Building the Porch and Decks... Welcome to the 55th Metamorphosis Monday!

It snuck up on me...the anniversary of Metamorphosis Monday...Met Monday turned 1 year old on January 4th. We've had a full year of sharing fabulous "Before and Afters" and I have been inspired and amazed by all the creative and ambitious "Before and Afters" you have shared every Monday here at BNOTP. I am so looking forward to another awesome year!

Occasionally, I will get an email from someone saying how much a particular Met Monday post helped them with a project in their home. That makes my day because isn't that what blogging is really all about...the sharing of ideas and information that will hopefully prove helpful to someone else. :-)

Is there a project in your home that was just a little easier because of something you saw on a Met Monday post? If so, and you still remember where you saw it, please leave a comment today mentioning the name of the blog where you saw the Met Monday post. Then stop back by in a day or two and read through the comments. You may be surprised to find your Met Monday post was a blessing to someone else, or, you may find a blog mentioned with a post that will prove helpful for your next project. :-)

Since this is the anniversary month of Metamorphosis Monday, I thought it would be fun to share my very first Metamorphosis post...the "Before and After" of the screened-in porch and decks.

The "Before" was pretty awful as you'll see in the following pics...hard to believe we lived with that awful deck for 15-16 years before finally doing something about it. Yikes! We bought this house when it was eight years old and apparently, the previous homeowners had never properly cared for the existing deck...it was in a sad state. Before I could afford to replace it, I tried cleaning it with an incredibly strong deck cleaner and "painting" it with a solid color stain for decks. It was a major project...cleaning and "painting" on the stain. It looked better, but the solid stain didn't hold up well to a large dog and the elements. It was time for a BIG change.

As you can see below in a "Before" pic, the original deck on the right was very small. A previous homeowner had enlarged the deck by adding the section on the left. The deck flooring had deteriorated and was popping up in places, creating a real hazard. The stairs stuck out into the center of the yard...not a great design. On this first Met Monday, I thought I would share some of the exterior changes that took place when the screened-in porch and decks were added.


Before pic of deck...Those dark spots behind Max's head are actually holes in the deck where the deck boards had rotted around the nails. Periodically, a board would pop up into the air...it was bad!


The pic below was taken right after the workers tore off the old deck...I was so happy to see it gone! :-) You can see how over the years the dirt underneath the deck had splashed up onto the house when it rained, discoloring the siding.

I replaced the door (beneath the small window) going into the terrace level with another window, and had french doors added on the wall behind the ladder. I wanted to maximize the light coming into the terrace level. You'll be able to see this change in the next picture.


In the pic below, the porch, decks and terrace level are in mid construction. During the additions of the porch and decks, I, completely re-did the previous owner's basement renovation. It had been done badly with a hung ceiling, orange carpeting and cheap, dark paneling. I finished the basement/terrace level back in with sheet rock walls, tray ceilings, recessed lighting and decorative columns where ugly, metal poles had been. The french doors gave the terrace level more daylight, as did the new window.

The deck on the far left was designed to hold the grill, as well as my existing patio furniture, which included a good size table with four chairs and an umbrella and a small bistro table with 2 chairs. The deck on the far right (under the kitchen bay window) was the perfect spot for another seating area with a pergola overhead.


You can just see the edge of the steps coming down on the side of the deck on the right...a much better design than having them sticking out into the center of the yard.


The future screened-in porch...can you believe it once looked like this? :-)


Let's get to those "After" pictures! Here's the screened-in porch...this pic was taken from the same angle as the one above. It's come a long way! :-) Let's add some sheers and turn on the lamps.


Much better! :-)


To see more of the interior of the screened-in porch, just click on the pic of the porch posted on my sidebar.


The pic below shows the deck that was added with the pergola overhead. You can just make out the outdoor candle-lier I hung from the pergola.


A view of the area with the pergola overhead... The candle-lier came from Smith & Hawken, that store is sadly gone now. (Sorry about the grainy photo.)


An exterior view of the screened-in porch...those are bird feeders hanging on either side. :-) This pic was taken right after the porch was finished, before I added the sheers.

