Dining in...

I have been toying with the idea of turning my dining room into a library.  Bringing in wood floors or tile.  Floor to ceiling bookshelves in the cutout.  An old wooden desk newly dressed in chalk paint.  Overstuffed vintage chair in the corner window with the perfect reading lamp affixed to the wall.  Well, maybe a little more than toying.  I just can't seem to go farther than planning because I like what is in there now.  

Hand sewn curtains with perfectly picked vintage buttons added.  

It took me months to find the right size and color.

Wall plaques purchased from etsy in the misty shade of blue.

Domed glass angels bought at a favorite church garage sale.  

These look like they were made for this room.

My favorite pictures in some of the sweetest frilly frames. 

 No other room could handle this much fuss. 

Handed down pecan hutch from a great aunt filled just so

 with painstakingly picked transfer ware and ironstone pieces. 

 I have been collecting piece by piece for years.

I can give you the story behind each piece. 

 When and where I found them. 

 Whose they were. 

 They are a timeless story.

 I love to find and tell.

Found on two separate occasions and different locations. 

These pieces are the most beautiful hue of mint green with a dainty silver rim.

The label on the bottom is just as sweet.

I know this seems gaudy but I love it.  Porcelain detail and all.  It holds my favorite dish pattern.

This one in particular goes by many names.  The Sound of Music is the one I like the best.   

 Beautiful shades of bright blue forget me nots.

  Very delicate!

Makes me think again about where on earth I would put all this stuff. 

 This room is what we call the funeral room.  

The room you only use during funerals.  

A library could be used by the whole family. 

 I might just sit on this a while longer.

Written in the pages...

A collection that never seems to end.  I am drawn to the memories of reading them.  The graphics on the covers and inside the pages call for me to take them home.  Bookplates inside with the beautifully handwritten names say they are in need of a special space.  I could go on and on and on.  Suffice it to say I love to get lost in the pages.

No amount of reconfiguring can help me find more space in this cabinet.  Believe me I have tried.  I love each and every one of these books that I have hand picked out of boxes, poured over at the thrift store, or waited patiently to peruse at an estate sale.  

Sweet inscriptions from one to another gently grace the first  few pages of many of these.

Engraved illustrations and parchment paper pictures greet you as leaf your way through them.

Just for good measure...a collection of wire frogs against the smooth and glossy mirror.

Along with books I paired these old poem plaques that have sweet illustrations themselves.  Lovely couplings and sweet nursery rhyme Leftons.

I have had to whittle these down from time to time and yes, it is hard to do.  If I want to continue to collect these wonderful and seemingly disappearing pieces, I have to have some control.

Technology is great, I love my laptop, smart phone, GPS etc, but I cannot seem to find the value of books on a computer.  It seems cold and unfriendly.  

Nothing takes away from the feel of the pages in my hands.  I guess that makes me old and sentimental and I am okay with that.

Charming the house.

We have lived in this house for many years and it still drips with suburban newness.  I can't seem to paint it away or cover it up.  Lately, I've stopped trying to hide it and instead add my vintage charms.  Just like you would add a charm to a bracelet.  There are so many hurdles to jump with newer construction when you want to decorate in the cottage/flea market style. For instance:

Our double faced fireplace that is the center of our home.  One side is in the living room and the other is in the kitchen. Glossy and white, heavily laden in wood and trim, I have added these charms to "color it up".  The living room side houses all my favorite game pieces and small metal objects. It is fun to add to  and watch the kids go through them.  The larger jar holds our rock collection from Lake Superior vacations.    

What else can bring height to a boring architectural structure than the beautiful matte finish of an aqua milk can.  Found at the local salvation army for less than $10.

  You see my OCD took over here.  The secret...this picture is my all time favorite find at a thrift store for $3.00 yes!  $3.00!  It is stunning in all it's muted colors.  If I could have a house full of Roseville I would...but who can afford it?  These two pieces were scored off of eBay for a nominal fee...because they have cracks...on the back.  Who's going to see it!  Candle sconces look old but are really from Nell Hill's.  This is as sophisticated as I get. 

My idea of a great table.  Stacks of picnic baskets found throughout the years.  They hold all kinds of things.  Love them.  Gorgeous art pieces.  In my sophisticated opinion.  

Estate sale piece that I couldn't live without.  Why?...because I have this wall that is 14 inches wide and nothing fit on it and looked naked.  You cannot replicate this patina.  The crust on the frame is worth a thousand words.  I love it for the spots in the mirror layers.  How many faces has it seen?

We had the ugliest counters when we moved in.  I wanted marble counter tops and my husband wanted the too trendy granite.  He won and I got to decorate.   White ironstone pitchers from the sales, sterling silverware mixed pieces as I find them, and silver trays for clutter control from the local thrift store.

Along with decorating I won removal of the giant clutter catcher island.  Monstrous beast took all the floor space up.  This wonderful vintage kitchen table along with its butterfly joints and porcelain wheels swiftly made the kitchen charming.  I grabbed that stool from a sale out of the garage.  It is one of the first places I stop at an estate sale.  Some of the best stuff is covered in rust.

 I try to think of the ordinary becoming something extraordinary.  For instance, my flea market cart holds quilts in the kitchen corner so that we can use them. (and mom can put them away)

These little touches make it easy to switch things in and out as I find them.  They add color and charm to an otherwise cookie cutter home. 

Loads of fun?

When we first got married my husband and I lived in this darling little cape cod.  Our laundry room was in the basement.  It was unfinished with loads of space...ha!  Then the kids came along and we decided it would be a good idea to move to the suburbs along with the rest of the young socialites (insert me among the non-trendy mom without the blinged out jeans and high heels).  Anyway, my husband fell in love with this house we live in now on the corner in a culdesac.  What we didn't know was...the laundry room was the size of a mole hole.  The sellers keenly kept the door closed with their elderly Dalmatian tucked behind the door.  Hmm...must have been a sign...we should have heeded...but we didn't.

Years later and multiple washes this room sees more time than almost any other room in the house.  I have attempted to decorate it and manipulate it in order to make it more work, friendly.  This is my vintage take.  An old cross stitch Home Sweet Home from etsy.  Embroidered weekly tea towels hung from old laundry pins.  Stain glass window strung from chain.  New repro towel rods only because the old ones were so expensive.  

Clutter control central.  One day my husband came home to this reworked wall.  Bead board bottom, a garage wall hook hanger system for giant backpacks and winter gear, chalk board paint for the game schedules of summer and more hooks because there are never enough!  Vinyl stickers off etsy decorate the wall without closing in the space, everyone knows laundry is loads of fun...not!

A mere 3 feet from that wall you can barely turn to find the stacked washer and dryer.  This is my attempt at genius.  I would have loved to move it closer to the window but the builder put the water receiver right here and the vent next to the window.  He obviously does the laundry in his house...never.  I had this Vinyl ruler made online (it escapes me at the moment, sorry) for my kiddos height.  They love to mark their height on their birthdays.  

For full disclosure the floor is occupied by our family bulldogs, Lincoln and Murphy.  They snore so loud at night that we had to move their bed in here.  And if it wasn't small enough the water and food bowl are in their too.

A view from this side of the stained glass helps me forget how small this space is.  

Wreath make-over

Let me start by saying, I am not a wreath person.  I have two one for all season and one for Christmas.  They stump me.  I can never get them to turn out right.  The ones that you buy are outrageously priced.  Enter, the creativity of a Horticulturalist and her tools...

Last season, Mary Carol Garrity of Nell Hill's had this bird cage hanging from her door beautifully adorned with white flowers.  Lucky for us she sold them at her store.  They are meant to be a note hanger and came with clothes pin.  I followed Mary Carol clearly the rule breaker that she is.  Better to call her a trend setter.  She is such a lovely lady.

As a gardener, vintage tools are certainly one of my favorites collections.  An old garden fork and shovel criss crossed over a nice branch of dogwood and some daisies.  

Tucked in a pair of garden gloves to add some volume.  Again, this bow had me stumped...upholstery strapping gives that burlap look and rustic feel.  

As my luck would have it, we need a new hose so I grabbed up the old one and claimed it as mine.  The color was perfect for me.  I tried to keep the hose end around the bow so that it would show.  The bow ends up flattened because the wreath is sandwiched between the front door and storm door.  It is far to windy in Kansas for it to swing freely outside on its own.

 For a non-wreath person I am happy with the result.  With any luck I won't have to come up with anything new for a few years. 

A New Color

Hunting for a vintage towel bar has been harder than I thought it would be.  The illusive jadeite towel bar is way out of my price range.  My luck has never been good enough to run across one...yet.   A milk glass bar or two have come my way, but they were just too big and bulky for a small half bath.  

Last week at one of my favorite antique stores I found this petite beauty and it was in my price range.

This is how I found it.  It was rusted up and dirty, but the glass bar was in great condition.  The size was perfect at just over 13 inches.  

After a good cleaning and I realized I liked the gritty texture and decided to paint over it.  Hmm?  What color?  Trusty pink or blue....nope.  I tried this Spring green that I had left over from a former project.  I must have put 4 or 5 coats on these metal receivers before I got good coverage.  Then I proceeded to sand it lightly and add a bit of glaze.    They cleaned up really well.  

Some finished stitching from the past year has been waiting for a perfect place.

This sweet doll dress has been looking for a home too.  I added a pink embroidered pillow case ruffle to finish it off.

Oh, it just feels like it was supposed to be here.  I am so pleased I waited for the right towel bar to come my way.

I love that it is a little bit old and a little bit quirky.  Just a bit of happiness to brighten up your day every time you pass the mirror.

A bit of elbow grease and a paint brush!