Designs on 47th Street

Read All About It!!

2011-11-21T10:57:00.001-06:00

Last week my friend Susan’s daughter was married.

As all weddings are, everything was just beautiful. I really loved the table decorations and thought you might enjoy seeing them too. Susan’s daughter used to work in a library, loves to read and is in a field now where her words just flow. The bride told her mother early on that she wanted the centerpieces to have “books and sticks”. Susan and I were both scratching our heads wondering how this was going to flow. Well, flow it did and I overhead many, many positive comments.

This was our starting point ~~

Table Seating

Don’t you just love the card catalogs??

Names were alphabetized and placed in the right drawer by letter. You would look and find your name. I forgot to take a picture

but the last letter of our name was in a big font on the left side of the card.

Then our names were listed followed by:

Title: Table #15

Subject: Wedded Bliss

Date Checked in: 11-11-11

Many, many,many old novels had their covers removed and were tea stained and bound with twine.

These were free romance novels, or 25 cent books from the thrift store. No one really looked at the pages.

Just look at the fancied up book with pages rolled and fluffed to perfection.

Lovely real flowers were inserted in the middle.

The “sticks” were beautifully arranged in a tall cylinder vase

with bookprint flowers attached.

You can see the cylinder held more of the coverless tea stained books.

Can you see tucked into each napkin was a salal leaf with a book page cut out to match the leaf and glued on?

Here are more twigs tied around cylinders for one table’s centerpiece.

The head table held the most ruffily and fancy, smashy book

There was so much detail. It was such fun walking around to look at all the variations of books at each table.

Susan really did her homework in research for discovering all the ways to make books wedding reception ready! She and our FABULOUS floral designer friend Damon worked magic.

Just a beautiful reception it was.

Best wishes go out to the happy newlyweds!

Joining Marty at A Stroll Thru Life Tabletop Tuesday

The Shady Porch

Kim at Savvy Southern Style

Mums and Pumpkins and Apple Dessert

2011-11-09T11:44:00.001-06:00

I LOVE Fall! I love the many colors of mums. I love decorating with pumpkins and I love apple desserts!

Just days before my new granddaughter made her entrance into the world I had a family luncheon in honor of my

Dear Mother’s Birthday

Louisiana Gumbo

Tossed Salad with Assorted Dressings

Outback Honey Wheat Bushman Bread

Apple Cake with Caramel Sauce

Spiced Apple Cider

Pumpkin Coffee

Tea

The gumbo doesn’t photograph well, but OH!! Was it ever good! Totally homemade with chicken broth and three meats. I used chicken, sausage and shrimp.

Here’s how the table looked with the morning sunshine streaming in

We had eight guests but I only had four of these square, fruit plates

For the other place settings I used these buttery yellow plates which worked just as well

Look closely and you can see all the touches of fall I enjoyed incorporating into this tablescape.

Small little vases held single stems of brightly colored marigolds

while a silver pot from the thrift store was my vase for a variety of garden mums.

Each place setting started off with a mini pumpkin to add to the fall theme

Napkins were tied with natural twine with a fall leaf tucked in.

I quickly learned these wilt if not brought in right before the guests arrive. I had to replace many the day of the luncheon.

Footed brown glasses were a garage sale find last summer.

The birthday cake was SO good.

Everyone raved over it and some even thought it was an Apple Bread Pudding.

I think that was because of the caramel sauce drizzled over.

Vanilla Bean Ice Cream added a few more calories.

Apple Cake with Caramel Sauce

4 c. diced Granny Smith apples

2 eggs

2 c. sugar

1 c. chopped nuts

2 c. flour

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 c. vegetable oil

1 tsp. salt

Beat eggs add the sugar, oil, apples, and the remaining dry ingredients. Mix well. Put in 9 x 13 an and bake at 350* for 45 minutes. Serve with a scoop of ice cream and caramel sauce over.

Caramel Sauce

1/2 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. white sugar

1/2 c. half and half

1/2 c. margarine

1 T. flour

1 tsp. vanilla

Boil sugar, cream, margarine, and flour for one minute. Remove from heat and add vanilla. Serve on top of ice cream on cake.

Let me know if you try it! Your guests will love it…I am SURE!

On my table ~~

Square Fruit Plates TJ Maxx

Round Buttery yellow plates and black bowls Thrifted

Brown Stemmed Glasses Garage Sale

Fall Dessert Plates Hartstone Dishes

Silver Bowl Goodwill

Light Brown napkins Dillards

Tablecloth Target

Today I am joining:

Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursday

Designs by Gollum ~ Foodie Friday

The Shady Porch

Is that a Five legged, quarter sawn oak table???

2011-11-07T13:21:00.001-06:00

My mother in law and father in law have been gone quite a few years now. After their passing, Mr. Brown Socks and I made several trips back to our home town to clear out the house he grew up in. My in laws stayed in the same little house for YEARS and didn’t get rid of a whole lot.

There were many uncovered treasures. Everything was divided up quite fairly and the whole experience was a nice one, under the circumstances. It’s hard going through things and remembering back but I am so pleased to have many things to remember my dear in laws by. Of course Mr. Brown Socks was most interested in tools of his dad’s and many things out in the garage. I received some heirloom jewelry, an old teal blue fan which I will show you soon AND this:

A few years after bringing this table home my friend Susan was out in the garage with me and I uncovered the protective sheet to show her what I had planned to refinish one day.

She so excitedly screamed out:

“IS THAT A FIVE LEGGED QUARTER SAWN OAK TABLE??”

She said it so fast that the words all ran together and I had no idea what she had said. She had to repeat and said it just the same!

Well, I didn’t know at the time that quarter sawn oak is indeed a beautiful cut of wood and makes for a gorgeous table.

This piece of furniture was indeed special too because it belonged to my husband’s parents. He remembers it sitting in their dining room and eating from it.

For years I had planned to refinish it and maybe even use it as our kitchen table. There was a major problem though.

As a boy my dear husband and his brother used to use this table as leverage while they were sawing wood pieces. You can see the results of their hobby!

I just wasn’t sure what I should do about this problem as there were saw marks on 3 sides of the table. So procrastination worked for many years and it sat in the garage under a sheet.

I finally decided this table would be a perfect piece in our game room next to our downstairs family room and bar.

We stripped off all the old finish

and filled in the slits with Wood Putty by Minwax. The stain color was called Early American and matched up pretty well.

We discovered this wood had such beautiful grain and color there was absolutely no need to apply stain.

Ta Da!!

Yes, you can see where the repair work was done. I wish I had applied a bit of stain or rub of some sort as the varnish makes the putty shine a bit.

Character, I call it! This table has a story to tell!!

I think it will be fun to tell our grandchildren what happened to this family keepsake as we are using it for games or putting puzzles together or having a holiday meal.

My sister in law recently told me another story. This was the table my mother in law would herd all her children under when a tornado was approaching! Of course Deb was the only obedient child. Mr. Brown Socks and his brother would run out to look at the clouds forming as dear mother in law would be hollering at them to come under the table for safety! I can just hear her now!! I love old stories such as this!

When I joined the family I remember it with a piece of plywood over it. It was used as a ping pong table.

