Bella Dreams

Should You?

2012-03-15T15:34:00.001-05:00

This post would best be titled SHOULD YOU, COULD YOU, WOULD YOU??? As in….. should you remove ALL of the old wallpaper before you texture and paint? Could you…..just maybe…….texture and paint right over it? Would you DARE texture and paint over five (yep 5) layers of wallpaper.
The answer, of course, is quite simple. YES you should remove the old wallpaper. NO you wouldn’t dare texture and paint over five layers of paper. And well…..could you…..I was about to find out. Heather said I had lost my mind. But then again, I was the same person who had hung all five layers of wallpaper in their bathroom.
So Heather agreed to texture my bathroom walls. I believe her final words before starting were “don’t blame me if you come downstairs in the morning and wallpaper and texture are all over the floor.”
So I held my breathe……and guess what? IT worked!
But as a final disclaimer. I would have to say “don’t try this at home!” This is not a project for any sane person!

I LOVE it! Of course, I have no before pictures. But this bathroom was in dire need of a redo. Because the vanity was still in excellent shape we decided to keep it intact and I just painted the cabinets. What had been a dark almost Aubusson blue, I painted in……uummm……I’m too lazy to go downstairs and look at the can but I think it was the Anne Sloan French Linen? At first I wasn’t too crazy about it. It looked almost like a dull concrete color. But after Heather sanded the cabinets for me and I painted the walls, I began to like it more and more.

I kept the crown hardware that I already had. You can actually see it with the lighter colors.

This is a very dark bathroom. The difference with the lighter colors is soooooo refreshing after a dark chocolate brown.

My “Three Sisters” vintage picture found its way back into the vanity area. That’s my Nanny, as I called her, in the middle with her two sisters when they were all very young.
Some how, I kind of ended up with a cherub theme in here. Not intentional at all.

I painted the yucky gold mirror that I already had in old white chalk paint. The wings came from Hobby Lobby. They were welded together and hanging from a chain. It was a simple thing to just pry them apart. That’s another vintage photo above. Yes it’s ME! Vintage, for sure!!

Pictures tell all, don’t they? I have GOT to make a cord cover for my lamp and paint my outlet covers.

I love buying the scented pump hand soaps from T.J. Maxx. They smell yummy! I sat them in a $1.00 thrift store tray with old buttons.

Keeping it simple in the tiny potty area. Another vintage pic. of moi.

The shower curtain is from Target, Shabby Chic collection. I still have to add a ruffle to the bottom. I want it hung clear to the top of the soffit.

This old window will hang directly opposite the vanity. Still have to clean it and attach hooks.
And new carpet in the vanity area finished this project off!
Now I love walking into my like new guest bath! Next project will be the master bath. We already have it completely gutted and Hubby is working on the floor. These projects have been on my “to do” list for a long time. I’m excited to finally be on the road to completing them!

Joining these fun parties......
Stuff and Nonsense-Fridays Unfold
Feathered Nest Friday
Friday at The Charm of Home
Inspiration Friday at The Picket Fence
Vintage Inspiration Friday at Common Ground

The direct links for these fun parties may be found on my bottom left side bar. Please visit them all and join all of the fun!
Denise

I Wish………

2012-03-07T17:01:00.001-06:00

…….That I could get over this LOUSY respiratory flu junk that I have. I’ve been sick for over a week. And now the antibiotics seem to be doing a number on my tummy. YUKKKKK!!!

I had just finished reworking my sewing area and was ready to go go go…….

I kinda begged/borrowed/maybe permanently requisitioned…..this awesome 6’ table from our friend Ms. R. It’s made of reclaimed wood and even though one of the boards is a little warped, I still LOVE it for cutting fabric. I FINALLY have everything I need in the same room!

It sits right in front of my sewing table. And…..I made myself a great chandelier to hang above it. Between the light over my sewing machine and my chandie, I now have plenty of light to work.

Lots of pretty fabric just waiting to be used.

happy paper flowers

I moved this little curio cabinet close to the sewing machine. I thought it was going to be pretty frivolous and useless.

But in fact, I’ve store ribbons and other goodies in it and it has really helped me be more organized.

Other goodies close at hand

I keep thread and bobbins right beside the machine.

And THIS…………

……Is my favorite little area!

It’s where all of my little whimsies and antique goodies that used to belong to my Mother live.

I think I have every Holiday represented except Halloween! Now of course, I MUST find something to include in my little fantasy corner!

Hope you’re having a great week. The doctor’s office was so full of sick people the other day, they had the waiting room sectioned off into sick/nonsick.

It’s goin’ around I guess!

Denise

Jack’s Room (Part 2)

2012-03-01T18:48:00.001-06:00

When I found this photo on Pinterest, it was love at first sight.

It originated from the Laura Ashley web site. I love everything about it. The old post cards, the fact that it is nature inspired. Just the entire look.

So…..I set about trying to find a place in the house to do something similar. My space is limited but I had oooonnne little area in Jack’s room.

Yes, it’s a work in progress. I have started using things that I already have.

Yes, it needs more. But as we know, the hunt is part of the fun!

I also rearranged the top of my book case.

And the shelves.

And Jack……well, what can I say. He’s just part of the landscape.

Large dog plus cat equals creative places to keep kitty food.

As of the writing of this post………kitty is NOT impressed with his new and improved surroundings…….

Denise

Workshop News!

2012-02-28T17:29:00.001-06:00

Saturday was our first ever paint workshop and it was a HUGE success!! All of the girls brought wonderful little pieces of furniture. Each one turned into an individual piece of art as unique as the artist who took it home. Which was EXACTLY what we wanted. No cookie cutter looks here! FUN FUN FUN!!

We had tons of pics. so I went through and created a collage of each persons work.

Enjoy!!

Believe me……these pictures do not do each piece justice. Everyone took home their very own professional custom painted piece.

We still have spaces left for our March 31st workshop. Sign up…….Sign up!!!!!

Heather and I will be there (well….mostly Heather) to help you through each each step along the way and answer your questions.

Hope you are having a wonderful week so far!

Denise

Light My World

2012-02-21T22:37:00.001-06:00

I love my lamps. It’s a fact. I know I’ve blogged about it before. But, like many of us, my colors have changed to a more neutral palette and my shades needed changing. I FINALLY found the courage to try a more PROFESSIONAL approach to recovering my lamp shades after reading This Post from Sonya at Beyond The Screen Door. She did a great post on recovering lamp shades.

Here is my first shade. I sat it on a bowl to photograph. It will be going to The Rink with a pretty turquoise lamp base. As much as I hate it, I’ll be selling this one.

But……I just had to recover one for myself, so I tore into this lamp shade of mine.

I was fortunate when I removed the outer fabric and the lining remained intact.

The outer fabric came off in one piece.

I folded it in half and used it as my pattern for the new fabric. A soft burlap look alike. Unfortunately, there’s no pulling that trim off. I would have loved to reuse it.

Then I pinned my fabric to the old shade and adjusted my seam allowance as needed. I sewed my seam down each side and basically made a lamp shade slip cover. Then pulled it over the shade form like a tight old fashioned girdle!

Good and tiiighhhht…….

“are you sure that isn’t TOO tight” ouch!

I turned the ends to the inside and glued seam binding on the inside for a pretty professional looking finish.

And here it is!

I finished it off with a cotton lace ruffle and lace trim from Hobby Lobby.

And here’s the before. I’m bound and determined to save that trim somehow!

Thank you Sonya for your great tutorial. I’m ready to redesign and redo all of the shades in the house!

I’m joining Savvy Southern Style HERE for Wow Us Wednesdays. You can also find a direct link on my bottom left side bar.

Denise

It’s A beautiful day !

2012-02-15T17:08:00.001-06:00

If you’re Jack the cat! Laying there on my newly ruffled down-filled cushion in the sunshine. I would rather he didn’t “lounge” in that chair, but what are you gonna do. The cats pretty much rule the roost around here.
Also wanted to give you a peek at my newly Chevron painted chest!

I am in love! Heather and I mixed the paint for the perfect blue. We started out with Anne Sloan chalk paint Aubusson Blue and Paris Gray. Heather started painting and said “you know, this looks a little country blue to me.” EEKK! I had images of stenciled little houses and ducks with mauve bows around their necks!! We ended up adding regular interior latex in a pale turquoise that I had. PERFECTION! I’m not so into bright colors like a lot of women here in Oklahoma. I’m amazed how painting this one chest updated my living room and gave it a more modern feel.

And I didn’t have to change a single accessory. Including the cat.
Thank you thank you, Heather! Jack says it’s just “puuurrrrrfect!”
Denise
Joining Furniture Feature Friday at Miss Mustard Seed
find the direct link on my bottom left side bar.

Happy Valentine Day!

2012-02-13T22:18:00.001-06:00

A day early, but oh well. I have had a GREAT early valentine. I had the most amazing corn chowder last Friday for lunch. Apparently a Pioneer Woman recipe. So hubby made it for me this evening.

Photo and recipe from The Pioneer Woman web site. Ours wasn’t in a bread bowl. But equally as yummy with toasted French bread. Oh…..and we added two cans of chicken. Just like we had last Friday. It really sets off the recipe. Which you can find HERE. Yummy yummy…….!

Also hubby bought me a NEW CELL PHONE! A big deal for me. Mine was ancient.

Now I can text and EVERYTHING! Just like a big girl! Woohoo!!

Here’s a Valentine for all of you from me………

Oh….and one more very important thing.

Sweet Carole at Maynard Greenhouse is having a wonderful giveaway. You can read more about it HERE!

Happy happy Valentine Day!

Denise

Chevron update

2012-02-08T22:06:00.001-06:00

Thought you all might enjoy seeing Heather’s cute turquoise and white chevron chest that I blogged about earlier today in its new home.

So cute! Heather also painted the candle sticks. Love that photo with the bright colors above it. I blurred her little girl’s face since I didn’t have permission to use her pic.

Photo taken by Caren Mock Photography.

Denise

Our current crush

2012-02-08T19:46:00.001-06:00

CHEVRON!

I know, it’s been around awhile now. And we’ve loved it since we first saw it. But Heather hadn’t painted chevron on furniture until recently.

On chests.

On dining tables.

On side tables.

And on frames. We have hubby making the frames for us.

Her next project will be a chest for me. It’s soooo awesome to be the Mom of an artist! I’m a little plain jane though. Just plain old chevron, no flowers for me. Can’t WAIT to show you all the finished project!

Currently looking for some chevron fabric for pillow projects. We may have to order it. I haven’t seen any locally.

Hope you’re having a wonderful week.

Denise

Chair update

2012-02-06T20:40:00.001-06:00

After a couple of years, this is still my all time favorite piece of furniture ever. I gave my sweet little chair an update this weekend.

