Category Archives: Dogs

Hello November.

Posted on November 9, 2012 by CT | Leave a comment

Hello internet friends. Where has the time gone? It’s November and I’m not sure how we got here!

I mean I guess I realize that time has passed . . .

We had fireworks in October! (To make up for the ones cancelled in July due to excessive heat/dry grass/fire risk). It’s a lot different when it’s 40 degrees out!

Halloween of course. Shenanigan was Evil Kneivel and wanted to eat the few trick-or-treaters we did see.

Perhaps that’s because the front porch light is dead. Hey husband, can we put up the new one this weekend?

(Found for $10 at St. Vincent de Paul and patiently awaiting its time to shine in the basement of doom.)

A sister visit and a trip to Casa Loma ballroom to see her swing it.

(Picture borrowed from sister’s friend’s Facebook page. The wonders of the internet.)

There was a family friend’s wedding and subsequent reception at the Randall Gallery downtown. (This is my mom and her boyfriend. Hi Mom!)

There’s another wedding on the horizon and that requires bridesmaid dresses. So there was bridesmaid dress shopping.

And those elections!!! This was the first year husband and I got to go vote together due to some laziness on my part in getting my voter card updated from our first apartment’s address . . .

And every chance I get I sneak down to the basement and slave over my armoire project. I almost have it all painted (Annie Sloane chalk paint newbie here) and next up is waxing. This thing has required so many coats and has so many sides that this may be my first and last chalk paint project. We’ll see.

So that’s a few things that have passed the time. What about you guys?

Tulips are springing up all over

Posted on October 24, 2012 by CT | 11 comments

The tulip table is something almost all designers dream about and most end up owning at some point. . . . I’ve been dreaming about them for some time — see my “desperately seeking Saarinen” post from over a year ago . . .

I mentioned a little while ago that I’d gone off my rocker and decided to totally re-shuffle most of the whole house. I made a detailed list and sent it to the husband with the email title “my evil plan”. And it included a tulip!

After all the work of hefting, moving and lugging furniture for the Green Shag sale on Saturday, I had a few loose pennies in my pocket and a hankering to check out Modern Vintage Decor, a shop I had found via my friend Craig and his list. Thanks also to Craig, I knew there was a Tulip table waiting there with my name on it.

It frees up so much more room than the beer-pong-battered table we had been using before (now in the basement maybe for future beer-pong tournaments).

It’s not the real thing or even a Burke but I still love it and all its one-legged goodness.

The inviting circular shape plays well with the coffee table and softens the whole room.

I even did a bit of fall/Halloween styling, pulling a ceramic pumpkin out of my stash and switching out the white candle holders for these gorgeous turned wood ones that JT’s cousin made for us as a wedding gift.

Yep, here’s the dog shot. Attack of the two-headed couch chameleon. I guess they like the new table too . . .

So that’s step one of the new Living Analog Living Room . . . . more craziness (as ever) to come!

P.S. Happy Birthday (again) Sister! I haven’t told the interwebs yet but we are planning your wedding! Oops, I just did. Now maybe I’ll do a post about it!

11 Comments

Posted in Around the house, Dogs, Furniture

Green Shag or Bust!

Posted on October 19, 2012 by CT | 5 comments

Well it’s now like T-18 hours to the Green Shag Parking Lot sale so I guess I really have to do this thing that I committed to . . . .

Good news: I did all my pricing and this stuff is gonna be cheap! I want it gone, not coming back into my house, bye bye, see you later.

But I do want to see it later so I hope some buyers might send me “after” pictures. Especially some of the items that are more “project-y”, as in they’re not in mint condition right now and need someone to love them and I didn’t have the time . . . .

Other good news: I think all of the STL blogging community will be there! Or at least the ones I read: Mister Modtomic and Secondhand Hannah have both committed to parking space/booths. Nick Armadillo from Mid-Century Midwest is coming. Anyone else? Maybe if I get brave I’ll introduce myself. It is kind of nice being anonymous on the interwebs though . . .

Bad news: I have no furniture pictures to share. And what’s a blog post without pictures? Would dog pictures be an acceptable substitute?

Here’s some of Mr. Shenanigan, doing what he does best, and living up to his name.

#1 — (little paws under the door) Hey, I want in this room! Hey, I’m in. What’s going on? Got anything for me to eat?

#2 — Aww man, no bacon. I want out of this room!

