It's the simple things!!!

The school that my kiddos go to had an appreciation brunch today... I helped out with the decorations so I am the happy recipient of the "leftovers".  Not the food but some of the decor.  The parts that were just going to rot if just left in a dark gym.  So to our home they traveled.

Who knew that such simple things would make me so happy?  I spent a little time this afternoon finding a "home" for these beauties.   

Aren't they pretty???  I love sunflowers!  You have to admit that the most wonderful "decorations" come from nature.  God's creation is awesome on it's own but I also love to add funky pieces to the raw, natural elements.

Look at that beautiful curly stem!  So fun!  And the copper charger ~ from my Mom... I'll have to get the story on them but I use them all over my house when I'm decorating.

Clippings from our Yaupon Holly Tree.  Just for color.

And the "crowning" piece ~ a knife from a set of 4 that my Mom made me buy on a junking trip (I'm so glad she did!)!  Hello!  Did you notice the awesome engraved "M"???!!!  Did I mention the set was $2?  Thanks Mom!

A mason jar all wrapped up with a burlap knot (love me some burlap)!

So this little grouping will live on my counter right by the sink where I spend lots of time!  And I will now smile while I am doing the dishes...

New lanterns

Well, I haven't exactly been blogging away as furiously as I thought I might be but summer was busy!  I tried to be an "available" mom, so spending hours on the computer needed to wait until school started.  Here it is mid-October.  Where has the time gone?  I can't help but wonder how the Super Women of blogland make crafts, cook dinner AND take pictures of all of that AND blog about it!!!  I don't get it.  I can't do it.  I am JEALOUS!!  Maybe one day I can figure out how to "do it all" but for now... I'll just be an occasional blogger!

So I DID have time to do a quick little perk up to some new lanterns that I bought at Home Goods a few months ago.  We had company coming over to hang out by the pool and we needed some color on the patio so I got busy! 

Pretty huh?  They reminded me of the WAY more expensive ones in the Pottery Barn catalog.  I think these were something like $22 each.

So here's what I gathered up to help these out a little...

I had all of this around the house.  Pots, burlap remnants, candles, cute little frog & pretty ribbon.  So I tied a knot, stuffed some burlap, inserted candles (I used jar candles so the fabric would not catch on fire!!!) and snuggled the lanterns with the frog on a tray to get this:

What do you think???  Cute?

Not cute?

Whatever your opinion, they added a little color when I needed it.  It's now fall... guess it's time for a change!! ; )  Any ideas?

Garage Sale goodies!

Since I started this little blog I find that my wheels are constantly turning, thinking about new stuff (and some old ideas that I've never gotten to) that I want to do!  I'm also taking A LOT more pictures than I have in a looooong time (my mother will be proud).  So tell me, is it wrong to take pictures of "stuff" instead of your children???  I wonder because that's exactly what I've been doing... 


Note to self: Take more pictures of the kiddos!


Back to this.  So I was at a garage sale today and I picked up a few fun things that I am excited about.  My new "thing" for this blog caused me to yank them right out of the trunk & get them all ready for a picture - assuming someone would care to see some of the junk that I decided to bring home!  And now, I will post pictures for your (whoever might be there!!) viewing pleasure!

Ta-da!  What do you think???  Looks just like a pile of junk doesn't it? 

Pretty fun stuff when you take a closer look!  I love the pewter - not sure where they will end up but somehow I see flowers in them.  What about that abacus???  I have a friend who might be reading this that would probably be impressed (and a little surprised) that I know what an abacus is - and to her I say, "Hmmph."  Again, not sure where it will end up for sure but it will likely live in our bedroom for some reason.  I think if it is left anywhere that the children frequent, it might not last a long time.  The open back awesome frames will go on the "Unique Shabby Chic Shelf" that is in the works (trying to build the anticipation).  Oh, and the lovely lady in the standing frame is my Grandmother..neat, huh??  The apple gourd will go with the theme of our VBS this week, so it will be used as a decoration there.  Then it will join my other apple shaped gourds in our home sweet home.   The candelabra is (formerly) Southern Living.  It speaks to me somehow - I love how it reminds me of "Lumere" from Beauty and the Beast.  The scale is old & doesn't weigh accurately but has tons of character and reminds me of growing up.  Okay here's the truth.... it reminds me of growing up because it was in the kitchen WHERE I grew up!  So I DID go to a garage sale, it just happened to be at my parents house.  I TRIED to pay for these little treasures but my Mom wouldn't let me!  Anyway, I am quite proud of my "new" junk and I can't wait to find the perfect home for each piece.  I have to say this was one of my best days for great garage sale finds but I have found lots of great stuff at random places too!  You never know what you'll end up with! 

