Are you ready for a quiz??
If you are then look at this picture closely…
Now tell me what is the biggest change in this next picture…
If you guessed the shutters you are correct so pat yourself on the back!
For some time now I have been trying to find a way to make colonial looking shutters and get rid of that large expanse of brown wood on the huge expanse of window that plagues the living room. There are 5 of those ugly windows and 10 shutters. You rarely ever see a picture with the entire sofa and window span because it is ugly and with a southern exposure ALL day, ALL year, it is a big challenge for me. The existing shutters were the perfect footprint, just not the perfect design. After 20 something years, they didn’t stay closed in either direction and they just weren’t my style anymore. I took the old shutters off the windows. I single handedly removed each and every louver in all 10 of the shutters. Go back to that first picture and see how many louvers are in each shutter. By the time I was done, I was so good at it, I could karate chop a brick!
Well maybe not.
Next I measured the opening created and had my DH cut 10 rectangles of thin luan wood slightly larger than the opening . Then I had him cut 4 pieces of trim for each shutter as well. I choose strips of lattice because it is flat and square and would match up nicely so he didn’t have to deal with mitered corners. He and miters are not friends. His wood cutting time was about an hour. He then spent the rest of the weekend golfing while I did the rest of the project. I am just sayin….
Next, I sanded all that wood he cut and attached the rectangles of wood on the front of the shutter to cover up all the opening left by each louver and the divot where the louver bar rested. Then I attached the 4 pieces of trim to each shutter – framing each piece of the new wood. Then while Mr. Red Door played 36 holes of golf, each shutter got 2+ coats of paint. And when they were dry, I rehung them and viola! I love the difference! 
I already have plans to change the shutters in my office as well.
I just haven’t told Mr. Red Door just yet. Shh! It will be our secret for now!
I have done more even more tweaking here and there since I took those pictures and and I’ll share some of that with you as well. Some changes are minor and some, like the new paint color on the back of the bench…
… and another Kathy Graybill tavern sign are more obvious.
This wall is still a work in progress and really challenging me!!
And more changes… wait – didn’t I just show you this corner? LOL Yup, right after I started this post a few days ago, I finished painting this wonderful shelf that was a gift from my friends Jill and Kathy and I hung it up all myself while Mr. Red Door was golfing. He is always willing to help, but sometimes I can’t wait! So I hung it up and it needed to be decorated and well, you know how that goes…
…you change one thing and move another and before you know it, 10 place need tweaking. My new candelabra didn’t fit well in front of the shelf…
…so I put one of my jug lamps there instead. And I took the large redware platter off my big shelf over my settee…
…and then THAT shelf needed tweaking. 
And then of course I needed to move my candelabra but it didn’t look good on the dry sink that was here.
And truth be known, I have had plans to move the dry sink to my bedroom anyway! I am just waiting for a blanket chest I am having made for this spot. I won’t be getting that until I go to SC in November but I decided to move the dry sink to my bedroom now anyway (maybe ONE room can get finished) and this little cupboard will fill in until the blanket chest comes home with me. The blanket chest will be a big bigger but this gives me a good idea of how nice a solid piece will look there. 
By the way, are you keeping track of all of this because I just might need to quiz you again.
So the living room was all coming together nicely…
..until I got my package in the mail from Circa Living today. I had ordered a larger plate for the shelf so I could put the smaller one back in the dining room where it came from. 
And the mustard candles went here and I put the green ones back in the dining room too. The dining room is happy now. By the way, you can visit Circa Home Living by clicking ~here~! Noel and Verge choose the nicest pieces to sell! 
Now I am done in there for awhile.
I think.
Did I tell you that Jill is coming tomorrow for 4 days and we are going shopping. I am just sayin…
The dining room needs some more work but I am happy with this corner looking into the kitchen. 
I did a bunch of tweaking in the kitchen too and when Mr. Red Door admired the finished shutters I told him that the kitchen cabinets would look WONDERFUL in the same color and I would do all the work myself …
..and as you can see, it didn’t work. Phooey! 
When I went to Walker Homestead’s Simple Treasures of the Past show in June, I picked up the two marbled redware pieces I had ordered from Rick Hamelin of Pied Potter Hamelin redware.