Where is the fifth leg you ask??? We don’t know! Somewhere a long the way, the fifth leg disappeared. We never found it to bring home, so it’s anyone’s guess as to what happened to it. Last week I had a handyman stop by and he is going to make us another leg. The table also has FIVE leaves!! Those still have to be stripped and refinished.

On a totally different note, I now have a beautiful granddaughter!! We are thrilled to pieces to have Amelia Leone join our family. I actually was invited in to watch her come into this world.

Beautiful Baby Girl

She is so loved already!

Thank you for stopping by.

I am joining Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for

Met Monday.

Pottery Barn to the Rescue!

2011-10-26T13:05:00.001-05:00

Early in the summer we did a bedroom switch. Our guest bedroom was on the lower level. The furniture is a three piece antique burled walnut set I found at an estate sale in Enid, Oklahoma back in the early 70’s. Because the bed is a double with a footboard and our new son in law is 6’4, we thought he might appreciate a queen size bed when he and our daughter come to visit.

In my mind the new décor for the guest room would revolve around these pillows I found at TJMaxx and fell in love with.

As you can see they reverse to a stripe.

I had vision of a room that took on a Ralph Lauren feel…warm, comfortable, old suitcases. You know the look?

The problem was finding a bedspread or quilt that I was happy with to coordinate with these pillows. I brought home a pale yellow…not the right yellow. I brought home a dark khaki and a light khaki…too uninteresting. I even tried using the same old white quilt I’ve had on the bed for years….too tired of it!

Then I decided I didn’t HAVE to use these pillows. I went into Pottery Barn to see what caught my eye and I found it!! A beautiful quilt in a subdued blue with yellow and light brown accents. I have a friend who works there and she was so good about searching the store to find some fun pillows.

I Love the cable “sweater” pillow!

Pottery Barn only had one matching pillow sham which I grabbed fast to use as a focal point around all the others I might incorporate.

I bought the gold patterned pillow shown on the left and decided to come home and just see if my original pillows in soft yellow might work with this.

Oh!! I LIKED the stripped side with what I had purchased!

I was in Kansas City over the weekend and my daughter and I went into Pottery Barn on the Plaza. I found the 20 x 20 burlap square pillow top on sale! I love the added texture this provides. I am shopping soon for a pillow insert.

The little stripped pillow in the front was from an upscaled resale shop. Do you think the fringe works?

I still have much fine tuning to do to the room, but I am very excited with how it’s coming together!

I envision hanging some of my brown transferware on the walls

And using some old vintage luggage I have to give the room a Ralph Lauren look!

And see this old map of the United States? I currently have it in the bathroom up high on a ledge. The colors seem perfect for my new room. I’m thinking of transplanting it to this bedroom above a wooden desk in this room. Yes?

In the meantime, Magnolia says it sleeps real good!

What says the feel of a Ralph Lauren room to you?

I will share more pictures as the room progresses. We are expecting a new granddaughter very soon. I may be spending the next couple of weeks rocking instead of decorating! ; )

So happy to have you stop by for a visit!

I am joining Kristen at Kristen’s Creations

Donna

My Fall Open House

2011-10-13T20:20:00.001-05:00

Hey All! I truly have missed you and seeing all the Fall fun that goes on this time of year. I can’t even begin to think of all the decorated homes I’ve missed out on!

I just needed a little Bloggy break while I took care of a few things. Mr. Brown Socks had a surprise surgery in September when his thyroid biopsy turned out to be cancerous BUT thank the good Lord our prayers were answered. He had the entire thyroid removed and he doesn’t need any further treatment! The dr. will keep a close eye on things over a long period of time with ultrasounds and such but he seems good as new! He’s chopping wood for winter, planning a hunting trip and enjoying all those masculine things he likes to do. Thanks so much to all those who knew about this and sent up prayers.

This past weekend I held my Fall (with a little bit of Christmas) Silk open house. We had beautiful weather and it was a lot of fun seeing so many familiar faces and a few new ones too.

This is what people saw when they first walked in, my Entry table

bursting with fall loveliness in orange, burnt red, golds and FEATHERS! (love ‘em!)

The dining room is off to the left so my guests were greeted with this scene pictured below.

For the first time I incorporated some dishes to the table. Just so happens they are my beloved brown transferware.

A designer friend helped me set up. It was fun to see what ideas she had for display.

Notice the fabric pumpkins? They were for sale too. Another designer friend made them and she asked if she could add them to my show.

I liked the look of something other than silks. Don’t you think the dishes, chargers and the fabric pumpkins helped in that way? Seems more interesting.

The kitchen table was filled too with vibrant fall color.

This piece was one of my favorites and I still have it.

Beth wanted a dramatic look for the piano, one that would compliment the pictures above. I think she achieved that with the black and apple green combo!

I have more pictures I will share with you soon.

Hopefully I still have a few friends still around to talk to!

TootlesUntil Next Time…. I’m off to see a bit of what I have missed!

Blue, Blue, Blue, PINK!

2011-09-01T10:05:00.001-05:00

Busy time around my house last Saturday! Because this is Baby Number Four for Angie, her sisters decided it would be fun to have a PINK shower. After three precious sons, Angie and Brian are now expected a girl! To say the least we are really excited about this! Jamie and Emily and I decided to host a brunch with immediate family members.

Sooooo,

We went to work. Even though I’m the silk plant lady I LOVE real flowers. My friend Susan told me to cut away on her beautiful hydrangea bushes. I have got to plant this variety as they have the most gorgeous blooms!

Miss Maggie decided it was the perfect bowl of water to take sips from on a late summer morning.

Jamie and Emily arrived in town and went to work on a diaper cake.

We decorated with new baby clothes and some old ones that belonged to my sweet little babies many years ago.

I made pink cupcakes

and used the new Mommy’s (now antique) toys and shower cards I received when she was born

for part of our decor

We set a pretty table

(A few days before the shower date I started gathering dishes and trying out different possibilities to set a very feminine table. Talking on the phone to Jamie about what I was doing, she said “Oh Mom! I can just see you now! You are high as a kite!” Just made me giggle!)

You can see the Sampler from Angie’s nursery I used underneath the bowl of hydrangeas.

Finally with all the preparations complete and the guests tucked inside nicely hidden,

We waited for the Mother to be to arrive!

SURPRISE!!!

And ~~girl~~ boy was she!

Can you see these precious little dotted shoes on top of the diaper cake??

Instead of games we had a barrette making station set up.

Angie LOVED this! She now has several little hair doodads for Baby Girl.

Fresh flowers were placed all around.

Each place setting had it’s own little flower vase.

Some held soft green or pink zinnias, some had tiny pink roses and others had cosmos.

The perfect little sweet touch.

The little bird plates were a great find at Goodwill.

The pink plates are called Gay Day by Wood &Sons, made in England.

It was such an enjoyable time.

We are blessed to have a wonderful, close family.

I hope you’ve enjoyed seeing what our day was like.

It is my pleasure to join Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for

Tablescape Thursday.

I am also joining Kristen at Kristen’s Creations for her party

There is a new meme over at 2805 called Potpourri Friday I am joining. You just might like to know she is having a giveaway too! Oh it’s exciting ~~ a great book! Charles Faudree Details

Cindy at My Romantic Home for Show and Tell Friday

Debra at Common Ground

Tootsie Time for Flaunt Your Flowers

Thank you so much for stopping by and spending a little time at Designs on 47th Street today.