So there you have it. A day in the life of a very self-centered dog (taken with a very grainy iPhone). If we weren’t already manhandling around three hundred pounds of furniture, I would bring the dogs on Saturday. Maybe they will end up stopping by . . . . Green Shag sale or no sale, have a great weekend everybody!

Cheers – CT

5 Comments

Posted in Around the house, Dogs, Furniture

Shame on St. Louis, Part II.

Posted on October 5, 2012 by CT | 7 comments

So if my diatribe about St. Louis’s general ass-backwards-ness upon learning that we had lost out on Ikea wasn’t loud enough or shaming enough, here’s take two.

Yesterday our little watchdog Shenanigan was at the front door as he always is, observing his little kingdom and occasionally barking at cats, dogs, squirrels, bikes and children.

So cute, so precious.

Then Shenanigan alerted me to a poor, skinny little collarless dog slinking down the sidewalk across from our house. Not so cute or precious anymore (as he should have been).

This guy bolted when he saw me but ran behind the neighbor’s house and ended up cornered by a fence. He was so scared he tucked his tail, laid down and wouldn’t make any eye contact with me. Even though he was so skinny, he wouldn’t eat the dog treats I had brought. At first. I gave him a little space and he finally came around. He figured out I just wanted to help him and he let me put a leash on him. So now it’s Thursday night at 6:30, Shenanigan is out of his mind barking at this dog and so we take him the Humane Society. There was no microchip but I was pleasantly surprised to learn that the Humane Society no longer euthanizes unless it is a temperament issue. This guy was so sweet and easy-going that I know he will find a great home with people who will love and care for him.

However this is the 6th dog that JT and I have found with seemingly no one else to help it. That makes me sad for St. Louis. And mad. Our residents don’t always care about spaying or neutering. They don’t seem to have a problem with giving their family pet the boot when the going gets tough. Some of these animals are kept by a family but they are not pets — they are chained up in the backyard to be “guard dogs” although I’ve never quite figured out how they’re supposed to protect anything beyond the 8′ radius their chain extends.

During our time as foster parents for Stray Rescue we saw firsthand a lot of these issues and more. (You can read more about all our foster dogs here). Dogs that have had acid poured on them. So many dogs with gunshot wounds. Dogs with embedded collars. Sometimes I really hate people. So I’m going to say it again: St. Louis you can do better. Get it together, go out there and be somebody! Somebody who cares about animals.

To be fair, great strides in animal cruelty & abuse prosecution and prevention have been happening. St. Louis recently created a task force and now has a full time animal welfare officer. (See article/video here). But the fact that we have to have a task force kind of tells you the situation here in St. Louis.

So that’s the last of my ranting for the week. Go home, have a great weekend and give your pups a hug for me. Cheers – CT

7 Comments

Posted in Dogs

Is your home dog scented?

Posted on August 10, 2012 by CT | 6 comments

A while ago Holly Becker over at Decor8 had done a post about each home she visited having its own signature scent. I thought about that recently and wondered if our scent is dog scent. Not cool and not really what I want people to be overwhelmed with when they walk in the door.

These little furry mugs might be cute, but their “eau de dog” is not. Especially Sophie. She can stink it up like no one’s business. So for the last year or so, we have been buying incense sticks from DivineScentsations on etsy. Spice Orange flavor to be exact. It’s the only thing I’ve found that seems to combat the dog smell but not just layer another stink on top of the dog stink (kind of like the bathroom sprays — I don’t really think they help.) Also these sticks don’t burn up immediately like some of the cheapy ones you can get at the big box stores which is nice. You get a nice slow simmer of smell.

For a while, I had a wood incense tray on the mantel but inevitably some would ash out of the tray and I would be left with a mess. The other day I had a brainwave and decided to try out my houseplants as incense holders instead. Here we have “Jazz Hands” the little tree/plant (not sure what it is, a co-worker gave me a cutting which I almost killed and then nursed back to life).

Jazz Hands is holding my incense stick so nicely and all the ash just crumbles into the dirt and you don’t have any mess!

And here’s the little stink bombs themselves as I tried to snap photos of the mantel this morning – hanging out and living the life. The “I’m so spoiled I have my own pillow and toys and things and I’m bored with them go get me some more” life.

So long story short, I would say that our home’s scent is “Spice Orange”. It’s nice and subtle and not too sweet or sickly like some of the home sprays or scented candles I’ve come across. Although, for variety we have also tried some other flavors from DivineScentsations like Butt Naked, Balsam Pine (around the holidays), and Gemini and Libra (the husband’s and my zodiac signs, respectively. Oddly enough, we each seemed to prefer our own Zodiac scent.)

