JULY - At Home with Dianne Wood
Hi and welcome into my home for a little glimpse of where I spend most of my time.
I live in Danville, Virginia with my hubby Bill and little dachshund, Belle. And of course our 4 granddaughters who love spending time here with us. So many of the features we added to our home was really all for them. See, we have only been here for 8 months. It took us a year and a half to build our home not to mention all the planning that went in to it before we even started. I redesigned the entire inside to get exactly what I wanted. This was a labor of love:)
Our lawn was a beautiful lush green, however the tender new grass didn't stand a chance during the recent drought.
I wanted a home that was "Fun". You know, places and features that my granddaughters will always remember. Some of those fun things include...
A musical doorbell that plays 65 tunes. You can choose the song for different occasions and holidays. They love ringing the doorbell. I remember my grandmother had a doorbell that was in her door knob. It was sort of like a wind up toy. You just turned it around and around for the bell to ring. We must have driven her "NUTS" just ringing that bell. So the whole "door bell" thing brings back lots of memories of my grandmother's house.
We also installed a "Dumb Waiter" for the girls to use to carry their drinks and food upstairs to the theater room. Not only is this fun for them, it keeps food spills from the stairway. I must admit though, I use it to haul books, heavy boxes and anything else that needs to go upstairs to my office and hobby room. It's a real back saver.
Then "for me"..... My Porches .....
This was a MUST have ....no exceptions made!
This is my side porch where friends and family enter.
Click on photos for a closer look.
And then it's off to the back screened porch for dining and relaxing. We head this way when the "bugs" start to bite:)
Let's go inside.....
Our kitchen is truly the "heart of our home"! Although I'm not a gourmet cook, I LOVE my gourmet kitchen.
Since our Breakfast Room is the room you enter into from the side porch, I use this as my main seasonal decorating space. I love the white furniture. Everything I add there just seems so cozy and warm. Views of the kitchen and the side porch make this room special and a perfect spot for family memories.
One the MOST favorite rooms that I designed is my ROOM size Butler's Pantry. I simply LOVE this area of our home. Let me tell you about it as we go:)
Here you can see lots of drawers. This is where I keep little things like napkin rings, cookie cutters, packaging supplies and other small items that usually create clutter and are hard to keep handy. The counter top here holds canisters, drink dispensers and other small appliances. On the left is my Baking Center. My mixer sits there ready for mixing and stirring with all those heavy bowls in the cabinet below. Pullouts were placed there to make them easy to grab.
O.K. Just a little more to show you some of our moldings and woodwork and a few of our other rooms.
Notice how you can see from the living room into the kitchen and on into the breakfast room and out onto the porch. I wanted individual rooms, however I also wanted to enjoy all the rooms from different views.
Below is a view between the family room and kitchen with door leading to back porch. This dining area serves as a spill over from the kitchen when we all can't fit around the kitchen island. What is it about EATING in the KITCHEN. It seems that is where everyone wants to be.:)
I hope you've enjoyed your tour of my home. Home is the haven where we snuggle and dream. May all your Dreams come True.
Warmest wishes, Dianne Wood
Visit Dianne online at: www.fromdesperatetodiva.com www.homestyledivas.com and her blogs at www.desperatediva.typepad.com
**If you would like YOUR home featured, please contact jennifer@beautifulshops.com**
