Paint, Art, Rocks, and Websites

What the hell am I talking about? Good grief, it’s been a crazy week around here. Paint, Art, Rocks, Websites… and one more thing… CABINETS!

I’m about as tired as this little girl….

Isn’t she sweet. I walked past the doorway and saw her in there so tired she almost looks dead. Couldn’t resist taking a picture, because Richie and I are exactly that tired.

It’s been a really crazy week and I haven’t posted anything for a while because there just hasn’t been time. So lets catch up. I spent the week having cabinet makers come to the house to give me bids on our kitchen cabinets. It’ll be a complete tear out job and they’ll be totally custom. I never thought anything would be so frustrating. When they say “custom” cabinets I just naturally assume thats what they mean. Well… sort of. But not really. But maybe. WHAT!!!!!!

The first bid was so high that I cannot even type the amount. I think I would scream to see it in print again. Then I found out why it was so expensive because my next cabinet guy informed me that NOBODY (except the outrageous price guy) builds “frameless” cabinets around here. (of course that’s what I want!) So this guy basically tells me that and then says “I just can’t take this job”. Okay, I can appreciate that.. honesty is good. Thankfully he sets me up with a true carpenter that he feels would do great with it. (since custom cabinet makers really aren’t so custom… he figured a carpenter would definitely be). The guy was GREAT and had wonderful ideas. The next guy was totally into it and was very thorough. The only problem with him is that he doesn’t make his own doors and I want a “full overlay” on my doors. So there’s really no customizing there since he doesn’t make them. So you see… custom isn’t really so custom … and fuzzy wuzzy wasn’t so fuzzy, was he? (laughing).

Hope to hear some better numbers this week but I’m so worn out from having people in the house and talking about it with them. It sounds silly but it’s exhausting. I thought they were all incredibly cool and wonderful people. I’d hire any of them! Price is always a factor but I need someone who can give me those tiny little details that are so important. Charles Eames said: “the details are not the details… they make the design”

So Richie makes it through his first week back to work and so do I… but only to find ourselves taking on new projects. So this weekend Richie is working on a very special project for the Art Museum of SE Texas. Their annual “Gala” is coming up and he’s working to help them build these very large “frames/boxes” for the event. This one today was 8 feet by 8 feet. It was a monster. If you love art like we do, then be sure and check out their website and try to attend the Gala. It’s going to be FABULOUS!

Here’s the largest of the 6 “frames” for Tableau Vivant (french for “Living Picture”) The picture above is a beautiful piece featuring our trash can and my old but paid for white Honda. Thankfully I just washed it so it was ready to be framed. I think the trash can is a lovely shade of green. :-) The picture below shows the back side so nicely framed out. Good work, Richie!

In between that he found time to start throwing back down the large flat stones he had to remove when he built the fence. Now we just need some granite for fill.

Richie’s new commitment was the Art Museum and mine is designing and building a website for a local garden club. It’s always fun to be creative for someone else. Here’s a few “screen shots” of the beginning stages.

When my eyes got tired of starting at the screen I changed gears and went back to painting the bedroom ceiling. I’m almost finished. Just have some “cut-in” work to do but the majority of the staining is done. I think it’s looking really good. With us… it’s a little of this and a little of that. In between we find time to eat, sleep and laugh a little too. It’s a good life.