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Wooo lookie here! 2 posts in 2 days. This could get addictive! ;o)

More about *house* stuff...

Everyone has heard of Habitat For Humanity right? Well if not check their site out http://www.habitat.org. This is a not for profit group that specializes in building affordable homes> They give those a chance to own their own home who might otherwise never own their own homes. Former President Carter has lent his name, face, and back to this cause for many a year. Now THAT is the way to spend your retirement years!

Anyway, HFH has stores around the country called Habitat Re-Stores. They are what you could call * thrift* stores that specialize in housing materials. Contractors, builders, and those who are remodeling will bring excess supplies, extra materials, old cabinets, stair rails, windows, tiles, paint, eletrical components...anything having to do with building, to the Re-Store. The items are then sold at a very reasonable cost to those who shop there, and the proceeds go towards HFH's building efforts. The closest one to where we lives is about an hour away, so we went on a road trip this snowy day. Last night we had about 4 inches of snow, as did Lancaster County, where the Re-Store is located. Let me just say... I don't care for how PA tends to their roads when it snows. What is up with only plowing 1/3 of the visible roadway? Ah well, we made it up and back safely, and because of the snow on the ground all the lil ole peoples that like to slllowwwly truck up to Lancaster to see all the "Amish People", stayed home and didn't block the roads up in front of us as we traveled north.

In addition to the dining room painting * which I didn't get to finishing today because of our road trip*, my next project is the kitchen. We have a nice big kitchen, but the cabinets need MAJOR a facelift and eventually I will have the whole thing redone and enlarged so as to add a mudroom on the back. Until then, the kitchen will have a European Country flair. Well, it will when I am done! Right now it just shouts * Old Farmhouse *. Not that that is a bad thing, mind you. But the pale yellow cabinets * gack * and the 1930's-40's melamine on the counters ....well let's just say I won't be sad to see it go!

I am in the process of building and island for the kitchen. The kitchen doesn't have much counter space to speak of because of the way it is structured. there are FIVE doors in the room: into the family room, into the dining room, into the breakfast room, into the cellar and the pantry door. Add to that a big picture window that faces almost due west, and the old window that faced out front that is now facing into the breakfast room and is full of shelves, it doesn't leave much room for cabinets. That is why I want to enlarge the kitchen towards the back yard, put all new cabinets in, add a mudroom and turn the laundry room downstairs into a bathroom. THEN I will have the perfect kitchen! *G*

Anyway, back to the Re-Store. I found terracotta tiles for the top of the island, for 25c each! 31 exactly, and I need 30, so I best be caarreffful with these babies.

We also got a gallon of Ralph Lauren metallic gold paint, for $5! WOO HOO! That stuff would be $30 EASY at Home Depot. That will be PERFECT for detailing painted furnature and other projects. Can't beat that!

Then there were the facing bricks...

Ok...who out there watches the deocrating shows? Ever seen how they take facing bricks and attach them to the wall, then make it look as if there is plaster breaking away to show the brick. Ok..ya with me so far? That is what we are going to do in the kitchen. We bought for of the above boxes for a total of $9. Those boxes are normally $9 EACH. Thanks, Re-Store!

Last but not least, to feed my garden addiction, er, lust, er...love..ya..there's a better word, I have been planning to start a plethora * that means a whole freaking lot * of seeds indoors starting next month. I am tired of paying near a fortune for perennials. We have a lot of room for gardens, and I am going to keep a-plantin'! That was one of the major pluses of this place. A bit over an acre of land with plenty of room to garden, and then there is still plenty of room for playing and yard for kids and dogs. Anyway, so that I can plant lots of flowers, without paying a fortune, I am going to set up a seed starting station.

While in the restore, we chanced across a HUGE pallet of 24". 20 watt flourescent Agro-Lites for $2 each! I know these sell upwards of $10+ each. I bought 10. Now I just have to either find the right size flourescent fixtures for them * at a reasonable price*, or I will buy ballasts and make my own. Looking at the prices of the fixtures tonight, * make my own * may be where we wind up with that.

I also bought one handle to * test run * it for my cabinets. It is EXACTLY what I want, but it is BIG and I wasn't sure it would look right. HERE'S HOPIN'!This isn't the exact handle, but it's close. The one I bought is still in my van and it is WICKED cold out. I just don't feel like going out and facing the 17 degree weather. The handle is like this one with the wrought iron basket on the handle. The handle is black iron.

So that was the successful shopping trip of the day.

Now all I need is energy in order to get everything done!

Katt **ReddKatt**