Sunday, April 24, 2016

Overhead

The Living-Room Transformation - Second Flash-back

 

Sometimes less is more...


I have no idea what my style is, or even if I have a style. But basically, Cottage and I love to keep things simple. So far painting the dining room chairs in four very slightly different shades of blue has been my boldest move...

Je ne sais pas du tout si le style de déco que je crée pour Cottage a un nom, ni même si c'est un style particulier. Cottage et moi aimons que les choses soient simples. Jusque là, ce que j'ai fait de plus fou est de peindre les chaises chacune dans une teinte de bleu différente...


This picture was taken one morning after I finished breakfast... As I was leaving the room, I thought the light was really nice, and I snapped the picture with the teacup and teapot still there. I know it's difficult to figure out the different shades on the chairs on the picture. My camera isn't the best.

Cette photo a été prise un matin, après le petit déjeuner. J'ai juste trouvé que la lumière était jolie, j'ai pris la photo sans rien bouger de ma vaisselle  sale. Et oui, je sais, on ne voit pas bien la différence de teinte entre les chaises, mais c'est le mieux que puisse faire mon appareil photo.

Inspiration 1
 
Anyway, where was I? Oh, yes, about keeping things simple about decoration. Sometimes adding just a little touch can create a big impact, but sometimes removing something can make things all the more charming.

Euh ? Où allait mon article ?  Ah, oui, c'était à propos de la simplicité, meilleure amie de la décoration. En fait, d'après moi, c'est souvent l'ajout de petites choses qui crée le plus d'effet et parfois même, retirer quelque chose donne encore plus de charme à une pièce.

Inspiration 2
When I visited Cottage for the first time, the owners were very proud of the ceiling in the living-room, in which were inserted can lights. I wasn't so thrilled about it. It was covered with glassfiber wallpaper... One of my first question was: "Are the beams still under that?"

Quand j'ai visité Cottage pour la première fois, les propriétaires étaient très fiers de leur plafond avec spots intégrés. Moi, cela ne m'a pas emballée, ce plafond couvert de toile de verre... Une de mes nombreuses questions a donc été: "Mais les poutres sont toujours dessous ?"

Cottage Ceiling when I bought him.
I knew from day one that the days of that ceiling were numbered. We still managed to live together a whole year, me giving it the evil eye every time I entered Cottage... So many of my inspiration pictures for the living-room had exposed beams...

Inspiration 3

Je savais dès le début que les jours de ce faux plafond étaient comptés. Nous avons cohabité pendant un an, mais je lui lançais un sale œil chaque fois que je rentrais à la maison... Tant de mes photos d'inspiration comportaient de magnifiques poutres apparentes...

Inspiration 4
When we ripped it off, we found over our heads a wonderful Arlequin like ceiling in white, yellow and green. It made Cottage very dark, but a coat of All White made it all better.

Reality check 1
 Quand le faux plafond a été enlevé, on était encore loin de mes rêves... Je me suis retrouvée avec des poutres Arlequin en blanc, jaune ou vert suivant les anciennes pièces auxquelles elles appartenaient. Un petit coup de All White a permis d'unifier et surtout d'illuminer le salon.

Reality check 2
This is a good example of how often less is more. Removing the drywall ceiling actually added charm to Cottage, but it also added height to the living-room and it makes a huge difference in the way we feel in the room, it's less oppressive, even if the window is small.


C'est un parfait exemple de mon adage "moins signifie parfois plus en déco". Retirer ce faux plafond a rapporté le charme des poutres, mais cela a aussi permis de gagner de la hauteur et cela fait une grande différence dans une vieille maison dans laquelle les fenêtres sont petites.

You may or may not have noticed in the picture from the previous post that for now the lampshades on the chandelier are gone for now, as I need to dust the ceiling after a little dust creating project that went on upstairs... I found the energy to remove the lampshades, but not to dust!!!


