The Kitchenaid and the floors

A few new developments here at the Cottage!

First, I'm still working on cleaning up the Kitchenaid.  It's really kinda icky.  I can't blame the previous owners, I don't think I've ever thought about flour dust and such getting into things while mixing.  But it does!  I'll post pics of how to get a 4C apart after I get ours cleaned up in case you have one and think it might benefit from a good cleaning.

First we took the chrome part off of the top, then the cover over the back where the cord plugs in.  This is what we found:

This is the front where the PTO (where the attachments attach) is:

And this is the gook that fell out onto the counter:

And that is as far as I got with it.

Because we picked up a lot of salvaged wood I found on Craigslist.  It was a garage.  And now the 2x4's will probably turn into a wood shed, I'll use the clapboard on another shed, and the sheathing...ah, the sheathing.  The best part.  It will probably be our new floor in the living room!

Here is what we got:

And a closer look...it was tarped and sat covered for a few years...and got kind of mildewed and yucky:

So I spent some time with a power washer while Mr Eclectic split more of the wood mountain, then laid it out to dry:

And of course now they are saying it might rain tonight, when it wasn't supposed of as of this am!  So we had to bring it all in...and of course, since it was in anyway, we decided to see how it looked:

The flash doesn't show it as well as it does in person, but the icky growing mildew stuff left some interesting patters, and the aging of it makes it basically look like the all too popular (of course because *I* wanted it) barn wood.  Barnwood would be thicker, but otherwise, this is pretty much the same.

We'll probably run a sander over it to touch it up, and then finish it with an oil, like tung or linseed (or a mix of the two).

So, about the floor...

I mused more on the idea of a pallet floor yesterday.  The main problems being: collecting enough pallets to actually generate the needed amount of planks, the taking apart of all of those pallets, and most importantly the fact that most won't be an equal thinkness requiring planing and sanding as well as getting them all to stay put (since they won't be tongue and groove).  I'm not sure face nailing will keep the planks from cupping up in areas where the dog (or the people) might bring in more water on their feet.

So I got to thinking about inexpensive white pine floors.  The problem is, they would look rather...new.  I know they wouldn't stay "perfect" looking long, since pine is so soft, but they would have that light pine color that just wouldn't match the Cottage and might look weird with the ceiling in the living room.

And then I researched old fashioned stains.  I alread figured on using linseed or tung (or a mix of them) oil as a sealer.  So I wanted a similarly toxin free option to make my new floors look old (er).  After looking about, I found this blog about coffee staining and distressing: http://pumpkinpiepainter.blogspot.com/2011/05/my-coffee-stained-chain-beaten-wooden.html with this final photo as the result (ok, so it's not a floor, but same idea)

Not bad, huh?  I also know that iron can leave darker stains (think of old nails in wood) so I am thinking of doing a base coffee stain with bits of iron left on it to darken some areas-or just put some steel wool in vinegar and brush it on after letting it sit.

The flooring might not be settled, but one thing is for sure, when it is, it will be unique and it won't look new or perfect!  Exactly how we like it here at the Eclectic Cottage.

A New Project!

So I was going to blog about the paneling or other projects, but I've got a new project I'm excited about and hope to complete this week. 

We were driving down the road and saw this china cabinet set somewhat near the road.  Not on the curb though mind you.  I LOVED it.  But, no one was home and it wasn't at the street so we weren't sure it was really being thrown out.  It was still there the next day, and there was someone home, so we asked.  And he was throwing it out!

So we loaded it up and lugged it home.  Did I mention the other half of the cottage crew (my husband) was less than impressed?  I still loved it. 

So, today in 30 degree weather, I washed it up (it was a bit mildewy and had barn ick).  I wouldn't suggest washing your wooden furniture, but I wanted warm water...and it was pretty dirty.  I plan to paint it in a shabby cottage style and replace the broken glass with chicken wire.

Here's my latest find, from the Paramount Furniture Company in Warren PA in as found condition:

It wasn't originally black by the way...check out how the laminate is peeling on the door:

Broken glass:

Look at the beautiful handle:

See the detail work:

The original shipping label information with the model number: