Welcome to the 806th Metamorphosis Monday! However you spent it, I hope you had a fun, relaxing 4th of July weekend! This wasn’t one of my favorites since I was kinda all over the place. I spent two days in Big Canoe while the hardwood floors on the main floor of my home were being refinished due to a leak from the icemaker hose behind the refrigerator in the kitchen. The holiday delayed the process a bit, so I had to spend another 3 nights in a local hotel. I’m so happy to finally be back home! You may remember seeing this photo in a recent post. A lot of the furniture (not all of it—some was upstairs and in the laundry room) was being stored here in the garage during the floor refinishing process.
So the living room that looked like this for a few days…
…is back to looking like this. Ignore the stuff on the hearth, it’s equipment that was inside the armoire that I haven’t put back, along with the fireplace tools that need to be moved.
I need to badly edit the shelves in this room. A ton of stuff got stashed there during the floor refinishing process, and much of it needs to be removed. Those white spots on the burgundy-colored, wool pillows aren’t spots, they are white, down feathers trying to escape. I don’t know why those pillows do that, especially since they were rather pricey pillows. I guess the fabric of the inserts isn’t dense enough to keep the occasional feather from working its way out. Umm, note to self, look for new down inserts.
Funny how you notice things in photos that you don’t see in person. I need to move the chair on the left forward, it’s too far back. Also, I need to move the painting of the house to a different spot. It’s not working there alongside the one in the hallway. They are too much the same size and that wall would look better left blank. Great decorating tip: Take photos of your rooms and you’ll notice things that you miss in person.
I donated the large floral arrangement that was in the shell niche in the entry. It was looking very tired. Now the niche is holding boxes with new floodlights for the exterior that will be installed by an electrician tomorrow morning. A plumber will arrive later tomorrow, to troubleshoot why the new shower head I had installed in the upstairs hall bath (by another plumber—same company) isn’t working properly. Every day around here is like this right now, as I update bathrooms and other items on my long “to-do” list.
One interesting thing that came out of the whole floor refinishing process is I changed the location of the grandfather clock. For many years it has been here in this corner between the shell niche and the stairs.
I decided to try it on this wall across from the niche. It fits beautifully there and has really opened up the staircase a lot. Also, I notice it a lot more. Before, when the clock was in the corner facing out, I walked by/around it throughout the day, never really noticing it. Now I actually see it every time I come downstairs and walk toward the living room. I like it here a lot, and I’m no longer staring at the back of the clock when coming down the stairs, although the back was kinda cool looking, too. I’ve completely emptied out the china cabinet there in the background. Those dishes are all boxed up and in the garage, ready to go to the Dollhouse.
The refrigerator is still smack in the middle of the breakfast room. The drywall will be repaired next week and then the refrigerator will be moved back to where it belongs. Apparently, the entire kitchen will be repainted during this process. I think I may switch the wall color from Sugar Cookie to Tea Biscuit. Tea Biscuit is still yellow, but a good bit lighter than Sugar Cookie.
Tea Biscuit is the wall color I have here in the upstairs living room.
Sometime in the next month or so, I’m thinking about having LVP flooring installed in the basement, looking forward to sharing that update! I’ll be headed back to the Dollhouse soon to work on more updates there, including the delivery of the desk I ordered for my study/office. There will be more not-so-fun updates, like having a new garage door opener installed. I’m also refrigerator shopping for the Dollhouse right now, looking at everything from the GE Cafe line to Bosch. The one thing I do know is that I want the ice and water through the door, don’t want to have to open a freezer drawer to access those. Any suggestions for refrigerators I should consider?
I wish someone made a refrigerator that produced little, square cubes that were accessible through the door. My son/DIL’s Bosch fridge makes the cute little square cubes, but you have to open the freezer on the lower part of the fridge to scoop those out/into your glass. How come someone doesn’t make a fridge with those awesome little cubes coming out through the door?!
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Metamorphosis Monday: Metamorphosis Monday is a party that’s all about Before and Afters. Please link up your Before and After projects like DIY projects, room makeovers, craft projects even recipes. Please do not link up Table Settings, save those for our Tablescape Thursday party on Thursday. If you are participating in Met Monday, you’ll need to link your post to the party using the “permalink” to your MM post and not your general blog address. To get your permalink, click on the name of your post, then copy and paste the address that shows in the address bar at the top of your blog, into the “url” box for InLinkz when prompted.
I have an LG refrigerator with ice and water thru the door but I rarely use it. There is an ice bin in the upper drawer and I scoop ice from it. Have had it for more than 5 years. 2 doors up and 2 drawers below. Surely there are others that have this feature.
Seeing these fabulous photos of your house you are moving out of reminds me how grand and beautiful this house is. You certainly lived regal and large in this beauty. You have such a keen sense of style and decorating to perfection.
You should have been a professional decorator. I love love your style.
Sincerely, Ellie Croft from Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada
Thanks so much, Ellie—appreciate those kind words! I have truly enjoyed this house. ♥
Susan, you have more energy than anyone I know! 2 home renovations at once-
unbelievable! I wait for every blog post re: the Dollhouse; it is so interesting to me! You are not really downsizing as much as moving! Do you think you will keep the Ga house and rent it? 2 houses is a lot to deal with but if anyone can do it, you can!
I must be crazy! If not, I will be soon! lol I haven’t fully decided yet. I really don’t need two houses, especially 8.5 hours apart from each other. I’m just taking it a day at a time right now.
Hi Susan, I wasn’t sure if I missed a post because I was curious about you renovating your GA home for new owners. You are a brave woman.
I was also wondering if you are planning to keep the Ga house? After selling several houses and moving several times through the years I have found most new owners change the paint colors etc anyway. We totally redid a house, sold it and the new owners immediately changed all we had done. Word to the wise, do not go over board on everything, main thing is just make sure everything is repaired and in good working order. Just a thought……
I know you’re right. That is so disheartening to do all that work and then realize it was for nothing. I am just hoping that when I do move one day, that whoever buys this house doesn’t paint over the paneling in the living room.
I’m sure you’re right, that’s great advice! The paint really needs to be refreshed upstairs hall, so that I defintely need to do. I think I’m going with the same neutral color I used in the basement. I probably will sell it, just taking my time so my heart can get used to the idea. It’s really hard after living here for 34 years.
Someone is going to be so very lucky when you put your Georgia home on the market. You have done so many wonderful upgrades.
We love our 7-year-old Kenmore Elite – produces ice that is 1″ x 3/4″ cubes – (has filtered cold water, ice cubes or crushed ice in the door). It has a freezer on the bottom that has 2 drawers and a deep bottom, a “drink drawer” in the middle and refrigerator on the top. When we were shopping for refrigerators, I think Samsung and LG had similar options.
Thanks so much, Margaret! I had a Kenmore for over 20 years and loved it! I keep reading not-so-great things about Samsung and LG, and I’ve had several salespeople tell me to avoid those. Apparently, they’ve had a lot of issue in the last few years.
You are the most energetic person I know. As I’ve said before whoever gets to buy your house will be thrilled with the upkeep you’ve done over the years.
Thanks so much, Karol! I hope they will love it as much as I have.
I have the Cafe’ line of appliances, and I love them. Especially the matte white finish. I also have the gold handles which I think give them an added touch! The dishwasher is very quiet. All are able to be connected to WiFi which I’ve never done. The refrigerator has ice, cold water, and hot water on the door. Whatever you choose, I know they will look so pretty in The Dollhouse. Love when you update about it. Really looking forward to the glass fronted doors on the built-in shelves in your dining room
That is such a pretty collection and it’s one I am considering since I’m not that a big a fan of stainless/silver/gray appliance. Jonlei, how does the white look with your cabinets? I was wondering, if I went with the matte white Cafe line of appliances, how they would look against the white paint of my kitchen cabinets. I know they won’t match exactly, but hopefully they work well together.
Thanks! I’m really excited about that, too. 🙂 I’m looking forward to getting some estimates for the doors, just hope they will be able to do what I envision for that space.
Susan, I am in love with the Dollhouse and am enjoying your journey in trying to get settled. But I’m wondering what you are planning to do with all of your beautiful traditional furniture in your Georgia home. If that grandfather clock was mine, it would be difficult to part with it!
Thanks so much, Dena! A lot of it will work in the new house, but right now I’m not sure how where it will all go. The slanted/curved ceilings in the upstairs at the Dollhouse are a challenge, for sure. I think I can make it work for the most part, though.
My frig has little cubes through the door it is a Frigidaire Galaxy, I just got it in January at Lowes
Oh, thanks for that info, Kathy! I will check that fridge out. I’m trying to avoid the big crescent shaped cubes.
Hi! I love my LG through the door. It has held up well with our 4 kids (and many, many visiting buddies) over the last 5 years!