Peut-être avez-vous remarqué dans la photo du dernier article (je vous la remets car comme le dernier article date de vingt ans...) que les abat-jour (je garde l'orthographe anté-1990) ont disparu du chandelier... C'est parce qu'il faut que je dépoussière le plafond après un petit projet bien poussiéreux effectué juste au-dessus et dont vous ne saurez rien... J'ai eu l'énergie d'enlever les abat-jour, mais pas encore de dépoussiérer...

Now, you won't get me to talk about the chandelier story just now. So let's change the subject, shall we? Spring is making its way to Brittany, but it's still chilly compared to what we're used to, so I'm late in my gardening work. As I really don't have much time this year, I decided to concentrate only on two things in the garden, the strawberry patch and the raspberry hedge.


Aucune chance que vous réussissiez à me faire parler de ce chandelier aujourd'hui, alors autant changer de sujet. Le printemps arrive lentement cette année en Bretagne et il fait toujours bien plus frisquet que d'habitude. Je suis donc très en retard dans mes projets au jardin. Pourtant, comme cette année est particulièrement peu généreuse en temps libre, j'ai décidé de me limiter à l'entretien de mes fraisiers et de mes framboisiers... Mais désherber en dessous de 10°C, c'est au-dessus de mes forces!

See you soon,

A bientôt,


PS1: I have a problem every time I comment on your blogs: the comment appears on them, but you don't get an email about it and I get a "failed delivery" message. Just know that I'm still reading and that I get about twleve of those "failed delivery" messages in my inbox each day. I have no idea how to fix the problem, so I jus do nothing about it ;)

PS2: I'm sharing this post with:
 Before and After Post Button         Join Us for Share Your Cup                 http://www.remodelaholic.com/beautiful-diy-projects/           

70 comments:

  1. Everything you have done is just lovely. The exposed ceiling looks great and I love the stone walls!

    ReplyDelete
  2. It's looking amazing! Love your inspiration photos!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I get that same kind of message from two of my regular readers and I know from what they say responding to me that they get my messages - I do not know why that happens I do get messages from you when you respond to something I have said. Love the beams on the ceiling!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I love what you are doing. I have the same problem, not sure what my decorating style is. I go from Boho to cottage it seems now.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Everything you have done to Cottage has turned out beautifully so I know your living room will too. The ceiling is gorgeous and you have very good instincts about what will look good. I just love everything you have done!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Quel boulot, mais qu'est-ce que cela valait la peine : c'est magnifique!!
    Félicitations!
    Le mur est splendide, j'adore!
    (Les anciens propriétaires ne reconnaitraient surement pas ce beau cottage!)
    Best wishes!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I'm getting the same message and have also done nothing about it, as I don't know what one can do. Maybe if one ignores it, it will go away.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Mmmm! Strawberries and raspberries sound delicious! I like your beams painted white and I like the chandelier without shades for a while. Now, about this little dust creating project upstairs. Are you just going to leave us tantalized? Happy Spring!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Due to health problems piling on top of a lot of work at school, I'm very late in my upstairs projects... I'm working a little on them every Sunday, so I hope I'll be able to say something about it this summer!

      Delete
    2. Magali, I didn't mean to be critical, I would not do that. I admire you for everything you have done to your cottage as a single working woman. I was just trying to be a little bit funny?


      Delete
    3. Oh, no worries, I didn't take it the wrong way at all, but I feel like I need to explain why the blog (and Cottage) aren't very well taken care of lately... Sorry, I should have replied in the same funny tone as you had used!

      Delete
  9. Hello dear Magali! I am SO very glad your charming cottage has you to love it. A few of my readers have mentioned that they are having the same problem commenting. I have no idea why that is. If I find out I will let you know.

    ReplyDelete
  10. P.S. Forgot to say I love the photo of your table. It looks like a still life painting.

    ReplyDelete
  11. C'est ravissant et ta maison a une âme , ce n'est pas juste une maison "déco tendance", on a l'impression que tout a toujours été comme c'est. Si je peux me permettre, d'après la photo, le plafond a l'air assez haute et la pièce plutôt grande, le lustre semble suspendu très haut, un peu trop haut à mon avis, mais je peux me tromper, je sais que les photos ne sont pas toujours conformes à la réalité.