Her cushion just seemed to need a little something.

So I disassembled the cushion and added this ruffle. I’m still hoping those wrinkles will fall out. May have to steam it though!

I’ve been doing a LOT of sewing lately! And wait till you see what Heather’s been painting. Lets just say…….Chevron!

Hoping you had a wonderful weekend!

Denise

T. Time!

2012-01-31T22:04:00.001-06:00

T-man and I have been watching the first (and only) season of No Ordinary Family on NetFlix. It’s been great DeeDee and grandson bonding time. I have found myself totally taken with the set that is the families home.

While I’m not usually a fan of modern design, I found myself LOVING this home. Lots of bright happy colors.

Yeah……I think I could live there. I only wish I could have found more pictures of the set. I always wonder what they do with everything when they disassemble a set?

Only my grandson could find it totally normal that I was continually saying “oh….look at that book case!” and so on and so forth. After all, he has been raised around two crazy decorating women.

Then again, he was the kid who informed me that Tangerine was Pantone’s color of the year for 2012!

We’re on it kiddo! We have furniture on the way to The Rink in the perfect color!

Love, DeeDee

January?

2012-01-28T23:31:00.001-06:00

READ BELOW ABOUT OUR NEW HANDS-ON PAINT WORKSHOPS!

What happened to this month!? I could have sworn that I had posted at least once. It’s been a super busy month. Heather moved to Yukon where we live and now is only a few minutes away. The first part of the month was spent helping her move and may I just say O…..M……G….!! The girl is the next closest thing to a hoarder. We packed and packed and packed. More on that later.
Being within an arms reach of each other every day has made Heather and I a dangerous pair. Lots of scheming and planning. Which means, It’s finally happened. Heather is ready to let go of ALL of her painting secrets and teach classes!
Our first workshop will be Saturday Feb.25th.
If you live within driving distance, this is a great opportunity to take advantage of her eleven years of knowledge and REALLY learn how to paint furniture!!

If you are interested in painting your own furniture, we will be teaching techniques like the one above. Including the super secret technique that she uses to achieve the look of gold leafing. It’s a jaw dropper, I promise!

The hutch above……distressing and glazing

This silver side table

The workshop will be held in my home (have I lost my mind) at least this first time, while we contemplate whether we should look for a permanent location, and believe me, I have MANY painted pieces to show you.
We will be teaching furniture preparation, paint selection, several techniques in color show through. Distressing, glazing, crackle finish and final finish to preserve your work of art. Information on our favorite product and color selections. Plus all of the tricks that Heather has learned over the years.
And here’s the best part…..this is a hands on workshop. You bring your own piece of furniture with you and leave with it perfectly painted and the knowledge to repaint furniture to your hearts desire!
Our workshop is all inclusive. We will provide EVERYTHING! Even a yummy lunch and snacks!

Date……Saturday February 25th
Time……9:30AM to 3:30 PM (or later if necessary)
Place…..You will receive further info. after you register
Cost……$150.00 all inclusive. This means ALL supplies and paints needed…. and lunch. PLUS hands-on instruction and just a LOT of plain old fun!!

We have a limited number of spaces available and several are already filled. Please leave a comment on this post or e-mail if you would like to come. WE ACCEPT PAY-PAL
Back very soon with other things that I have been up to!
Denise

Burlap and Birds

2011-12-30T19:35:00.001-06:00

All of the Christmas is packed away until next year. Now what….?

Time for a fresh start for the new year.

Willow says “just keep sewing, I love laying in the middle of your projects.”

The little stink was totally in love with this chenille trim!

A bird theme for the dining table.

And plenty of burlap.

And the milk glass moves from vignette to vignette often.

Making the winter months a little brighter.

Denise

Christmas At Our House!

2011-12-15T19:20:00.001-06:00

I finally got some decorating done! It’s always so much fun to pull the Christmas décor out of storage each year. Lots of pics. to follow.

I added a few things to my table

an ornament shaped chalkboard that I embellished with buttons

Hung in the dining room

This turned out to be one of my favorite vignettes. Inspired by my bird collection

this was fun. someone gave me a bunch of (free) vintage goodies like old buttons, rick rack, etc. last week and I mixed in some of my vintage ornaments with them

Love the graphics on those buttons!

My mantel. No one does reproduction vintage better than Cody Foster! The cards are from my Nanny’s card collection.

More vignettes

Angels and snowflakes waiting for the perfect Christmas home.

Like Debra, I LOVE paper whites. Unfortunately I have to confess that mine are silk!

Another one of “the girls”

Joining the following wonderful parties this week…….

FEATHERED NEST FRIDAY

FRIDAY AT THE CHARM OF HOME

INSPIRATION FRIDAY AT THE PICKET FENCE

VINTAGE INSPIRATION FRIDAY AT COMMON GROUND

Direct links for all of these wonderful parties are located on my bottom left side bar!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Denise

What’s a gill? Some old fashion recipes

2011-12-10T22:15:00.001-06:00

Have you ever heard of a “gill” as a measurement in a recipe? I hadn’t.

I was going through my recipe books this morning, clearing out a few, when I ran across this cook book.

Cooking in Wyoming

It has some interesting and old old recipes.

So……back to a gill……………

1 gill equals 1/2 cup

this recipe is “Webster Cake”

It reads as follows…..

Webster Cake is a very old southern cake that has been made through many generations of Thanksgiving and Christmas time. To make the cake, take 1 cup butter, 3/4 cup molasses, 1 gill of milk, 3/4 cup sugar, 2 eggs, 1 teaspoon of soda, 3 cups flour, 1/2 pound citron, 1 1/2 cups raisins, and currants and spices to taste, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon.

That’s it. No temp. or anything else. Just the way that my Grandma used to cook. Just a tad bit vague. The old fashioned way! Oh….and I (in my great baking wisdom) had no idea what citron was. It is one of the citrus fruits that you usually find in fruit cake. I think…….?? Anywho…….this recipe looks doable. I wonder what “spices to taste” would be? This sounds a lot like it could actually be a fruit cake? If so, my Nanny used to make the BEST fruit cake ever. She would make it about a month ahead of Christmas, soak it in a LOT of rum, wrap it well, store it in a cold closet and bring it out around Christmas. It was a very heavy and yummy yummy cake. Wonderful with a cup of coffee.

Here’s another recipe from 1882. If you really and I mean REALLY love mincemeat, this is the recipe for you. You can either feed the entire town or can up enough to last you for years! Personally, I’m not a fan of mincemeat pie. I don’t know why it never occurred to me that YES dummy, it DOES have meat in it!

So here we go………

4 1/2 pounds of beef neck meat, you may also use venison or elk meat. (Gross)
5 pounds apples
5 pounds sugar
2 pounds seedless raisins, soak several hours in hot water
2 pounds currants, soak several hours in hot water
1 pound of beef suet (I thought this was something you fed birds)
3 tablespoons salt
5 tablespoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons pepper
3 quarts cider
1 tablespoon mace
2 tablespoons ground cloves
2 tablespoons allspice

Boil meat until tender. Grind (rather coarsely) meat, apples, and suet. Mix other ingredients. Simmer 30 minutes. Seal in sterilized jars for storing.

They lost me with the boiling 4 1/2 pounds of beef neck meat. Just the thought makes me a little nauseous. ):

So get out your old-fashioned cooking utensils and get with it! Oh……and if you need the recipe for cooking a wild porcupine, I have it! Not EVEN kidding! This cook book is a keeper, if for no other reason, just because of the crazy recipes. Thank GOODNESS for our modern times!

One more thing…….that red and white dish towel is from Ikea. If you are fortunate to have one close to you, they are the BEST kitchen towels I’ve ever had. They absorb well, and better yet……they’re only 79cents each!

Denise

Christmas?

2011-12-08T16:28:00.001-06:00

This is the extent of my decorating so far. Not a brag (for sure) more like a confession. All of my Christmas decorations are in the long low closet under the stairs, which seemed like a wonderful idea earlier in the year. Now when I open the door, I just groan and close it.

I do love my dining room table though.

I’ve noticed that lots of people are doing a more simplistic back to nature look this year. So far, my décor is VERY simplistic!

The burlap is the remaining ruffle material from my curtains I just made.

She’s beautiful any time of the year. I just tucked a glittered leaf in her hand.

I have every intention of filling in my hutch with bottle brush trees.

Dried hydrangeas with a little simple glitter.

From the living room. It’s a start.

In the meantime, I’m living vicariously through all of the wonderful blog parties out there!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Denise

Jack’s Room

2011-11-30T16:19:00.001-06:00

I’ve been working on the guest room again. There was a possibility that we were going to have guests in early November, which didn’t happen but any excuse will do. I bought new bedding actually a couple of months ago. I am so fickle when it comes to textiles! It seems like I love a pattern for about a day and then I’m ready for something else.

I found this set at T.J. Maxx and then made the burlap pillow. I don’t just love it but it’s very “guestish” if you know what I mean. I should maybe just stick with neutrals and forget it.

That actually is what I did with the curtains.

I can’t say these won’t go with everything! And I actually love the way they turned out. To save money ( since this is such a HUGE sliding glass door) the top half is drop cloth and the ruffle is burlap. That way I didn’t need nearly as much fabric for the bottom.

Since I didn’t line them, I left the sheers up. Also, this is on the South side of the house. So the sun really heats things up.

So since things were looking all nice and spiffy Jack the cat decided this was his favorite room.

He has such a hard life.

So Jack suggested a dog and cat theme……

I was happy to have a new place to hang one of my all time favorite pictures.

I moved my little doggie collection in here for now. The green glittered tree…..that’s the closest thing I have to Christmas decorations so far.

Doggie on the bed side table.

And here’s the rest of the room.

and I had just painted this gray…….I keep telling myself it looks just fine…

I’m all ready for guests! As long as you don’t mind sleeping with a cat.

Denise

FOR SALE!!

2011-11-21T19:31:00.001-06:00

Finally……two years and nearly three months later, we have my Mother’s house on the market! So here it is. All staged and ready.

Such a cute house. My mother always had pretty flowers planted in her flower beds. There is a brick sidewalk going up to the front door and also brick around the flower bed in front of the house that you can’t see.

Entry. Brick throughout high traffic areas. That’s the front door directly to the right and the utility room to the far right. On past that you walk into the living room on the left.

Here’s the living room. New carpet. Heather and I painted the book cases on either side of the fireplace.

Here’s another view from the dining room. The ENTIRE and I do mean ENTIRE house is repainted. From every ceiling to every base board!!

