Open French Doors
We’ve had 2 days in a row with no humidity which meant I could open all the doors and windows again. I don’t think I’ve ever shared photos of our French Doors in the open position. When we decided to build the cabin I did hours of research about wind direction, sunlight direction, and snowfall direction for our little slice of country living. After gathering all the knowledge I put a plan into action according to how the house should be positioned on the property for maximum sunlight in winter, maximum shade in summer, and maximum wind flow in summer. I’m very excited to say I hit the nail right on the head. In summer when all the doors and windows are open it’s like a wind tunnel in our home.
I just love the strong breeze that flow through the place all day long. I’ve often said as long as I keep the French doors open I don’t have to vacuum, the wind just carries any dog hair that may be floating around right out one of the doors. If you follow me on Instagram you’ve seen videos of how windy my place is with the curtains standing straight out from the rods. If you ever plan on building I highly recommend doing global positioning of your house and take into consideration weather conditions in your area, you can save tons of money on heating and cooling by getting it right, it’s the one thing I would do over again if we ever build.
You may have noticed I’m using different barstools. I’ve had these in storage but never used them, we like ones with backs and ones that swivel so these never made it into the decor plan….until now. As you know I’ve decided to remove all the yellow from our home and go with neutral colors which meant the yellow bar stools had to go. I pondered over what choices I had for redoing them and another paint project was just out of the question. With paint I’m constantly doing touch ups so I decided to have them stripped and stained.
Well in my neck of the woods finding a stripper to remove paint is nearly impossible due to disposal regulations, so what did I do? Yep, put the word out on Facebook looking for someone that still does it and like I thought would happen someone happened to know of an older gentleman that still does this type of work. I called him up to see if he was up to the challenge of stipping 3 layers of paint and he said bring them on over and he’d take a look. The look on the man’s face was priceless when I opened the back of the Jeep, he said, “I can see why you want them stripped, who painted them that horrible yellow color, I hate yellow?” I had to laugh and tell him I rather liked the yellow, and I was the one who painted them but was ready for a change. He acted like the color was blinding him as he helped me unload them. Apparently YELLOW is not his THING!!
So while the stools are at the stipper we’re using these for now. I think they’re great for kids but not adult friendly at all, I’ll stick with my sturdy wood bar stools any day. I was a little hesitant when I received the quote for stripping but the gentleman informed me the stools were solid wood and were worth the investment because they’d last a lifetime. He also pointed out I wouldn’t be able to replace them with quality pieces for that price. I agreed and I get them back today. I can’t wait to get them stained and back in place. I decided to stain them to match the dining room table. I don’t want to many stain colors going on in this space. I believe the table is a dark walnut with a little red mixed in, so I may have to mix two colors to get it right but I’m sure I can get pretty close.
Also Sherwin Williams starts their paint sale today so I’m going to get a dark gray to paint the island. I’ve decided to take all the drawers out of the island and take them outside to paint, and the stuff that’s in them will go on my wire Origami rack until everything fully dries. I’ve decided it’s the best way to keep it all organized and not look cluttered for a few days.
The thought of having everyting piled on the island stresses me out, but by using the rolling rack it will look like an industrial kitchen piece in case anyone stops over while the project is going on. I can do the whole island in one day and after that’s done I’ll reassess whether I’ll paint the rest of the lower cabinets in gray or leave everything else the off white that they already are.
I’ll be back with a barstool and cupboard reveal update soon, so stay tuned!
Oh, how I wish our humidity would go away. I’m looking forward to cooler days. It has been a hot one this year. That is so great that you did all that studying before building.
Kim it’s been abnormally hot here too and us northerners are too fat for hot weather, lol. at least I am.
Dawn, it sure pays to do your homework. Your french doors look beautiful. I can’t wait to see what your island looks like.
Cheryl I had plenty of time before we built to do things right and this was one of the best parts about the house, even though it’s not something anyone would notice. People do say when they come in that there’s always a nice breeze flowing through our house.
I have to repaint my island. Why? Because Don put a hot pan on the top and the paint came off. Grrr!
Can’t wait to see your refinished stools!
Claudia oh no maybe the one who damaged the paint should do the painting, lol. Got the bar stools back and they’re a hot mess, not sure I can make them work 🙁
You were very smart to take the time to make sure the house flows with the weather patterns and especially in the winter:). I’m all excited to see everything come together with your wonderful ideas for your home.
I do associate the color yellow with you and also Ann On Sutton Place. A warm and Happy color:).
Have a great “dry” day Dawn,
Kathleen in Az
Kathleen, Ann is a good friend of mine and yes she loves yellow too. I think the only yellow I have left are throw pillows for the deck. I went and picked up the bar stools today so I’ll see what I can do with them.
I love how you researched and figured out the best way to position your home for the seasons. If we ever build from scratch, I will do the same thing. I love the views that you get from your doors and windows. I think your gray stools are really cute, but I understand about the comfort of your other ones – especially since you use them so much. I can’t wait to see the reveal on them and the island.
Jen if you think about it most people position their homes so it faces the road. We have a guest house on the property and it faces the road and doesn’t get the shade and wind in the summer like we get in the main house. It’s so worth doing and takes such little time to do. I got the wooden bar stools back today, and I’m not happy with the results. I think I may have another mess on my hands:(
🙁 Awwww….so sorry to hear that, Dawn!
Jen, ya I worked my magic today and I guess they’re ok, but not my favorite.
Hopefully when you’re done with the whole space, it’ll have all come together. I can imagine your disappointment – especially after it costing so much.
Jen I did the best I could with them and I guess I’ll be keeping them for now. I’m sure no one else will notice the slight veriation in color but I do.
Dawn, I just love that image of your home with the french doors open! I’m looking forward to the day when I can open up the house and let the fresh air in again. Today was the hottest day yet-101-but the humidity was a little less. Wishing your cool air would blow on down here! And I loved the story about furniture stripper!
Jane I couldn’t take that kind of heat. We’ve had no humidity for almost a week now and I’m loving it. The furniture stripper fellow was a hoot for sure!
Your home is so beautiful, Dawn, and I love the way you decorate! I’m hoping to build a new home and when I get to that point I’m going to ask you about global positioning! I have been wondering the best direction to have everything face but this sounds far more in depth.
p.s. I have a lot of yellow in my house LOL It makes me happy but sometimes I question the choice. 😉
Mary Beth, yes position your house for the weather not so it faces the road you’ll be so much happier with the results in the cost of operating a home.