Good to know, thanks Cynthia!
XXX
Sorry, forgot the link: https://www.homedepot.com/p/LG-30-cu-ft-French-Door-Refrigerator-InstaView-Full-Convert-Drawer-Craft-Ice-in-PrintProof-Stainless-Steel-LRMVS3006S/312285981
I like that glass/see-through door!
I have a GE French door refrigerator and I recommend those highly! The one thing I regret not getting is a model that has a drawer between the bottom freezer and the top refrigerator section. It’s meant to hold things that you use a lot so you’re just opening the small drawer instead of the whole top of the fridge. Other than that, it’s been great- not one service call since 2017. Hope I didn’t just jinx myself :)!!
I love the look of the middle drawer. I didn’t realize that it was for things you use often…very cool!
I have a LG French door refrigerator that is counter depth as some idiot placed the dishwasher so when the door opens it won’t clear the newer fridges. I still love it and the ice and water in the door. I love LG brand. You have more energy than 3 people!!! But lots of fun to decorate, design, and rearrange things!! What fun! Blessings! Sheri
I understand you wanting to get ice from the door, but we had that for years. Now we have a refrig that has it in the top of the bottom drawer. We love it! We had the wayward ice cube that would drop out and then leave a puddle on our lovely wood floors or the water spout would drip water. This is so much better. It also seems to be larger with two sizes of ice.
When I moved to my current home it had all GE appliances. I am not sure of their age. The fridge has water and ice through the door but the ice is not cute little square cubes. I have had three friends purchase Samsung refrigerators that they all had issues with. Two quickly replaced theirs and one just goes without an ice maker. Be aware.
I had to buy a new refrigerator and most of the new ones don’t give you enough ice. Find an appliance store like Sewells in the Marietta area because they can tell you everything you want to know. Some of the ones with bottom freezers have an additional ice maker just make sure the drawer pulls out all the way so you can get in. My son pointed that out. A good salesman will steer you in the right direction. They don’t make appliances like your speed queen anymore.
I like the clock on the wall. Most buyers repaint walls and your money is wasted. Probably the buyers will paint panel because I’ve seen that happening unfortunately. We’ve had Whirlpool french doors with Ultra Ease filtration system for 24yrs and no problem. Cube, crushed and water dispense with on or off light.
since you only have you living in the house you might want to consider a refrig and I think it is called a counter width frig. It doesn’t stick way out from your counter tops. My daughter has one and it’s holds lots of food and it’s a side by side but no square ice cubes..sorry about that. lol. but it does dispense from the front (the water and cubes )
I feel a bit exhausted after all your recent posts; you have done sooooo much and in two houses! I think you may go stir crazy when you are down to one home. I really like the softer tea biscuit but talk with a realtor as even that lighter color may not be recommended.
I’m in awe of you Susan, to do everything you are doing between the two houses takes a lot of energy! Both homes are gorgeous, but I do agree with others when they said don’t go too hog wild with redoing the GA home as people will definitely come in and completely redo it. But I am so with you on hoping no one ever paints the paneling!! What a sad day that would be! On the appliances, do you homework well and don’t buy brands that have issues. I’ve had my stove for 29 years (my furnace is 68 years old!). If it went up tomorrow, I wouldn’t be upset because it has been good to me. But since it is just me now, I mainly just use the cook top and not so much the oven as I have a toaster oven I use. Unless a pan doesn’t fit it, then I use my big oven. I’ve not heard any good things about LG or Samsung fridges and I had a Frigidaire that had to be replaced (only got replaced by Lowes because it was Christmas and they couldn’t get in touch with Frigidaire) and that replaced one had 3 days of work done on it by an outside appliance dealer! So I wouldn’t recommend that brand either. But again…do your homework on brands . I wish you luck my friend! Hugs, Brenda
Susan, I literally just bought a new refrigerator 3 weeks ago. I’m redoing my kitchen and appliances were part of it. I narrowed it down to the Bosch counter depth versus an LG counter depth. My other appliances were Bosch, so that seemed to make sense to me. Until I saw the new LG counter depth. This is a brand new style that came out within 2024. It is counter depth with ice and water in the door, plus more ice below. However, the best part of it is that we call it the Tardis. You open the door and there is an enormous amount of space for a counter depth fridge. I really love it. There’s no handles, so you have to get used to that but now that I have I really love that too. It’s also fingerprint resistant which is nice. Definitely check it out. It had so much more space inside than the Bosch. But if you don’t need extra space, the Bosch makes a beautiful one.