Here’s the dining room. Look at that shiny shiny brick! I mopped and resealed every bit of it. Good exercise I tell ya! We put in a new chandelier. And a cute ceiling medallion painted to match the chandelier that you can’t see in this pic. And notice the sky light above the kitchen sink.

Galley kitchen. My mother tore out the original kitchen and remodeled. All new cabinets and that is real butcher block on either side of the stove. We’re leaving the refrigerator with the house.

Looking to the back of the house from the dining area. This is the HUGE den that she added on. You can barely see a door in the right corner. That’s a giant craft closet that runs the entire length of this room.

Standing in front of that door, this is what you see. The French doors lead to this……..

I know! Cute isn’t it!

Here’s the back yard. My mother was quite the gardener. Even though the yard has barely been tended in over two years, it has great bones and is just waiting for someone to love it. There’s even a little pond.

Master bedroom. We painted the bathroom cabinets black and put in new tiles. There’s a toilet and shower area to the left and a walk in closet to the right.

Hall bath. Vanity repainted the same color as the living room book cases.

Middle bedroom. Built in book cases.

Front bedroom. Don’t you love that cute bed Heather painted? Both of these bedrooms also have walk in closets. Also the hall which leads to the bedrooms has a coat closet and nice built-ins.

Our pictures could be a little better, it was a dark dreary day today and even with the flash, they were a little dark. I tried lightening them in Photo Shop but only had limited luck. Our main paint color is Ralph Lauren Canvas Natural VM15. I was going to link back to the color swatch online but it looked a little fleshy to me. It is such a GREAT color and seems to just play off of any other color that you put with it. I used an egg shell finish to that the walls would be easy to keep clean for the new owner.

So this is it. Keeping in mind that everything we brought in for staging had to go back out, we kept furniture and accessories to a minimum. Hopefully just enough so that buyers can visualize how nice their furnishings will look.

We want to SELL this house so it’s priced right. 1900 SF $124,500.00 !!

Hope you enjoyed your tour and if you know of anyone who is looking for a cute move-in ready house in the OKC area, contact our realtor, Debra O’Toole 405-641-7745

Have a wonderful week and a great Thanksgiving. I know this is quite a weight off of my family’s shoulders to have the house on the market.

Denise

At The Rink

2011-11-18T23:38:00.001-06:00

We have begun stocking our booth for the Holidays! We should be adding new items a couple of times a week from now thru Christmas.

Lots of chippy rusty goodness. Vintage tins and cute dog signs.

Pretty neutrals for Christmas decorating.

Love these cute doggie ornaments with crowns. They’re glittered too!

We love our new paper flowers. I think I made four sizes. We were going to glitter these today before we added them to our display. However, the wind was blowing about a bazillion miles an hour so that didn’t happen. Each one has a scrim rosette in the center. I think I may have to make some of these for my house!

I just added a few new items of jewelry this week. I have some cute inexpensive vintage pieces to take the first of next week.

I had my lousy camera today, but this end table is glam. cute! Two tone silver glitter paint!

Lots of pretty brights for little girls rooms.

Cute silver chest with hot pink birds and chandelier.

We even have the perfect lamp for the same room!

Come visit us at The Rink in OKC!

Lots going on here…..it looks like I will actually be getting my Mother’s house on the market Monday!! I’ll have Heather take some pics. with her better camera so we can show you all of our hard work.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Denise

Cold weather cozy!

2011-11-04T20:57:00.001-05:00

When cold weather approaches, I tend to gravitate more and more toward cozy homey rooms. I found one of my all time favorites on Better Home and Gardens web site this week.

I am totally in love! White upholstery, chocolate brown walls, and the perfect touches of color.

Here’s another shot.

So I thought, hummmm…….what would it take to REALLY recreate this room? So lets say we’re starting with an unlimited budget. Might as well, since I can MAYBE afford a couple yards of fabric and not much else! HAHA

I think I’ll just order some burlap drapes from Ballard's……

Then……how about a couple of chairs, also from Ballard's

Perfect! Of course we’ll have to repaint and reupholster, but what the heck! We do have that unlimited budget!

And that Kilim rug……YUMMY!

That’s pretty close. And it’s ONLY $2200.00! So if we don’t love it….no biggie. Maybe the dog can sleep on it! HA

The white chair and sofa…Ikea, of course. We’ll just pick up a chair and loveseat/chaise

Oh oh….we’ll probably order the ottoman too, even though we’re going to reupholster it with that yummy Hounds Tooth fabric.

How are we doing so far?

LOVE the mirrors on either side of the window. But I may want an antiqued gold frame on mine, so I think I’ll shop around town for those. They do look perfect though, don’t you think? The way that they reflect light with the dark walls.

We’ll paint our favorite drop leaf table with chalk paint, Paris Gray. And order this lamp from Restoration Hardware.

Love that Zinc base, how about you? I think it retails for around $300.00.

The coffee table is just cute as can be with those little French style legs. We’ll shop the local antique malls for the perfect one and then paint it our favorite turquoise.

Same with the chandie. We might even pretend to be thrifty and paint an old brass chandelier.

The only hounds tooth fabric that I could find was this one.

Love the texture, but it’s not a dark enough chocolate. And we DO need the perfect color so that we can have our paint color matched. I think the Damask and the Hounds Tooth must have come from the same fabric group. I REALLY did search and search for them. If anyone out there has seen them, let me know. I seriously would love a yard or two of each.

Accessories…..I can work on those later. Right now I’m just exhausted from all of this hard work shopping!

I can see changing those burnt orange pillows to maybe red at Christmas and hot pink for Spring/Summer. How about you?

I had great fun shopping with all of you girls this evening! Have a happy weekend.

Denise

BOO!

2011-10-27T15:32:00.001-05:00

This is scary, two posts in one week!

Heather dropped by yesterday with her fancy smancy new camera (meee jealous?) and took some great shots around my house. No more fuzzy, grainy pics.!

Is there anything scarier than a glittered skeleton!? HA

The bride and groom

In the living room.

The pups were supposed to get party hats. I never took the time to make them.

They were so disappointed!

Now isn’t that the scariest face EVER?

Fierce bears, just waiting to pounce.

Touches here and there.

This is a spooky corner. I had to crop out all of the paint cans in the corner. OOPS!

And Miss A says…..”what’s the big deal? You eat…..you sleep….you take care of other business….then you start all over again. Life’s a breeze…..EVERY day of the year!”

Have a Happy Halloween!

Denise

Joining Debra at Common Ground for her Friday party! You can find the direct link to her wonderful blog on my bottom side bar.

looking through the window…..

2011-10-25T17:02:00.001-05:00

Yes, I’m still here. Just the same old same old. I hadn’t taken any pics. in so long that the camera battery had to be charged. Just thought I’d stop by and show you my fav. new find.

Certainly the walls are never bare for long around here.

The next greatest thing seems to be getting more difficult to find.

And I’m always looking for a new way to use my jewelry as art.

I found this Church window last week at the Rink. With the bar running across it still intact.

I love it! I’ll be looking for old clips to hang some of my vintage photos. And for other windows so that I can maybe layer them on the mantel.

But I love the way that it looks in the bedroom for now. And my vintage photo of the Teton Mountains really sets it off for me.

Hope you are having a lovely week!

Denise

My Master Bedroom

2011-10-03T14:09:00.001-05:00

Well…..here it is, at least what I have finished to date. I have to admit, I only took photos of one side of the room. With all of the sewing junk, the rest of the room is anything but photo worthy.

If you have been following my blog for awhile, you know that I’ve been anxious to get rid of my oh so DATED brass bed. But I had a budget of, well….almost nothing! So enter Annie Sloan chalk paint. Duck Egg Blue and Paris Gray.

First, I painted the bed duck egg and then dry brushed the gray over that. You can see how the color appears lighter half way down. That’s because I waxed the top half. Kind of an experiment to see how durable the finish would be. It’s held up okay, but I am going to touch up the places where the brass is showing through and then clear coat it instead.

Next, I wanted to hide that ugly head board. So I decided on a slipcover.

I cheated and only painted the rails part way down. Shhhhh…..don’t tell anyone! Then I took an old quilt that I had and cut it up. I duck taped it to the headboard. Just to give it a little cushion.

The slip simply wraps over the top and then ties on the sides. I added little details like ruffles and the white flowers across the head board.

We sleep with a lot of pillows and I’ve always looked for some kind of a solution to cover them without removing them from the bed every morning. I admit it, I’m a lazy bed maker!

So I came up with this. A pillow wrap. I used a full width of my toile fabric, added linen on each side, a flange for added interest, and then in the same white fabric as I used on the head board, a great big ruffle. I LOVE it. It touches the floor on either side of the bed and adds a pretty romantic look.

We simply fold it down at night, and turn it down inside of the quilt .

I kept my pine chest on hubby’s side of the bed and left my family memory board above. I still like it as much as the day I made it. So many sweet memories!

On my side of the bed…….

I repainted this piece in the duck egg blue. It was formerly black. I would highly recommend this color! The paint covered well and is a wonderful soft color.

The inside of the glass is covered with cotton lace. I actually used my glue gun to attach it! I know, I know, lazy! But it hid the black interior and I didn’t have to paint the inside.

I made this loooonng pillow recently. A taupe cotton fabric that I already had was a perfect match, as was the black check that I used for the cording. The flowers are made from all of my bedroom fabrics.

I also made the one directly behind it. I really am in love with my toile fabric. It’s not as “in style” as it used to be, but certainly fit the bill for the look I was trying to create in this room. And the blue in the background couldn’t have been a more perfect match!

So there you have it. I removed most of the décor that I had on the walls. I like the more serene, quiet, simple (for me) look. My quilt belonged to my Mother. It’s already starting to show some wear. Large dogs on the bed just aren’t a great idea. But what can I say…..she’s our 70 pound baby! So anywho…..it’s looking like my next project may be a duvet cover. Probably in something close to the same color. That way I could always change up my colors a little bit with the seasons. Yeah right, like that’s going to happen……

Hope you have a fabulous week.

Denise

Joining…..

Mod Vintage Monday Direct link located on my bottom left sidebar

Battle Of The Bedrooms!

2011-09-29T20:36:00.001-05:00

Heather and I have been working on our master bedrooms. Heather’s style……..much more whimsical than mine. She likes lots of color, I love my neutrals.

Up this week……Heather!

One thing that we both have in common…..the love of the color gray! Heather’s gray duvet….Bed, Bath, & Beyond. Love it!

Euro shams…..T.J. Maxx. WITH down inserts! They were a huge bargain! Hot pink lamps with silver detailing, also from T.J.Maxx. She had painted the houndstooth chest previously but it never really went with what she had I have to say, I think it’s perfect in her room now. The walls are a periwinkle blue. A color from Wal Mart. Not sure of the color name but it’s beautiful. So soft and romantic. LOVE pillow from Tuesday Morning. Black pillow with flower, Hobby Lobby.

