacuum all floors and rugs today-that is it-I know it is hard to stop!

I hope I have motivated you to try a schedule when it comes to cleaning your home.  At least do one thing a day to help keep up.  Tomorrow is mopping all floors that need it...that would be all of mine!

Keeping it real and clean.  See you tomorrow!

xoxojamilyn

{Images from via flicker.com by Kate Elizabeth and wisperedbetweenwoman.com}

Mean Cleaning Tour-DAY 1

Don't forget!  My Mean Cleaning Tour begins today, Monday!  

Mean Cleaning Tour

Monday:

I am going to dust in every room and clean all glass surfaces today!

Remember....one chore a day is the better way!

Sounds crazy but I am so excited to get started!

Just a reminder for those of you who want to follow along this week and join in.  I am going to try and post everyday that I clean.  This week of posts will serve as a motivation for me and hopefully for you to do one chore a day.

I will be using my swifter (sweeper) dust sheets to dust surfaces.

I also will be using ecological glass & surface cleaner called ECOVER.  I have been reading a lot about off gassing that comes from most of our cleaning products that we use in our home.  This product is plant based and safer to use at home.

Tomorrow is vacuum all rugs and floors!

Good luck with your cleaning endeavors!

Watch out dust bunnies, I am putting on my high heels...and here I come : )

*One has to clean in high heels!  Come on!

xoxojamilyn

{Image via Flicker by angieszka}