Old Stuff

I need to practice (a lot) if I'm ever gonna figure this blogging thing out so I am going to post some old pics of stuff that I did a long time ago.  My goal is to post this in a larger font than my first two posts!  Meanwhile, this will fill in the gap until I can get my hubby to help me with the shabby shelf.  I've got all the plans in my head and could probably whip it up on my own, but unless I'm okay with a large shelf piled with treasured possessions coming crashing down on top of a newly purchased slimline flat screen (someone I live with MIGHT have a thing for fancy T.V.'s), I'd better wait for the help.   

First off - Little Cowgirl Room.  A few years ago I did some decorating for a family at a lakehouse they purchased and remodeled.  My task was to fill the rooms in a simple, low maintenance way (and on a budget).  The space was to be used for family gatherings and occassional men's retreats.  The brave wife gave her husband free reign on decor, so lucky for her (I think) he hired me to take care of the decorating.  I really tried to decorate with his wife in mind... if it were up to him, every room would have had critters on all of the walls & bedding!!!

I don't have a picture of the empty room but here is a picture of early stages...

The room was a basic beige with neutral carpet & aspen ceilings (yes, aspen ceilings-not part of my design).

Below is a close up picture of the wall treatment that I did. It was easy, cheap & turned out kinda cute!  I used chalk to write the words then started hammering away with tiny nails until all of the chalk was covered with rope.  The star "dots" were rusty metal pieces that I purchased somewhere when I was "junkin'" once upon a time.

Not too shabby, maybe $8 to fill a large wall...  Next is a picture of the final product.  I think it's sweet.

Super simple with a femine touch.  This particular little lady was 5 years old at the time so she may not have appreciated the simplicity.  Just to win her over, I propped a cute stick horse, red cowgirl hat & lantern in a corner just for her.  While she may have missed the pink & purple at the time, she probably appreciates the grown up feel a little more now PLUS I feel pretty certain that the men who were lucky enough to attend the overnight retreats would appreciate not feeling like they needed to check their boots for glitter when they left their sleeping quarters.  I bought khaki bedskirts and the sweet quilts at Kohl's (they were not a set).  The furniture is that Mexican Pine that you see for cheap at many import places but I had it whitewashed for a new look.  I think the handmade (not by my hands) stars in the red gingham fabric make the room special.  Surely I tweaked the quilt on the right side after I took this picture...   

 This view is from the doorway.  Final picture - again, please excuse the messy bedmaking... I think by the time I got to this room I was officially DONE!  You get the idea though...   

Coming soon...

Unique Shabby Chic Shelf 

Hello there!

So in my quest to find something to do on the computer INSTEAD of wasting countless hours on Facebook (which kinda freaks me out anyway), I have deactivated my account on FB in an effort to do something more fulfilling (we all know that I can reactivate at any time so I hope this works)!!!!  Not that I see anything wrong with Facebook really, I guess I just don't think it is for me (today anyway).  As I proof read, I'm noting that I could quite possibly be a FB addict...
As I have already mentioned, I'm not much of a reader, SO if I have crazy stuff posted or anything that just doesn't make sense, please help me by letting me know (I probably didn't read the directions all the way through).  I DO plan to read any posts that happen to come my way!  Who knows, maybe I'll learn something and maybe, JUST MAYBE I might even learn to enjoy reading!!