Donna

Mad for Plaid

2011-08-18T17:13:00.001-05:00

Here’s my story of two chairs,

Two Very Tired Chairs

They are over 20 years old which you can tell by the color. I remember the day they were delivered and how excited I was with them. The jewel tones had made their appearance into our home!

Of course they sat front and center in our living room in three different houses.

By the time they landed in our current home I knew they would be replaced as soon as I could find something new. When the new furniture was carefully thought out and delivered, the two Old Faithfuls made their new home in our lower level. My friend Susan the decorator told me to get rid of them. She said it’s too pricey to recover, being almost as cheap just to replace. No way, I told her! I for some reason had an unexplainable love with these chairs. We have an area of wasted space which leads to a downstairs bathroom right off of my work room. They have sat here for close to four years. Mr. Brown Socks accurately said this area looks like a waiting room at the doctor’s office.

So that you can get a feel for the area (I’m certainly open to suggestions!!) here is what is on the wall directly in front of the two chairs. I do love these screen prints. There is a guest room to the left and the bathroom is to the right.

Just around the corner to the left is our lower level family room.

It is a Man Cave of sorts with fox hunt pictures, quail in the fabric of the curtains and red leather furniture.

After a holiday gathering recently it occurred to me I could use more seating in this room. There is a big ole couch and two recliners but many would end up sprawled out on the floor after a big dinner.

Susan was over and we drug the two Old Faithful red chairs to the area in front of the window. They fit quite nicely!

However…way too much red and of course very dated and worn fabric on the chairs.

After much thought I decided to go with this man’s plaid. The fabric has arrived and I’m waiting for the upholsterer to come pick them up. They will be trimmed in a brown suede cloth and I’m considering adding nail heads if it works out with the lines of the chairs.

I think it will be a perfect addition to this room…handsome and homey…just how I like my man! LOL!

What sort of pattern of fabric shall I go with for pillows?

I love the look of these prints on the opposite side of the book case.

This hall is going to look very, very bare.

Do you have thoughts on what could go here?

A sofa table of sorts is the only thing that comes to mind.

I’ll be sure to show you pictures of my new but old chairs when they are done. Yes, Susan was right…it’s pricey purchasing the yardage of fabric and then paying to have them recovered. BUT they are still comfortable and they have been in our family for a long time. I’m happy with my decision.

Thanks for your visit!

Donna

Can You Guess Where I have Been?

2011-08-15T09:38:00.001-05:00

I feel soooo spoiled!

I have just returned from another trip!

Where else does one have an elegant deer skin leather rocker?

Or the head of a cow high up on top of a vaulted fireplace?

Each peaceful morning

and hot breezy evening was spent rocking looking out at this view.

We watched hawks and buzzards gracefully gliding through the air with the winds carrying their every move.

It seemed like a little piece of Heaven

The shops were loaded with this sort of footwear

(I want those red ones)

Have you guessed by now?

My daughter and I went to a little town near Fredericksburg, Texas.

We surprised one of my very best friends for her 60th birthday.

We reenacted this picture later, but Jamie and I did ride up in this farmhand “Mule” screaming

“Happy Birthday Glenda!”

This is Emily on the left and my daughter Jamie on the right.

We four have been Bestest Friends since the girls were Three.

Glenda and I were 34 and 35. We met during an Air Force move. Glenda and Emily came over to welcome us to the neighborhood. Oh, the memories we have made together in all the years since those California days!

Emily created a beautiful spread of finger foods to go along with a vegetable pizza and…

Mojitos!

The house we stayed in is actually a client’s home of Emily. She and her husband and little boy are living in a gorgeous home overlooking Hill Country, Texas.

What fun to be able to spend four days and nights in what felt like a five star resort.

Good Friends

Good Memories

Good Summer 2011

Donna

Junkin’ in North Carolina

2011-08-01T15:01:00.001-05:00

One of my favorite things to do is go junkin. I used to like antiquing until I discovered how much fun it is to go into a thrift store or truly a junk store only to uncover something that really speaks to me for just a small amount of money.

I really, really love to go junkin’ when we are visiting relatives in North Carolina. When you are in a different region it’s obvious you are going to find a different variety of “junk”. (did I really just call it junk??)

The dishes are sometimes different as well as the prices.

We did go into some very organized (but not nearly as fun) antique stores. Out of the whole huge store where we spent a lot of time in New Bern, NC I only found this for 99 cents.

I was excited to find the little onion pitcher because I already had one at home that’s a tomato. Now it would be fun to locate a third vegetable little pitcher.

This good sized vintage Christmas tablecloth was folded up on a card table outside a junk store. Loving dishes and anything to do with tables, it did catch my eye. Having to pack it in a suitcase and worrying about not going over 50 pounds, I really was talking myself out of it until the man told me it was 75 cents!! Seventy Five cents??? Why yes, I’ll take it!

I’m hoping my friend Sherry at Back 2 Vintage will be pleased with my next junk store treasures. These little pyrex bowls were 50 cents each!! No lids, but they came home with me anyway!

Isn’t this store front cute as can be????

I met a cousin (the store owner) in here…never knew her before! That’s how it is in small Southern towns!

Sorry for the glare, but can you get over this mannequin in this store window??

Just makes you smile

This was a Resale Thrift shop that we discovered in a little town called Zebulon. It’s right outside of Raleigh.

We were on the way to the airport and had an extra hour so pulled off to see what we could find.

They had the cutest little dressing rooms and the proceeds went to abused women. It was a really nice shop.

This little vintage print dress fit me perfectly! I was so excited because I love little summer dresses that don’t look so dressy.

It’s even lined!! $7.00

We went in one more store before going to the airport when I found them!!

Six beautiful plates made in England.

By this time I was not as excited to be making a heavy purchase. I knew it would have to go in my carry on bag and we were getting tired. Nah, I don’t need them!

But wait!!

What is that little mark that says “D”?? Could that stand for Donna? ??? Really??

I took a closer look for a sign…and there it was!!

The letter D meant half off!!

Yippee!!

I got these 6 plates for $15. Even the lady who packaged my dishes so carefully told me they were worth a lot more. She told me to look on ebay. I did, but didn’t find this exact pattern yet. Anyone familiar with them? I think they will be very fun in the fall.

There are two designs…

I have a few more old finds to share but I will save those for another time.

It was sad to leave N.C. for so many reasons. I have gotten smart and have learned to check an extra suitcase for found treasures.

I am joining Rhoda at Southern Hospitality for Today’s Thrifty Treasures

Donna

Country Living, North Carolina

2011-07-30T15:38:00.001-05:00

Did anybody miss me?? I’ve just returned from seven glorious days in North Carolina. I do love that state and its people. My mother was born and raised in a small country town in Eastern NC. We have many, many cousins and one remaining aunt who we have remained close with and visit as often as possible.

It’s rather refreshing and somewhat liberating to visit where a bowl of fresh tomatoes is the kitchen table centerpiece and cell phone service is sketchy at best.