People often e-mail and ask how I keep the porch looking so clean. I think it helps that it's a full story up. The only really messy time is during pollen season...once that's over, it just requires a monthly vacuum and dusting..


In this view, you are looking across from the kitchen door to one of the exterior decks...the one that holds the table with the umbrella, the grill and a small bistro table.


Here's a huge tip if you're renovating your deck or porch...I had a gas line run to the grill so I don't have to worry about running out of gas in the midst of grilling. Have you had that happen? It's also nice not having to lug those heavy propane tanks back to the store for a refill. If you are renovating your deck, I highly recommend this. It does require a gas grill designed for that kind of connection, but the cost of running the gas line to the grill was only around $375.


This little area with the bistro table is about 6 feet from the grill, so it makes a nice place to sit and chat while the steaks are grilling. :-) When I was in the process of designing the porch and decks, I knew I wanted to have LOTS of seating for dining and entertaining. There are enough tables on the porch and the two decks to seat 16 for dinner...not including the seating area with the swing.


Hope you enjoyed this look back at my first Metamorphosis Monday post! Can't wait to see all your "Before and Afters!" :-) Please don't forget to leave a comment with a mention of a past Met Monday post that you found helpful...and the blog where you saw it. :-)


Looking forward to seeing all your "Before and Afters."



If you are participating in Metamorphosis Monday, please be sure to add your permalink below, and not your general blog address. If you aren't sure how to obtain your permalink or have any questions about using Mr. Linky for this post, just click HERE for detailed instructions.

Don't forget to copy and paste the Met Monday logo button to your computer so you can add it to your side bar and your Met Monday post. That way visitors will know that your are participating in Metamorphosis Monday.

Please be sure to link back to the host blog, Between Naps on the Porch, so your fellow bloggers who are participating today, will get lots of visits, as well.

Please do not add your link below until your Met Monday post is actually published to your blog.

Fabulous "Before and Afters" await your visit:

snow dayyyy!

so yesterday i had a logo critique in Portfolio class. my logo is for a fictitious vintage apparel and record store i made back 1.5-2 years ago in illustrator class [when i originally did the 3 owl illustrations, one of which i made mention of being taken & used by someone else via flickr]. anyway, this was the little owl friend i did for the original logo. i wont bother posting the "original" one because its AWFUL! this one isn't complete yet. i'm going to abstract the apostrophe/leaf and tweak the serifs a bit more, but its a fairly good indication fo where its headed. i am pleased with it. [in the below example, his feathers on the left appear smaller.. AI was being dumb but they're actually the same size].

anyway, after the critique i went and ran a few errands and then headed up to mike's house in west nashville to keep him company and he did the tiresome job of painting... still. i got there and got really really sleepy so after we ran to Lowe's and ate at Blue Coast i settled onto the couch for a little 1.5 hour nap. i'm not sure why i was so beat. he painted and sang aloud while i slept with pillows over my face haha. a silly little pictuer of him that he didnt know i took:


we headed back to franklin around 6:30pm or so but made a few stops in west end. we got home and i saw all the tweets about schools closing today because of the anticipated snow storm. this is the "worst since 2003" so they say. luckily it didnt take TOO long for O'more to call off classes for friday [this is only the 2nd time it's happened in the past 8 years or so]. woohoo no art history 2! that meant i got to sleeeeeeeep in! the plan was to wake up early and head back up to nashville to get things and then go buy a couch! thats right. a beautiful red couch! [we've since decided we're going to probably purchase the couch AND loveseat! eep!]. so excited about this. silly, i know! but i love the thought of us making large purchases such as a living room set together. :D end the gushing. this is what we've agreed on:


anyway, we slept and then we were woken by mike's dad calling at like 10:30 to tell us not to leave the house. to stay put and all that jazz because in just 2 minutes, it came a crazyyy snow storm in columbia or wherever. so after that i called my mom who is 45 minutes west of there and she said they already had an inch or so and that it was coming down with a vengeance. i desperately needed to pay the water bill today [as its due tomorrow, and they're closed] so we decided to brave it to drive less than half a mile down the street to pay it. then we realized we needed groceries. it was coming down hard but we trekked to kroger. it was PACKED! we were in there for far too long becasue we came out and everything in sight was solid white. it was exactly one mile back to the house basically and we slid SO many times. i was literally freaking out. i was on the phone with my mom while he drove and i recorded the entire thing on our flip cam [videos soon!] we almost slid into an oncoming van, a stop sign, a ditch, etc. we FINALLY made it home and decided this is where we'll stay until it passes. [which apparently wont be any time soon].