    Caroline
    http://bleunordique.canalblog.com/

    ReplyDelete
  12. Fresh strawberries and raspberries, yum! Light and bright along with wood furniture sounds very nice, along with cozy quilts to snuggle with the kitties.
    Kathleen in Az

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I had many strawberries and raspberries last year and I picked them every evening before going back to my temporary cottage during the renovation... I hope to have many again this year, but I'm a bit worried our cold spring will ruin everything!

      Delete
  13. Magali - I love watching what you are doing to your precious home.

    Judy

    ReplyDelete
  14. Beautiful job, Magali. Tearing out the ceiling to expose those beams was the right thing to do for Cottage. Love your inspiration photos, and recognize #3. It's one of my favorites, too. ;) Hugs, Nancy

    ReplyDelete
  15. I love the exposed beams painted white and the stone wall in your living room. That inspiration picture with the wall of bookcases, the fireplaces and the chandeliers makes me want to cry. I love it so much and know that it can never happen in my little house. You could make it happen in yours, though!

    ReplyDelete
  16. The beams look so pretty-it's a good thing you removed the old ceiling. I also love the stone walls in the living room. Your shades of blue chairs are just right. Glad you are getting some spring weather!

    ReplyDelete
  17. I love the wall and the room does look larger with the ceiling removed. We did the same thing in down in the cellar...downstairs ours are beams they are floor joshes...but same affect. The room look beautiful with the stone walls...

    ReplyDelete
  18. I really like the beams in your ceiling but LOVE the different shades of blue on your chairs. What a great idea!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! It makes me smile every morning to see the painted chairs!

      Delete
  19. You are really bringing this cottage back to life!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Love the exposed ceiling beams and rock walls!

    ReplyDelete
  21. Magali, you and Cottage have been perfectly emulating that which inspires you. The beams, the stone, the white, the simplicity!!!!! PERFECTION! I was at the home of a friend yesterday taking photos; his style is VERY Parisian and when I came home, my house felt so empty compared to this beautifully styled and filled up apartment. However, I realized that I enjoy open spaces, echos in my home, and a few, only a few choice pieces. We love where we live and I can see you do too. HAPPY DAY!

    ReplyDelete
  22. C'est vrai que ça a bien plus de charme qu'avant, je ne sais pas comment faisais ces gens pour vivre dans une maison aussi sombre avec des couleurs aussi hallucinantes
    Heureusement que tu y as mis bon ordre
    Allez, belle semaine, la douceur va revenir jeudi

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. La décoration des anciens propriétaires était assez exotique... Dans certaines pièces, c'était assez réussi, mais ce n'est juste pas mon truc!

      Delete
  23. Magali,
    The exposed ceiling looks beautiful with the stone wall. Love love love! Have a beautiful new week ahead.
    Kris

    ReplyDelete
  24. What a gem to find that under the drop-down ceiling. If only the plumbing did not go over mine I wood pry it down asap =) I would love to see some sneak peaks of your lush garden, it feels very exotic from the hale and snow we are blessed with here =)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I also have some plumbing that I hid under a "faux" beam : one is bigger than the other because there's some plumbing hidden there.

      Delete
  25. Pauvre cottage... Il devait être en dépression quand tu l'as rencontré!
    C'est vraiment magnifique maintenant.
    Tu as piqué ma curiosité avec ce projet poussiéreux...

    Au plaisir de te relire très vite.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Le projet poussiéreux a un peu de mal à avancer et le temps froid et pluvieux ne m'encourage pas beaucoup!

      Delete
  26. It's amazing what a tremendous impact a ceiling has on a room! I love white ceilings with wood beams, or even all white. I was just saying this the other night while at a friends house who has that look.

    (I think I've been getting your comments without any issues)

    xxx

    ReplyDelete
  27. Looking lovely and so fresh and organized. I am afraid I am drawn to more clutter - organized clutter I guess. I so enjoy your blog Magali!

