Every house has its big features, and you can read about all of ours on The Features of the Land, Buildings and Surrounding Area. This article is about the little things. They’re the small perks I’ve come to love after living here for nine years, the kind you only notice once you’ve made a place your home.
The bay window in the dining room
The dining room has a bay window that sticks out from the wall, so it catches light from three sides. It has become my little indoor garden. Spider plants hang their long leaves over the edge, a polka-dot begonia spreads its big speckled leaves, and trailing purple plants tumble down the side. Looking past them, you can see the deck and the woods beyond.
A bay window like this is a gift for anyone who loves plants. The deep sill holds lots of pots, the plants get sun all day, and in winter it’s a cheerful spot of green right where you sit down to eat.
The octagon window
This eight-sided window has an egret etched into the glass. Look through the egret and you can see the wooded Ozark hills rolling away, turning gold, orange and red in the fall. It’s one of the most inspiring things in the house. Just looking at it helps me feel peaceful. It’s also one of the hardest things to photograph, because the light pours in so brightly. This picture gives you an idea, but it’s even prettier in person.
The octagon window sits high on a flat wall, so it lets in light while keeping your privacy.
My plants love the octagon window. When the sun comes through, the light glows across the wall, and the plants lean right toward it. That spot always feels peaceful to me.
A kitchen bar with hidden storage
Two wooden stools pull right up to the kitchen bar. It’s the natural place to sit with a cup of tea, keep the cook company, or help chop vegetables for supper.Here’s one of the cleverest little details. Under the bar, on the same side as the stools, there are extra cabinets. I keep jars of beans, grains and seeds, plus bowls and a storage bin, in there. The counter reaches out over them, but it’s still really easy to get to everything. Because these cabinets open from the stool side, there’s no deep cabinet at the end of the counter where things get lost and you can’t reach them. It’s such a good use of space.
Shades and curtains that suit a log house
The downstairs bedrooms and one of the upstairs bedrooms have bamboo shades. Pulled down on a hot afternoon, they block the strongest sun but still let in a soft, warm light. They go so well with the cypress walls.Rolled up, the same bamboo shade opens the room to the green trees outside. This bedroom also has a roomy closet with wire shelves, so there’s plenty of space to keep things organized.In the master bedroom, long cream curtains hang from iron rods on the cypress walls. This one is drawn over a window. The curtains soften the room, block the morning light when you want to sleep in, and help keep out drafts and sound.
The living room has both blinds and curtains too, so you can choose just how much light to let in.
Room for books and faith
Right under the octagon window, a small bookshelf holds some of my favorite books, with plants on top soaking up the light. The sign on the wall says, “Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” It’s a good verse for a house that’s waiting for its next family.
Thoughtful touches everywhere
There are so many little details in this house that make it feel like someone thought deeply about how to nurture the people living here. The kitchen faucet is one of them. Robert and my son Chris installed it together. It’s just a really nice faucet, the kind you appreciate every time you wash a dish.
Storage is another. The downstairs bathrooms have roomy shelves. One of the downstairs bedrooms has a very small closet, so my son added a shelf to make the most of it. He also put shelves in the utility closet under the stairs in the living room, so that little space holds much more than you’d expect. That was one of the wonderful things about the six months my son and daughter-in-law lived here with my grandchildren. They added lovely touches and made improvements all through the house.
Come see the little things for yourself
So much thoughtfulness went into this house, and it’s just waiting for someone to step into it. Photos can only show so much. The way the light moves through the octagon window, the green of the bay window in winter, the feel of the cypress walls: those are best seen in person. For the full list of what the property offers, see The Features of the Land, Buildings and Surrounding Area, and browse Every Article, by Topic.
[…] The small things I’ve come to love: The Little Perks of the Living Springs Log House […]
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