Angie [the other bartender at work] called me at 11:30 this morning and said "im just calling to tell you what you probably already know... dont you even dare think about trying to come to work tonight". my bar is a 35 minute drive south and there was no way i could make it. plus my tiny little convertible is rear-wheel drive. aint happening! so i probably wont work tomorrow night either. a;djksf;alfs jd :( sad day. i could use the casholllaaaaaa.

while in the car at kroger i realized i was wearing my pants inside out... yep... i had gone into city hall to pay our water bill....WITH MY PANTS ON INSIDE OUT! and yes... it was noticable. afsd;jasdf;ljasd. hahahahaha leave it to me. whatever.


we got home and cooked spicy black bean burgers and we took georgia outside. SHE LOVES THE SNOW. loves loves loves. it was a lazy day of kathy griffin stand-up comedy, the beginnings of clueless, pizza, snow, snow, snow, silly videos, hot showers and hot jacuzzi baths, sitting for a pow wow with bryan in Aj's floor, and all that jazz. its been fun but it feels so surreal. i can't wait to wake up and see how much snow we have tomorrow! we took a ton of Fuji instax polaroids. they come out blurry in the photos below because my iphone is crappy but whatever, i'll scan all of them in soon becasue they're super cute!






i hope we're able to get out and about tomorrow. i'd like to be able to work, but at the very least i'd like for us to be able to go buy our daggum furniture!

hows everyone else's weekend going?! any fun snow for you guys?! if you're around franklin, come downtown and play in it with us! we have a big yard and more than enough snow to go around! snowball warzzzzzzzz!

xo

ps; here are the three new blog buttons! please take one and post it around, if you dont mind! if you have a button you'd like me to add to my sidebar, just leave a comment below or email me! xoxox

<a href="http://www.kaelahbee.com"><img src="http://i47.tinypic.com/2i8btb9.jpg" /></a>


<a href="http://www.kaelahbee.com"><img src="http://i47.tinypic.com/206hncg.jpg" /></a>


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The Tree That Owns Itself! :-)

Several years ago, when my son was attending the University of Georgia, I drove over for an afternoon visit and a little shopping. As we were driving around Athens, doing a little sightseeing in the historic neighborhoods, my son turns to me and says, "Do you want to see the tree that owns itself?" Huh? "What did you just say?" He looks at me and repeats, "Do you want to see the tree that owns itself?" "Surrrreee," I said...thinking the hot Georgia sun had done fried his brain! ;-)

The south has always been known for it's quirky superstitions and colorful characters...so, you'd think, having grown up here, I'd be ready for 'most anything. We drove slowly up Finley street, the only remaining cobblestone street in Athens.


As we approached the corner of Finley and Dearing, I saw it. There, growing right smack in the middle of the road, was a lone White Oak. The two lane road narrowed down to a single lane that snaked its way around the right side of the tree. We sat and waited patiently as another car coming from the other direction, squeezed its way around the tree. Then, it was our turn to squeeze by, with the road once again becoming two lanes.


Below...a view of the tree from the other side. The paved lane you see on the right is a driveway to a home not too far from the famous tree.