Does your home have a scent?

Anyone else ready for the weekend like I am? I’ve got some more bathroom projects up my sleeve and the husband and I have been discussing some changes in the music room as well. Enjoy yourself – Cheers, CT

6 Comments

Posted in Around the house, Dogs, Miscellaneous Diversions

Living Analog Living Room, Rearranged

Posted on July 19, 2012 by CT | 5 comments

Hey everyone — since we found our new thrift store chair, the living room became a mad jumble. And then I promised more pictures. I was literally thisclose to doing a post about how all the furniture in our house is all set and now it’s time for me to focus on the artwork . . .

But life never really works out the way you plan it! Once we had determined in the store that New Chair was a rocker, I knew we would be buying it. I had seen a sign up front that said all furniture was 50% off.

But lo and behold, when we went to check out, it was 75% off!! The chair and ottoman were only $12.25 (before tax!) Into the SUV it went.

So here’s the new living room . . .

The big rolling cabinet our TV used to sit on went to Craigslist and met its new owner last night. That shorter TV stand was donated from my mother. It’s part of her Danish Modern buys for our house in Wisconsin and had been sitting unused in her basement. We sprung for some new casters at Home Depot (one had gone missing during the multiple moves this guy has endured over the years. I should have taken a picture of the remote control that was still stashed in that drawer. Back to the Future classic.)

And another angle.

Yes I put my ZZ plant in the fireplace. That fireplace is really starting to bother me. (And also the Target/Aalto-knock off blonde bentwood stool next to New Chair is temporary as well. More furniture to hunt for! But if a man’s going to sit in his man chair, he needs a place to set his whiskey. Or so I’ve been told.)

The nice thing about our new chair is not only is the chair seat a rocker but the ottoman has two positions — up like you see in the photo for maximum comfort while sitting in the chair — but also it sits down so a person can sit on just the ottoman. I’ve got another post in the hopper about what we’ve done to the chair so far (new webbing/strapping and some finish fixes, exciting stuff! Not to worry, there is also a plan for new upholstery in the future.)

No post of mine would be complete without gratiuitous dog images, so here is what Shenanigan did as soon as we removed the chair cushions to work on the seat. Quite the princess and the pea, isn’t he?

5 Comments

Posted in Around the house, Dogs, Furniture, Thrifting

Cow bell fever

Posted on July 12, 2012 by CT | 2 comments

Shenanigan has the fever. And the only cure is some more cow bell. The little monkey is always scratching/kicking at the back door to be let out. I decided to make him a bell to help reduce the wear and tear on our door . . . .

(See how scratched up the paint is on the door? I finally got around to painting that, mostly as part of this project. Yay! We still need to put a sweep on the bottom of the door though . . . .boo.)

Out came the $13 ball ‘o twine that I used to crochet my ZZ plant’s snuggie pot. There’s still a ton of twine left so I cut about 16 pieces to use for my braided rope. I simply put a twist tie in the middle, had the husband hold on and twisted each end counter-clockwise. Then they wanted to wrap around each other, creating a twist/rope/braid thing.

Next the cowbells. I just wove them into the bottom of the twine rope/braid/twist and tied it off.

Now for the training . . . Shenanigan says you want me to ring what?

To be fair, I did try to photograph Sophie as well but every time the camera comes out she runs for her life. . .

Actually, the bell is starting to catch on. We’ve been encouraging Shenanigan to ring it every time he goes outside and he’s willing to do whatever stupid thing we make him do if we’ll just open that door! So hopefully the new paint job will remain intact. I’m going to withhold judgement on that one . . .

And, coming soon . . . . a new chair for the Living Analog living room. I am officially a chair (and ottoman) hoarder. But it rocks and the ottoman tilts up OR lays flat. And it was $13 for the set . . . . so home it came. We may have had to rearrange the whole living room and put some furniture on Craigslist but I can’t resist a vintage chair and JT can’t resist a rocker. I have a feeling this will be my old man’s old man chair.

2 Comments

Posted in Around the house, D.I.Y., Dogs, Furniture, Kitchen

Transmute is the new tweak

Posted on May 24, 2012 by CT | 5 comments

You guys, I was getting really sick of the word “tweak.” We use it at work ALL THE TIME because as designers, nothing is ever quite right and we’re always searching for those little adjustments (tweaks) to get a project further along. I’ve been using that word a lot here on the blog as well to describe all the little adjustments I am continually and perpetually making to our home.

