I remember years ago my cousin cleaned homes to make some extra money. She told us she used a soft cloth and a spray bottle full of water and 1 drop of Amway LOC (a gentle soap with a coconut oil base). She said she sprayed a mist from the bottle onto the rag, and then dusted with the rag. That has always amazed me because I can't imagine dragging anything with water in it across wood. ** copied** Jenn, water does not bother wood any more than it "hurts" human skin. Of course, in either case an excessive amount is harmful. Most furniture is either waxed and/or protected by polyurethane as it is. To really baby things, use rain or evaporator water;wipe with a slightly damp cloth , then use a dry soft cloth. But if there are no deposits in the water, one may be able to get away with one wipe.. But, I can see the point, IMO, a damp rag will do less "harm" than a dry one. The pressure applied should be no more than necessary. I wonder if anyone has ever done a scientific study on this ?? I'll bet a 500 year old table, even being "perfectly" cleaned once a week is full of worn areas and scratches !!

I have an almost 200-year-old house with the original wide pine boards in most areas. Sag? They roll like the mighty Atlantic. And make almost as much noise as a flock of seagulls (the birds, not the band). But they are structurally sound. So I don't give it a second thought. That word "unfitted" from igloochic is key, and the advice from Jane to look at British magazines and Web sites, where the look and furniture are more common, are very good advice. Fired Earth, Plain English Design, the Kitchen Dresser Company, Thomas & Thomas are among the companies that make free-standing kitchen furniture you can view online. It's not necessarily Victorian in style, but it is definitely meant to be used by people who, like you, move into an essentially empty room labeled "kitchen", so it's worth looking at. I'm not an island person, so I may be biased, but I think a nice oak table would be the thing for your kitchen. Some have a shelf underneath and can store pots. You can pick them up for not too much money, particularly if the dealer wants a huge table out of the store fast! A big armoire can be a pantry or pot storage. Things don't have to be on wheels, but if the floor is soft pine, it's good to distribute the weight of table legs or armoire feet on padded blocks so they don't dent the floor. Looking at a lot of magazines/Web site photos actually helps. And taking a stack of favorites and looking for a single thing like "how do they do X?" helps. Something as odd as "How did they get that stove to vent without going back through the wall? Could I live with that?" Sometimes seeing that someone else has accepted an odd solution gives you the courage to stick with one yourself. Good luck. And do take your time. Your house has waited this long for you!

This is a great opportunity to work together with her to get a room she will like when she's finished. These days, it's quite easy to find pictures on the internet and let her choose one that she likes, and adapt it to her own room and furniture. But please don't just ask her to "pick colors she likes" and just paint her room that color, with no concrete vision of what it will look like. Saying that it can be repainted isn't really helping her to learn how to do this right. What she can learn here is that (1) wall paint should be the last choice and (2) paint looks a lot different on a whole wall, than a little chip. And making her learn it the hard way, i.e. doing it wrong the first time, is unnecessary. The objective is to help her to get a room that she will like, not something that she may not like with the idea that she will have to live with her choice, or repaint it. That seems mean to me. I don't get the "it's just paint" comments. People have busy lives between work and family commitments, and that's a lot of work in my book. Alternatively, no-one will paint it for free. Shouldn't the objective be to help her make the right choice the first time?

A child now in a crib will be needing a calming vibe -- it is in your best interest for the child's bedroom to have a calming vibe.. Is that floral fabric bedding and/or window treatment? That's likely more appealing to an adult than a small child -- has a "busy", crowded "where's Waldo" vibe to it. Seriously consider neutral colors for the wall and a not very busy pattern (with limited colors) for any rug. A child that is crawling or walking around barefoot would likely want a soft feel more than a complex pattern. Bedding and curtains can be relatively easily replaced as a child ages but you don't want to be redoing the walls or flooring or rug each year as the child's interests and tastes change. For bedding/window treatments and rug, you might choose a half dozen patterns you would accept and then see which one the child, without nudging, gravitates toward -- if, of course, the child is old enough to reach for one or the other. For a little girl's room, you might consider a somewhat more muted/pastel color with more space in between -- floral, yes, but less flower and more background. https://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Jojo-Designs-Watercolor-Childrens/dp/B083W11V8S/ref=pd_lpo_201_img_2/136-9494044-5156007?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B083W11V8S&pd_rd_r=ed95dc46-79e6-4ce5-870a-6db67f55fa4c&pd_rd_w=iHpSU&pd_rd_wg=SpLge&pf_rd_p=7b36d496-f366-4631-94d3-61b87b52511b&pf_rd_r=F5CNWVTBD4HSRFJ9637D&psc=1&refRID=F5CNWVTBD4HSRFJ9637D https://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Jojo-Designs-Watercolor-Childrens/dp/B07NF1FS65/ref=pd_lpo_201_img_1/136-9494044-5156007?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B07NF1FS65&pd_rd_r=ed95dc46-79e6-4ce5-870a-6db67f55fa4c&pd_rd_w=iHpSU&pd_rd_wg=SpLge&pf_rd_p=7b36d496-f366-4631-94d3-61b87b52511b&pf_rd_r=F5CNWVTBD4HSRFJ9637D&psc=1&refRID=F5CNWVTBD4HSRFJ9637D https://www.crateandbarrel.com/genevieve-gorder-twin-floral-quilt/s330285?localedetail=US&a=1552&campaignid=1733408149&adgroupid=67501599306&targetid=pla-616762710400&pla_sku=330285&pcat=HSW&ag=kids&scid=scplp330285&sc_intid=330285&gclid=Cj0KCQjw3Nv3BRC8ARIsAPh8hgJRKt9mGHNW9LF0Vml_Ny_YHK-1szgoaTcLFoEDMtfES7MkuHuLaUwaAoQMEALw_wcB https://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Jojo-Designs-Yellow-Sunflower/dp/B07W62GCXJ/ref=pd_sbs_201_5/136-9494044-5156007?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B07W62GCXJ&pd_rd_r=96353260-4c51-4b78-b84c-6df3fbda5bd9&pd_rd_w=l7UP5&pd_rd_wg=ZQ0Ax&pf_rd_p=bdc67ba8-ab69-42ee-b8d8-8f5336b36a83&pf_rd_r=MXZ1GM6T1MQWH4ZZXBC8&psc=1&refRID=MXZ1GM6T1MQWH4ZZXBC8 https://www.wayfair.com/Vera-Bradley--Coral-Floral-Cotton-Reversible-Comforter-Set-A306A17PKEBS-L1221-K~VVBB1034.html?refid=GX434587141676-VVBB1034_28510238&device=c&ptid=905354799537&network=g&targetid=pla-905354799537&channel=GooglePLA&ireid=52813520&fdid=1817&PiID%5B%5D=28510238&gclid=Cj0KCQjw3Nv3BRC8ARIsAPh8hgKZP9VbYf84_orI72DuhPbedezoHzY9kCFpLXm8bcdyi7hXYceBtVwaAs1VEALw_wcB  https://www.countrydoor.com/p/elena-floral-mini-comforter-set-766746.html?source=google&code=PLA_Campaign-Computer&medium=inhaus&link=766746&cm_mmc=google--PLA_Campaign-Computer--All+Products--766746&cm_mmca1=ABA&mkwid=sQ1PiwG4h-dc_pcrid_431602253261_pkw__pmt__slid__product_766746_pgrid_34406745551_ptaid_pla-804416356480&gclid=Cj0KCQjw3Nv3BRC8ARIsAPh8hgJbBLXOWkQZDeP4CI-96ckpJ4askCD2NpjmtTHXdZ3rc7W0-dKj-IwaAg5VEALw_wcB