We have a Sears refrigerator from several years ago and were told it was made by LG. Love this fridge! It has water through the door, ice cubes and crushed ice through the door too. Inside the left upper door is a compartment where you can access the bin of ice cubes if you need a large amount of cubes. The refrigerator has two upper doors in the “French” door design. Inside the refrigerator area the top shelf is divided in the middle into two shelves. Both of those shelves have the ability to have the front halves separately roll back to the back halves and you can store tall items on the middle shelf with the top of the tall item sticking up into the top shelf area. The bottom of the fridge is a large freezer with a bottom bin and two roll out shelves. There’s also a compartment on the inside of the door that when you tip the door outward you’ll see the compartment that can hold small items. I got the largest fridge that would fit in the space in the kitchen and have never regretted that decision.
Love water and ice in the refrigerator door. So convenient! Our refrigerator is old but it is a Maytag side by side. Not fan of bottom freezers.
All for ease of use over what new product is pushed.
What is that room to the right of the grandfather clock? Don’t know if you have ever shared it.
You are definitely full of energy. Wish you could send it my way. Dragging my feet on a few projects. Enjoy the planning for ‘dollhouse’. Slow decorating is in!!!
I don’t think I like bottom freezers either, but I may end up with one if I go with a French door. I’ve always had a side by side with ice/water through the door.
That’s the “formal” living room in this house. I always wanted to turn it into a library but just never got that far, always something else that needed work first. I did a post about it many years ago, but now I can’t find it. It’s mostly empty, just a sofa and secretary, chest and china cabinet in there. It’s always ended up being a catchall room which is not good since it’s just inside the front door.
Susan, I save your email till I can sit down and enjoy it. I also have to sit down because you wear me out just reading about what you are doing.
Ditto about the fine tuning. Get the inspections done and take care of any problems. Your house is in wonderful shape as it is.
Susan, you have taken spring cleaning to new hights. What if you keep the GA home for several more years and have taken too much to Ohio ? Two sets of everything ? Major decisions should not be made in haste.
What if you get neighbors from H-ll like I did or winter is too hard, and decide you like GA better ?
If you want to find out about a company or product, search “complaints against”
You can seach Consumer Buying Guide or the Good Housekeeping website. What is the cooking school with the test kitchen and the guy with a bow tie? ( I don’t watch TV anymore). They test appliances.
When you sell the home in GA, tell them you want in the contract “You cannot paint over the paneling” LOL
Whatever you decide, we are on your side. Slow down and breathe deeply. It will all work out, especially after the scheduled work in GA is finished.
I know, I’m trying not to think about that, about the moving part. lol When I have the electricians remove the chandelier in the dining room to take to the dollhouse, that’s when you’ll know that I’m definitely going to list/sell this house. I don’t need two houses but it’s hard to think of selling this one. Thankfully, I’ve never heard of any issues with the neighbors in that community, I think everyone gets along well.
Hahaha! I’ve often joked about doing that! No painting over the Judge’s paneling is allowed! 😉
Decisions!!! Makes your head spin…constantly. As long as my appliances arecintegrated…well, I would never go back. The “Cafe'” is lovely…my “stuff” is “MONOGRAM”…just sayin.
Research is a “good thing!” franki
WOW! What a lot of work you are doing, but know you have the energy to get ‘er done! You will get so many thoughts on appliances….we got the advice from a repair service that sticking with the major brands that have been around for decades is the way to go, as far as getting parts and product familiarity for the repair people. Good luck and much success with all your projects!
Extra nights away from home! That must make you antsy with all that is going on, but also gives you time to regroup. I can’t imagine going back and forth with both houses having so much done. I have two grandfather clocks and love both of them. As for refrigerators I have a Maytag. Here’s what I don’t like: The icemaker is inside the refrigerator which takes up enormous space. It came with a slim slide out drawer (I guess for storing pizzas or trays) which I find to be quite annoying. What I do like is the feature of a cooling shelf in the door for milk, etc. I thought lifting the lid would be annoying but it isn’t and keeps things extra fresh. I do have ice (which always spits out past the glass and are crescent) and water in the door and use it all the time (check where your filter (which lasts a year) is because that takes up space inside the fridge as well). And, my crisper drawers are very shallow (because of the slim drawer). A refrigerator needs deep drawers for veggie and fruit and a separate drawer for meat and cheese. If I need a new fridge those are the things I’m going to look for. Looking forward to all your updates!