We visited the country store where my cousin Glenda has worked for many, many years. She cuts up chickens, pigs and who knows what else! Heck, I have a hard time cutting open a whole chicken through the breast bone!

My sister Barb and I always purchase a bottle of YooHoo while there. It reminds us of drinking a Brownie soft drink from our childhood days. Anybody remember Brownie’s?

Do you think we look alike? We lost track after approximately 15 complete strangers asked us if we were twins!

So fun to look into their produce cooler with fresh blueberries and veggies that locals brought in to sell.

A line up of old fashioned gas pumps still working. I doubt they work with your credit card though! LOL!

Beautiful, breath taking scenery around every corner. I can never get enough at their views.

We did lots of antiquing and junkin’. Notice a potted plant of tobacco on the front porch of this shop! Made me laugh.

We always go in the back of cousin Bobby’s truck to the family cemetery close to my aunt’s home. We let time slip by and it was almost dark by the time we went. My mother has a flash light to read the headstone of her father and other relatives.

Usually there are a lot more of us piled in the back of this truck. Shown are cousins and sister.

Here was our entertainment one night. I have to tell you, these ARE NOT Regina’s real teeth (on left and center). She works in a dentist office and has beautiful teeth. The dentist had these made for all the employees and they wore to a dental conference recently.

Obviously the rest of us didn’t try the teeth but as you can see we had tons of fun with the glasses. You talk about laughter therapy….I think I am good for several weeks!!

Love the casualness of the store owner.

In another post, I will share some things I found.

We went to Nags Head

Our cousin Regina was the first one up one more and decided to take an early walk on the beach. She came back to the room to tell us we had missed out on some excitement. A surf fisherman had hooked a shark and she saw it all. He was released back into the ocean. The next day we saw this on the news. The shark had washed up on the shore with the fishing line in his mouth. It turned out to be a 7’ Tiger Shark. Yikes! The water was unusually cold…55 degrees, so between cold water and sharks we were happy walking along the beautiful water’s edge looking for shells.

One of our favorite things to do is swing and rock on our Aunt’s porch. Hot as it was…near 100* and very humid, we still did our share of sitting out here!

GooD BYE North Carolina and our Crazy (in a FUN way) relatives

Until next time!

Oh, I forgot to mention all the cheese biscuits and good country food with sweet tea we consumed. It’s probably best you don’t know!

Donna

Beautiful Red Cherries

2011-07-18T10:08:00.001-05:00

Our garden has been pathetic this summer, both flowers and vegetables.

The one thing we have had a bumper crop from is our Nanking Bush Cherries

Aren’t they pretty as a picture?

Nature is nothing less than amazing…Beauty in so many forms.

Now Mr. Brown Socks is not one to cook or be caught in the kitchen unless he is making a plate of nauchos or possibly stirring up some hot salsa with his garden peppers….

BUT one thing he does like to do is can with me!

Isn’t that surprising? I think it must remind him of his Mama or Grandmother.

He couldn’t wait to get into the kitchen and start preparing juice for our Cherry Jelly.

This is an old press from my Mother’s basement he used to extract the juice to prepare the jelly.

We always have a system where he prepares the fruit juice

And I mix up the juices with the sugar.

He always wants me to use less sugar but anyone who makes jelly knows you can’t mess with the sugar and juice amounts too much or your jelly won’t set up.

Recently I discovered the Sure jell in the pink box which calls for quite a bit less sugar.

The jelly was thinner than the traditional method but not too runny.

There isn’t anything more old fashioned than canning jelly, do you think?

I’ll let you in on our secret ingredient which makes a huge difference.

ALMOND EXTRACT!

It totally enhances the cherry flavor and makes it spoon lickin’ good!!

Now some people go on long, romantic vacations with their husbands

or dance on a moon lit beach….

I make jelly with my husband!

Thanks for stopping by today!

Donna

Hanging out with the Red, white and blue

2011-07-07T09:27:00.001-05:00

Oh what fun we had. All my daughters were home for the Fourth, as well as my mother, grandsons and lots of other family.

This picture is one of my favorite possessions. I have it hanging in our kitchen for much of the year.

I have had it for YEARS. Once in a while I spot this print at an antique store. It has really gotten more pricey.

The print below was found on the last day of an estate sale reduced from $20 to $5.00! I love it.

Below the picture it reads Mount Vernon Ladies Association

Aunt Emily went with the boys and bought fireworks

Everyone pitched in in some form.

My sister in law Deb always brings a festive cake. This one was strawberry.

Jamie made the deviled eggs

My son in law brought fresh flowers he cut from their yard. Isn’t he sweet?

Brian also made us festive drinks using blue vodka.

The secret to the layers is pouring the liquids over a spoon.

My oldest daughter Angie provided entertainment!

I love this picture of three generations feeling the baby kick.

IT’S A GIRL!!! Have I told you?????????????? She and Brian are the parents of my three grandsons.

The table was set with red, white and blue of course!

Notice Jamie’s Bull dog puppy collapsing under the table.

She played so hard and is so much fun!

I LOVE these napkins I recently found at Penney’s for 75% off. They were less than a dollar a piece.

They mixed nicely with the dessert plates found at an estate sale.

It wouldn’t be Fourth of July at our house with home made ice cream!

We had a GREAT day filled with fun, food and family, making new memories.

Today I’m joining

Between Naps on the Porch

Thanks for stopping by!

Donna

Faux Water Look and Reminders of Friends

2011-07-01T19:34:00.001-05:00

Only having a few minutes to stop in to one thrift store today, I was pretty pleased with what I found.

My friend Char over at Grace and Favor has done a really fantastic tablescape for the 4th of July. You must go take a look. I noticed her pretty footed glasses. My mom has some similar. When I saw a similar set of four for $2.00 I knew they were going home with me.

I also found this sweet, precious little girl’s cup. It wasn’t priced yet, as someone had just donated it. The lady told me I couldn’t buy it until they had a chance to price it and they were about to close. I told her if I couldn’t buy it now, then it would be gone the next time I came in. I must have had the best pouty look on my face because she changed her mind and said I could have it for $1.25! Yah!!

The entire alphabet wraps around both sides of the handles.

It’s as sweet as it can be!

As if I need one more frame…..

BUT!

I loved the fact that this one is mirrored and it has Mother inscribed.

It can hold a picture of my mother or perhaps my daughter with her children.

To me it has the most vintage look…too pretty to let go. It was .75!

Changing the subject, I want to let you know about a product I use with my business. It’s a water look mixture that looks so real. It really looks as if you have cut some flowers from your garden and placed in fresh water.

I will say this is just a bit tricky. You must have everything all set up and ready to go, stems cut just so.

My first box must have been old as the mixture was thick and turned cloudy when I poured it. I ruined a small vase as there is no turning back once you have poured. I was able to save the flowers and start over again.

I purchased this box at Michael’s.

I don’t like that wire showing through on this stem, but there is a story behind it. Originally this peony was set in a very, very shallow vase (and the bottom of the stem didn’t show). My daughter was going to give it to a friend for her birthday. Well, Little Max accidentally broke the vase and she ended up giving the friend something else. I told her to save the flower and I would see what I could do. Still looks pretty good, and I’ll just give it to Angie.

