The mermaid house.

On another note, which is also a work of art, I wanted to show off the icing to the cake of my home renovation. The fireplace! My husband and I (it's still weird to say that word) have been working for over 2 years at remodeling my house. I bought the hand painted tile almost 2 years ago from the talented Marlene of Water Spider Designs. I live in a water town. I wanted my house to have a beach cottage feel to it. So when I saw this beauty I knew she would be the crowning touch to our project.  I have always loved the water, water sports, SCUBA diving.... and I feel a kinship with the mermaid. I am fascinated with mermaid lore. Anyway, I am very pleased with the house. Sadly, now that it is finished, we are going to put it on the market to sell. It is just too small to house our artistic hobbies. Frank wasn't sure about putting up the mermaid tile. He was afraid it wasn't generic enough for buyers of houses who want to do their own thing.... not everyone likes mermaids after all....and he was afraid that it would end up being torn down. And he asked if I wanted to bring her with us to our new home? But she belongs here. This is the mermaid house. Whoever buys it will buy it in part BECAUSE of her.   And our new home will be... different. It will be a new artistic project with a feel of it's own.

Hand painted tile by Water Spider Designs -  mermaid series.

My antique fireplace mantle found at an auction. It is covered with generations of paint. Beneath lies beautiful tiger striped oak. Too big a project for me to refinish... so I just repainted.

My living room. Ahhhhh. Yes.