A Barn to Salvage

The barn as it was when we first laid eyes on it.

My husband and I have always wanted to live in a big open loft type space.

When we found ourselves with forty acres in the country on my family farm it felt like that dream might not be possible,

after all where do you find a big open loft in the country?  We thought about it and decided we wanted a barn.

Wanting a barn and acquiring a barn are two very different things.  I toyed with the idea in my head and would look on websites where people

could list their barns for sale; yes those do exist.  The two I frequented most were Old Barn Wood and The Barn Pages.  Many were too far away to be feasible.

I pushed my barn thoughts to the back of my head as my son started preschool and everyday life took over.  One day I decided to look

for a log cabin on Craigslist that we could take down and rebuild.  My father in law has a local museum with several log cabins he moved himself

so I knew we could do it with a little help.  What luck we found one!  We called and made an appointment to look at it.

The Craigslist Cabin

I got my hopes up!  I was so excited.  My husband Andy and I and my Father in Law waded through tall

weeds and overgrown brambles to reach the cabin.  It was beautiful.  It was big.  It was unfortunately mostly rotten.  The logs at the bottom were

definitely rotten.  The ones in the back where a previous kitchen attachment had been years ago had been leaked on for so long they were

beyond help.  We still ventured inside to look around.  Even at this point my dreamer brain was still hopeful that we could fix it.

The inside was strewn with 1940′s furniture that must have been beautiful at one time.  It was as if the previous occupant just

decided to leave one day and left all their belongings behind.  My father in law started up the shaky stairs to the second floor.

Up there on the landing tucked in the corner was a baby buzzard; even a baby buzzard is by no means small.  We figured that

we had better head on out of there because where there’s a baby there’s probably a mother too.  My father in law told us

that one of the cabins he had taken down for his museum also had buzzard occupants.  I guess buzzards like cabins too.

I was sad but we talked it over in the car on the way home and it slowly sunk in that there was no saving that cabin without

replacing almost all of the logs.  I’m not sure what happened to it, I will have to drive by and peek sometime to see if it’s still there holding

it’s historic place in the woods or if it’s been lost to the bulldozer or burnt down.

The cabin of long ago forgotten in the woods.

 After I got home I was so disappointed.  On a whim I decided to look on the old barn websites and see what was new.

There it was.  A barn that was literally right down the road.  It was meant to be I thought.  What are the chances that I would find that barn.  I was told

by the owner that we were the first ones who called about it.  Apparently just in time, people from as far away as Arkansas wanted to come and take it down for

the wood; did I mention he didn’t want any money for it!  We went to look at it a couple of days later and were blinded with the beauty of the

hand hewn beams cut with a broad axe from old growth forest long ago.  The longest beam in the building was 40′ cut from one tree.  It was

all pegged together as a proper timber frame should be with wooden pegs.  It was gorgeous!

Hand hewn beams held together with wooden pegs.

 Now you might ask, why would anyone think a barn is gorgeous?  Why would anyone want to turn a barn into a house?

Timber frame barns are gorgeous because they seep with history.  They were made long ago by craftsmen using nothing but hand tools and

sweat labor.  They are a true architectural art form.  A barn would lend itself to the wide open spaces that my husband and I have always

desired in a home and we’re suckers for antiques and history.  What could be more of an antique that a hand hewn beam cut from a possibly 200 or more

year old tree long ago?  We were in love with the idea.  Standing inside this massive 40′x60′ space humbled us some.  The thought struck

us that we knew nothing about taking down a barn.  I had spent my whole childhood on a farm and was in our tobacco barn all the time doing

various chores but we never had to do anything beyond repairing a piece of siding or fixing a leak in the roof.  We were feeling a little

nervous, I could tell by the look on Andy’s face that maybe he was thinking we were in over our heads.  About that time

the man who owned it asked if we thought we wanted it.  Before we could reply my father in law said “Yes, we’ll take it.”

I thought, “Well, now we’re committed.”  It’s been a lot of work and had some twists and turns

along the way but it’s been a lot of fun and a vast learning experience.  I will add more to our story every few days.  Stay tuned!

We thought we might be crazy for taking on this project but we had to try.

Summertime on the Farm.

It’s definitely summertime here!  We’re having a heat wave here in the Ohio river valley.  We have stuck it out without the air conditioner until now…kiddos were starting to get a heat rash so we gave up.  We wanted to see if we could go the whole summer without it but in this old house with little insulation and not a lot of shade it’s just too hot.  Even though we finally turned on the cool air we spent the day outside.  I had a bushel of green beans to snap which turned out to be 13 nice quarts canned, that puts me up to a grand total of 34 quarts so far for the season!  Sure will taste good this fall and winter when the snow is blowing outside.

Beans in the Canner

I spent all morning snapping beans on the porch.  I enjoy it, takes me back to helping my mother snap beans, shell peas and clean corn on the porch swing in the yard under our big old oak tree.  Last week we hauled hay on a hot afternoon.  I love the way dry hay smells, like dusty old barns and hot days in the sun.  There’s something about a day of hard outside work that makes me feel so good.  All of these things on the farm remind me of mom and dad and even though they’re gone it makes me feel closer to them to work on the same land that they did.  I feel like I understand them more now than I ever did when they were alive.

The first harvest of beans.

Mom and Dad

Dad with our old dog Sam on his Ford

Sew Proud Continued

Just a few more bags…..Some have been sold, but most are available in my Etsy shop.  Many are handprinted and most are made from repurposed items.

My Mother Would be Sew Proud!

