A Beautiful Herend and Royal Copenhagen Tablescape: Welcome to the 136th Tablescape Thursday!

Rain, rain, go AWAY. Come again another day. On second thought, don't come back for a few weeks. We are water logged here in Georgia. How is it in your part of the country?

I am seriously craving some sunshine. Fortunately, my friend, Cornelia sent some all the way from Switzerland via a lovely table setting. :)


Welcome to Cornelia's beautiful dining room.




She has the table all ready for us.




You may sit wherever your heart desires.




The tablecloth Cornelia used for this table setting is custom made and is made from the same material as the lining of her draperies. The napkins are vintage.






The salad plate is by Herend/Osier.




The dinner plate is Saxon Flower by Royal Copenhagen. All the china is beautifully hand-painted.




The bread plate is by Nymphenburg.




The glasses are by Baccarat/France and the colored glasses are vintage and come from Bohemia.




The vintage glasses are all hand-cut crystal.

They truly are beautiful!




The cutlery is silver by Jezler/Switzerland. The pattern is called “La Reine” / The Queen.




The tulips are Parrot tulips and the vase is Meissen.




Sooo pretty! A little sunshine on this cloudy day. :)




The figurines are all hand-made and hand-painted and come from Germany/Erzgebirge.




They are called "Flower Children" and are a symbol for spring. How cute are they!




A little candle light for our dinner...




Cornelia, thanks so much for having us into your lovely home. Everything was just magical!




Looking forward to viewing your beautiful tablescapes!




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Pottery Barn Home Office Update: Sharing Some Fun Stuff

Several folks have e-mailed or left comments asking how the office is coming along. (If you're new to reading BNOTP, check out THIS post and THIS post for some background info.) The weather has certainly slowed my progress down a bit. I have a small amount of sanding left to do and I haven't been able to complete that since it turned cold.

Max, my four-footed furry shadow, won't stay out of the room while I'm sanding and I just can't put him on the porch while it's cold and wet outside. If I leave him inside, he cries at the door to the room and pushes his way in. So, soon as the weather turns warmer and the rain stops, I'll finish sanding. I'll be able to open the windows in the room while I prime the walls with an oil based primer then, as well.

In the meantime, I have some purdy stuff to show you. "Purdy" is always more fun than sanding and priming anyway. :)

Years ago I bought this shelf at Tuesday Morning. Over the years I have moved it from room to room, trying to find a good spot to hang it. It almost ended up in this room, the Guest room. I love the arches and its partial Chippendale design.

I figured it would end up in my son's old bath once I renovate it some day. Now, I'm kind of eyeing it for the office. It could end up in there, just not sure.

You probably remember this piece from THIS earlier post. I found it in a Ballard Designs outlet. I don't think it's available for purchase anymore. I haven't been able to find it on their online site.

It's a camouflaged bulletin board...cool, huh? The frame may get painted a bright color before I place it on the wall in the office...just not sure, yet. I thought it might be fun when it's closed, if it were a bright color. We will see...the jury is still out on that idea.

Here's one more piece I've purchased for the office, a wrapping paper organizer. I loaded her up with some Christmas paper I already had to just see how she'll look.

Those are gift bags (on the left) turned on their side. I'll most likely replace the bottom roll of paper with a gazillion rolls of ribbon. :) You can order one of these from Pottery Barn online. I briefly considered making one. There are some great tutorials online. But I just love the sturdiness and design of this piece and really wanted the color to match the antique white of the Pottery Barn office furniture I've purchased. I'm obsessive picky that way. ;)
(Update: Apparently, they are no longer available. I must have ordered mine just in the nick of time...I've only had it around a month.)

So, that's the fun stuff that will eventually end up on the walls of the office...as soon as I can finish the final sanding and can throw open the windows to prime and paint the walls. :)

Restoration of Historic Tyson-Stedham House: Welcome to the 114th Metamorphosis Monday!

Hi Everyone! Hope your weekend has been a fun one. Today I have a metamorphosis I'm super excited to share. Well actually, it's the beginning of a huge metamorphosis. If you've been reading BNOTP for very long, you know I have a passion for historic homes. Recently, I met Dustin with Van der Fleet Designs and Restoration. He not only has a passion for old homes, he spends his days overseeing the restoration of these oft forgotten treasures.

Dustin is the proprietor of Van der Fleet Designs and Restoration in Adel, Georgia and his love for old historic homes dates back to his college days in Michigan when he restored this Victorian home shown below...

...turning her into a beautiful "painted lady."

Dustin has just embarked on another exciting restoration journey for a client of his, and this time he's taking us along with him! The" restoration" of an old home is very different from a "renovation." I asked Dustin if he would explain the difference. He said, "The difference between a restoration or a renovation is the care and effort to keep things original. This project will be a full restoration/rehabilitation."

As an example, Dustin said, "In a restoration we restore the porch back to a porch like it was originally. However, in a renovation we could leave a porch as a sun room and just make it look up to date. Restoration uses materials that would have been used back in that time period such as heart of pine flooring, historically correct paint colors, etc..."

I've never had an opportunity to follow the restoration of an historic home from start to finish, have you? This promises to be an exciting journey! :) Let's take a look at the home Dustin will be restoring to it's former glory for his client.

The Tyson-Steadham House:

The home shown below is the Tyson-Stedham House on Hutchinson Avenue (US Highway 41) in Adel, Georgia. This Arts and Crafts home was built in 1912, is 2,250 sq. ft and has two bedrooms and one bath. (Originally, the house was a three bedroom home with an out house.) Dustin said when the restoration is complete, it will be a two bedroom home with two bathrooms.

Dustin explained, "The house is a true Arts and Crafts style home with deep eves and exposed beams running through them. The high pitched roof with ample valleys, as well as the deep porch and the ornate craftsman style windows, are dead give aways."

You can really see some of the beautiful details of the home in this photo showing some of the windows and corbels.

Dustin told me, "Right off the bat, the electrical, plumbing, roof and front porch will get underway. We are starting with a full restoration of the front porch and stairs, including the removal of the concrete portion of the front porch and all wood flooring as well, there will be new stairs built in the front as well."

Dustin said, "After the front porch, we will take on the task of the full restoration of the back porch which has since been enclosed and turned into a sun room. This project will take time and effort as it is basically a total rebuild and we have to recreate historically correct columns for the back porch."

I can't wait to see how the porch looks once Dustin restores it!

Dustin and his team certainly have their work cut out for them. Take a look a the roof. It has been roofed over at least 5 times. All that will have to be removed, of course.

Let's go inside and take a look at how the home looks now...the "before." I love the beautiful sidelights surrounding the front door.

Interior:

When you step through the front door, you are in the front parlor. All light fixtures throughout the home are original. In fact, this home has all its original wood flooring, mantles, unpainted wood trim, coffered ceilings, interior door hardware and push-button light switches! Wow! Not many historic homes are still this intact. That's a huge plus for this home.

Here's the fireplace in the parlor. You can see the beautiful coffered ceilings here, as well.

The French doors are pocket doors and are original.

As are the door knobs throughout the home...

Dining Room:

The dining room, again with its original light fixture, is paneled in the board and batten style so many bloggers are duplicating in their own homes today. I'm sure you've seen all the tutorials across Blogland. Well, here's the real thing. :)

The fireplaces are all original, too. Looks like there's a lot of peeling paint that will need to be addressed.

I love the built-in window seat with storage underneath.

Kitchen:

Let's check out the kitchen. Prepare yourself...it's pretty rough.

The kitchen will be getting a full renovation. Dustin told me, "The only rooms that will not be fully restored and will have added amenities will be the bathrooms and the kitchen. These spaces will be restored to the utmost care but will have modern conveniences such as a gas range, dishwasher, etc..."

It will be exciting to see what Dustin has planned for the kitchen.

Hall:

All the light fixtures in the hall are original.

Sunroom:

This sunroom will be restored to its original function as a back porch.

I'm so glad! You know how I feel about porches. :)

Current bath: Definitely in need of a renovation...

From time to time over the next several months, I'll be sharing the progress made in taking this home back to its original beauty. Dustin is estimating the process will take much of the spring and summer. Just think, it will be all ready for a grand Christmas party this year! :) Ummm, where should we put the tree? :)

If you would like to talk with Dustin about assistance with an historic home restoration you are planning, he may be reached via the following:

Van der Fleet Designs and Restoration

Dustin W. K. Van Fleet (Owner)

309 East Fourth Street

Adel, Georgia 31620

813 545-1698 (Cell)

DWKV77@AOL.COM (E-Mail)

If you enjoy historic home tours, just click on the category heading, "Home and Garden Tours" at the top of this blog, or click HERE.

Looking forward to your "Before and Afters" for this Metamorphosis Monday!

Metamorphosis Monday: If you are participating in Metamorphosis Monday: Please be sure to add your permalink below, and not your general blog address. To get your permalink, click on your post name, then just copy and paste the address that shows up in the address bar at the top, into the "url" box for InLinkz.

If you'd like to include the MM button in your post, just copy and paste the Met Monday button to your computer or grab the html code from underneath the MM logo under the "Join a Blog Party" header at the top of this blog.

Please include a link in your MM post back to the host blog, Between Naps on the Porch. Why is this important? When you include a link back to BNOTP, it ensures your regular readers/visitors will find the other awesome "Before and Afters" linked for this Metamorphosis Monday. If everyone links back, this maximizes the visits for all participants. Please DO NOT type in all caps...it spreads the links waaaay out. Thanks! :-)

Let's try something fun today! Please visit the person who linked before you and after you...that way everyone will get some visits. Hope you'll visit more, of course. :-)

Welcome! Thanks for coming to the party! Please don't forget to link back to this week's Met Monday party in your post, so your readers will find the party and your fellow Blogger's posts, too. Linking back increases visits for everyone who participates. :)