When I was looking for a new ‘fridge three or four years ago, it seemed that ‘butter compartments’ in the door may largely be a thing of the past — many models don’t have them! I don’t care about ice cube shape but want (1) water & ice on the door, (2) a butter compartment, and (3) side-by-side and a reliable brand. Never found anything, and fortunately I was only looking to replace the very-basic ‘fridge that was left in the house we’d just purchased. This was back during the pandemic when supplies were limited … I should look again!
Susan,
I do love your downstairs living room with all the wood…Stunning!!
Thanks so much for hosting this charming party!! I really appreciate the time and effort that goes into it along with visiting all the links!!
Hugs,
Deb
Debbie-Dabble Blog
Whew – what a weekend! It’s nice to see your living room back together, no matter how many tweaks you still want to do. I love your suggestion to take photos too – I always do see something different in the pictures than I do in real life. Good luck, and thanks so much for hosting!
Hi
Sorry to bother you. I’m a reader from the UK and can no longer open posts on my iPhone15. The Manage Your Privacy pop-up no longer allows me to click on “Accept All” or “Manage Settings”. It’s been like this for about two weeks now. I can open on my Mac and the pop-up doesn’t appear. I think it may have something to do with European data regulations and may need a tweak at your end. I seem to remember something similar happened a while ago on another blog I follow.
Good luck with your move and renovations – it’s interesting to read your updates.
Best wishes – Lesley
Lesley, thanks for letting me know! I’ll see what I can find out about that. I really appreciate you letting me know. I have an Android and hadn’t realized that was happening.
Lesley, the next time you see that happen, could you take a screenshot of it for me? I have someone checking on what could be causing that issue, and they would love a screenshot of it, if you can capture that. You could email it to me at: [email protected]
Lesley, so far the technician who is looking into this for us hasn’t been able to duplicate the issue. He asked me to ask you, when this happens, do you have a larger system font or a “zoomed” in feature active on your phone? He thinks this may be an issue that is isolated to your device/phone, so he’s just trying to figure out what could be causing it.
Hi Susan, I don’t know how you do it, renovating two houses at the same time while being located far apart and all by yourself no less! I have been renovating the house that I purchased seven months ago after my husband suddenly passed away and at times it feels overwhelming and that’s just one house. I give you so much credit!
As far as refrigerators go, I loved my refrigerator at my last house. It was Frigidaire “Professional Series”. It had a water dispenser and a separate ice cube dispenser on the outside of the door, so it was great, I didn’t have to open the door to get either one (like I have to do with my current refrigerator). Plus the freezer (which was located in the bottom drawer) had an ice cube maker that dumped ice cubes into a container). And I have to agree with the others, don’t go overboard with the house in Georgia, as you don’t always get back everything you put in money wise, if you end up selling it. Plus, Buyers like to put their own stamp on it. I was a full time Realtor for 23 years, so I know this first hand. Looking forward to seeing all your progress!
Hello Susan, it has been a while. You will be able to tell how long when I ask my question. Where/what is the Dollhouse??
Be well,
Juanita in OH
lol It’s my nickname for the adorable Cape Cod cottage I purchased in Ohio just a few doors down from my son. It reminds me of a life-size dollhouse, thus the name. 🙂
You can tour it in these two posts:
https://betweennapsontheporch.net/not-going-to-make-you-wait-lets-go-inside-the-home-i-just-bought/
https://betweennapsontheporch.net/lets-tour-the-gardens-basement-bedrooms-baths-in-the-home-i-just-purchased/
Juanita, you have serious catching up to do! I’m having a lot of fun fixing it up.
Oh Susan! This just happened to us as well. We’re also in GA. We were amazed at how much damage a refrigerator can do! We have continuous white oak hardwoods and the area that buckled from the refrigerator into the keeping room is being feathered in with new before being sanded. The kitchen in our basement is under our main floor kitchen and my office has a wall beside that kitchen. All that water for my wall, the kitchen wall & the kitchen cabinets (previous owners had mdf cabinets installed). We had a water mitigation service come & filed an insurance claim. It’s been a headache! We’re getting the floors done & new fridge delivered prior to one of our dogs having orthopedic surgery on one of his rear legs. His recovery will be many weeks so we’ll have all the basement work done after that.
As far as refrigerators go, our appliance guy advised staying away from Samsung (I knew that one!) and LG. He recommended Whirlpool and KitchenAid.
Best wishes to you!