Mirrors and most accessories…..vintage. This bedside table is painted a metallic silver.

Another view.

Romantic white drapery panels…..Bed, Bath, & Beyond.

Chair vintage. Wood soon to be painted silver/gray.

HUGE vintage chest that Heather painted white. One of those exciting finds that we all looove to brag about. From Good Will……of course!

I love your bedroom Heather! Romantic, whimsical, with just the perfect touch of color!

Beautiful

joining Fridays Unfold at Stuff and Nonsense

Feathered Nest Friday

The Charm Of Home

Inspiration Friday

Vintage Inspiration Friday

Direct links to the wonderful blogs may be found on my bottom left side bar.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Denise

Finding Fall!

2011-09-21T18:26:00.001-05:00

It’s finally time to decorate with my favorite colors! I am SUCH an autumn person. I love the yummy oranges and browns and golds. I finished the center piece on my farm table.

One of the best things that I ever did for myself was invest in some decent looking “faux” fall décor. I’m prone to buying cheap and then ending up with a cheap look.

I’m loving my decor this year in my French grape picking crate. And it was easy peasy. I think it took all of about five minutes.

I included a burlap runner that I made. I’ve made quite a few to sell, but some how….some way…….the ruffle on this one was WAY crooked. I don’t know how I did it. Must have been napping at the time! Anywho……you can’t tell when it’s all bunched up on the table. Which is the way that I prefer them any way. Such a SHAME that I just had to keep it.

In my usual form……I didn’t take pics. of the others. They’re nice and wide, at about 22” wide and 6 ft. long without the length of the ruffles. See them at The Rink this week. All colors from brights to neutrals. Something for everyone!!

Here’s the over all look. That small black chair will be going away and another taller back chair painted in the Paris grey chalk paint will go there. I think my 7” farm table may be one of my favorite pieces of furniture!

And OTHER new goodies…….

I had decided I WAS NOT going to keep this. No way.

Then I put it together and sat it in the kitchen.

I was going to HATE the color.

I have no willpower what so ever. NONE! If I decide to keep it (who am I kidding) I need to think of something cute to hang on the left end towel bar. Instead of the tacky kitchen towel.

So…..what do you think? Should I keep it or sell it? So far everyone loves it. Well…..except Hubby. He just wants the fastest path from point A to point B. We’ve been arguing for years about a center island. I told him this one wasn’t staying. And I REALLY REALLY meant it…….at the time!

Have a wonderful rest of the week!

Denise

Joining Terri at A Creative Princess for her Thursday Party! You can find the direct link to her wonderful blog on my bottom left sidebar!

Party!

2011-09-08T21:10:00.001-05:00

Planning a party? Pinterest has you covered. Great ideas from kiddo parties to grown up dinner parties!

Monkey cupcakes. Cute for a kids party

who needs a recipe for these? Cute!

Rice Krispy treats

owl cupcakes

taco cupcakes. Heather made these and said they’re yummy!

Funny!

Thanksgiving hats

White chocolate covered marshmallows

cute and easy kids party idea

cupcake fondue yummmm

fruit cones. cool and beautiful

pumpkin cake made from 2 Bundt pans. so clever!

sheep cupcakes. baaaahhhhh……

Thanksgiving teepees

You can find a recipe for just about anything on Pinterest. Visit our Pinterest boards and look for the one titled “yummy.”The original source always appears so that you can look up any recipes you are interested in.

We love you Pinterest!!

Have a lovely weekend everyone

Denise

Joining the following wonderful parties.

Stuff and Nonsense

Feathered Nest Friday

Friday At the Charm of Home

Inspiration Friday

Vintage Inspiration Friday

5 Minutes Just For Me

You can find all of their direct links on my lower left side bar. Please be sure and visit all of them and see sooo many wonderful blogger posts!

creating my gallery wall

2011-09-01T16:31:00.001-05:00

Heather and I LOVE gallery walls! If you happen to visit our Pinterest, you’ll see that one of our favorite boards (or categories) is Gallery Walls.

I love them all!

I love the all black and white on this wall. Combined with the letters.

the mix of all different kinds of elements on this wall. This pic. is from Pottery Barn. I wonder if they sell that awesome looking light above the arrangement? Love the way it looks.

Or how about this totally eclectic wall? A mix of a little bit of everything.

I THOUGHT that I wanted kind of a mix of the first and second wall. ……I thought……..

What I thought I wanted and what looked good were two different things.

I have a looong way to go. I tried mixing vintage pics with the black, white, and gold. No go. I really don’t even like the small colored canvas in the upper left corner. Also, I should have bought museum putty to hold my pictures level.

I’m thinking maybe more texture, keep the colors neutral, and just more stuff in general!

What I do LOVE……

…..is my new LOVE pillow! An early birthday present from Heather. Thank you thank you Heather!

So…..it’s a work in progress. And I also see that I need to patch and paint those two big spots on either side. (OOPS)

More later.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Denise

Joining the following fun Friday parties……

Direct links to these fun parties may be found on my lower left side bar. Be sure and visit!

Great Ideas!

2011-08-24T10:42:00.001-05:00

How have you been?! We are STILL working on that silly house. Trying to get it ready to sale. Getting closer and closer though. We were very optimistic that we would not have to replace any carpet but…..looks like we’re going to have to. Oh well……

In the meantime…..I received my new Ballard Catalog in the mail yesterday! A fun distraction from all of the work! I am loving lots of things they’re showing this go round. And saw some fab. DIY ideas!

Such as these pretty drapery panels.

Theirs are burlap with a gorgeous white crewel embroidery design and are lined. They’re also pricey. Starting at $179.00 per panel. But…..how easy would it be to make your own for a fraction of the price! Burlap is cheap cheap at around $3.00 a yard. Then purchase a medallion stencil and paint your design on. Line if you wish and you have a beautiful panel. Since I am soooo into turquoise, I could also see this pattern in a robins egg blue. YUMMY!

I LOVED LOVED this dining table!

The top is zinc. Which I have been in love with for awhile. Theirs is $800.00! YIKES! I think you could make one for a fraction of the price. The legs look a lot like fence posts and the rest of the design is very clean lined and simple. A little white paint and distressing, buy a sheet of zinc and form over a plywood top and….. voila!

In Ballard’s new catalog, they show the table above with these fab. wicker chairs.

The texture of that table with the wicker…..to die for! Okay, so you can’t knock these off, but maybe with all of the money you would be saving on the table……

They are however, $299.00 each. Plus shipping. I do so adore them though!

I also saw this plaque. Another easy peasy DIY idea!

If you can’t find a round tray, old cabinet doors are perfect for recreating distressed signs.

Just a few thoughts.

Heather and I always have these crazy DIY ideas swirling through our heads. Which does NOT mean that they ever get done!

Have a happy week!

Denise

Wee Gardens

2011-08-16T22:16:00.001-05:00

Heather and I have been enjoying ourselves with Pinterest. Have you tried it? It’s addictive, I have to admit. And a great place to basically archive photos and ideas that you love.

Which is where I found wonderful photos of these tiny gardens. A tiny fairy garden is something that I have wanted to create for years. Thank goodness I didn’t choose this year to finally make my wish come true. The heat would have surely fried everything!

Just collecting the tiny furnishings and goodies looks like so much fun.

Many of the gardens are planted in larger containers.

I have visions of actually planting an entire garden. Complete with paths where you can wander and find something wonderful and amazing around the next corner.

Maybe next year!

You can find all of the above photos and other great info. for creating your own garden HERE.

Denise

Cowboy Up!

2011-08-03T11:56:00.001-05:00

We LOOVE our little boys! Oh yes we do! But lets face it, the little stinks are difficult to decorate for. There just isn’t a lot of cute “boy stuff” out there. Heather and I have been brain storming, trying to come up with some cute ideas. ……….not easy…………..

But our buddy, baby K.K. says……….

“I want a cool bedroom too!”

Couldn’t you just kiss that sweet little face silly!?

Anywho…….not long ago, Heather found the cutest vintage dresser with a wagon wheel carved in the bottom. Remember that old furniture from the 50’s? It was crying for one theme and one theme only. Cowboy!

Lovin’ that bandana print.

Plaid top.

Cow print sides!

Love, love it!

And you wouldn’t have to do a full out Cowboy theme. You could just put some other plaids or solids with this piece and have a cute cute little boys room with just a touch of whimsy!

This piece will be available for sale later this week or this weekend at The Rink.

Have a wonderful day.

Denise

I’m Here!

2011-07-31T16:12:00.002-05:00

So sorry for the loooong absence! My computer was broken and gone for repairs for 3 weeks! During which time I was about to go CRAZY without it! I didn’t realize how addicted to blogging I really am. Other than that, Hubby and I have been working HARD at getting my mother’s house ready to put on the market. I think that we’re about a week away from completion. Finally! It’s been tough in this heat, but that is our first priority right now. It is looking GREAT though. Everything freshly painted, from the ceiling to the baseboards. Hopefully, I’ll have pictures of our staging by next week.
In the meantime……..
I thought that you might enjoy one of Heather’s latest projects.
Another little girl’s room. Girls these days have definite ideas about what they want. It can be pretty tricky giving them what they are so adamant about while still maintaining some sense of style that will outlast their current interests. This little girl wanted Barbie everything and pink pink and more pink.
A tour of little Miss Haley’s room……..

Her cute mirror that Heather painted with handmade flowers on the top.

Her sweet twin size bed. Heather painted the canvas and I made the euro size pillow sham in the back.

Heather painted the top of the night stand to match the euro pillow fabric! Yep, she’s that good! Each drawer is painted different with a different knob. I have to say, I am in LOVE with that vintage Barbie lamp shade and that cute lamp.

An over view of that side of the room and a cute bulletin board that Heather covered, just waiting for all of those Barbie images that this little girl loves.
I love this room.
So girly and just what Miss Haley asked for. Yet it will grow with her as her interests change.
Another perfect custom one-of-a-kind design job by Heather! Love love her painted pieces. No two are alike.

Hopefully I will be back to blogging full time very soon. I can’t WAIT to see a “For Sale” sign in the front yard of that house!!
Have a beautiful week!
Denise
Joining these fun parties....

Direct links may be found on my bottom left sidebar.

HOOT HOOT

2011-06-27T10:49:00.001-05:00

I’m sure you’ve noticed, because that’s what we blogger type girls do, that OWLS are huge right now. What really got me started thinking about how popular they are, was when a little girl, whom Heather was supposed to be painting an Alice In Wonderland canvas for, changed her mind and decided she wanted an OWL pic. instead.

