LIVE LOVE LAKE

Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much is a favorite family quote of ours.  We have it hanging on the wall of our kitchen right next to the table that we eat dinner at every night.  It is sandwiched between our daily schedules and our calendars.  It's a daily reminder to all of us about what is important in life! So when I saw the exact same Live well, Laugh often, Love Much sign for $3 on a yardsale site I knew we had to have another one in our cottage.

We bought DuckHead cottage furnished.   It is rented for most of the summer and we couldn't imagine outfitting a house and kitchen in the few weeks we would own the house before our first renters arrived.  Even though the house is completely furnished we want to put our own stamp on it and make it feel like home to us.  Part of what makes our home feel like home is that we have filled it with things that mean something to us.  We love homemade artwork, favorite quotes, and items that make our home feel welcoming and cozy.  We want our cottage to feel the same.

I have been searching Pinterest for inspiration.  I LOVE this site!  It can be a little bit of a time suck but as my sister-in-law always says for all her amazingly inspiring birthday parties for the boys, "creativity by pinterest".  The site reminds me of the old days when I used to rip ideas out of magazines and newspapers and file them into file folders with various titles: Kitchen, Birthday Parties, Gardens, Recipes and More.  Then you can look back at each of your files and see what you are drawn to, how you can create that look, and inspiration for a little DIY.  Pinterest has definitely been inspiring me for ideas for the lake house.  I started pinning maybe even before we saw the house for the first time.  A few weeks in our maid of honor and good friend (who is following me on pinterest) said "Wait, What? Lake house?" in response to one of my pins.    I knew I was seeing her the following week for birthday pedicures so wanted to wait to tell her in person but her response made me smile.  I couldn't wait for her to know because I knew she and her boys would love it up there!  Just a little snapshot of what's been inspiring me lately:

I have been scouring our attic,  looking at Facebook yard sale sites, and shopping on craigslist.   I love bargains and sales on a good day but even more so with a second house to furnish and decorate!
Since this house was a rental in the past we have been able to read about what prior tenants liked and didn't like about this house when staying here.  One of the complaints was the beds.  While we don't have time to replace them all we do plan to add headboards to all the beds.  We will replace the futon bed in one room with a real bed.  Hopefully we'll find another spot in the house for the futon for relaxing on during the day and extra guests at night.

Doesn't this look cuter and comfier than a futon?

The pinterest inspiration

The perfect pair of turquoise chairs.
Thanks Gammie!

There is a tiny little table in the kitchen.  The perfect spot for a cup of coffee (or lemonade), a quick breakfast or lunch for two.  But unfortunately there were no chairs to go with it.  I found these turquoise beauties on Pinterest and have been keeping my eyes out for the perfect chairs to paint.  I even sent the picture on to my dad and step mom in the hopes that they might find some at a local tag sale or the trade spot at their local transfer station.  The next thing I knew my step mom was calling to tell me she drove by the perfect chairs in the EXACT color at a local store.  She went back a few days later and scooped up the last pair.  Apparently there are a four more of these beauties out there!

I also found some cool metal retro rocking chairs on a Facebook yard sale site.  Twenty dollars for a pair of two.  We had bought some outdoor chairs on sale at Lowes.  But these have so much more character.  They are chipping and old and in need of a paint job.  Of course I'm imagining them purple, to match the front doors.  I'll be sure to post a picture when they are done!  I hope they fit on the master bedroom "Juliette balcony" to replace the worn wicker ones that are there.  A nice place to drink coffee, read a good book, watch the activity on the lake, or sip a glass of wine.  If they don't fit I might just keep them here on my home front porch.  I love the retro feel with our antique porch.  Maybe I need another set?

(It's a few weeks later and look what hubby did while I was out!)

Eventually we want the cottage filled with chairs and tables and artwork all with a story to tell.  A house filled with artwork handmade with love, of furniture that has a sentimental history, of nicknacks made through creative collaboration.  We hope to create a lake house filled with love and life.

Happy father's day to all those wonderful dad's out there!!