Cozier By the Day!

With the power out from 11:30pm on Saturday night until mid-afternoon yesterday – (So glad it came on then – they were projecting 10pm!) we decidced to make the best use of the day running errands (Lowes is just about an every-other-day trek lately!) and spend the day out and about.

The long range views of beautiful Blue Ridge mountains with leaves turning golden in the sunlight was just what I wanted to see.  We even crossed paths with a friend we hadn’t seen in some while and spent a good amount of time just talking and catching up.  No timeline.  No agenda.

Funny how when the power is out at home, anything that would require the use of power (computer, iron, kitchen stove  - electric sewing machine, though I could treadle…) becomes a free pass to do SOMETHING ELSE. Spontaneity ruled the day as all power-related-deadline-issues sat at the wayside waiting for “later.”

It wasn’t until we were enjoying a late lunch close to 3pm at our favorite Mexican place in Jefferson, North Carolina that the text came through that power had been restored, both to the cabin and to Quiltville Inn.

So much for a day of leisure!  There was now stuff to get down to.

Oh, well – it was great while it lasted!

The picture at the top of this post includes the addition of a side table I moved in and on a whim decided to grab what fun stuff I could find around and make a little cozy vignette of the corner between two chairs in the den.

The gifted thread catcher/pin cushions are going to be GREAT over the arms of chairs in this room – No pins will need to be stuck into the chair arms!

Embroidered table cloth with crocheted edge protects the table top from scratches and adds a bit of softness to an otherwise hard surface.

The lamp, one of a pair – was brought over when we moved out of the North Carolina cabin.  It just needed a space! (And I have another one to find another corner for.)

The spool cabinet was a house-warming gift, as well as the wooden spools, vintage pin cushion and the stitching figurines.

I picked up the vintage tin at an antique mall at some point – I brought it over from home as just a fun bit of sewing memorabilia.

This is the stitchery I bought a couple of weeks ago while out with Prudence.

I hung it in the den where hopefully much hand stitching will be happening.

I am loving all of the cross stitch samplers and sayings that have come to make their place at the Inn.  I am thinking that one whole wall will be dedicated to hanging the “ABDCEFG” samplers. And the others will just be hung here and there to catch people’s eyes and make them smile.

New kitchen addition!

I bought the white enamel pitcher while antiquing in Grand Island, Nebraska with Kay.  It is now filled with spoons, ladles, whisks and spatulas.

I love the look of the white enamel against the  poured concrete counter tops made with stones gathered from the New River just 1 mile from the house.

Little details, all coming together!

But the big one for the day - remember the photo of loading this into the van in yesterday's post?

Carrie’s great-aunt’s Magnolia china has a new home!

This is exactly what I was looking for.  And that beautiful wood soaked up the oil and polish like a sponge and just shines!

Plates are on the bottom as they are the heaviest – teacups at the top – the lightest – my fear was that the china would be too heavy for the shelves to hold, but this piece of furniture is strong and sturdy and adds such a nice touch to the dining room!

I am hoping this china will be loved and used by retreaters, even if it can't go in the microwave or dish washer and needs to be hand washed.  What good is china if we can't make memories with it?

There was a large yellow wool rug, very worn and not that great looking on the dining room floor when we bought the house, it has now been rolled off to the side – I love the look of the wood floors instead of that giant rug.

Since there will be 2 dining tables for 8 in here – I’m looking for 2 individual rugs to go under those tables but let more of the wood floor shine through around the edges and between the two tables. 

The paint above the chair rail is a warm beige, and below a deep burgundy. A yellow ( The Big Ugly as it had become known as..) rug just didn’t do what this room needed.  Aqua and Burgundy I like together – yellow?  Nope.

The question now is how to get it OUT of the house – I can’t move it myself!  Anyone want to come get a big ugly vintage yellow wool rug that needs a serious amount of cleaning?

Trees at the cabin – leaves are turning and falling.

I love standing on the porch and watching the leaves swirl and float on the breeze.

View from the front porch toward the drive.

Today I am meeting up with my friend Martha!  A gal I met locally through my one-time visit of a summer luncheon with the local quilters guild, she lives not too far from Quiltville Inn on the North Carolina side. 

She also lives in an old farm house, loves needlework and antiquing, canning, has a dairy cow and goats and a whole menagerie and I am looking forward to seeing her place for the first time.

I’m bringing some hand work!  She said we can sit and stitch and talk while the pie-pumpkins bake so she can can it later.

Doesn’t that sound homey??

Other exciting things that should be happening today – WINDOW REPLACEMENT at the Quiltville Post Office!  It’s really, finally going to start.  For real.

Oh yes – this from yesterday -

We DO have a generator for the cabin, but it mainly will power the freezer and the fridge and a few kitchen outlets.  When we read that power MAY be out until 10pm, I decided that steaks on the grill would work for dinner, and I had zucchini also for the grill, and salad fixings – but couldn’t run the oven to bake the potatoes.

Have you ever done baked potatoes in the crock pot?  Simply wash, pat dry, rub with olive oil and sprinkle with salt.  (Here I’m trying Kay’s favorite – Jane’s Krazy Mixed Up Salt) Wrap potatoes in foil, pierce with a fork and cook on high for 5 1/2 hours, or low 8 1/2 hours. 

Low heat for a crock pot doesn’t pull that much power and worked really well on generator.  They were GREAT! 

It was a super way to fix-it-and-forget-it so we could be out and about doing other things.

One of the things that I find myself having to do, or explain – in answer to crazy questions (Or just delete the questions because they are too personal, thoughtless or invasive…) is note that YES, Quiltville Inn will ALSO have a generator for power outages.  That will come in due time – one thing at a time. 

Power outages are not an often occurring thing, and usually do not last this long. 

This was an extreme windstorm that came through with wind gusts of 63 mph recorded in nearby Jefferson, NC, downing trees and taking down power lines.

The generator will likely keep the fridges and microwave running, and SOME power to the main level of the house.  Will it be enough to power 16 sewing machines and irons?  Likely not at first.  Things may be upgraded in time. 

The commercial range at the Inn is gas - so cooking can happen, but the oven is electric.

There is a wood stove in the den, and 2 gas fire places (back to back) in the Quilting Quarters for heat.

But believe me – all thought is being given as if I were living in the house myself as to what is needed to keep things up and running and comfortable for guests who are staying.

As always – first things first!  Windows into the Post Office so we can paint and move me in – and then the electrical and bathroom remodels at the inn – all in due time!

Quiltville Quote of the Day.

Vintage Sunbonnet Sue quilt found in Nebraska.

Just keep on shining like you do!

Have a wonderful Monday, friends!