Today has been filled with paperwork and a dentist appointment.

But everyday, since late June, has been filled with the sounds of work being done on our upstairs.  We are renovating the entire third floor of our house (and consequently, sleeping in our diningroom!)

This has been a much needed project – we had old plumbing, knob and tube wiring, little to no insulation in the walls (!) and even a small hole in the siding that a clever squirrel had taken advantage of to build a warm and cozy nest inside our walls.  Our house was originally built in the early 1900’s and has seen many families come and go.  We are happy that we can make these much needed upgrades to make this house more safe and cozy for Josh and I and future families. : )

Here are some snippets of our home wip:

Getting ready for construction to begin.

Layers of old wallpaper.

Insulation going up!

Out with a wall, and in with a loft!

A bathroom with enough space to turn around in -

what a luxury!

The many people who have been working on this project have done a great job.  These two, however, are very demanding and unmotivated!

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Now I have renovation rebates to work on.

It would be good to get a little money back for the improvements we’ve made on the house.  But I will have to kick myself in the butt to sit down and work on those.  I’ve been filling out an inordinate amount of paperwork lately!

‘Til next time,

Jenn : )

Josh and I have been super busy over here.

We’ve got lots of projects going on these days.

The renovation of our upstairs is moving along quickly.

Here are a couple recent photos:

Our new railing!  There used to be a wall there.

This loft space will now be my new studio area,

instead of a cramped, neglected guest bedroom.

And we have new tile in the bathroom.

Josh has been working on several freelance design projects.

My latest custom order was for a large sized needlebook.

I tried something new with the cover and scalloped the edges of the embroidery. My customer was very pleased and so am I.  I think I’ll be doing more decorative edges on my needlebooks from now on.

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I was thrilled to learn recently that I’d been featured over at Evergreen Moms.

Evergreen Moms is a great blog that features items made by Northwest artisans and small businesses. You can sign up for their newsletter and receive a short message about their latest finds!

Thank you Heather, for including my items on your fun blog!

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And just this past Monday one of my taskets was featured in a Plaid Happy Collection over at Indie Icing!

Check out Indie Icing for gorgeous photos of cool handmade items!

Thanks to Jessica for including my tasket! : )

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I think the carpenters have left early today, so the cats and I are going to enjoy the quiet and the afternoon sunshine. Have a great day!

Jenn : )

….and where am I now?

Renovation on the upstairs of our house has begun.  Josh and I have spent the last few weeks packing up everything from three bedrooms and a bathroom and carting the boxes downstairs into the basement.

In an effort to save some $$, Josh is demo-ing everything himself (with the occassional help of wonderful friends – thanks, guys!)

My once pretty, cheerful studio space, filled with knick-knacks and crafting supplies, will soon look something like this:

Yeah.  Gone.

Actually, the room will be rebuilt, with new drywall and paint.  But ultimately, my studio space will be moved to what used to be the guest bedroom – which is evolving into a loft.  I’m looking forward to my new digs – it should be very sunny and open.  And we’ve had a bit of good fortune, when we discovered that underneath the filthy carpeting exists beautiful fir floors that (so far) look to be in good shape.

In the meantime, I’m steering clear of all the dust and dirt up there.  I’ve set up temporary sewing space and I’m working hard to complete some custom orders: including four needlebooks for my mom and a ring pillow for friends who’ll be getting married this summer (I’ll be sure to get some photos to show you how that comes out).

I owe you a Two Spoonfuls post.  I’ve got all my ingredients to try out this inviting new baking pan, and I hope to have that finished soon.

‘Cause when all of your worldly goods are boxed up and stacked in a basement,

Girlfriend could sure use some chocolate.

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On another note: A few months ago I purchased the most adorable needle felted tapestry from TheMoonGoat on Etsy.  Unfortunately, I forgot that there is a deadline for leaving feedback on Etsy, and by the time I had this framed, I was too late.

I am so upset with myself for neglecting to publically rave about this wonderful item.  So I’m sharing it with you here.  This photo doesn’t begin to do this piece justice – when I took it to the frame shop, all the employees commented on how adorable it is.  It was wonderfully packaged and shipped quickly, too.  I hope you’ll take a moment to check out TheMoonGoat’s shop – if for no other reason, then to see *THIS* before someone snatches it up! : )

Jenn : )