I wanted lead free food safe jars for my counter. I just love these! To go to Rick’s website, click ~HERE~. Rick and his wife Garine will be at the show in September so make your wish list now! Mine is growing! 
More tweaking…
This is just for Kris and Audrey…here is the dry sink in the master bedroom along with the blanket crane that used to be in the living room. 
I also took home the little plate on the top shelf and the little bowl on the bottom shelf from Rick and Garine’s booth at Walker Homestead and they live in my bedroom now. Yes, my list for the next show is growing…
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Outside My Red Door, we enjoyed the hatching of 10 more ducklings. Momma took them to the brook shortly after they were born as she always does but the next evening we noticed them back at the nest. They were all wet and Momma was acting rather frantic. We know that once they are born, they don’t usually come back to the nest and it wasn’t until the next day that our neighbor told us he had scooped them out of his in ground pool! He saw Momma duck lead them all in but the ducklings could not get out. Luckily George saw them and using his skimmer, he rescued them. Why Momma did that when the brook is right there and why she then took them back to the nest is a puzzle to us. We haven’t seen them since but it sure was a treat to have her hatch 2 broods here this year! 
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I always say this is not my dream home but where our dreams come true. And this week, it became OUR home in every sense of the word when Mr. Red Door paid off our mortgage years ahead of schedule! WOOHOO!!!!! We could have done it years ago, but everyone knows that he has spread sheets for things like this. And he had it figured out to the day and to the penny when it was no longer fiscally smart to keep the mortgage and Tuesday was the day. My man may not be able to handle a miter cut but he can manage a multi million dollar spread sheet down to the penny and that’s no exaggeration! Unfortunately the millions aren’t ours! Shucks! So while you all know that that I we don’t always agree on painting wood, I want to give credit where it is due because I am blessed that my wonderful husband has taken such good care of his family and all that time I have always known that he was planning ahead for our senior years as well. No mortgage will just add to that security. Now if it were up to me, I'd put that money each month into an account for ME to spend on redware, pewter, antiques and more, but something tells me he will want to stick it in our retirement account. And truth be told, I am glad he will!
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And before I go, I really need to give more credit where credit is due. I got so many wonderful comments and emails after the last post about A Primitive Place and Country Journal’s anniversary issue and I appreciate every single one of them. But I need to clarify that the magazine is no way MY magazine. I know it may seem different because I am one of the more visible faces of the magazine, but I only play a small part in it’s huge success. I came aboard after it was conceived and already in the works, at first as just a friend helping friends and then later as a part time employee. I am not in charge of it in any way, shape or form. I have always worked hard to help promote it and share it with everyone because I wanted to help friends achieve success for their magazine. And because I love primitive decorating and I love sharing it with everyone. I love meeting homeowners and shopkeepers who share this passion. I love sharing their homes and shops with you and readers of the magazine. As you can tell by now I am not shy so sharing this passion just comes naturally to me. The fact that it eventually turned into a part time job that brings me a little bit of pocket money occasionally is just a bonus. I am very blessed that I can fit it in around my families needs – because my family always comes first.
So again, thank you for all the wonderful sentiments but they need to be shared with the Editor and Publisher Kristine ~ who does so much of the work herself ~ along with the rest of the other dedicated and very hard working employees. You can see all their names and positions on the APP blog.
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Jill, Jim and their dog will be arriving here tomorrow so I best post this and get to some last minute things.
Today I am thankful for some things that bear repeating:
This roof over our heads that is all ours!
I can’t say it often enough – our window a/c units (as ugly as they are!)
Reliable electricity. Thank you SELCO!
Peapod grocery delivery
My wonderful family
and all of you that come by and make Behind My Red Door part of your day. I appreciate you!
Prim blessings and hugs, Linda
…and the plate on the center shelf below are by the potters at Old Sturbridge Village. The museum shop carries many pieces and the prices are reasonable and the purchase helps support the village.
…and my new chair came from Homestead Primitives in Fitchburg, MA. They are having a sale until they close at the end of the day on Saturday July 30th for a month. 40% off upholstered and wooden furniture. Yes, you heard that right… 40% off. Now you know why this chair just had to come home with me! 