    ReplyDelete
  28. You were absolutely right in knocking down that drywall ceiling! Cottage is so charming. :)

    -andi

    ReplyDelete
  29. The ceiling is beautiful - a wonderful addition to the room. I can see where you're going with it - the inspiration rooms are lovely.
    I sometimes get on of those failed deliver notices, but see that the comment went on the blog anyway.

    ReplyDelete
  30. me gusta la # 2 Magali y que bonito se ve tu comedor y que buena idea de remover el techo te ganaste 100 puntos !! nelly

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. 100 puntos en un solo movimiento ! Espera a que dirá todo sobre la pared! Gracias por su visita, Nelly !

      Delete
  31. Je suppose qu'en cachant les poutres les gens pensaient que ça faisait plus cossu parce que j'ai appris récemment que pour les maisons en pierres, les enduire montrait la richesse du propriétaire et les pierres apparentes que le proprio n'avait pas les moyens, voilà pourquoi les grandes sont presque toutes en pierres brutes et apparentes.
    Les chats vont-ils bien?
    Bisous. Babette

    ReplyDelete
  32. Hi...the living room is lovely..i bet getting rid of that closet made a huge difference in the light too..your new stairs looks so much better..i have a few area i give the evil eye to as well..one day i hope to get my place looking like it's mine..i inherited it from my mom..an i haven't done much more then paint..i'd like to change the flooring..ripe out the bathroom..an if i could make the kitchen into a square..i would do that too..but i'm stuck with a galley kitchen that has no room to do much of anything really..you're such an inspiration..taking on all this work as a single girl an her cats..Bravo.!! can't wait to see what you get into next..hope you're week has started out nicely..we finally have spring here too..supposed to be 82* here tuesday..got my fingers crossed they're right for a change.!!

    ReplyDelete
  33. That was brilliant to remove the ceiling! The exposed joists are so beautiful...especially in white! I really want your stone wall at my house Magali! Do you think you could mail it to me?? Cheers :)

    ReplyDelete
  34. Hi Magali,
    I love Inspiration Room #1. That is a beautiful room and the rafters and furniture are a huge part of it. The fireplace adds the cream on the top. Now that is a room to visit in, relax in, and live in.
    After I leave a comment, it bounces back to me with this writing:

    Technical details of permanent failure:
    Google tried to deliver your message, but it was rejected by the server for the recipient domain gmail.com by gmail-smtp-in.l.google.com. [64.233.160.27].

    The error that the other server returned was:
    550-5.7.1 Unauthenticated email from aol.com is not accepted due to domain's
    550-5.7.1 DMARC policy. Please contact administrator of aol.com domain if this
    550-5.7.1 was a legitimate mail. Please visit
    550-5.7.1 https://support.google.com/mail/answer/2451690 to learn about DMARC
    550 5.7.1 initiative. ut7si21657622obc.55 - gsmtp

    I have gone to the site where it says above to visit to learn about DMARC but it doesn't do be any good. It is so complicated and the average computer user will not know how to correct it even after reading. It's a mess....

    Ginene

    ReplyDelete
  35. Hi Magali, what a stunning transformation! Cottage is indeed looking marvelous. Lisa@ Sweet Tea N' Salty Air

    ReplyDelete
  36. Your chairs are absolutely beautiful in the different shades of blue. Very subtle and soft. I agree - I love the exposed beams on ceilings. Adds so much charm!
    There is only one blog I comment on where I get those failed delivery emails, but yet my commment does show up on the blog. And I have no idea why it's just this one blog!

    ReplyDelete
  37. I like everything you've done so far. The cottage is looking very happy to me. And I get quite a few failed delivery emails as well.
    Amalia
    xo

    ReplyDelete
  38. Beautiful choice with the ceiling, and the blue chairs is a great touch!

    ReplyDelete
  39. What a difference opening up your ceiling made, Magali! I know just how you feel about dark gloomy finishes, and painting your beams white made all the difference! I love the warmth your stone fireplace adds in the all white space.

