Holidays.....

The Painted Pear is, technically, on holiday. We're taking a few weeks away from life and the computer (for the most part) and projects.....unless you count the odd snowman as a project, in which case, we are working away!

So we're on holiday, yes, but we're at my parents new home on PEI.
And it's beautiful.
And we're so excited.
And we just couldn't resist one little post.

My parents began building this house in the summer. For anyone who has ever built a home, you know that the laundry list of decisions can be overwhelming, to say the least.

While I was home for visit in August, my sister and I decided we would try to take the pressure off my mum and help her make as many decisions as possible. We stayed up late and made a HUGE shopping list. Room by room. Item by Item.

And then we shopped. 'Til we dropped.
We spent the entire following day going from store to store.

We chose every light fixture, tile, paint color, cupboard and vanity.
It was insane.

The one thing that proved the biggest challenge was bathroom vanities. We couldn't find what we wanted.

We looked and looked (as much as you can look in one day) and then we gave up on finding the unique pieces we were envisioning.....and we decided to make them instead.

We found this cupboard on sale at Wicker Emporium.



We picked out the most beautiful sea blue.
And then turned the vanity (cream originally) into this:







My favorite piece in the house.

That's it! There are so many beautiful things in this house but holiday starts NOW!
See you in 2012!

Merry Christmas,
Jamie and Jill

The Secretary Desk.

"A secretary desk is made of a base of wide drawers topped by a desk with a hinged desktop surface, which is in turn topped by a bookcase usually closed with a pair of doors, often made of glass. The whole is usually a single, tall and heavy piece of furniture, not meant to be disassembled after manufacture, no matter what problems might be incurred in moving it from place to place.

The main work surface is a hinged piece of wood which lifts up to a vertical position and is tilted to an angle of about 45 degrees or so towards the bulk of the desk in order to enclose secondary work surfaces such as small shelves, small drawers and nooks stacked in front of the user."





I thought this was a secretary desk when I bought it but there's, obviously, no bookshelf?
So, I did some research.......and found out it's actually a slant top desk.

The Lesson?
A Slant Top Desk = A Secretary Desk - The Massive Bookshelf on Top

I stand corrected....

Either way, it was a mess.
Here it is: Painted New and Improved!

Student Trash Made Good.

This baby was ready for the dump. Found at the side of the road, this was 100% a student special.

The legs were sawed off, probably to help it fit through a door.
There were water stains and and broken drawers.
Terrible finish.

But, it had great shape. It was the perfect size. And it was free.
Jamie threw it in the back of the truck and brought it home.

6 new stainless steel legs, some TLC from James, and a coat of paint later......not too bad.









*Note....the legs are adjustable! The desk regularly sits at proper desk height but we lowered it nearly to the ground for the kids at our cookie decorating party last weekend. Check it out here.

CHristmas: In Pink & Apple Green!

The Old Coffee Table.

This actually isn’t too bad.
We painted the table this color three years ago when it was given to us.
Before that, it was bad 70’s veneer.
We can do better than that.
Oh yes we can......

I used to think, I hated pink.....
I was wrong!







Happy December 1st!
XO
Jamie & Jill

Winter Fair Tomorrow!

[Handmade by Jamie , Iron Wood from Espinola, Ontario]

Tomorrow is Winter Fair at The Mulberry School on Markland Street.
Drop in from 10am-3pm.

We've donated these handmade cutting boards for the Silent Auction!
Come bid on them!

XO
Jamie and Jill

Antique Washing Stand.

I inherited this piece from my friend, C.

I loved it in it's rough worn, original state.

Flaking white and teal paint, beautiful wood, great lines.

[Jamie put on new hinges and new hardware as the doors and drawers weren't working very well. Now it's as good as new!]

But we decided to shake it up.

We wanted to use it in our daughter's room so we decided to go red.
Red. Red. Red.
Just in time for Christmas!

Balleycanoe and Other Good Things.

November 18th was 5 years, on the dot.
We took a drive to Gananoque to "get away from it all".

When we arrived at the Inn they upgraded our room to the Honeymoon suite. Jamie joked "Nothing good ever happens to us".

We had a facial/pedicure combo. Side by Side. Jamie's first.

He said he "felt like a Kardashian".

He's funny.

Later, we went to the Socialist Pig for the most amazing Mulled Cider.

That place is the bomb. Have you seen these kick-ass tables?



Balleycanoe & Co. was the next stop.

An old barn.

Three Floors of architectural antiques and a workshop full of knobs, hinges and other waiting-to-be-repurposed goods.

The owner referred to Home Depot as "Home Dump".

He said "why would anyone want everything shrink wrapped and new when you could have this?".
I think I'm in love.



When we got back to our room they had left us a bottle of champagne. The Good Stuff.
We drank the whole thing by the fire and talked about our incredible afternoon. And our incredible year.
"Another good year" we said.

We had planned to go to a French restaurant for dinner but, in the end, settled on the pub next door.
The French place just seemed too fancy.

Especially for two drunk people.

[All pics are mine except the ones of the Socialist Pig. Those belong to them!]