He’s much cuter in person. His feathers are even glittered! and he’s HUGE about 24x32. Little girls here want their rooms bright and colorful.

I searched for owls pillows on Etsy. Pages and pages came up. I loved them all, but I have to say I was really taken with this one in particular.

You can find this shop HERE

Owl fabric is everywhere. this image is from Fabrics.com

This would be cute in a little boys room.

If you want an owl shaped pillow instead……

This little guy made me smile.

Your can find him on Etsy HERE.

And here’s the OWL dresser that Heather painted. Sooo cute for a little girls or a babies room.

This barely lasted a week at the Rink.

I don’t know where I found this image, but I THINK it’s a lamp shade. I thought it was pretty clever.

You can even find the old macramé owls from the 70’s on Etsy if you’re feeling a little vintage! (NOT)

Alas……no kids or babies rooms to decorate here…….(sigh)………this is one trend I’ll have to leave behind. Which is really too bad, because I love the little guys!

Have a wonderful week!

Denise

New posts at Sugar Moon Girls!

2011-06-25T16:24:00.001-05:00

New lamp shade tutorial post is up at Sugar Moon Girls! AND in honor of Vanessa’s Mad Tea Party, I am revisiting T-man’s great Mad Hatter costume.

Meanwhile………here at Bella Dreams………

Look what I found!!

WOW!!! I sure hope there’s some Maple Glazed in my crop! They’re my absolute FAVS.!!

HA!!

Cute image found HERE

Have a fun fun weekend! It’s hotter than you-know-where here!

Denise

New drop cloth slips!

2011-06-21T20:40:00.001-05:00

I came to a compromise on the sofa situation.

I ended up making the ottoman slip cover. The two seat cushions. And the two back cushions. I have one more back cushion to make so I pulled the toile pillow off of my bed for now. I am slipped OUT! The rest of the sofa is a store bought slipcover. I’ll tell you what, you get what you pay for. I paid $50.00 for the slipcover on OverStock, and pretty much got what I paid for. It’s a piece of junk! Thus the linen throw on the left corner. To kind of disguise as much of it as I can. I suppose I’ll eventually finish the entire slipcover in drop cloth. Sigh…… Any delusion I had about making slipcovers for other people, definitely ended with this project. A LOT of work…….

I also bought a new lamp shade for my floor lamp.

And found a new lamp for the top of my chest. the color of which is a lot prettier than it looks here.

Other past drop cloth projects……..

My chair and ottoman

Guest room bench

And my dining chairs.

Yes! I DO love me some drop cloth fabric.

Have a wonderful week!

Denise

Drop leaf table and chalk paint

2011-06-16T20:24:00.001-05:00

I have been painting everything that I can think of with my quart of Paris Grey chalk paint!

Heather and I have been painting furniture for about ten years and I have to give this new paint an A+ excellent rating.

I had painted my Mother’s drop leaf table in my favorite cream. Unfortunately, I apparently had a can of defective polycrylic top coat and the table top looked terrible. Chalk paint to the rescue!

One coat. Then easy distressing with a sponge sanding block. Right over the old top coat. This paint really does go over any finish.

I just let the sanded dust gather and then wiped it off with damp paper towels when I was through.

It would be best to let this paint cure for 48 to 72 hours. I am, however, always impatient! It dries to the touch FAST and then I was ready to wax. The key here, especially if your paint hasn’t cured fully, is a light touch when applying the wax. Don’t try to rub too hard or you will loose some of your paint. Of course, for those of you who love the shabby chic look as much as Heather and I, this is not such a bad thing. It just adds to the overall patina.

I used Bri Wax because it is what I had on hand. I use it on my farm table to protect it. Let your wax dry for approximately 2 hours (depending on the weather) and then buff for a pretty shine. I haven’t tried a darker wax yet for a glaze, but will.

I just finished painting this chair.

One coat, about 20 minutes, DONE! I went over a dark color and this would usually have taken at least two coats. Just the time saved is worth the extra cost to me. Even on pieces that we are selling.

This is also the paint that I used on my mantel mirror.

And the BEST BEST thing………it sticks to brass!!! Good bye brass bed! The first chance that I get! Yoohoo!!

Denise

Joining these fun parties! Direct links may be found on my bottom left side bar!

Enjoy!

At The Lake–Part 3

2011-06-11T22:50:00.001-05:00

We’ll continue our lake home tour this evening with the finished sleeping porch.

The quilts are hung.

Unfortunately Heather didn’t get a close up of the cute doll house.

The antlers hung between the owl pictures are vintage. From Karen’s grandfather.

The sleeping porch before.

A BIG change, huh?

A cute mirror that Heather painted and hung between the beds.

The serving buffet that Heather painted. Positioned right off of the kitchen. We couldn’t find a mirror large enough that we could afford, so Heather painted an oval one that she already had and surrounded the mirror with a frame that she tied twigs to. We finished the look with a hanging bird cage chandelier.

On to the kitchen……..

I am IN LOVE with this granite!

AND the awesome red piece that Karen found in Canton. It turns. Originally we thought it would be used on the dining table. However, we all loved the way it looked on the island. We filled it with every day kitchen items and it is much more useful and functional!

The canisters, which are plastic, will be filled with snacks for the grandkids.

Speaking of the dining table……..

Here’s the finished look. The large blue canister will be filled with colorful wrapped candy.

On the front porch.

Heather painted this table and chairs. The table is chalk board for the grandkids to draw on on one side………….

And checker board for the BIG kids to play on on the other side. I LOVE this table!

Not finished yet but coming soon is a long bench which we will be upholstering in black and white damask outdoor fabric. I’m not sure what color Heather decided to paint the bench? We’ll have pictures of that later.

We’ll finish our home tour next time with views of the outside of this AMAZING and gorgeous home.

Have a wonderful rest of the weekend!

Denise

At The Lake-Home Tour Part 2

2011-06-08T22:30:00.001-05:00

Today on our home tour, we’re moving to the living area. Again, this is a gorgeous room with windows on one side of the room looking out over the lake.

This elephant bench sits against the windows and our intent is to fill it with colorful pillows that can be thrown on the floor when the family is watching a movie. You can see that we still have a ways to go. I think we need to hit T.J. Maxx tomorrow. Hopefully they’ll have what we’re looking for. The more colorful pillow, the “C” pillow and the French script pillows all came from Garden Ridge.

We love the old box that Karen found and filled with magazines and her T.V. controllers.

So…..up next is probably our FAVORITE thing that we found for the house. It came from The Rink and we felt it really reflected the fun spirit of a lake house.

So here he is……..

Our kitschy deer painting. He was painted on felt in 1980. The painting was signed by the artist and presented as a gift to someone. We LOVED him. Only one thing……the mantel is huge and he…well…..isn’t!

Twigs to the rescue!

We still need to gather more twigs for our red basket and we are also going to add twigs to the basket on the left. Then, I love the candle holder underneath, it just need to be looonger! So we’re looking for one of those. Which of course, means we probably won’t be able to find one any place, any where!

Pan right on the mantel………..

The mantel juts out like this because the T.V. is mounted below. Up the stairs in the back ground is a media room.

We loved Karen’s botanical themed lamp and her big green plate and pretty much left them right where she had them.

Isn’t the giant jar fun? We filled it with eggs, balls of string, and bird related items for summer. I would love to see it filled with mini pumpkins and fall leaves. Or how about Epsom salts and mini trees for Christmas? The horn to the right carries the deer theme through the entire mantel.

the sea shell and the turtle reflect a bit more of the outdoors.

In the hallway to the bedrooms we moved Karen’s lamps on either side of a tennis ball basket filled with misc. items and a pic. of her grandson. We moved her cute bed and breakfast sign just above the basket. We would like to find a basket to go underneath the table but it’s very narrow and we haven’t found the right one yet.

Oh…..and that potpourri container isn’t part of the décor. Hey, we girls need our scents you know! All vintage items that we used are from The Rink.

Hope you enjoyed part two of our tour. More later!

Denise

AT THE LAKE-HOME TOUR PART 1

2011-06-06T15:38:00.001-05:00

Heather and I have been working hard but also having a wonderful time decorating a lake house here in Oklahoma. This has been a different experience for us. We’re used to being able to run to where ever and pick up a few things if we forget them. Not so here! We’re a couple of hours from OKC and at least 45 minutes from any shopping so if you forget something…..oops!

Karen, our homeowner requested that we accessorize her lake home, adding some color but at the same time keeping it simple. The lake is about relaxing, not cleaning!

I’ll start today with our FAVORITE room…..the Sleeping Porch!

This is such a fun filled room! The grandkids bedroom.

The entire room is bead board. Painted white with a light glaze. Beautiful! the opposite wall is all windows, looking out over the lake. The quilts on the beds are vintage and were made by Karen’s grandmother. Sorry, the pillow cases were in the wash. (Oops) I thought the beds needed just a touch of something more and saw these cute pillows on Grandin Road.

Karen ordered the frog for her grandson’s bed, and the lady bug for her granddaughter’s bed. The pillow cases are red, and I think these cute pillows will finish the beds perfectly!

Heather and I both loved this large black shelf that Karen had salvaged from a remodel job.

It’s quite large and hung high enough to keep certain things out of reach of little Munchkin hands! Despite this, it looks perfectly in proportion with the room. Karen had purchases two vintage ladders to use on the sleeping porch but couldn’t decide how to display them. Heather suggested hanging them on either side of the wall shelf. They are hung with L brackets so that they extend out from the wall. Karen is going to hang the rest of her vintage quilt collection on them. Won’t that be cute?!

Owl pictures – Pier One

Vintage wood truck – The Rink

The old rusty tackle box is one of our Round Top finds. I filled it with things that I found around the kids room. Again, everything is high enough so that little hands can’t reach them. We certainly wouldn’t want them to get ahold of that old rusty box! I finished off the shelf with things that we had purchased from The Rink and other things that I had gathered from around the house.

We’re about 90percent done with this room. Heather is painting a table to hold the CUTEST log cabin doll house! More pics. of that and the quilts after they’re hung next week. That’s it for today. Enjoy the eye candy! I wish I could sleep in this room at night!

Denise

One Hot Mama!

2011-06-01T07:20:00.001-05:00

If you’re wondering what happened to me……which I am SURE is high on your list of things to worry about :)……My air conditioner upstairs went out which is where my sewing area is.

For someone who feels like a displaced Polar Bear on a good day, I now also have the grouchy attitude of one! It’s going to be next week before they can replace the unit and between the thought of having to live my entire life downstairs, the EXTREME STICKER SHOCK, and the fact that the temps. are headed toward the mid-90’s…….I have not been a happy camper.

