Friday, April 30, 2010

Toile-Can You Have Too Much?

I am linked up today with Cindy at My Romantic Home, for Show and Tell Friday. Stop by to visit Cindy and the many others who are showing and telling about some really great things in their homes!

show_and_tell_fridaysI love toile. Always have and I always will! I have red toile sheers. 052 I have pink and white toile pillow.054 I have a blue and yellowish toile loveseat. Actually I have 2 matching blue and yellow toile loveseats.053 I have a black toile pillow.051

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I have a red and yellow toile seat cushion on my old wicker chair.056I have a swatch of Waverly toile that is a discontinued pattern; gonna make another pillow out of it. 012

I already made this pillow cover from another Waverly toile pattern from another discontinued pattern. I still need to stuff it!013

Sue, from Collectin Texas Blogspot, didn’t even know how much I love toile when she sent me this gorgeous purse in my Bunny Swap package.How cool is that?034

And, now I am being tortured by this Ethan Allen sage green toile chair and ottoman , in my favorite cottage style design. It is posted on Craig’s List for 250.00 and was originally almost 2,000. (seller has the original paperwork to prove it).toile chair So, do I have enough? Is it too much, as in overkill? I can’t stop thinking about it!toile chair2

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Red and White

Today is a banner day for me as I am attending 2 parties at the same time! I am linking with Kathleen at Cottage Charm, for White Wednesday. And, also, with Sue at It’s a Very Cherry World for Rednesday.

Be sure to stop by both to visit people who love red and people who love white!

Welcome! Yes, that is what my red, cast iron sign says. 013

Here are a couple of large molded plastic rose bangle bracelets. They are fun, for sure!005

My heavy garden kitty is white.All white, even his eyes!032

Here is my red mantel clock. The wall behind it is white and green. I am playing around with different colors of paint, so the paint job is still partly done. I’m embarrassed that I have, probably, 5 or 6 or 7 partially painted walls. I will try a new paint color on part of a wall and then not get back to it for a loooooong time. Some people take a couple of days to test out paint colors and how they look on their walls, morning, noon, twilight and after dark. I have been known to take several seasons to decide, because I ambitiously start and then have no time to complete the task.197 Here is my set of red Costco candlesticks.193 I have this old window with chipping white paint hanging on my wall. It seems pretty dull, like it could use some dressing up.201

I have white shells all over the place and sea glass in all different colors, including white. Where’s my glue gun? I think I’m going to decorate the window frame with shells and sea glass. That would be a fun project for tomorrow. Or, perhaps, I should finish painting some walls?!202

Sunday, April 25, 2010

Blue Monday Ceramic Spring

 

blue_monday[3] Happy Monday and  it is a blue one! Smiling Sally hosts this weekly event where participants add their links to show the “blues” they are contributing to the party. Click on the picture of the bird above to view the complete list. It’s a lot of fun!

I am showing this little bird couple in blue crackle finish. They are so sweet together :)043 

You can see their light blue color much better in this picture. I had to use the flash as it’s a rainy day and I can’t get good natural light, even by the window.045

And here is my ceramic rain boot planter in  soft blue. I had been seeing these boot planters around at different places; all different colors but I decided to buy when I found this color. I hope to plant some trailing petunias in this boot; some pink or red would be pretty.  The annuals should start showing up in the stores and nurseries by Mother’s Day.046 047

This last blue I am showing is this hand painted spoon rest from Poland. Polish dishes have a lot of blue paint used on them. It is a deep cobalt blue; very rich. I have some other pieces of Polish pottery; all with blue and lots of brown. I like how this piece has green and a bit of yellow; works better with the springier pattern.049

048 I wish you all a happy Blue Monday and a happier week ahead!

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Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Thrifty Thursday~Estate Sale Finds

thriftthursday Yay! I finally found some thrifty goodies, after a dry spell, so I can play along at the Thrifty Thursday at Bloggaritaville party. Click on the picture above to transport over to the list of party-goers. It is a fun event; that is guaranteed!

There were signs up in our neighborhood pointing me to an Estate Sale. I dropped in on the second day and it was still pretty busy. I found it to be kind of odd, in a way. First of all, we live in a neighborhood that is not very old, so I wondered “what could they have?"”.

The sale was extremely well laid out and organized. Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING in every room of the house was for sale. The kitchen cupboards were open with boxes of crackers, cans of soup, automatic dishwasher tablets and common medicines, like Tums. I found that to be kind of creepy; maybe it’s just me, but, how old are those crackers? Are those Tums expired?

There were some very nice things, too. I grabbed this heavy multi- heart muffin pan for only $2. It has never been used. I googled the John Wright Cast Iron CO and this is what I learned:

The original Wrightsville Hardware Company was founded in 1880 near our present location in Wrightsville, Pennsylvania. Along with our foundries, we have a retail store and outlet in a converted turn-of-the-century warehouse on the bank of the lovely Susquehanna River. If you are ever in the neighborhood, be sure to stop in – you can even enjoy a delightful breakfast or lunch in our Riverside Restaurant!

John Wright remains America’s oldest continuously operating manufacturer of cast iron products!!

022 020 023 John Wright has all types of specialty muffin pans. Their are flowers, pineapples, alphabet letters, corn cobs and a ton of others. Have you seen these muffin pans? Do you have any and do you use them?021

Here is my other purchase: a cotton Damask tablecloth and napkin set in a dreamy soft blue.The table cloth is 62 X 104, which will be perfect for my dining room table. This set has never been used.024

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The tablecloth picture is in “just unfolded after 30+ years”- shape. I will try to post a picture of it after I wash and press it and set it on the table, which I am excited to do.

All in all, it was worth the stop and I only had to go 3 blocks away.

Good Bye Faithful Buddy

The last couple of days have been painful for us. Our lab/mix Homer, has been failing. After a late night at 2 different animal hospitals, we were forced to accept that nothing can be done. Homer has thyroid disease, tumors, a shrunken heart, fluid in his chest, diabetes and is ketotic (sp).  Homer’s best friend, Coney, has been glued to Homer’s side. We have been told that it is a good idea to allow Homer’s best friend to see that Homer has passed, so that Coney can process the event in his “doggy” way. Otherwise, Coney will continue to look for him.007 Christian gathered Homer’s favorite toys around him.009 He gave Homer his “Best Friend” necklace.017

And, made a nest on the floor so he could sleep next to his buddy all night.005

We have cried and cried. This is something we have never had to do and our hearts are totally broken. In a couple of hours, our 4 children, Coney, DH and I will surround Homer with love and he will be released from pain.

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Blue Monday~Music Stand

Happy Blue Monday Everybody! For all of you who love the color blue,( Is there anyone who doesn’t?) Smiling Sally has a weekly event where the party-goers post their blues and hop to each blog visiting the others. Click on the picture of the bird to get to the party.

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I found this music stand at a little shop for 44.00. It is an older piece and was originally a dark color. I thought it was an interesting piece with 3 different shelves, a drawer and a lip on the lid to hold your music up. The lid can also lie flat. I grabbed my can of aqua spray paint and went crazy spraying. After letting the paint set for a bit, I took some rough 60 grade sand paper and rub off some of the paint on the edges.021 022 This was a quick and slick transformation and I really like how it turned out. I just put one of my books on the stand because I do not play any music. I guess I could put some old music books on the stand anyway; now I have to look for some!020 This view shows how the lid props up.019 Here is a picture I’ve had since my children were little. It had the dated gold frame which I just painted a crisp white and distressed slightly. That helped freshen up the style but now I see a shiny gold trim under the glass framing the picture.(Ugh). There is a good bit of blue in this picture.018 024 Thanks for stopping by; I sure love having the company and I will be visiting as many of you as I can as well. Have a wonderfully happy and joyful week!

Friday, April 16, 2010

Pink Saturday~Jewelry and Tea Party

pinksatbut Happy Pink Saturday to all you Pink Ladies! Stop over to visit dear Beverly at How Sweet the Sound to visit all the Pink treasures.

I don’t know what bird these feathers come from. Maybe they don’t have this bird in Colorado! Ha! Very sassy! Feather jewelry is pretty trendy out here, especially peacock feathers. I have noticed that Colorado is a bit behind in fashion trends. Styles on the east and west coasts take a bit longer to travel cross country, across the prairie and over the Rocky Mountains. Now, don’t anybody get mad at me for saying that. I am speaking only what I have observed and only in generalizations. Colorado has a lot of beautiful and trendy people. My family in Oregon says that feather jewelry is so 2008. My girls and their friends out here have just discovered the feather jewelry and are having a lot of fun with it!009

How about these spring/summer colors with sparkly bling? Great bracelet for fun. I have some classic pieces that I wear most the time, but it is fun to buy trendy pieces that liven your life for not too much money016

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This is a miniature tea set. I so loved playing tea party as a child with our miniature dishes. I was always the hostess and got to serve my sister and our dolls.012 013

My sweet little Easter Bunny grandson. It’s always fun when toddlers keep their cute hats on. Most of my kids would tear them off before I could even get a picture!philip bunny And here is some sweet children drinking tea.tea-party-457x313-custom

Today I am giving a shout out to Gwen at Gwenny's Place. Gwenny is a new friend in blogger land and is a Christian Biker Chick. She is sweet and funny; you are guaranteed a laugh by stopping by!

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