    Spring seems to be on hold in our area, so other than the allergic pollen from the trees, nothing much is happening in the way of plants in my yard.

    I'm having problems with comments coming to my email, too, so you're not alone. I'm hoping in time Blogger will fix the problem.

    Have a wonderful weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  40. Great call to pull all the drywall off the ceiling to expose the beautiful beams. What a difference! I love how the white paint opened it up and made such a difference. I know it was hard for you to wait, you much be a very patient person Magali. You really have an eye, everything looks just beautiful……….hugs.

    ReplyDelete
  41. Wow! I love the exposed beams of the ceiling.

    ReplyDelete
  42. Hi Magali, what a big difference it is in your living area to have the beams exposed. Huge I love it and the rock it amazing. You are really doing an incredible job on Cottage. Give yourself a pat on the back! xx Jo

    ReplyDelete
  43. gros chantier que la réfection des poutres mais le résultat est juste parfait !! le plafond lisse était sans charme et les spots encastrés, quelle horreur... Cottage peut se fier à votre bon goût ! bon week-end - bien cordialement - monique59

    ReplyDelete
  44. Wow! A beautiful renovation story! After gone through a very long reno to our home, I can appreciate all the work you've done to transform your gorgeous cottage!!! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  45. Renovations take time that's for sure and yours is looking great. Of the 4 chairs I actually like the medium colored paint the best. LOL Everyone has an opinion but I like how you made each chair different.

    ReplyDelete
  46. You are making so much progress in your little white house. I am copying your inspiration number one, for the wall bookshelf. We have too many books right now but even after I give many away, there will be plenty left. I am having a handyman place extra support under the floor of our bungalow in Nashville so it will support the weight of all the books. I like your idea about painting your kitchen chairs in different shades of the same color. I may do that for our kitchen, but for the tall stools that will stand under the kitchen island – that is a great idea. I do get your email responses, and appreciate them. Bonne continuation!

    ReplyDelete
  47. Thanks for sharing your renovation story. I have never had beam ceiling but it looks so charming!

    ReplyDelete
  48. Bravo !!! pour ce magnifique travail de décoration et de rénovation de cette maison, Cela donne un nouveau charme à cette demeure, vous lui avez donné un nouveau style, je reviendrai vous lire de nouveau avec plaisir, bonne journée.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Merci pour ce commentaire très encourageant. J'ai pris grand plaisir à voir vos réalisations sur votre site. J'adore, notamment, votre utilisation des carreaux de ciment dans les salles de bains.

      Delete
  49. It's always enjoyable to view your progress in your lovely cottage! :) I am Wordpress and your comment on my blog came in just fine! :)

    ReplyDelete
  50. It's always enjoyable to view your progress in your lovely cottage! :) I am Wordpress and your comment on my blog came in just fine! :)

    ReplyDelete
  51. I love visiting you and cottage and seeing what you're up to. You have brought the cottage to life!


    Thanks for sharing at SYC.

    ReplyDelete
  52. Love the second inspiration photo! Your cottage is looking more and more beautiful!! School will be in vacation here in the US soon. If you are in vacation there you can dedicate to all the decorating a bit more. Pinterest is just wonderful for that isn't? Have a wonderful weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  53. I think cottage is looking quite spiffy, and rivals the inspiration photo with the similar stone wall. I have problems with my comments sometimes, too - they don't always show up, which drives me crazy!

    ReplyDelete
  54. Your living room is going to be gorgeous!! LOVE those stone walls.

    ReplyDelete
  55. Correct me if I'm wrong, I think I discovered your blog because of your lovely ceiling! Thank goodness for your vision, and tenacity to uncover something so beautiful !

    ReplyDelete
  56. I love exposed beams. Sigh. I have dreams of a rustic/modern home.

    ReplyDelete

It makes me so happy to read your comments! Let me know you stopped by!
J'adore lire vos commentaires. N'hésitez pas à vous joindre à cette discussion multi-lingue.