These tulips are for a customer. I have used tape as a grid of sorts to hold the flowers in the position I want them until it sets up. It will look much nicer without the blue tape!

The picture doesn’t do this justice, but here is a gorgeous, big ole fat hydrangea, filling this container entirely.

I had just a little bit more of the water mixture, so I quickly grabbed another little vase and added the second flower on the hydrangea stem.

Now People!

The next pictures are showing the REAL stuff….nothing faux about this water below!

Cathy over at Cathy’s Out Junkin’Again recently showed her beautiful, freshly cut cone flowers.

Mine are blooming too, so I put them in this REAL VASE, with REAL WATER!! I’m not ALWAYS FAKE, friends!!!

Aren’t these just BEAUTIFUL flowers???

I love them!

This little vase, complete with it’s own tray was found at a local store having a great sale!

It’s always nice to have you stop by 47th Street!

I am joining Glenda at Tootsie Time today, showing one thing growing in my yard right now.

Go over and take a look at all the pretty yards.

Donna

What’s for Supper? And Make it Easy, please!

2011-06-29T22:26:00.001-05:00

I know…. most of you are going to say ~~~~ “SOUP???” Has the lady lost her mind? It’s the middle of summer!

Well, we had this meal a few days ago and YES, it was soup weather! I was wearing jeans and a light jacket! We have had a crazy summer and lots of cool, rainy weather.

Anyway, back to my meal! Keep this soup in mind for an easy summer meal or perhaps in the fall. It is DELICIOUS ~~~ and soup, salad and a muffin are often my favorite things to order for a summer lunch at our local restaurant.

As you can see this soup is from Trader Joe’s. Mr. Brown Socks and I both really love it.

I mixed up these delicious strawberry muffins. Don’t worry, I’ll share the recipe.

The recipe stated to mix in the blender, but that means I would have to go downstairs for the blender! How lazy of me. My food processor was just sitting nearby and worked just as well.

These really had great flavor and went together fast.

We have had an excellent crop of lettuce in our garden this spring and summer. With the cool temperatures it has continued to produce. In a hot season, the lettuce would bolt and would be bitter.

I love going to the olive bar at the grocery stores and adding a variety of olives on our salads. Yum….feta cheese, mushrooms, tomatoes and cukes round it out.

My muffin recipe comes from this cookbook, The Best of Cooking Light. It’s a good one. I found it at a thrift store for around $3.00 or so. There are many recipes I have marked to try already!

**********************************************

Strawberry-Orange Muffins

1 1/4 cups halved strawberries

3 T. butter, melted

2 t. grated orange rind

2 large eggs

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 1/4 cups sugar

1 t. baking powder

1/2 t. salt

Cooking Spray

2 t. sugar

1/2 c. strawberry jam (optional…I did not use)

Preheat oven to 400*

Combine the first 4 ingredients in a blender and process just until mixture is blended. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine flour, 1 1/4 cups sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add strawberry mixture to flour mixture, stirring just until mixture is moist. Spoon the batter into 12 muffin cups coated with cooking spray (I used paper liners). Sprinkle batter evenly with 2 t. sugar. Bake at 400* for 20 mins. or until muffins spring back. Remove muffins from pan immediately. Serve muffins with jam if desired. Yield 1 dozen.

Easy Pezy and we were full.

I’m glad you stopped by!!

Donna

Are they Real or are they Faux?

2011-06-22T14:29:00.001-05:00

Only your Silk Floral designer knows for sure!!

Oops, I guess I just gave it away.

Take a look at today’s creation. Customer brought this magazine picture with dimensions from table top to light fixture. That’s always good information to have, especially when using crazy curly willow.

Instead of an open grid container we went with an enclosed white, footed GORGEOUS pot. The enclosed container will not allow the drippy sheet moss to escape onto the tabletop.

Pot measures about 11” by 11”

Linda’s dining room has very high ceilings but is rather dark, having no outside windows.

We decided to go with a mix of green AND white silk hydrangeas.

Finished piece is about 24” wide by 30” to the tip top of the curly willow

Oh, it’s such fun to work with pretty things.

Linda is coming soon. She’s also picking up a bottle of this stuff..

It works GREAT on silks.

It’s always nice to have you stop by. Do let me know you were here.

Donna

A Frog Went a Courtin’

2011-06-16T19:46:00.001-05:00

Does anyone remember that song? http://kids.niehs.nih.gov/lyrics/frog.htm My mom and sister and I used to sing that over and over when I was little. I still love the catchy tune and sing it to my grandsons. Not sure they like it like I did though. um hum, um hummmm.

I have a frog story for you.

Last summer Mr. Brown Socks told Jamie and me he had a pet frog that hung out around our house. He said he was always on the lookout for the frog when he ran the mower so he wouldn’t nail him. He even named his pet frog. His name was Hans. Mr. Brown Socks liked Hans because he said he ate bugs in the garden. Personally I think he just had a soft spot for the little warty critter.

One evening last summer Jamie and I were returning home from a walk and saw a smashed frog in the road. Jamie came in and broke the news to her Dad that Hans was no longer. He had met up with a car. Honestly we didn’t think it was Hans, but it made for a good story. Do you think we are warped now? :-{

Well Good News!! When I was working in the garden a couple weeks back I found Hans! He is alive! He’s cute, isn’t he?

I do enjoy this picture of him.

Looking around my yard I’ve discovered that without even realizing it, I have a frog collection of sorts.

This one watching over the pansies is rather small.

And this one is rather large.

Both were purchased at estate sales. Frogs must have really been popular back in the day.

Here we have a copper frog watering can.

I was having fun snapping pictures of Maggie while outside.

She here through the yarrow?

We’ve had a few 100 degree days and a lot of cool days so far this summer.

Finally we are starting to feel warmer days and even noticed the tomato plants are taking off.

I’m so anxious to pick tomatoes and cucumbers, but that’s a little while off.

For the first time this growing season, I am happy to join Glenda over at Tootsie Time.

Let’s go over and see what people are growing.

Hans says “See ya later!”

On Second Thought

2011-06-14T10:38:00.001-05:00

Hi Friends,

I know…it’s been awhile AGAIN. Wish I could be a better blogger. I do hope there are a few of you who still check in with me from time to time! I do love it when you come for a visit and once again, I’m going to try harder to blog on a regular basis.

Let me just show you a big project I’ve worked on recently.

This was a TOTAL redo. My customer had an old copper boiler that she had filled MANY years back. You may remember the look…Drieds and more drieds. Now, I used to really love this look too, but dried arrangements are nearly impossible to clean. After they become really dusty, it is a great idea to pitch everything and start over. My customer came to that conclusion and brought this to me for a make over.

Does it make you want to sneeze?

I really try and “interview” my people to find out just exactly what they have in mind for their arrangements. Sometimes they have no earthly idea and leave it totally up to me. Other times they are very specific. Most fall right in the middle..having some idea but not totally.

Betty’s words to me were that she wanted the arrangement to be natural looking with a “woodsy feel”. She looked around and picked out a few specific things she liked.

I set down to begin this big project

Here was my first attempt for this copper container

Nah, it just wasn’t doing it for me. I’ve mentioned before that on large arrangements ~~ after I’ve completed most of the look, I always bring it upstairs and set it on my kitchen counter. I walk past it several times and look to see what changes it needs. I was not happy with this one.

