Tuesday, December 20, 2011
This Toolbox Tuesday is brought to you by...Wendy? Yep, you read that right. This week is special because it's the first week that I am going to be throwing my two cents into the arena regarding a tool of choice. Up until now, Alex has been waxing poetic about various saws and hand tools, and I've let him continue on his hardware store geekfest. But Alex is going to take a backseat this week because I have a certain tool I'd like to rave about for a few moments.
Last week I wrote a tutorial on how I used fresh greenery and a few sparkly items from the craft store to create great looking and very affordable exterior holiday decor. From the feedback we've received, this project has proven pretty popular among most visitors, so I wanted to elaborate just a little bit so anyone can attempt this venture.
One of the most important aspects of tackling something like this is simply having a good quality staple gun. I know, this sounds like a pretty basic tool and one that isn't very exciting, but there are a lot of options on the market and we went through a few duds before finding a couple we really liked.
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Monday, December 19, 2011
Our 1st annual DIY Gingerbread Challenge is complete and we have a winner to announce. But before we get to the Old Town Home Challenge, we wanted to give you an update on our little friendly neighborhood competition.
Yep, it's hard to believe but we have another year of our annual neighborhood gingerbread fun under our belts. Let me tell you, the competition was fierce, the food was wonderful, the company was engaging, and the cheer was abundant. It's no surprise we look forward to this evening each year, and as with previous years it did not disappoint.
Our gracious host Eileen had the place beautifully setup for the group's arrival. Each kit was located on the dining room table and was just waiting for everyone to get to work. After a little bit of friendly conversation and assortment of sweets and appetizers, we all got to work.
Even our good friend Kristin's plastic light up Santa made an appearance. It was a festive ambiance, that's for sure.
This year Wendy and I had a plan. We had purchased several items of "contraband" to bring to the competition. Some Golden Grams, pretzel sticks, candy canes, and Wendy's trusty cake decorating set. The plan was to start with a shingle roof using the Golden Grams and icing. I'm the trusty roofer so I got to work on the starter course.
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Friday, December 16, 2011
As we approach the final weekend of the 1st Annual DIY Ginerbread Challenge, we wanted to remind you all to get your entries in by 11:59 PM EST on Sunday December 18th. We'll be drawing a winner and announcing them on Monday's post. There's a $50 prize to Red Barn Mercantile up for grabs, and with only 11 entries so far, your odds of winning are pretty good. Don't forget to also take advantage of 15% off when you use the coupon code OLDTOWNHOME online at RedBarnMercantile.com or you mention our blog or "Wendy & Alex" when you shop in store.
But before we get to announcing the winner on Monday, we wanted to take a moment to look at several of the entries we've received already. Over the past week we've received a couple of really great houses...and some great non-houses too! Take a look at these wonderful examples of candy and baking construction.
First up is Ronnie's contribution from Drexel Hill, PA. He said it took him a week to make his masterpiece, but wow did it ever turn out great! Complete with ice skating gingerbread people, this house looks good enough to eat or live in -- you choose. I love the roof line, arched door, complementary windows, and pretty much everything about it!
Next up is Kristi and her two daughters from Alexandria, Virginia who assembled this lovely house. I'd say it's an excellent use of frosting, especially the wreath with bow above the front door. Well done ladies.
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Thursday, December 15, 2011
In Old Town Alexandria Christmas reigns supreme. From the day after Thanksgiving through the end of December, homes and shops throughout the city are festively decorated and accessorized for the season.
As we've walked the quaint streets of Old Town Alexandria this month, we've been enamoured with many homes' exterior holiday decor. From creative use of fresh fruit and greens, to wreaths beyond belief, we've been stopped dead in our tracks. You may recall our post last week on how we created the window and door swags for the front of our home, but our decor hardly takes the cake for most beautiful, interesting or show stopping.
Over the last couple of weeks we've been snapping photos of the decore we find particularly nice. Here's a quick roundup of some our our favorites to help spread a little holiday cheer. What can we say? It warms our hearts.
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Wednesday, December 14, 2011
In our never-ending quest to see the inside of nearly every house in Old Town Alexandria, Wendy and I are quite familiar with the area. When we learn of a local open house, a quick glance at the address usually sparks a discussion where we can easily identify the specific house in a specific block, and even specific details that we enjoy about the house. However, last weekend our open housing experience was just a little bit different. In honor of today's post, we're going with our newly created Old Town Home logo that is more fitting for the house we toured. We hope you enjoy.
In the middle of the week we noticed a listing for an open house in the 200 block of North Fairfax Street. This particular block is filled with very historic and large to very large homes. Many of these homes we would easily and quickly trade our place for, but we didn't immediately recognize this listing as one of those homes. Instead we went back and forth, "Is it the house with the two front doors? Or is it the large painted brick house? Is it the one with the brick facade over clapboards? Which side of the street is it on?" Then it dawned on us, the listing was for the very large back half of an equally impressive building that fronts the street. That front building was turned into condos, but this back section is being sold as a single home with large yard and garage/carriage house. Since we had never seen the inside of this house, and barely even recognized the outside, our interests were piqued.
Before I go any further in our open house recap, let me first say that I am not going to be on my soap box about a bad renovation. All of the ill I may write about this property is not meant to detract from the home's value or potential. The agents who are listing the house know the shape of the house, they're not trying to sell this as a finished renovation or anything, and they know the right owner with the right bank account needs to come along to bring this home back to its former glory. The house is what it is, which is why it is listed "as is." I going to try to focus on what the house is today and speculate on what it could become.
As I said, the house is the back portion of what was a very grand residence. The portion that is for sale has a large four bedroom and four and a half bathroom living space, spacious garden, one car garage, and carriage house living area with full bathroom that can be rented out. It is about 3,600 sqare feet of living space over three floors. The specs are impressive and obviously provides plenty of space for just about anyone.
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