So sewing is on hold for now.

I did manage to paint the mirror above my little mini mantel downstairs and rearrange things a bit.

It looks so cool and serene……

Love the painted and distressed look on my mirror.

I threw in a couple of silk flowers just to “Spring” every thing up a bit.

My little angel shows up well now.

This mantel pretty much represents some of my fav. things right now. Blues, greys, milk glass, and mercury glass.

Other than that…..I’ve noticed that blogger is still acting all wonky lately. What’s up with that? One day last week, everyone’s followers were all gone, and now I hear that people are still having trouble leaving comments? Crazy!

How do you write your posts? If you haven’t downloaded Window Live Writer you should try it! It works SO SO much better than blogger and is super cool! And it’s free! You can even edit your pics. and watermark them. Much easier and less stressful! Now I’m off to see if I can post this to both blogs. HA! It’s just one adventure after another around here! :)

Wow…..I even have a little happy face with the new Live Writer version! Whoopee!

Denise

Yesterday

2011-05-25T15:44:00.001-05:00

Unfortunately, much of Oklahoma suffered the same fate as Missouri yesterday. It was such a strange day. You could feel the humidity in the air so heavy and oppressive, you could cut it with a knife. About 3:00PM the sirens started to sound.

We spent a couple of hours yesterday afternoon in the neighbors shelter, visiting with neighbors and listening to the sirens go off repeatedly. We were very fortunate.

Not so with a community just to the North of us. So much devastation. So much sadness. A 3 year old little boy is still missing. His 16 month old sibling did not make it, and his other sibling and his pregnant mommy are in the hospital.

To the South of us, also devastation. So many homes totally leveled. It’s very difficult to blog about anything happy or silly today with so much suffering.

Our hearts and our prayers go out to those who have lost so much.

May God help you through this time of loss.

Swoon Worthy!

2011-05-18T05:53:00.001-05:00

I am just drooling this morning over a couple of new things that I had to share.

The first is the blog The Paper Mulberry. Which I found through Belgian Pearls. The most amazing images! I am in love and I’ve only browsed through a couple of pages.

Which is where I found these…….

Gorgeous tiles from Welbeck. An English tile company. I love how they used them in that last photo with the hot pink tub.

Yummy……yep, I’m swooning and wanting to tile something. Anything!

Smiles!!

Denise

Beautiful Monday

2011-05-16T13:54:00.001-05:00

It is the ultimate perfect day here. No wind. Temps. in the 70’s, the birds are happy and singing. Just one of those days where you’re happy to be outside enjoying nature.

I finished up some sewing over the weekend. I was totally out of thread so had to make a run to Hancock’s. I mention this because Tuesday Morning is right next door. I was NOT going in! NO WAY! But that mischievous me, the one who loooves to shop, just couldn’t help herself! And I scored.

These cute numbered locking jars. $3.99 each!! I couldn’t resist.

And……..

This cute basket with bottles. I had been wanting some of these bottles with the locking tops for awhile. I can’t wait to either serve pink lemonade out of them or fill each one with a pretty daisy. LOVE them!

So……these two new purchases called for a new vignette. Of course! Just so happened that I had a little display cabinet needing a new place to live.

I moved it to the dining room…..and had a blast filling it with goodies.

Collecting milk glass has been one of the best decisions I’ve made in a long time. It goes everywhere!

I had no idea what a perfect match this little shelf was to my pine vintage chest. Perfect! And I’ve had both pieces for years. Duh…..

My little dogs found a new place to live.

It had never occurred to me to move this little shelf downstairs and use it somewhere else. In fact, I had contemplated selling it. Sometimes, we just get stuck in that decorating loop and forget to step outside of our comfort zone. Try it! You may feel like you just redecorated your entire room! I sure do. And my new vignette makes me smile every time I walk by it!

Joining White Wednesday’s 100th post. Congratulations

Link may be found on my left side bar.

Have a wonderful week!

Denise

Lovin’ The Slips!

2011-05-13T23:55:00.000-05:00

I just finished another slipcover. I have to say, it is getting a little easier. Not much…but a little bit. I’m upstairs working on my den/T.V. room now.
Back in the day when I purchased this chair and ottoman dark colors and the Ralph Lauren look were all the thing.

Here’s the before color. Still in good shape, just not my style right now.
And here it is now. 1 1/2 drop clothes later.

This chair has an attached cushion. I’ll tell you….every piece is a new adventure.

Of course…..I needed new pillows. The forms I already had, and most of the fabric came from a $10.00 box of scraps that Heather found at a garage sale last summer. There was some GREAT fabric in there. You ROCK Heather!

I’m going a little more colorful in this room. It’s where we watch T.V. and spend a lot of our family time together.
I also painted the chest that was already upstairs. Heather suggested hot pink. I panicked and hyperventilated at the mere thought. I compromised.

Taupe with hot pink accents

I wanted it super distressed so I sanded the heck out of it. Normally I clear coat all of my pieces. I think I’ll try wax on this one though. I’m going to let it cure for a few days. It’s been rainy and humid here.

I’m liking this look. Kind of a combination of new and old. The old bowling trophies were my Grandpas. Along with the old medals that I have laying in the tray. And I would like a new lamp. Something shorter and fatter with a barrel shade maybe. More modern.
Next up……the sofa. YIKES! I’m working my way around the room. I was going to order a slipcover. But now I like my chair so much, I would like for them to match. Oh well, it’ll be a lot cheaper. If my sanity survives. :)
If I make it to the fabric store where this fabric is…….

……I reallly want to use some of it for my sofa back cushions. I hear it’s discontinued and only one place still has it. Unfortunately, this piece isn’t mine…..darn it!
Have a great weekend!
Denise
linking to....

You may find the direct links on my left sidebar.

Whimsy Reigns!

2011-05-10T19:52:00.001-05:00

In Heather’s world! And what better place to enjoy a heapin’ helpin’ of whimsy than in your kids rooms!

We love LOVE this rocking horse that she just finished.

Does that “rock” or what??!! All hand painted, of course.

And a lamp shade that she just finished.

Adorable! That polka dot cotton ruffle really set the whole thing off. Beautiful work, Heather!

I just finished a slipcover project on a chair at my house. Hopefully I’ll be able to take pics. tomorrow.

Are you having a wonderful week? We hope so.

Happy Thoughts!

Denise

Beautiful May

2011-05-05T19:34:00.001-05:00

Spring!! I love this weather. Not too hot….

We’ve had wonderful rain.

The birds are singing…….

HA! That was the best picture I’ve been able to capture of this little guy. Cardinals…..so pretty. And that was with the zoom!

I’m happy this week because I decided to keep these beautiful Johnson Brothers dishes.

I remembered them as being primarily blue and white, which are not my colors. When I unpacked them, thinking that I would clean them up and get them ready to sell, I was pleasantly surprised to find that they blended so well with all of my colors.

I was also happy that I decided to keep this beautiful bird dish with lid. It is so detailed. These were my Mother’s and I’ve had them packed away while I tried to make a decision.

Everything kind of set the Springtime bird theme for my hutch.

I threw in a few bright colored eggs and added a little yellow for a pop of Spring color.

I was able to use all of the cups and saucers by stacking them. I can’t believe that I ever considered getting rid of them. It’s a wonderful set with sugar and creamer, veggie bowl, salt & pepper, and even a coffee pot!

So……that’s my Spring hutch! Hope you have a wonderful weekend.

Denise

Linking with these parties. You can find their links on my left sidebar.

My Affair With The Chair

2011-04-28T09:20:00.001-05:00

First of all let me say that my Hubby thinks that everything that comes into this house, you know, “stuff” wise, is Smithsonian worthy. I think maybe he’s watched Antique Road Show one too many times.

I try to tell him “sometimes junk is just junk.” He’s not buying it.

“No more painting everything white!” He says.

“Anything you say honey.” I say. Yeah, right!

I’m gonna do what I’m gonna do!

So there’s this SWEET little vintage chair that I brought home from my Mother’s. In terrible shape. Not good for anything except just looking cute. Used to be red. Now faded on one side from the sun. The leather seat is peeling up. It NEEDs help. It needs PAINT.

Tuesday, Hubby is going to be gone ALL DAY! Yippee!

I sneak my little chair into the house. Just me…..my chair……and a can of white paint. Aahhh…….the perfect morning.

It’s looking soooo much better. I’m about a third of the way through my project. It’s about noon.

Hey……I’m taking my time, enjoying my project. Stopping for coffee……

And here comes Hubby!! Waaayyy early!

And my chair and I are caught red handed.

Aaahhh ooohhh!

He walks in….his eyes get as big as saucers and he actually, and I’m not kidding, gasps!

“Is that you Mother’s chair?”

“What are you doing home so early!!” I ask.

He didn’t even answer me. He walked off mumbling something about he thinks we need to call the family together for an intervention.

Whaat!

So here’s my chair……..all painted. What do YOU think?

I know! Right?!

Come See Us!

2011-04-27T21:30:00.001-05:00

If you’re in the OKC area tomorrow (Thursday) come visit our new booth at The Feathered Next, N.W. 63rd and McArthur, between 4PM and 8PM. They’re having a sale, 15% off storewide and 10% off on furniture during this time. If you’ve never been in, it’s a beautiful mall. I know I already have my eye on a couple of things! Hope we see you there.

Which has absolutely nothing to do with the following pics. But…..you can’t have a post without pics. Right?

Dried single Rose from my 35th……YEP! 35th wedding anniversary earlier this month.

My paint by number that I found thrifting last week. $1.50!!! WOOHOO!

And just because……I’ve been playing with textures from Kim Klassen in Photo Shop. Lots of fun. Stop by her blog if you haven’t already!

Se Ya!!

Denise

Wallpaper questions

2011-04-25T20:47:00.001-05:00

I had several inquiries about the wall behind the bed in my guest room.

It is actually a stone wallpaper with a brick wallpaper torn and hung in places over the stone.

This was hung at least five or six years ago so unfortunately, I don’t have any pattern numbers that I can give you.

The brick wallpaper is what is called “expanded vinyl.” This means that it actually has a raised pattern and a textured feel to it.

I did Google “expanded vinyl brick wallpaper” and came up with some results. If you are interested, you might check this out.

Hope this helps!

Happy Monday

P.S. The paint color is Ralph Lauren Canvas Natural. I LOVE it. It goes well with any color that you put with it. I wish my entire house was painted this color. Wanta have a paint party? :0)

Guest Bedroom Reveal

2011-04-21T18:15:00.001-05:00

It’s finished! After moving my sewing area, I was finally able to turn our extra bedroom into something that I love. I just put the finishing touches in place earlier today. Sorry for the quality of my pics. It was very cloudy today.

