The Fine Art of Compromise.....

"Compromise, if not the spice of life, is its solidity. Its what makes nations great and marriages happy."

~Unknown~

I have been much inspired by all the fall decorating going on out there in the land of blog and finally got a little bit done myself this morning. I was having a hard time getting motivated due to the fact that I am still in mourning for my mantle! Seriously, it has been a year and you'd think I would have gotten over it by now but I haven't. It all started when handy hubby and I decided to remodel our fireplace. We had redone the entire room and the old quirky stone was just not working with the new room. BEFORE.....
So, we dismantled it. I went tile shopping and came up with two choices. I took my budget and finance committee (handy hubby) with me to see the selections. There was a bit of a debate over the two due to price difference but he suddenly changed his mind and gave in to my top choice. I should have known then that he had something up his sneaky little check book.I quickly went to work tiling, grouting, and sealing, loving the final result. We decided to recycle the old mantle as it was the right size we just engineered it to be free floating and left off the old brackets. I then sanded, primed, painted, and sealed it using the same color as all my trim. We also converted the fireplace from wood burning to gas logs. I readily admit that I miss a real wood fire but don't miss the mess. DURING.....That is when he casually mentioned his desire to get a flat screen TV. I admit his plan was very clever. He said that by doing that we could eliminate the entertainment center all together making our little cottage living room more spacious. Living in a small home, space is always at a premium and I liked the idea of more floor space. Then he subtly hinted that we could have even more room if we hung the object of his affection over the fireplace. Then he went in for the kill suggesting that he could hang the TV in such a way as to conceal the wires, even better, by utilizing the built in book shelves for all the electronic gadgets ALL the wires could be hidden. A small, well concealed door could be fashioned into the side of the fireplace to access any cords as needed. I caved! I mean how could I resist no cords showing? Cords are the demise of every design! AFTER....We managed to marry our two design differences, leaving a little room for a bit of beauty.For us it was a great compromise, he loves his TV and I love my tile with nary a cord in sight! That's really what marriage is all about, a little give and take for one anothers sake. As of this coming Saturday, handy hubby and I will have been practicing the fine art of compromise in marriage for 28 years! Now if we could just come to an agreement about those outdated tiles on the floor! I'll leave you with a few sneak peeks at another decorating project I did this morning and will post on it when I return on Monday. Have a great weekend!
Blessings,
Miss Sandy