Fun Finds!

~As I have said before~

"Only buy what you LOVE!"

The only problem with this theory 

is that I have started to accumulate things that I LOVE

with no real spot for them to go!

Here are just a few of the treasures that I just LOVED!

Loved this old gate.

May put a little white paint on it and leave it out for the winter.

That way it will be chippy white next spring 

and maybe I will find the perfect spot for it.

Loved this fun wooden crate with the canvas handles.

It also has little casters on the bottom. So it rolls around easily!

Cute decorative ceiling tile. They don't make them like this anymore!

~Sweet little white cabinet~

This is a porcelain cup and soap holder.

I just love the cube of french soap!

And I just had to have this old pillar.

It makes me wonder where it came from.
What did the house look like that it once supported?

Would love to hear any suggestion that you might have 
on what to do with these little treasures!


Can you believe it's November already!
~Happy Monday Everyone~

Plush Pumpkins!!

I recently went to Aunt Kathy's house and 
she had some of these little beauties!

They are called Plush Pumpkins and they are to die for!

Ever so often I come across something that just calls my name!
And after I saw hers I couldn't stop thinking about them.
Aunt Kathy is the Ultimate Shopping Diva!!
She always finds the best stuff.


So.....
after I asked for her blessing I went and purchased my very own.

Now I know some of you have already heard of these
rich colored velvet pumpkins made with real pumpkin stems.
They are stuffed with rice
{like a beanbag}
and you have to lift them from the bottom
so you don't pull off the stems.
{they are pretty weighty}

But this was the very first time I had ever seen them.
They are a "tad bit pricey" and there are others 
out there that are even more expensive!
  So turn them over and check the bottom for the "PP" logo!

Check out their site HERE!
If you live in the area they sell them HERE!
If not... you can order them online from HERE! 

Now, another alternative is to make your own.
My mom is going to try this.
She's pretty crafty so we'll see how hers turn out!

Hugs to you all,

A Flea Market Find!

On the Second Sunday of each month & the Saturday before,

you can find a very lovely Flea Market in Grayslake Illlinois.

And...... my daughter-in-law and I were

lucky enough to make it there this month!

What a fun time we had!

We came across quite a few interesting treasures.

 I found theses little numbers!

Now I am a lover of books!

I love to smell them, hold them, read them and
store them on a bookcase where I can

admire all the books I have read!

But I have never seen anything like this before!

Some might be offended that someone

would do this to a perfectly good book.

But that's the thing, these are books that were in bad shape.

 Many with missing covers and pages!

I think they would be great on your desk 

to stuff notes in or to display postcards.

I think vintage french postcards would make a wonderful display.

{I might need to go postcard shopping!}

  Or how about special cards that you have received.

Or even old family photos! 

So Cool!

I love these little book holders....I hope you do too!

Have a fabulous weekend!

$18 Bucks!

I just had to show you the great deal I got!

I went back to this store last week 

to pick up a pair of shutters that I had my eye on.

But to my dismay they had a sold sign on them! :-(

Then as I was paying for a few other little goodies 

I spied these behind the counter.

  {And yes my workshop floor is really bright blue tile!}

I asked if they were for sale.

And as luck would have it the women said,

sure....hows $18 bucks sound? 

I am thinking $18 each. 

Then the women says....for both!

SOLD!

Now some would think, 

what the heck do you do with two old shutters

(I think they are really louvered closet doors.)

that aren't even painted very nicely!

But I knew right where I wanted them to go!

So home they came with me.

They were just a little too tall for my space.

So.....

 I cut them down.

 Used a little of this on the spots that had 

fresh bare wood showing through.

(This darkens the bare wood and makes it look old.)

Then I walked them upstairs

and put them in the spot I had picked out.

They may not be for everyone 

but.....I LOVE THEM!

Gotta love a good deal!

I have a few other project that I plan to share with you

in the coming weeks

so stay tuned!

Happy Shopping,

~Big Stuff~

Along with my addiction for benches of all kinds,
I also have a thing for over-sized stuff.
It was an addiction I didn't even realize that I had.
I guess I was in the denial stage....
Then, one day as I was looking through a few catalogs
I realized that almost every thing I liked was really big!

Hmmm....

So I found my self looking around the house and
sure enough I had more large things than I realized!

~Here are just a few~

Doesn't everyone need a 3 ft. tall garden gnome
named Ned?


Or how about two 2ft. tall fleur de lis?


Don't ya just love these really big clothes pins?
I still love them after all these years!


Really big scissors!
I guess I am getting ready for a ribbon cutting ceremony!!!

I've had this over-sized "R" for years and years!


I know what your thinking...
I thought she liked French country decor.
But we had a place in Tucson for awhile and
I bought some over sized stuff for that place.
Now this beautiful, really big and really heavy
cowboy boot
has found a new home in the man cave of our new house!

And finally~I couldn't resist this
really Big Headed dog
named Lulu!

She kinda looks like a gorilla in this photo!
LOL

I have a busy week coming up
but I will try and get a few posts in!

Have a fabulous week ya all!!!

Looky....

...what I've been working on!

Again....
I long to be a better picture taker.
The color just didn't really show up as it is.

You see, this very awesome dresser is
an awful greenish color.


But look at the lines.
Love the curvy legs and the pretty little handles.
And get this... it's 5 1/2 feet tall.
I can't even see into the top drawer.
It's a little to high for me.

Oh, did I tell you it's a puke-green color.

My daughter-in-law Kelly and I found this
little beauty at an off the wall place in
down town Chicago.
Called Nadeau.
It has all kinds of funky imported furniture.
Kelly found two fun night stands
for her guest room.
Just as we were getting ready to leave
I spotted this unusually tall dresser.

And... I just so happen
to be looking for a piece for my
shabby chic guest room.
So far, I have brought home several pieces
for this space, only to return them.
But...this piece could work.
Did I mention it's a very ugly green color!

Then...
I bought it anyway!!

ugh!

So now it's time to get to work.

First I sand the heck out of it.

Next I primed it.
Then 2 coats of Benjamin Moore,
White Dove OC-17, eggshell paint.
Now time to distress it a little.
So I sand here and there.
Finally I cover it with a coat of
Johnson Paste Wax.
Buff it like crazy.
Throw the hardware back on.

And Tah Dah.....

I have this really great white,
distressed, 5 1/2 ft. tall,
shabby chic look'n, awesome dresser!

It was a lot of work but
I'm love'n it!!

Now to finish it up with a lamp, picture or
a little something fun!

Happy Monday to you my friend.

Girl Shop'n

On Wednesday I had a wonderful Girls Day out!
I went to the Geneva/St. Charles, IL area to hit all the fun little shops.
I went with "The Aunts."
They are both my husbands Aunts.
And they know there way around the area!
So we had one of those days where you find more
treasures than you have money for.
But, the best part of the day was the wonderful conversation at lunch!

Here is a gorgeous plant I found!


Cross your fingers that I can keep it alive!


And.....
here are a few photo's of my Easter themed birdcage.

You have a fun weekend.
I think I'll be painting at my son & daughter-in-laws home.
That's what we mother's do!!