I was enthralled. How was it that a tree came to be growing in the middle of a road, completely and totally obstructing the normal flow of traffic, forcing all those who chose this path to slow down and give the tree its due respect? My son filled me in on part of the legend of the tree...here's a blurb from Wikipedia that explains:

The Tree That Owns Itself is a white oak tree, widely assumed to have legal ownership of itself and of all land within eight feet (2.4 m) of its base. The earliest known telling of the tree’s story comes from a front page article titled "Deeded to Itself" in the Athens Weekly Banner of August 12, 1890. The article explains that the tree had been located on the property of Colonel William Henry Jackson. William Jackson was the son of one James Jackson (a soldier in the American Revolution as well as a Congressman, U.S. Senator, and Governor of Georgia), and the father of another James Jackson (a Congressman and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia). He was the brother of Jabez Young Jackson, also a Congressman. (William Jackson was reportedly a professor at the University of Georgia and is sometimes given the title of Doctor; the nature of his military service and the source of the title Colonel are unknown.) Jackson supposedly cherished childhood memories of the tree and, desiring to protect it, deeded to the tree ownership of itself and the surrounding land. By various accounts this transaction took place between 1820 and 1832. According to the newspaper article, the deed read:

"I, W. H. Jackson, of the county of Clarke, of the one part, and the oak tree . . . of the county of Clarke, of the other part: Witnesseth, That the said W. H. Jackson for and in consideration of the great affection which he bears said tree, and his great desire to see it protected has conveyed, and by these presents do convey unto the said oak tree entire possession of itself and of all land within eight feet of it on all sides."

The original tree was said to have fallen in the midst of a bad storm in 1942, and a new tree was grown from one of its acorns and planted in the same location. The current tree is sometimes referred to as the Son of The Tree That Owns Itself.

Wikipedia states: The original oak fell on the evening of October 9, 1942, following a long period of decline. The tree's poor condition had been known for years, and within days of its collapse a move was under way to replace the fallen tree with a "son" grown from one of its acorns. One account suggests that the tree had actually died several years before it collapsed, the victim of root rot. The tree was over 100 feet (30 m) tall and was estimated to be between 150 and 400 years old when it fell. Both trees have appeared in numerous national publications, and the site is a local landmark in Athens.

There's an old plaque at the site that has become very weathered over the years. The stone faintly details a passage from William H. Jackson's deed to the tree. It has become difficult to read...

So, at some point, another plaque was placed nearby with the same passage.. It states:

FOR AND IN CONSIDERATION
OF THE GREAT LOVE I BEAR
THIS TREE AND THE GREAT DESIRE
I HAVE FOR ITS PROTECTION
FOR ALL TIME, I CONVEY ENTIRE
POSSESSION OF ITSELF AND
ALL LAND WITHIN EIGHT FEET
OF THE TREE ON ALL SIDES.

WILLIAM H. JACKSON



Wikipedia adds: Regarding Jackson’s deed, one writer noted at the turn of the last century, “However defective this title may be in law, the public recognized it.” In that spirit, it is the stated position of the Athens-Clarke County unified government that the tree, in spite of the law, does indeed own itself.


You may read more about The Tree That Owns Itself, HERE, at Wikipedia. It also has it's own Facebook page with 4,606 Fans. No kidding! If you'd like to become a Facebook Fan of The Tree That Owns Itself, click HERE. :-)

Welcome to the south...where anything is possible. I truly can't think of any other place I'd rather live. ;-)

new look around here!

hey y'all! exciting fun times to be had! i'm still a wee bit under the weather, and i skipped out on Print 2 today to be alerted of my awesome "~Sinus Infection"... ladeedahh! but luckily i'm already feeling a bit better so hopefully i'll continue to be on the upswing of things!

i didnt take a lot of time to blog today because between the almost-fever, the feeling like i'm going to die, and the headaches, i've just wanted to rest. but i managed to work on my Print 2 book for 6 hours and take a hot hot bath [Georgia jumped in, too].

i took a little time to work on new blog buttons [3 new designs on the right side!] and a new blog header! please take a minute to change out the blog button if you'd like. i realize they're a little more visually interesting than the horrible hack job i did in flash for the GIF one. i promise to have a new and improve GIF animated banner up shortly!

so yes! please choose one of your liking and let me know how you feel about the new blog banner! i'm going to be doing a whole new CSS layout over the next few weeks and finally phase out what i've got now. i need 2 side panels so it's time to get a crackin!

hope your'e having a great week! we went & stocked up on food as per my mother's request since we're supposed to get "snow and ice" this weekend. bleh, hope i can still make it to work!

xoxoxox

A Valentine's Tablescape!... Welcome to the 75th Tablescape Thursday!