I love this vintage bed! It is on wheels and is a little higher so there’s plenty of storage room underneath. And best of all……it was FREE!

That’s an old architectural piece above. It came from my Mother’s. I just found the little oil painted landscape this week at a thrift store. $3.00!

My not so impressive collection of cream colored vintage purses. All three of them! I won’t pay over about $6.00 so it may take awhile to collect more. The lamp and shade….thrift store. I recovered the shade and painted the brass bottom on the lamp. The mannequin was one of my splurges. I have so much fun with all of my “girls.”

All I had to do to this lamp shade was add the little flower. I used a floor lamp that I already had.

I made the slipcover to use on an old vintage chair that I had. The basket holds what few vintage linens that I own.

Almost the entire wall to the left of the bed is glass. It is VERY expensive to cover! What started out as “make do,” I now actually love. Shabby Chic sheets from Target, cream colored drapes in the middle. The valance is actually an old vintage piece of fabric that I found last year for $5.00. I added the ruffle. Everything is clipped on at the top. For added privacy, I strung super cheapo sheers from Wal-Mart on a wire and hung them behind my make do drapes.

The valance wasn’t quite long enough, so I hid the shortage with vintage baby clothing and such.

Going on around the room, this is my corner unit. It’s actually a computer desk. The bottom opens and it has a fold out shelf for the keyboard. Those bowls…….what can I say, I needed a place for cat food that Molly couldn’t reach.

On the wall opposite the bed is my vintage bench that I shared with everyone awhile back.

Boy, that wall looks plain doesn’t it? I guess I won’t hang anything there unless I just happen to find something I can’t live without.

And finally, the wall to the right of the bed.

So that’s it. My little slice of whimsy! If I find something or maybe create something a little quirky and silly……this is the room where it finds a home.

Sorry about the quality of the pictures. I did the best that I could in Photo Shop. I just need a new camera. Which I could probably afford if I would stop redecorating. :) Oh well…..

Have a beautiful and happy Easter!

Denise

Linking with………..

Find the links on my bottom left sidebar.

Happy Monday!

2011-04-18T09:59:00.001-05:00

I know, I know…..for some of you who had to go back to work this morning after the weekend, it’s not the best day of the week. Unless you accomplished a lot on your days off. I’ve been a busy little beeeeeee around here!

This was probably my favorite find at Round Top. In fact, we all loved them and we each took one home for ourselves AND several to sell.

Vintage wood grape picking trays. They are HUGE. About 3’ long.

Mine took plenty of goodies to fill the entire tray.

I used several different items out of my hutch so it’s looking kinda empty. Aaahhh…..what a shame. Now I’ll have to start searching for things to fill it with again. More shopping! ;)

Added Spring to my coffee table. And changed the Chocolate velvet euros on the sofa to cream cotton matelasse. Can you see where the animals like to lounge? I’ve about given up on my constant fluffing. It’s just part of life around our house.

Also finished painting this little cream Duncan Phyfe table. I’ve had it forever but thought it was pretty well trashed. Then Hubby took it apart and glued and fixed it for me. Now it’s sturdy as can be!

Both sides extend and I love the little lion head pulls. I also recovered my lamp shade in white scrim. It looks so pretty lit in the evening. It puts out the perfect soft glow.

Added eggs to my little thrift store bowl.

Oops! You can see some of my projects waiting to be finished in the background. I have them stashed behind the sofa. That’s what is so wonderful about blogging though, you can just kick things out of the way and everyone thinks your house is clean! Ah oh…..I just gave myself away…….

Hope everyone has a wonderful week!

Denise

An Update and Fun With Photo Shop!

2011-04-14T16:56:00.001-05:00

Our boy won the costume contest!! YIPPEE!! AND……he won by an overwhelming majority. His Mommy and T-Man are both so excited! He had told Heather that he really really wanted to win this contest and the two of them worked so hard on this one. You’re a great Mom, Heather!

Just couldn’t resist having a little fun with the photos that she took this morning in the front yard.

Congrats to our Mad Hatter!

Denise

It’s A Mad Mad World!

2011-04-13T22:02:00.001-05:00

I just couldn’t wait to show all of you these pics. of my grandson.

They’re having an event at T-Man’s school called “War, Peace, and All That Jazz.” This event includes a five page essay and a costume contest. Your costume can be either a real or fictional character from a certain time period.

After much costume consideration…..

Meet the Mad Hatter!

Heather put her heart and soul into this costume, I’ll tell ‘ya! It started with four hours of thrift shopping to find the perfect clothes. I wouldn’t have thought a pair of plaid men’s pants and a ‘70’s style corduroy jacket still existed ANYWHERE! But she found ‘em!

She painted the detailing on the pants.

The original Mad Hatter had gray hair. She couldn’t find an orange wig (a la Johnny Depp), so they went with the old style. The hat was perfect, and only $10.00 at a local costume shop.

She made every single hat pin and all of the other detailing.

The gold detailing on the vest was sponged on. And the lace was sewn on the sleeves of the jacket.

She found the mini spools of thread at Michaels and strung them with jute string.

She and T-Man spent lots of time researching every little detail of this costume and all I can say is………….

WOW!

Heather, you did an absolutely amazing job! Good luck to T-Man tomorrow.

Denise

Spring Vignettes

2011-04-13T09:41:00.001-05:00

Just getting things in order for Spring.

The girls are dressing in their summer linens.

Can’t get enough of the milk glass.

Grabbed a vintage frame the other day and covered the back in burlap, then created a little button heart.

Feathering my nest with lots of birds and related items.

And LOTS of yard work. 16 bags of mulch down…….16 to go!

Sorry for the short post. I’ll have to stop the yard work long enough to take a few more pics!

Happy Wednesday!

Denise

Round Top-Part 3

2011-04-07T21:31:00.001-05:00

We actually headed home a day early. We had reached capacity in our trailer. In fact…..we were afraid we would have to leave something behind.

But…….where there’s a will, there’s a way!

One horse trailer and a lot of determination.

The trailer’s full. No problem! We’ll just put the 10 foot farm table and the three others ON TOP.

Yep, I know. Then the guys that we bought most of it from NAILED all of the tables together and tied them down. CRAZY!

Even the car was full.

And nothing moved even an inch the whole way home.

But we did have about a foot of space at the very back. We couldn’t let all of that space go unused.

We stopped in Dallas too buy plants. Oh….that Jasmine smells so sweet!

Here’s some of our purchases.

Work work work! I don’t know if these girls are killing me or keeping me young!

We’re off tomorrow to tag and display as much as we can.

Denise

Oh..oh. One foot note! Poppies At Play is having a fun home tour. Stop by and see all of the beautiful homes on the tour. FUN!

Round Top-Part 2

2011-04-05T13:42:00.001-05:00

Friday…….It was going to be a warm (or hot) day. And we hadn’t found much that we could resale. But today would be THE DAY.

Industrial…….I love it. Well, in moderation. I would love to have a couple of pieces.

Lots of reclaimed wood.

We bought some great things from this vendor.

Great end tables. If you’re a handy carpenter. No…..we didn’t buy these.

Would have loved this for a kitchen island. I’ve been dying for a kitchen island!

More than you could see in a weekend.

Loved these old chippy industrial lights and how they hung them in a group.

Saw succulents planted in various repurposed shallow planters several places. I LOVE this! It’s such a clean contemporary look.

And then……we hit the jackpot! Believe it or not, this is OUR kinda shopping! Piles and piles of yummy junk to dig through!!

Next up…..the trip home. It was HILARIOUS! You won’t want to miss the pics. of our trailer!

Denise

Round Top-Part 1

2011-04-03T14:25:00.001-05:00

We’re back! And what a trip it was. WOW! This was the first time for all of us to the Round Top, Warrenton Antique Fair and it was quite an adventure.

Ms. R., Heather, and I had FUN FUN FUN!!

We knew that this show was huge, but you just can’t imagine it until you really really see it. Just to (kind of) put it into perspective…….if the antique show were the hay stack, what we saw was about the size of a needle.

It’s hot, blowing dust, and lots of gravel, but if you’re willing to walk and walk……that one great treasure is there….somewhere……amidst more “stuff” than I’ve ever seen in one place.

Day 1……………..

We loved this booth! Somewhere I have this sweet ladies card and will have to post her location later. I know that she is in Texas somewhere.

Her displays were among the cutest that we saw the whole show.

Loved that fern on top of the old bird bath stand.

Not to brag about all of you bloggers out there……..but I seriously think that all of you set the trends. All of the things that I see and love on my favorite blogs were the hot hot trends of this show.

Was that a gorgeous piece of what!?

Ms. R. hit the jack pot here for goodies in her master bedroom that we are decorating.

I intended to take tons and tons of pics. but to tell you the truth, it’s so overwhelming that you just get too caught up in everything.

Next up……..day 2!

The industrial look and some of the great “junk” piles that we shopped!

Denise

Gallery Walls

2011-03-25T08:27:00.001-05:00

I’ve been studying them quite a bit lately. In preparation for an upcoming project.

We’ll be doing an accent wall in a living room.

I love the idea of combining different elements and textures, other than just framed art.

Normally, I like my vignettes very symmetrical. This should be a real challenge for me!

In theory, if you mat your art in a wide solid color, it separates and makes it stand out from a busy background. In reality (mine at least) this room would drive me crazy! Wow!!

So, the wall in question won’t be completed for a couple of weeks. Because…….we’re heading to Round Top next weekend and hope to find some wonderful, and unusual goodies.

Heather and I are soooo excited! We’ve never been! We’re hoping to find the perfect vintage elements for the living room gallery wall we’ll be doing.

Images VIA

Linking with Debra at Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Denise

Last Week…..

2011-03-20T16:52:00.001-05:00

Last week’s projects are finished. No lists of things to do here. I just GO! Where ever my muse leads me. I think she has a bit of a problem staying on task! :>)

Turquoise “Song Bird” chest for the Rink. I love this one!

I was going for a bit of an Anthro. look. The birdies are French music paper.

……………………………………………………………………

My guest room is in a transition period (again.) Since I moved my sewing area, I have more room to play with new projects.

Another glue gun project. I upholstered the body of this bench with a drop cloth.

The seat is covered in the linen from my old bench.

arm detail. Yep, glue gun.

The legs were what originally attracted me to this piece.

She always looks sooooo guilty. As you can probably see, the bed is a work in progress.

My little basket of vintage linens.

I’m close to being through with this room. More photos later.

Hope you all have a beautiful week.

Denise

A Sad Goodbye

2011-03-13T20:55:00.001-05:00

Well….I tried EVERYWHERE to find a place for my sofa.