Here is Take Two

I liked it. I pulled out some of the messy grasses and inserted a moss ball (lower right of above picture) and the long wooden branch that draped across the front.

Woodsy and Interesting. I also like the balance better.

Lots of texture too.

Okay, time to call Betty over for her inspection and approval.

Betty was the boss as this Is going home with her to live with for probably several years to come.

She did not like the red berries and asked if we could pull those out and put something else in. Her first thoughts were she didn’t want flowers (only some natural looking orchids). After seeing the arrangement complete, she decided she DID want a few flowers. She went with hydrangeas.

Here is the final look that met with customer’s approval:

If customer is Happy, then I am happy!

I’ve had a few more ladies stop by in the past week, so more work to do.

Thanks for coming by to see me!

Donna

Final Tablescape for Women’s Meeting

2011-06-01T22:17:00.001-05:00

Are you tiring of this ongoing Tablescape Meeting my sister in law Connie and I hosted a few weeks back? We decorated so many tables I decided to share this fun evening over a three week period.

In case you have missed the other posts here and here, Connie and I decorated eight tables ~~ some small little bistro tables ~~ and two full size tables to share with our friends. This was a salad supper that we turned into ideas for setting tables. We end up the year in May and we will start back up again in the fall with our monthly meetings.

Everyone brings a salad and then someone usually offers to collect the recipes so we have copies of all the various salads each person brings.

SO Typical ~~~ I forgot to take a picture before we started the salad line. There was a wide variety of salads this time.

Here are two guests just before they left full of food and friendship.

This is the last Tablescape to share with you.

Connie and I chose our solid colored faux Fiesta plates for the main table because we had the most place settings for matching purposes.

The extremely vivid color scheme was just what we needed for the end of a long winter and a big hello to Summer.

The table was most festive!

We did a little mixing and matching of salad plates since we didn’t have quite enough of one pattern.

The salad plates, glasses and napkin rings are from Pier 1.

Red silverware is from JC Penneys

Red and Gold napkins were thrifted as was the

tablecloth. Don’t you love the fabric for the tablecloth? I think it was just a yardage of fabric someone pieced together. On the tag at the thrift store it stated it was a bedspread but I seriously doubt that’s what it was used for. It’s very thin.

The centerpiece was extremely last minute. We went down to my work room, took a big basket and loaded it with colorful faux fruits and veggies. Some faux red berries, a couple of extra napkin rings for bling and interest, some reindeer moss and my sweet little “fruit fly” worked together very well in the center of the table.

We lined this open metal basket with reindeer moss and just piled it high with colorful things.

At the very last minute, we decided to perch the bird off the side. The oversized bird added a bit of whimsy.

Since the salads are always pot luck I decided to make little sandwiches so we had a little protein.

Curried Chicken Tea Sandwiches

2 cups cubed, cooked and seasoned chicken

1 medium unpeeled red apple, chopped

3/4 cup dried cranberries

1/2 c. thinly sliced celery

1/4. c. chopped pecans

2 T. thinly sliced green onions

3/4 cup mayo

2 t. lime juice

1/2 t. ( I used more) curry powder

lettuce

Directions: In bowl combine first six ingredients. Combine mayo, lime juice, and curry; add to chicken mixture and stir to coat. Cover and refrigerate til ready to serve. Cut each slice of bread with a 3” cutter. Top with lettuce and chicken salad.

Thanks for joining me today to see the final chapter of our Tablescape Meeting. I hope I’ve inspired you to do lots of mixing up with your dishes, table linens and napkins AND to share your creations with friends. Our friends truly seemed to enjoy the evening, walking around looking at all the different things we put together at each table. It also gave Connie and me an opportunity to share some of our favorite dishes that we’ve either had for awhile or have picked up with our new thrifting hobby!

I am linking up with Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursday

and

Michael at Designs by Gollum for Foodie Friday.

I’ll meet you over there!

Donna

Part Two of Tablescape Program

2011-05-26T11:34:00.001-05:00

It pleased me to read your comments on my post last week about the tables my sister in law and I decorated for a meeting we hosted. It was very fun to read your favorites. I didn’t count but I think the seaside table was most popular followed by the black and white polka dots. You can scroll down a couple of posts back if you missed those tables.

This week I would like to show you a few more of the eight tables we created.

It seems I use these brown transferware dishes time and time again.

This is the first time I’ve paired them with yellow.

Love the updated look with the Bee

and Yellow tulips!

Don’t you agree the yellow seems to breath fresh air into a timeless dish pattern?

It has a classic richness and depth about it.

Next up on stage is tried and true blue.

It was so interesting when people would actually tell us their favorite table.

Of course there are always going to be lovers of blue who chose this as their favorite.

My new favorite element to add is doubling up on napkins.

Here we start with blue and layer with white.

And finally we have another yellow table but this one has a more country feel with the addition of black and white.

The roosters fit in well adding to the French country design and it’s all tied together resting on black and white toile.

This was just a fabric piece I had. We layered the toile on top of a vintage yellow/white linen tablecloth found in my stash.

I found the set of twelve yellow and black dishes at the thrift shop. Nothing else to go with them, but that is actually better.

Much more fun to mix and match!

I adore these little square napkins with the hand stitched basket.

I crisped them right up with a good, heavy dose of starch.

~~ Lemons, sunflowers and roosters ~~

Why not?

There is actually one more table to share (well two, but somehow I didn’t get pictures of one of them!) I will save that table for another day.

I do hope you’ve had fun seeing the bistro tables we put together for our meeting.

Perhaps it will give you ideas on a upcoming program idea.

I am joining Susan for Tablescape Thursdays at Between Naps on the Porch.

Thanks so much for stopping by 47th Street today. Let me know you were here!

Donna

Flowers for my Father

2011-05-22T20:59:00.001-05:00

This week marks the twentieth anniversary of my father’s passing. It seems unreal it has been that long. Often I think about the things we have missed having him here for. Of course like in most of our lives there have been high school and college graduations for his grandchildren, weddings, great grandbabies and the many ups and downs that come with living.

We miss him so much. My dad actually passed away on Memorial Day. This year I wanted the vase on his grave to be a bit more special so I arranged with love some brightly colored silk flowers.

My Dad taught my sister and me so many good things to remember. He taught us to have good manners. Nothing less was ever acceptable. One thing I remember to this day is to never walk across someone’s lawn to take a short cut. He thought it best to walk down the sidewalk. Not sure why he felt that was necessary but to this day I think of him if I start to walk across a yard. We knew to think of others and respect them.

Dad taught us to button up our coats and to never look sloppy. He was a firm believer in looking nice and presentable. We could never come to the table in our swimming suits as teenagers. Speaking of the table, Dad would go hungry before he would eat the last helping of something. It was always left by him in case another might want it. He was always thinking of others. Our home was always opened for friends and family. He was happiest when people were around. I can still see that big smile on his face when lots were gathered.

He made sure we always respected our mother. We knew how much he loved Mama and that love for her shone through during all their married years. He was not only a good Dad but he was a good husband. Together they were strict but loving parents.

