Conquering The Kitchen

I was interested in the word "kitchen". So, being me, I googled it. It comes from the Latin "coquere" , which means "to cook". Then it got all mangled and we ended up with the word "kitchen" in English. Well, the Latin word "coquere" is really close to the word "conquer" if you ask me. And that is what we had to do in Mobley. Conquer the Kitchen!

Here are some before and after pictures. Now, remember we are working on a zero budget, and I wouldn't call myself a big d.i.y. girl, rather a Queen of Camouflage.

We spent a total of $300.00 dollars in the kitchen, ahem, the majority of our decorating budget for the entire house. The lion's share went for the range hood and backsplash. The rest went to paint. Paint, I might add, is no longer $6.99 a gallon for the good stuff, lol...Oh yes, $15.00 for cabinet pulls

The old range hood with rotten backsplash removed

New range hood in pretty stainless steel

Old backsplash, yep, linoleum falling off the wall, gross.

 

 

New backsplash, lovely ceiling tin tiles with a quaint fleur-de-lis pattern

The wall phone cord was heavily painted to the wall, yikes.

 

 

Cupboard in front of newly patched and painted wall in soothing white

 

 

Old cupboard in front of bilious yellow wall

 

 

I used a poster to cover the doors, and painted the cupboard white to blend into the new wall to make this little kitchen o' mine look bigger. Plus this cupboard holds most of my small appliances. Woot!

 

We had to move the kitchen cabinet up three inches to accommodate our refrigerator, so I camouflaged it with a big basket (holding cookie cutters and muffin liners) and a lovely old bowl filled with geraniums. It really brightens the kitchen, I love flowers.

I had some pretty Waverly fabric from the 1980's called "Geranium Leaves" (I think), so I sewed up a little 26" doubled sided curtain. This way I get a lot of light in the kitchen, and the neighbor gets to see my lovely fabric. Aren't I nice? Yes, yes, I am.

 

Here is Mr. Mobley, my d.h., preparing the cabinets to be removed. You can't tell but this yellow the kitchen was painted  was hideous, bilious yellow, (ie bile, ick). The original white fridge, and the awful hideous backsplash and filthy range hood that came with Mobley......

 

 

Now it is our neat sweet calming white kitchen, with our lovely new backsplash and range hood. Oh yes, we had to put on new drawer handles to hide the holes in the cabinets where the others had bored through. We renovated, well maybe camouflaged, this kitchen for $300.00 dollars. We used our old appliances. The kitchen cupboard was a piece I earned painting wooden bunny plaques in the 1980's.. Egads! I left a tissue box in the photo, a sign of the weather, lol......

I wish you could all come and see Mobley in person. She is quite a lady, well seasoned, a trifle mature, and full of God's spirit.

Blessings to all, Theresa

 

Life Is For Living

We are settling in. Truly, settling in. Mobley is now at the forefront of all our busy industry. We have accomplished much in a short time. However, it was just a short time ago that I heard God whisper.

I never called it a whisper until I started reading "My Heart's Song". If you never met Geneva or read her blog I encourage you to go there. Do not stop, do not pass go, she is worthy of your attention. The address is http://www.my-hearts-song.com/ (click it, lol). When she embarked upon her journey of mobile home makeover/renovation, God had to whisper to her.

My whisper (a big one) came after mom passed away in March. "Life is for living", God said. I pondered this and realized I had put off life. I wanted all the planets aligned before I would act. I dreamed big, and filed those dreams in the big filing system in my head.  I was paralyzed with the "what ifs", and the "I can't's, let's include the "I won'ts", too. Succeeding is truly more terrifying  than doing nothing at all, or doing things but burying them in the ground.

I am taking baby steps, but I am determined not to be a "man" pleaser anymore. If you don't like my blog, you are welcome to leave. If you don't like mobile homes, you are welcome to leave. If my style is not your style, I pretty sure some other blogger has your style down to a tee. It's all about living!

But, if you are prepared to put up with my ramblings, dip your toe in my paint palette, and have some fun, let's go! God, Himself, whispered to me, "LIFE IS FOR LIVING".

 I welcome your comments, and any help or guidance you are prepared to offer.

I have decided to have a little friend help me. Her name is Bitsy. She will pop up in photos and may even host the blog occasionally. She's definitely more fun than I and has retained her childlike spirit. She is likely to belt out a song at any given moment. "The B-I-B-L-E, Oh, that's the book for me", is definitely her favorite song.

Here are some pictures of Bitsy. As usual, she's up to some antics. I think I will start next with some pictures of the kitchen, as that is the heart of the home.

Bitsy is always a little shy at first.

But after she get's to know you,

 

She will talk and talk and talk, that's our Bitsy.

A big beautiful bunch of bountiful blessings to you, Theresa

Sweetpea's At Graceland

All right, Sweetpea is my nickname for my cousin, and she named her mobile home Graceland. No, not after Elvis Presley's home, (although she was talking about a sequined jumpsuit and air guitar the other day), but after God's own amazing grace.

Graceland: A Right Cozy Place, Very Feminine Inside

As you know I named my mobile home, Mobley, which raised my husband's eyebrows considerably. Anyway, my cousin tells me she named her house, Graceland. Not after Elvis, says I. No, says she,
after God's grace and the events that lead up to her becoming the owner of her own little cozy cottage.

Huge Backyard, Can't Wait For The Re-do: Of Course, I'll Share! 

The moral of this story is goobers are usually related to goobers. These are pictures of Sweetpea's little cozy cottage. And be sure to notice the fake plant in the front yard. We can't figure it out, but are planning a ceremony to TAKE IT OUT!

Right There In The Middle, All Awkward Green, Ick!

 

Meanwhile, back at Mobley we are awaiting the arrival of knights on white chargers to change the plumbing so we can get started on our adventure. The house was approximately 112 degrees inside the other day, so this gal is not risking her life until its under 90 degrees, lol.....

I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me......working in a 112 degree house does not strengthen me.

Theresa