Scavenger Chic

Painted Ladies of Takoma Park

• By Joan
• September 24, 2018
• No Comments

On Wednesday I babysat my grandbaby and after days of rain, the sun was finally making an appearance so we (meaning me, at 5 months he has no say in the matter) decided to get the stroller out and take advantage of the beautiful day.

We’re walking and walking, I’m describing what we’re seeing, and wouldn’t you know it, the little guy falls asleep on me.

Well now I couldn’t go back because then I’d be messing up his nap schedule.  One thing I know is he doesn’t transfer well to the crib, and if I stop strolling, he’ll wake up.

I’ve noticed all the beautiful color combos on all the houses before so I might as well take this opportunity to have a little fun and take pictures of some of these beauties.

If you’re tired of cookie cutter houses and looking to change up your own paint color maybe one of these will inspire you.  I’m calling these painted ladies after the more famous painted ladies in San Francisco.  What San Francisco has going for it is you can take one picture and get all the houses in one shot.  Mine were kind of spread out but no less colorful.

The neighborhood I’m walking in is the town of Takoma Park.  Takoma Park is located just north of Washington DC.  It’s a quirky , artsy neighborhood where just about anything goes.  The houses are a mix of late 1800 farmhouses, 1920’s bungalows and midcentury ranch houses.

I found this house kind of interesting, it looked like it was painted by two different people.  I would have liked just a little bit of color on the shutters on the second story to go with the rainbow of colors on the first level.

My son was looking over my photos and told me an architect lives here.  Pretty sure this is not one of the late 1800’s houses.

Right next to the modern black house above sits this yellow red and green beauty.

One other thing Takoma Park has is trees.   The town is known for it’s urban forest.  Any removal or pruning of a tree has to  have ..

1. Tree Impact Assessment.
2. Tree Protection Plan Agreement. 
3. Tree Removal Permit. 

It’s probably easier to just let the trees grow.

Also on my walk I probably passed over a half dozen Little Free Libraries. Apparently there are 25  Little Free Libraries in Takoma Park alone, and according to their website, worldwide there are currently over 75,000 of the little libraries in 85 countries.   Go  to https://littlefreelibrary.org/ to hopefully find a library near you.

If you’re interested, the site also has building plans, hints and tips and how to register your own library.

Besides houses and libraries, I also spied a couple of arbors that I wouldn’t mind in my own backyard.  This one was actually found in the front yard but was hidden from view from the street with huge ornamental grasses.

Another smaller arbor with bench seating frames the walkway to the front door.

I didn’t start taking pictures of house numbers until I was almost finished so I’ve only included two.

Maybe on my next walk I’ll have to pay closer attention to the house numbers.  I’m sure the artsy people of Takoma Park will have some great ideas.

Painting right on a tree…who does that?

Stay inspired.

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