Dad, we really feel like your sixty seven years on earth was not enough. God had other plans and we know that you are looking down on us and I sense you are smiling. Thank you for being the best Dad ever. You and Mom set a very fine example of how we should lead our lives. In turn we have passed those qualities on to our children knowing you would approve.

And oh yes, Barb and I still remember you taught us how the crow lands while sitting by you in the car! We also still remember how strong your toes were, right Barb?

We miss you Dad.

When Grown Women play with their Dishes

2011-05-18T08:29:00.001-05:00

In earlier posts I have mentioned how fortunate I am to have a sister in law who I have so much in common with. Connie and I certainly share our love for dishes. It makes for fun family dinners when we both appreciate putting a table together with love and fun.

We are members of a neighborhood group that gets together every month with a program and dessert. Traditionally in May our meeting is a Salad Supper with no program. This week the meeting is in my home. We are having a program of sorts ~~~ A Tablescape Program! Connie and got together a couple of times to gather our thoughts AND our dishes! We knew our group would love seeing tablescape ideas.

Here is our starting point

Connie has four little Bistro tables which we hauled over to my house so we could set up little vignettes.

So as not to make this post too long, I will just show you three tables this week.

A Seaside Table

Pooling our dishes and accessories, we had so much fun putting together ideas people could use to set up a full size table.

On the chair next to the table we continued on. Isn’t this white fish something else? He came from Z Gallerie. If we had a full size table the fish would be the center of attention.

Next up was a black and white table that truly evolved by pulling a little of this and a little of that together.

We didn’t intend for it to have a bridal flair but that’s how it ended up.

The beginning point was the black, white and silver dish that I found while thrifting.

At the last minute I remembered my vintage bride and groom which I used for my daughter’s wedding reception last fall. Cute!

The napkins are a clearance item from Pier 1. Dishes are all from thrift stores. The damask fabric remnant sure added to this formal look.

Next up is our Black and White and Red Casual Table

It’s funny how the tables began. Connie was over at Easter and saw my cherry salt and pepper shakers. She mentioned her black and white polka dot dishes. Oh! Then I mentioned I also had cherry juice glasses.

Pulling from my stash I ran across the little crisp white placemats with cherries (thrifted). We also thought since this table had a country charm about it we would use my old ice cream glasses. Filled with cotton balls to represent ice cream, we added a cherry and a tall vintage silver spoon.

Do you remember awhile back I did a post on my black and white kitty with the mysterious hole in the bottom? She fit right in with this table.

Next week I will show you more of our tables.

It’s fun to actually use all these dishes we accumulate and have such excitement pulling everything together.

I am joining Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for Tabletop Tuesday

Susan over at Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursday

Sherry at No Minimalist Here Open House Party

Stay tuned for more of our Tablescape Meeting!

Donna

Hypertufa Planters

2011-05-10T10:06:00.001-05:00

Last week I visited a quaint little shop near my home. After my spring silk plant show I had taken in about four of my Easter looking plants to sell there on consignment. I had sold two of the four and I took time to look around her little shop to see if there was something I couldn’t live without ~~ therefore handing her back the money she had just given me. She has a few antique dishes, linens, old suitcases, tables and other vintage pieces many of us just love. She also has a pretty good supply of temptations for gardeners..such as wind chimes made out of old silverware and garden totems such as this:

(sorry, not sure where these pictures were from)

As I was leaving the store empty handed, I turned to look around the front porch area and there it was! A darling planter already filled with flowers. The container was adorned with pieces of a plate containing a rooster. I went back in and told her I had to have it! She told me she had made it out of concrete and peat moss.

Ironically over the weekend my daughter was looking through a Martha Stewart magazine with directions on making these planters! She and I were very excited. I couldn’t wait to get home so I could show her the one I had just ~~traded for~~ purchased. Here is a link to Martha’s magazine article. It is from spring of last year.

http://www.marthastewart.com/268962/hypertufa-pots

and another link with more info

http://www.finegardening.com/how-to/articles/make-hypertufa-trough.aspx

A little history of Hypertufa

Hypertufa is a man made substitute for Tufa rock. Tufa is a spongy cellular rock found in limestone country and especially where water has been involved in the wearing and leaching out of the original materials to effect a porous spongy consistency. In many countries throughout the world this natural stone has for centuries been hollowed out and carved for tubs and planters and decorative stepping stones.

Hyper is a prefix meaning, over or beyond. Hypertufa is a mixture of cement, sand and peat moss. For hundreds of years tufa rock was used in Ireland and England to carve animal watering troughs. Then gardeners started using it to make stunning antique looking pots and urns for their back yard gardens. After the supply of tufa started to diminish folks looked for a way to make it. Since tufa was created with limestone deposits and plant matter, the formula of cement and peat moss and sand became a viable alternative.

***************************************************************************************

I like the thickness of the planter and just the overall look of it.

Back side showing more of the bits of a broken plate

I would love to hear if you have ever heard of hypertufa or better yet if you’ve ever made a planter. The instructions say it’s easy…really? I would love to make some. Today we are in for record breaking weather ….97 degrees in the midwest in May! Unheard of. And to think…I have chosen today to go to the nursery and buy more flowers to plant!

Joining Marty for Tabletop Tuesday.at A Stroll Through Life

Enjoy whatever it is you have set out to do today,

Donna

We Three Mothers

2011-05-09T14:14:00.001-05:00

Mothers Day was not a traditional one this year, but it turned out to be quite lovely. The date turned out to be the same one that our men had something planned. They did ask in their most convincing way permission to go ahead with their plans and took Christian, my oldest grandson along with them.

Angie (my oldest daughter) and her two youngest sons and I traveled to see my Mom and spent a very quiet Mother’s Day with her. It turned out to be picture perfect. I spoke to my other two daughters on the phone. We all wished we were together.

It was a year ago today that Mom fell and broke her hip. She is one determined woman and although she has slowed down she is still very active and has a great attitude. She still loves her flowers. We decided our favorite thing to do would be to help her get her flower beds ready for summer flowers.

First we went to the greenhouse and upon entering I immediately thought of my friend Char over at Grace and Favor ~ A Life Worth Living.

Char, your pink bike is much cuter than this one!

We spent a long time (actually until they kicked us out upon closing!) looking for just the right flowers.

Some of us daydreamed about water fountains and with the curiosity of a three year old wondered why in the world people threw money into the water.

Even more curious to him was why in the world wouldn’t we let him climb in to retrieve some of these discarded coins!

We got home and went straight to work….

We edged and weeded

Some watered while others contemplated where flowers should go….

We watered some more

We talked to neighbors and met new dogs

And then we watered some more

We picked several bouquets of lilacs from a neighbor’s alley

More than anything we enjoyed each other’s company and were very thankful we three mothers and four generations could be together.

I hope you enjoyed a beautiful Mother’s Day.

Donna

Soft Purple..another color of Spring

2011-04-26T09:33:00.001-05:00

I have used my robin’s egg blue dishes a lot lately…..and I used them for my table last Easter. Even though I still really love them, I was ready for a change for this year’s table.