So, more little adjustments . . . remember way back in January when I started this sisal crochet wonder? Probably not because that was above 4 months ago.

At any rate, I finished up the sisal crochet to make a little pot snuggie for the ZZ plant, George. Or Zappa. We call him different things.

Before George/Zappa was just hanging out in a standard issue green pot and once we brought Hans and Wenger, the new chairs, home, he now has a floor light (can uplight from cb2) behind him to light the easel from below since we took off the clip light that used to be above.

And now he has a fancy new coat. I “dipped” the bottom in black paint to help it stand off the wood floor. The sisal made it a little hard to get the color in there evenly but overall I am happy with how it turned out. The whole skein of sisal was $13 at Home Depot and I didn’t even use half of it . . . so maybe more (dipped) pots are in my future? Maybe I’ll finish another in 5 months . . .

In other plant adjustments, the plant we originally put in the Bullet Planter was sad.

So sad that I didn’t even take a picture of it before I took it out. (Not to fear, I put him in a little blue ceramic pot and I’m going to take him to work for some healing time. Is that the dog equivalent of going to live on the farm?) But picture it with about four and a half leaves thanks to Sophie Machete Tail.

Yep, that one.

But she also does an angelic face, so it’s hard to be so mad at her. And also the reason she is usually wielding her machete tail is because we’re home and she’s so happy to see us . . . so she’s forgiven.

But we had to replant the Bullet with something that could survive the Sophie. A succulent garden planter at Home Depot caught my eye because it had a nice variety and was a good scale to survive the tail.

And, because all the plants seem to have names, I named them Larry, Curly (the little “curly” guy in front), Moe and Shemp.

Any more tweaks? I mean adjustments? Don’t worry, if there are, I’ll be back with all the details. Have a great rest of the week, everyone. We’re almost to a long weekend. There’s a lot of plans and a little renovation going on . . .

5 Comments

Posted in Around the house, D.I.Y., Design Diversions, Dogs, Hand Crafted

Auction Action

Posted on May 8, 2012 by CT | 4 comments

Sunday was the big auction at Vandeventer Vintage. The small-ish shop filled up with other dealers, antique mallers and assorted “vintage vultures” (as Dabito at Old Brand New calls them/us). The action got started right at 1pm and for me a few unsuccessful attempts at bidding –first for an awesome Lucite book stand (you all know I love me some Lucite!) and then for a pair of Paul Klee paintings. I could have gone a little higher but I was waiting for Lot #100 — a pair of Hans Wegner (esque) rope/jute folding chairs. These had some wear to them so they came with two sheepskins (real and vintage) and you all know how I LOVE sheepskins. .

So . . . here’s the living room on Sunday night after a major rearrangement:

And again in the morning light:

And as seen by a lazy sprawled out dog . . .

(There’s another lazy dog on the sofa hiding behind the sofa arm. They can’t be bothered to get out of the way for the sake of photos.)

I was also lucky/determined enough/coughed up enough cash to win Lot #56 – an arc lamp:

It’s been a nice addition to the living room. I’m typing under it right now . . .

The base actually disguises a real-honest-to-goodness brick to act as a counterbalance to the light fixture proper.

I’m not 100% sold on it though because it’s a little brassier then I usually bring home . . . Mr. Modtomic not only has a nice video of the auctioneer from Sunday running through his patter (favorite line: “You got to find ’em first!”, repeated 100 times) and also has some awesome CHROME arc lamps he scored this weekend. Jealous. (Check it out here and here).

But I’m definitely keeping the pair of chairs . . . (do you know how hard it can be to find things in pairs?)

Then the weekend wrapped up with a bang when JT found two guitars on Craigslist calling his name. Quote from the guy he bought them from “When I buy things, I like to buy them in pairs”. Me too, random Craigslist dude, me too.

Maybe JT will be back with a guitar post. It’s been awhile, I bet you miss him. The guitars are identical except their finish — this one is my favorite of the pair:

I can’t choose between Hans and Wenger though. They’re both my favorites!

4 Comments

Posted in Dogs, Furniture, Guitars, Thrifting

Category Archives: Dogs

Hello November.

Tulips are springing up all over

Green Shag or Bust!

Shame on St. Louis, Part II.

Is your home dog scented?

Living Analog Living Room, Rearranged

Cow bell fever

Transmute is the new tweak

Auction Action

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