This Weeks Finds

I am a Hunter-Gatherer.  I LOVE thrift shops and garage sales. Its the THRILL of the hunt.  I always find a few treasures.  Here are a few things I recently found.

My favorites are the blue vase, $1.00 and the white pitcher, $4.50.  Right now my house is in transition from dark colors to whites and beachy blue greens.  So, i really like the turquoise plates and the pretty shell, $.50.  The two white candlesticks are actually egg holders- I don't know what i'm gonna do with them but they were $.25 for both.  The little urn turned out to be medal for $.50.  I plan to use it with some kind of decorative ball on top in vignettes.  I'm thinking it would be cute to change the ball for different occasions.  The two little brown bottles, $.25 each- I plan to use as candle holders.  The clear vase and bottle are for future projects.  I fell in love with the little girl with the flower she will sit on my desk to remind me to "Stop and smell the flowers."  My big finds are the champagne bucket, $3.00 and the glass display, $3.00.  I'm going to take the display apart and make something new. 
What would you do with it?

Valentine Brunch

I wanted to something special this year to show someone special how much I appreciate all he does. My plans were very elaborate, a traditional English tea.  I was going to bake scones and other goodies and have a selection for fine teas, etc. I even bought silver teaspoons.  I thought of putting my small round table in front of the fireplace to make it really cozy.  Lots of candles and romantic music and us just talking....

"The best laid plans of mice and men oft go awry"

And so did mine when we got 16" of snow, and another day of snow predicted.  The children I was going to send to town for the day ended up staying here, even the college student whose classes were cancelled.  Not the romantic tete a tete I had planned.
So I decided to do the best with what I had.
The table got moved to our bedroom. No time for baking or shopping.  A total revamp of menu.
I never had a chance to shop for a romantic tablecloth or pretty dishes or a centerpiece.
I had a couple of very pretty pressed glass dishes that I had out to make a picnic basket set.
They are cobalt blue.  I really wasn't thinking about using blue. But it's what I had.
I remembered there was a red tablecloth with blue flowers at my booth (flea market). So I picked it up.  Funny, every time I try to get rid of it, I find a use for it.
My dear hubby brought me a dozen very pretty roses that I placed in a cobalt blue vase. I also had a faux mercury candlestick that I paired with a glittery glass candle holder.  I had a silverplate bowl that usually holds fruit as a makeshift ice bucket. The two champagne glasses are from our anniversary spot, Big Cedar Lodge in Branson, Mo.  Since I wanted some privacy, we brought in the coffee maker and cups along with hot chocolate in the silver heart-shaped basket.  Chocolate-covered strawberries, dipped pretzels and our favorite cookies.  We never had to leave the room.  It was a very relaxing day.

I'm linking this to Tablescape Thursday.  I'm very thankful to all the ladies who put such beautiful tables together. Such wonderful inspiration.

Tablescape: Thanksgiving 2009

I have used a lot of things from last year, like the tablecloth (actually 2 twin flat sheets) and the centerpiece.
But it lacked color, so I used the souvenir plates that I collect.  Everyone really liked these and I think it will be fun for my children to see which plate they get each year.  I also added the brown runners (actually a curtain from Wally world that I cut to size).

I also created a desert table.  I wasn't really happy with the coffee urn; so I have replaced it with a silver one.  I've seen that someone painted a crock pot with blackboard paint (sorry I can't remember this clever woman's name), So I may paint this urn.  It would be so great to write what's in it on the side. I got all of these cake plates from thrift stores. I especially like the cut-glass butter dish top that I use to hold dinner mints.

thanksgiving 2008

This was last year's tablescape,

I used these washcloths from Big Lots for napkins. I like the texture and their easier to clean than fancy napkins. The plates are also from Big Lots, the flatware from Target. I used the little tiles as butter pats.

The centerpiece was a grapvine wreath with a large hurricane glass and candle with two smaller ones flanking, some grapevine bushes and white ceramic pumpkins from TJ Maxx.

WARNING: THIS IS NOT PRETTY1111

This is the before of our bathroom. It is pretty awful and avocado.

After-with new everything---you didn't think I'd actually keep anything from the old room, did ya?

Instead of wallpaper, we decoupaged dictionary pages with orange shellac. (idea from DIY magazine). It was easy and very vintage. shelves are from garage sales and bottles from Big Lots. They held French lemonade and now hold mouthwash

This is my bathroom-after. We replaced the old sink and cabinet with pedestal sink, new toilet. Replaced nasty tile with beadboard. The walls are papered with pages from an old dictionary and orange shellac. This was a fun project. I have always loved to look at the drawings in the dictionary and now I have them on my wall. I copied this idea from a DIY magazine. The black shelf came from Goodwill, the bottles held French Lemonade from Big Lots; now they hold mouthwash.

House tour: Master Bedroom

This is my Bedroom. I needed a bench to sit on to put on shoes, etc and found this old coffee table. I added cushion and fabric and painted it with gold spray paint. It was supposed to be a temporary fix till I found a bench I like, but I don't think it is going anywhere. The magazines need to be replaced with books for a cleaner look.  The green lamp was a thrift store find, Free. I was going to paint it gold, but liked it just the way it was when I put it in the room.