Have you ever wondered about the origin of those little candy hearts with the cute and sometimes corny messages? Last year, I had some fun putting together a tablescape using them in some creative ways. (Original post is available HERE.) Since Valentine's Day is rapidly approaching, I thought I'd share that tablescape again, along with some interesting facts about this well-loved candy.


This little bowl was the inspiration for my Valentine's tablescape...


Did you know that conversation hearts were invented in the 1860s? Originally, the hearts had printed paper notes tucked inside. Back then, the messages inside would say things like, "Please send a lock of your hair by return mail." Awwww!


Sweetheart sayings have been in circulation since the hearts were first factory-made in 1902. The classic messages included sayings like: "Kiss Me," "Sweet Talk," and "Be Mine."


Pink "heart" ramekins are from Michael's, only $1 each...


Salad plate is Homer Laughlin. There are no marking on the back, but a sweet reader of BNOTP, Caryl, emailed to say she believes the pattern may be called, Georgian. Thanks, Caryl! I found six, 5-piece place settings (plus serving pieces) on eBay for around $35...including shipping. :-)


Stumbled across this International china, pattern Glenwood, while out antiquing one day. They were marked down...20+ pieces for $14. Yipee! I filled in with a few additional pieces on eBay. See, you really don't have to spend a lot to have several sets of china for mixing and matching. Just keep your eyes out for the bargains when you are thrifting or antiquing. :-) Lace chargers are from Horchow online, a couple of years ago.


It's Valentine's Day...time for a little fun, fluff and frivolity...


NECCO, the company that manufactures this popular candy, must make over 100,000 conversation hearts a day, every day, to meet the demand that occurs during the six weeks prior to Valentine's Day. During those six weeks, over 8 billion candy hearts are sold!


Each year, NECCO creates the hearts based on a different theme...and each theme has ten special sayings that will be printed on the hearts.


In 2007, the theme was pets...with sayings that recognized the love we all have for our pets.


The ten messages were: cool cat, puppy love, take a walk, my pet, top dog, bear hug, U r a tiger, go fish, love bird, and purr-fect.


The theme for 2008 was weather and nature-inspired, with sayings like "Melt My Heart," "In A Fog," "Chill Out," and "Cloud Nine."


2009 was the year for "food-inspired phrases." They included the sayings, "Recipe 4 Love," "Table 4 Two," "Top Chef," "Honey Bun" and "Spice It Up."


For 2010, NECCO decided to discard all their previous phrases and they asked the American public to tell them how they express their love. 2010, also, saw the addition of lots of new, bolder colors and flavors, including Strawberry, Green Apple, Lemon, Grape, Orange and Blue Raspberry. Plus, they are making the candies softer, so they are easier to eat.


If you miss some of the older sayings and would like to have your own conversation heart-candy custom made with the phrases you choose, you'll have to buy a full production run, or about 1.7 million candy hearts. The good news is, they stay fresh for about five years...so you'll have plenty of time to enjoy them.


I couldn't resist these edible love notes...found these at Wal-mart...


The pen really works and I ate one...tasted pretty good. :-)


If you'd like to create your own candy conversation hearts, like the Tablescape Thursday heart at the top of this post, go HERE or HERE.


Looking forward to seeing your beautiful tablescapes!




If you are participating in Tablescape Thursday, please be sure to add your permalink below, and not your general blog address. If you aren't sure how to obtain your permalink or have any questions about using Mr. Linky for this post, just click HERE for detailed instructions.

Please copy and paste the Tablescape Thursday logo button to your computer. Then you can upload it to your side bar and use it in your tablescape post so your visitors will know you are participating.

Please link back to the host blog, Between Naps on the Porch. This is important because it helps those who are visiting your blog, find the other wonderful tablescapes posted for this Tablescape Thursday.

Please do not add your link below, until your tablescape post is actually published to your blog.

The following blogs have beautiful tablescapes awaiting your visit: