Cottage Hallway Progress + Garden Cake Fun

Wow, so many nice warm welcomes and encouragement from all of you last week - that's so sweet:) Sometimes I think my house is out to get me but I know that's not true - I know it wants to be completed just as much as I want it to be! Thank you for your kind words of support!

Another busy week here at our cottage in the making... I've been into a little of this and that and everything, from Goodwill "treasure makeovers" (I'll share those later) to cake making to shopping for business supplies to mudding drywall in our hallway. It seems that the only time I can be still is when I sit and visit with my birds while I drink my coffee in the morning!

So do you remember how short our hallway ceiling was before we removed the old ceiling? Literally, the ceiling sat right up above the door trim as you can see from the next two pictures.





After ripping out the old ceiling, we added the new drywall. I worked on mudding a bit this week. Here is the hallway thus far... It's strange how just a foot in height can really open up a space.



I made another garden cake and thought I'd share. These are so fun to make! This particular cake was lemon with lemon curd filling....MMMM! I used Duncan Hines Butter cake mix, lemon buttercream frosting, and the filling (below) from this recipe.

Lemon Curd Filling
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon cornstarch
6 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup white sugar
4 egg yolks, beaten

To make filling: In medium saucepan, mix together 1 tablespoon lemon zest, 1/2 cup lemon juice and 1 tablespoon cornstarch until smooth. Mix in 6 tablespoons butter and 3/4 cup sugar, and bring mixture to boil over medium heat. Boil for one minute, stirring constantly. In small bowl, with a wire whisk, beat egg yolks until smooth. Whisk in a small amount of the hot lemon mixture. Pour the egg mixture into the sauce pan, beating the hot lemon mixture rapidly. Reduce heat to low; cook, stirring constantly, 5 minutes, or until thick (not to boil). Pour mixture into medium bowl. Press plastic wrap onto surface to keep skin from forming as it cools. Cool to room temperature. Refrigerate 3 hours.







I received a couple of questions last week that I want to make sure I answer:):

I do have one question, all your photos are perfect quality and look like they are from a magazine, what kind of camera are you using? Do you have special photography flash's you are using?~Thanks!
Kristine

Thanks for the compliment, Kristine. The truth is, I hate having to photograph anything because photography is really tricky for me. My camera is big with lots of options and lenses- and that sometimes overwhelms me. It's an older Digital Rebel, though, and it's a great camera. The newer ones are suppose to be really awesome! I usually try to photograph in lots of natural sunlight and don't use a flash. I also use a tripod when I can to avoid blurry photos. THEN if my photos still turn out too dark, I upload them to Pixenate and select the "fill light" icon to add a bit more "natural" light to my photos without washing them out. Oh to just shoot and upload photos without all that fuss! No wonder it takes me so long to update my blog!

Would you give us a quick comment on those spools? I have saved wooden spools from my mother -- a great seamstress -- and this looks like a wonderful thing to do with them.
lucia

Lucia, these spools are so fun and easy to alter. I simply painted the spools, distressed them with sandpaper, and then measured the inner length and diameter of the spool. I found pretty scrapbooking paper, cut them to my measurments, and glued them around the spools. Lastly, I printed out some of my favorite words to glue to the paper seam. Easy Peasy! If you try this, let me know...I'd love to see your altered spools!


I love the (robin's egg blue) color!!! You'll have to post the ingredient label, so we all can enjoy it in our homes! ~Ambrea



Ambrea, I am so loving this color, too, and would love to share the ingredients! I looked on my can and I don't know if this will help you or not, but this is what it says on the top:

Manual Dispense One Gallon
107-17.5
101-13
103-10.5
Valspar Eggshell Base 1

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!