a mystery solved!

My sewing room is in more disarray than normal today after a day of rearranging. Yesterday, my husband (who apparantly did not have enough projects going on already) decided to get to the bottom of a little mystery in our old house: "why don't the windows in the sewing room open?" To explain, the sewing room is actually an add-on to this old house and started out life 'round about 1873 as a wraparound porch. At some point long ago, the porch was expanded and enclosed and these strange windows, with the screens on the inside, were installed. With so many other things to work on in this house, the mystery of the wierd windows has been - up until yesterday - relegated to the back burner behind new roof, wiley squirrels, painting, invading kudzu, refinishing floors, lighting-challenged dining room, etc. I love this house. But sometimes I have a love/hate relationship with her. Last week on facebook, I posted about how we were putting crown moulding up and that NOTHING in the house is straight or level. The windows remind me why I love her :-)

I looked at the windows a couple of times and then moved on. They are beautifully shaped and pleasing to look at. Made well and very old. But there are other parts of the house that interest me more and, besides, I have suffered in this stuffy sewing room cursing whoever designed it for the last 8 years. Charlie, on the other hand, has been annoyed this whole time because he has not been able to figure these windows out. Until yesterday.

In the middle of moving a guest bed out of the sewing room (apologies to my sister for making her sleep in this room when she has come to visit - now ya'll get to share the girls' playroom upstairs!), Charlie decided to take another look at the windows. Inside, sanwiched between the screen and the window and hidden under years of peeled paint and Lord knows what, was a strange looking bent piece of metal. What the heck? Well, he pulled off the screen, took it out and also discovered that there are hand cranks on the windows!!! I cannot tell you how excited we were. The house and I are friends again :-)

Have a great day! michelle