My mother was quite a seamstress.  She could whip up patterns by cutting them out of the Sunday paper with scissors, head to the sewing machine and come back with an amazing outfit or some beautiful craft.  I doubt I will ever be that fantastic of a seamstress but I’m so proud of the purses and bags I’ve been making lately.  Each one seems to turn out a little better than the last!  My mother would love them.  She would also love the fact that they are 100% upcycled fabric that I tracked down at the local thrift store.  One of our favorite things to do together was spend a morning digging through the racks to find some amazing relic that someone else had discarded and put it back to use.  Hope you love these as much as I do, because I want to keep each one I make.

Made from a burlap type fabric that was handprinted with my queen anne’s lace design.  The lining, handles and pocket were made from a vintage shirt.

A frumpy 80′s jumper turned into a modern bag.  100% upcycled.  Lining made from repurposed curtains.

 

 

Beautiful wooden button thrifted from a pair of old curtains.

 

Thrifted table linen with woodland scene.  Framed in with vintage floral fabric.

 

Queen Anne’s Lace Handprinted Tote Bag.  Fully lined with unbleached muslin.

 

 

Rambling Rose Tote.  Already sold.  Made from thrifted Vintage fabric.  Fully lined.

 

 

Thrifted Burlap type fabric with my queen anne’s lace design.  Fully lined with striped cotton from an upcycled shirt.

Fabric printed by my husband Andy, sewn into a clutch by me.

Chickens Make Good Illustrations

“Mother Hen” is an ink drawing that was scanned into my computer and digitally colored.

“C is for Chicken” is a limited edition digital illustration.

“Which Came First?” is a limited edition digital illustration.

“Chicken Alphabet” is a digital print.

Night on the Farm

The weather in Kentucky has been so beautiful I’ve found myself wandering outside at all hours of the night.

A Harvest of Art

An ode to the Ball Jar in all her glory!

Harvest time has come and the leaves will soon turn orange.

Now that’s one hot potato!  Dig her while she’s hot.

All available in my Etsy shop!

Oh just can it!

That’s right, canning season is upon us!  It completely snuck up on me this year, with all the unpacking, getting organized (HA) and chasing kiddos around I kind of forgot the garden was growing!  Mother nature doesn’t wait so the tomatoes and corn had to be picked.

I didn’t do bad, had around 14 quarts of tomato juice plus several bags of frozen ones for chili and soups. Corn so far I have 19 pints plus some frozen and there’s still a bit left to harvest.  I’ll be thankful for all the hard work when the cold winds of winter are blowing.  It will be a little taste of summer on a gloomy day.

I love that many of my jars are the very same jars that my mother once toiled over.  I often think of her when I’m standing over the hot stove with food bubbling away ready to “put up”.  I know she would be proud of me.  I wish I would’ve learned how to do it from her while she was alive.  Guess I was just too young to realize that it was important.  I remember thinking when I was a kid that I wish we could just have some “ready made” food for a change.  Mom always cooked from scratch.  Occasionally we would have a frozen pizza or something like that but her meals were always home cooked.  I know now that I didn’t know how good I had it.  I hope I am half as good of a cook as my mother because even half would be amazing!

Beautiful Vintage House for Sale Close to Cincinnati!

Welcome to our house!

We are moving back to the country where I grew up so we are selling our beautiful vintage home.

It’s a 2 bedroom 1 bath in Latonia Kentucky just minutes from Cincinnati Ohio.  Located on a very quiet dead end street.  Most of the neighbors have lived here their entire lives.

For more details visit Northern Kentucky MLS.  The listing # is 386085

For a showing please contact Skip R. Feinauer.  Primary: 859 750-1351  Secondary: 859 781-4990

or Contact Kaiser Realty at 859 261-5102

The landscaping in the front includes a beautiful Black Lace Elderberry tree, climbing hydrangea, hostas, lady’s mantle and Heavenly Bamboo.

Large driveway runs the length of the house and has room for up to 3 cars.

The wide porch is the perfect size for a porch swing.

 

Right inside the front door is the living room complete with original oak picture frame floors, built in bookcases all the way to the ceiling and gas fireplace.

 

The front door walks into the living room with a staircase that goes both upstairs and into the kitchen for convenience.

 

The wide open archway between the living room and dining room is beautiful and inviting.

 

The dining room has picture frame hardwood floors and plenty of natural lighting.

 

The kitchen features Armstrong flooring and tile all the way around the walls.  There is a door directly into the backyard from here.

The stove and refrigerator stay.

 

The stairway from the kitchen leads to the upper floor and into the living room for convenience.

 

These vintage custom kitchen cabinets are original to the house and have been lovingly refinished and stripped of their many layers of paint.

The name of the local custom cabinet company that manufactured the cabinets.  3rd and York streets Newport Ky.

The door to the basement and outside from the kitchen.  The refrigerator stays.

Beautiful bathroom overflowing with natural light.  Original vintage hexagon porcelain tile, pedestal sink and large linen closet.

Another view of the vintage tile.

Refinished hardwood floors shine in the natural light of the upstairs hallway.

This bedroom is bright and sunny all day.  Features refinished hardwood floors, ceiling fan and closet.

Another view of the bedroom.

Another view of the bedroom.  Full length mirror in hallway is original to the house and will stay.

The second bedroom is painted a beautiful harvest orange.  Features include refinished hardwood floors, ceiling fan and closet with built in shelves.

This room looks out on the large backyard and is shaded all day by a mature Sweet Gum tree.

The large backyard is shaded nicely by many mature trees.  It’s fully fenced for privacy with a locking gate.  It has a nice patio for relaxing in the shade.

Plants in the backyard include hostas, ferns, trumpet vine, bushes, lilies, Lenten Roses, Azaleas, Lily of the Valley, Ivy and Rhododendrons.

Another view of some of the plants in the backyard.  Bench stays.

 

Thanks for looking at our vintage home.

If you would like to see more please contact the realtor listed at the top of this blog.

Thanks!

 

For the Love of Trees

A few of my digital prints with trees and their friends!