My custom reupholstered vintage sofa.

But in the end, it made it’s way to the Rink. We delivered it today.

Someone will be taking home a wonderful piece of furniture. New foam in the cushions. New foam and down in the back. I probably sat on this sofa a total of about 30 minutes during the entire time that I owned it. I needed the new sewing area waaaayy more than I needed to keep my sofa…..sigh……

Heather painted the coffee table a couple of weeks ago and it just happens to look fab. with the sofa. So cute and colorful and the perfect height.

Our new partner, Ms. R,, wanted to sell her matching ottomans. I LOVED them! With their faux fur bottoms and red damask tops. They also just happened to match the sofa and the coffee table.

YUMMY!

We also have two solid black end tables that we just brought in and this……

Is this chest just the most adorable thing ever?!

We’re stocked FULL of lamps, framed art, and lots of other goodies. Coming soon are cute Easter goodies and other pieces of furniture!

Can’t wait to show you the pictures of our Easter decor. We have had so much fun creating.

Yes…..we have a new partner. Ms. R is just the sweetest, but prefers to remain mysterious. She has exactly the same taste and passions for decorating and creating as Heather and I and a HUGE ambition to see us grow beyond our humble little space at the Rink. NO…..there is NOT another shop in our future. This is working out well for us. But there MAY be other news in our future.

Well, so much for this rambling post! :)

Talk to everyone later in the week!

Denise

Forever!

2011-03-10T20:26:00.001-06:00

Do you know what YOURS is? Your forever color? You know…… that “go to” color that you always love. It mixes with most everything in your home, and you can always count on it to……well…..you just know that it will always work for you.

It was the color of the sweet little plate that you found for practically nothing. On super sale, because in the 90’s no one was really using that color.

The paint color that you mixed yourself.

To match your favorite chairs.

Or a yummy Hydrangea. Or maybe YOUR favorite flower!

The toile fabric that you love. Even though toile isn’t as “in” as it used to be. Just because the background color is sooooo perfect.

The little chair you repainted that seems to really show your vintage linens so much better than it did before.

How about the chippy vintage tea cart you just HAD to have.

You use it on your bed.

With touches here and there.

So what’s your “go to” color?

Mine? Hummmm…..I’ll have to think about that! :)

Have a wonderful weekend!

Denise

Spring!

2011-03-07T19:40:00.001-06:00

All of the gorgeous Spring images that I’m seeing on blogs are so inspiring!

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That pink thermos jug is just the cutest!

I wonder if I could talk hubby into building me a little studio like this…….

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And then I would fill it with goodies like these…..

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The perfect place for a little inspiring…..messiness!

On our home front…….

Congrats. to my grandson, T-Man!! Who just got his first stripe in Karate tonight.

Karate is something that we wish we had started him in years ago. He’s very shy and quiet and a program like this does so much for kids self esteem, self discipline, and it’s great exercise.

See ya!

Denise

Have A Seat

2011-03-03T22:09:00.001-06:00

When are dining chairs considered “vintage” instead of just ugly and old? My dining chairs were definitely the latter. :) Just plain ugly!

I’ve blogged about these chairs before.

Yep, ugly!

Here they are now. No1 and there’s also a No2

Update on the burlap. NOT great for sitting on every day. Even though we only use the table and chairs several times a year, because of the loose weave and the overall nature of burlap, the numbers are beginning to wear off.

So, then I thought “slipcovers!”

Which is when I made this one. I loved the way that it turned out. Well, except for the front, which needs ties to stay put. But I didn’t use a pattern. So months later, when I was ready to slip my other chairs, oops……I wasn’t quite sure that I could duplicate it. Sigh……..

This chair was next.

Drop clothes for the seat and white linen for the pleats.

Then, hey, why have any two alike, right?

So I ruffled the last one. With cotton lace.

Here are the backs. So……hands down, the fitted button back is the most functional and stays put the best.

So now that I’ve figured that out……:)

I guess I’m done. In the end, I really don’t mind the fact that they’re all different. And hey, it gave me something to blog about. :)

Have a wonderful weekend.

Denise

The Power of Change!

2011-02-28T13:56:00.001-06:00

It was simple, really. Either move my sewing “junk” somewhere besides the dining room, or go CRAZy. And it’s a short trip to crazy for this gal! :)

So, and this was my Hubby’s idea, upstairs to the small nook in our master bedroom it allll went. As he said, at least it’s the last room in the house that visitors ever see. So if it gets messy, not such a big deal!

But, I had no idea what a transformation this would be!

Tons of pics. to follow……..

New matching bookcases. One on either end.

Is it just me, or is there something about stacks of fabric? All of that color, pattern, and texture.

OTHER side!

Ms. Mannequin LOVES it here. It’s almost time for her Spring couture!

And my long narrow work table in the center for my sewing machines.

Skirted for more hidden storage underneath.

And there MUST be a bit of bling.

Those little guys…….just because!

Now, the only thing missing is a good cutting table.

However, this will work for smaller projects.

Need to find a solution for all of those cords. Any suggestions? I almost sold my Clinique Cheron poster so many times. But there’s just always been something about it that I love. I’m thinking about maybe painting the table top and the frames. Too much gold??

My Mom’s childhood Pinocchio hankie.

Aahhh…….sweet moon. Me thinks you are about to become FAMOUS! But that’s for a later post!

Off to buy some Spring fabrics! Are you beginning to love brighter colors with the nicer weather and sunshine? Me too!!

Later!

Denise

Sleeeeppy……

2011-02-22T06:51:00.001-06:00

I’m feeling sleeeppy………

That’s what I keep telling myself anyway. Been awake since about 4:45. It’s now…..6:39. Don’t you just hate that? Of course, I am drinking coffee right now. That should help, right? NOT!

Maybe if I slept in a bed like this

I could have sworn that I hated those old patch work quilts. Goes to show ‘ya what I know! Love LOVE the totally random way the vintage sheets are put together.

Check out jek in the box on Flickr. And while you’re there, be sure and look at her creative headboard. Too cute!

Denise

Houndstooth

2011-02-17T15:40:00.001-06:00

This hounds…..tooth is make in’ me howl. With delight.

Heather recently finished this one for her bedroom.

Grey and silver metallic. Love the different knobs on each drawer. She said she’d be happy to paint one for you…….for about a gazillion dollars. Apparently this was quite time consuming. Hand painted. NOT stenciled. YIKES!

A highchair for a customer. Polka dots on the spindles? I don’t know how she does it. Really!

Frames. You wouldn’t even need a photo in this. It’s a piece of art by itself.

These pics. that she sent me are small, but when I tried to enlarge, I lost too much resolution and they were blurry. But you get the idea! I love LOVE the floral. These frames are HUGE. Huummm, how about stapling some chicken wire on the back and using them for jewelry hangers. CUTE!

At home…..Jack The Cat has been renamed. Jack The Ripper! After his most recent blitz attack on poor Willow kitty.

“Who me? But look how adorable I am!”

“I mean seriously, have you EVER seen a cuter kitty than little old ME.”

It’s always the most innocent looking who are the biggest trouble makers!……

……See Ya!

Denise

Still Editing

2011-02-12T17:55:00.001-06:00

I’m still in the editing mood around here. Remember this bench?

A great size for a child’s room, it went to the Rink this week. The little slipcover stayed with it, the pillow is staying with me.

A little blue vintage end table from the living room. A rooster lamp, and plate rack and plates also need new homes.

And this bench will be on the way next week.

After I paint it.

With this seat cover. I had a slipcover on it, which is somewhere in my archives, if you’re looking for a better picture, but I’m keeping that fabric. This cushion is in perfect condition and reverses to a solid brown.

In its place……

The little chair is waiting to be reupholstered, but I thought it looked kinda cute just like it is. It’s so old that there is straw underneath the batting.

I LOVE my vintage suitcases and actually use them to store craft supplies in. And of course baskets. I change their little vignettes all the time.

This trunk……..

Will be getting a coat of cream paint this week and I’ll be keeping it. More great storage, probably for all those magazines we all “need.”

Love the lamp shade that I finished for this lamp. The hair clip isn’t part of the decor. :) oops!

So I’ve been organizing, editing, cleaning closets, and really trying to minimize my furniture and accessories. Isn’t it amazing what you can accumulate after 30 years in the same house. Yep 30 (plus) years!

One thing’s for sure, I’m NOT a hoarder! :)

Denise

Flower Power

2011-02-07T19:32:00.001-06:00

Have you noticed it? The trend toward LARGE more modern floral patterns in textiles.

And wallpaper. This room is way way too busy for me. I love that grey and pink though. Maybe without the bed crown, different drapes and fewer flowers in the bedding.

On the other hand……..

I found these stencils on Etsy.

Much less expensive.

And you can always paint over it.

And…….

large scale floral patterns are Heather’s best sellers. From floors to frames (picture frames) it’s what everyone seems to love.

I’ll stick with my creams and blues, thank you. I do think something fun and contemporary would be perfect in a teen girls room. Or maybe a family room.

Another big snow storm is moving our way. YUK!!

Denise

Snow Days

2011-02-05T11:02:00.001-06:00

If you’ve been snowed in this week like we have, what have you been doing? Other than cooking and cleaning the kitchen 90bazillion times! :)

Attempts were made to stay outside in the freezing cold more than about 10 minutes.

Brrrrrr it’s been cold!

I did manage to start making a few new flowers.

Then I promptly ran out of glue sticks. Darn it!

You would think that this should have been a very productive week. Instead it was all about lounging around wrapped in a blanket and watching T.V.

And of course cruising blogs. One of my first stops is always Little Blue Deer where you will find wonderful images like this…..

Shari always finds the most fantastic pictures. Thank you Shari! This is my idea of a perfect snow day. When you visit Shari’s blog, be sure and visit her sources listed under each post. Tumblr is FULL of amazing eye candy!

I could SO curl up on this sofa with a good book. Love LOVE the color. Grey is becoming a new favorite of mine.

If you prefer more color, this tufted yellow head board is pretty yummy. Love the bedding that they’ve paired it with!

This picture makes me want to paint and paper my old door. Love the chippy peely look of it. I have to wonder though, why is it when I throw a cover like that over my furniture, it never looks so beautiful?

I need to try and make one of those wonderful flowers on that bag. Again, the grey walls with the pops of color really does it for me.

Be sure and visit Just Be Splendid and Vintage Rose Garden for the pictures above and hours of great blogging beauty! I found both of these Tumblr blogs through Little Blue Deer.

Hope you are having a wonderful weekend. The sun is out here. Temporarily at least. Apparently there is another round of bad weather headed our way.

Denise