Reclaimed Space

Let me preface this by reminding everyone who reads this that we have FOUR dogs. Our house is definitely not large enough for all of them, so we slowly tinker around with our set up trying to find a way to make living with them manageable for us and living with us manageable for them.

Lately, we have done quite a bit of tinkering. We set up a dog gate (extra tall) in our hallway to block access to the rest of the house. This gives us a nice, pen like space to put the Dobes when we don't want them to have free run of the house but we don't want to kennel them either. Look- it even has a small door small enough for just the pugs!


Then, we decided to reclaim the dog room as our own. We had used one of our extra bedrooms as a space to keep the dogs kenneled. However, we realized we could use the extra space and it was better to get used to having the dogs in the main living area since that is where they will ultimately need to be.

Where were we going to put the dogs? We ended up pushing our couch forward which solved two problems. First, it created the extra space we needed for Max's kennel (which is huge). Second, our living room rug now fits perfectly inbetween the couch and the entertainment console whereas previously there was a gap of tile.


So far, keeping the kennels in the main room of the house has worked for them and us. Joe recently found out that he is allergic to dogs and we have had to find ways to make living with FOUR dogs as undamaging to his health as possible. We have four air purifiers, an Animal Dyson and have also insisted upon a "No Dogs in any carpeted area" rule. More than anything, this rule has eased up on the allergens in the house because dust and fur are much easier to spot and clean on tile then on carpet where they linger in the fibers. An old, unused dog gate is now positioned on the stairs and keeps the dogs out of the loft as well.

So, how are the humans enjoying their new, extra space? Very much! We are using the extra bedroom as a studio and spend a lot of our down time painting. Eventually, this room will become the nursery but until then we are enjoying it for ourselves :)

Oils

Here is some more artwork that Joe and I have been working on. We spend a great deal of our time painting and reclaimed the dogs room (more on that later) and transformed it into a studio room for us.

Joe's Gargoyle

My Tiger Lily (work in progress).

Joe's Rose. This is his first painting.

Joe's portrait of the Dobermans (work in progress). I think he is doing a wonderful job!!!

Hobbies

It seems Joe and I are getting to that phase in life where we start developing new hobbies. Joe and I have most recently taken up oil painting. Our lovely friends George and Jeanine offered to let us come to their studio and give us a painting lesson. Since then, we've begun stocking up on supplies and spend quite a few days a week painting.

To do this, we cover our dining room table with a giant beach towel and set up our palettes, easels, canvas, medium, turpentine, brushes and oils. Then we're off!

Joe has been primarily painting roses and he has a work-in-progress Gargoyle. I have been sticking to landscapes and seem to end up with a beach scene no matter what I do. As our desire to paint has increased, so has our need for additional shelving to display our art work. We've already run out of room! Oil paints take time to dry- Mine take an espicially long time to dry since I tend to slather on the paint. This means that we have to find a place to display our finished artwork but also our works-in-progress while they dry.

Joe and I each have one finished painting. I have 3 pending paintings and Joe has 2. I'll post pictures as they start getting completed.

The painting above is one I finished last night. The only reason it was finished is because I did it in one sitting (as opposed to adding several layers). Joe has a beautiful rose painting which I need to take a photo of and then will post as well.