My inspiration was this fabulous tablecloth I found at an estate sale last summer. It is hand embroidered and I almost let it slip by. Oh I wish I could easily pull pictures off my old computer as I had a story I was going to tell through pictures. You will have to imagine what I am going to share. This beautiful tablecloth was at first left behind by me at the estate sale because it had a big ole 6” dark brown/black stain in the middle of the cloth. The price was right ~~ $15 for the linen cloth AND twelve napkins. I really thought about it but decided it would be of no good if the stain couldn’t be removed. I figured with the age of the piece it would leave a dark spot, no matter what. THEN two days later my friend Susan told me she was going back to the sale after something. Everything was half priced and was there anything I remembered I might want. “Why YES there was!!” I could not get out of my mind the beautiful hand embroidered tablecloth. I asked if she would look in the bedroom closet to see if it was still there. It was! Here’s where I wish I had my pictures. I slipped a safety pin in the middle of the bad stain (so I could easily find the bad spot later) and immersed the cloth into a solution of Oxi Clean. Before my very eyes, the stain began to dissolve! Within a few minutes it was totally lifted and I had pretty whiteness throughout. It did not leave a trace of brown! I was so happy! My only surprise was when I examined the napkins. Only the top napkin had been embroidered. The remaining eleven were stamped with the design but are left for me to do! LOL or Woe is me!

Oh my….there is a lot of work involved! For now, white napkins serve the purpose.

After a good washing, I starched and ironed til I was pleased with how it looked.

Just look a all the detailed stitches!

Much to my guests surprise, (me being the silk plant lady) I used REAL pansies in an old soup tureen.

I “borrowed” the idea I saw on Yvonne’s , Stone Gable blog by making the little egg shell plant holders using the smaller pansies called violas.

I found these little egg cups (or glasses if turned the other way) at a thrift shop last year.

The sweet purple flower dishes were found this spring, but they only had four.

That didn’t bother me. For the other place settings I simply used my white plates.

There’s another one of those pesky rabbits jumping over the pansies. I’m sure he had a nibble before he jumped!

A closer view of the table shows I started with large white square plates which I used as chargers. Then I layered

with a silver charger for interest and brightness. I ended with our dinner plate on top and a little egg cup with flower at each place setting.

I am so happy this beautiful lilac stitched tablecloth ended up in my home. The ladies seemed to enjoy it and it sure set the scene for a lovely table. Next time I use it hopefully will be when lilacs are in bloom in my area to use as a centerpiece.

We had SUCH a nice Easter ~~~ our home was FILLED with family and friends. So much food and lots of laughter and good conversation. I hope you enjoyed the same.

Thank you for stopping by 47th Street today.

I am joining in with

Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for Tabletop Tuesday

Bonnie at House of Grace for Twice Owned

Kim at Savvy Southern Style for Wow us Wednesday

and

Susan over at Between Naps on the Porch and Tablescape Thursday.

Sherry at No Minimalist Here for her Open House Party on Thursdays

Cindy at My Romantic Home for Show and Tell Friday
Courtney at French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday
Debra at Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Fridays

I know you’ll want to join me to see all the pretties!

Donna

Easter Decor

2011-04-17T17:32:00.001-05:00

Busy, busy days make for less blogging time. As we are just a week away from Easter it seemed appropriate to show a few of my Easter decorations.

My newlywed daughter and her husband make a quick day trip to town to celebrate a birthday on Dan’s side of the family. They were only going to be at our house for an hour or so this morning. I recently ran across this Lemon Blueberry bread that just had my name all over it. I love lemons and I love blueberries. The combination seemed so springy and something I knew my family would love. The timer had just gone off signaling the bread was done when Jamie and Dan arrived. Knowing they were having lunch at the party I had a very informal brunch for them….yummy bread and hard boiled eggs with coffee.

…and a bowl of gorgeous blackberries, my new favorite fruit

Happy, springtime dishes and flowery, bird placemats

Mr. Rabbit shown from behind carrying his load of Springtime carrots

I love this figurine. He was found a Goodwill with a couple of little chips, but nothing that a little Sharpie couldn’t help with. You can see where I touched up the brim of his hat. The gorgeous carrots were made by a friend.

Would you like the recipe for my bread? umm, humm, I thought so!

Springtime Lemon Blueberry Bread

1/3 cup butter,softened

1 cup white sugar

1 lemon,juiced

2eggs

1 1/2 c. flour

1 t. baking powder

1/2 t.salt

1/2 cup milk

2 T. lemon zest

1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Topping

2 T. lemon juice

1/4 c. sugar

1.Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour an 8x4” loaf pan. In a med. bowl, mix flour,baking powder and salt together…set aside.

2.In a large bowl, cream the butter and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and beat well. Mix in juice of lemon. Add the flour mixture, alternating with the milk. Fold in the lemon zest and blueberries. Pour into loaf pan.

3.Bake for 60-70 mins. or til toothpick comes out clean. For glaze, combine 1/4 c. sugar and 2 T. lemon juice. Drizzle over bread while warm and top with a bit more lemon zest.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There probably aren’t many bloggers who don’t have one of these Bunnies on a Stick from Pier 1. I sold a good many of these at my floral shows the past couple of years but did keep one for myself. I love the little vintage pot I found for it. This is in my master bath along with

a little ceramic container that has a basket weave. As you can see it currently holds cotton balls but I may have to move it to the kitchen for Easter.

Mrs. Cottontail carries her wagon with real malted eggs and chocolate foiled covered carrots. I found her last year at an Estate sale and just had to have her.

A big jar of robin blue eggs with a bronze cross inside sit at my kitchen window. You can see I had a lot of glare from the sun.

I just found this sweet little creamer at a local antique store last week. The owner was selling old dishes with real spring bulbs included. This is a hyacinth bulb popping up. The whole thing was $6. Now how could I pass up a deal like that?

Moving on to our office area where I blog you will find more ironstone pieces from the thrift store along with

this rabbit plate which I LOVE! “Rabbit, Rabbit, Run Rabbit Run run run, Don’t let the Farmer have His Fun, fun, fun”. I leave this up year round. It’s made in England and was $6.00 marked down to $3.

My last “Decoration” to show you is REAL and I couldn’t be more excited. I have tried for three years to get Eastern Bluebirds to make a nest in my bluebird house and this is my first year!!! Just today Mrs. Bluebird laid her fifth egg!! Aren’t they so pretty? I hope they all hatch.

I can see the birdhouse from my kitchen window and have so much fun watching their activity.

I hope you’ve enjoyed seeing some of my Spring Easter decorations. I’m joining in on several parties this week. Do take a moment to visit and see what everyone else is up to. Thanks for stopping by!

Donna

Carrie at Dittle Dattle Amaze Me Monday
Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for Tabletop Tuesday
Linda at Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tuesday
Kim at Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesdays
Kara at Elements Interiors for Whassup Wednesday
Sherry at No Minimalist Here for her Open House Party on Thursdays
Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursday

Michael at Designs by Gollum for Foodie Friday

Cindy at My Romantic Home for Show and Tell Friday
Courtney at French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday
Linda at A la Carte for Junkin' Finds on Fridays
Debra at Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Fridays
Sherry at The Charm of Home for Home Sweet Home Friday
Laurie at Bargain Hunting and Chatting with Laurie for A Few of My Favorite Things Saturday

Grandiose Centerpiece

2011-04-06T21:06:00.001-05:00

It was my pleasure to be involved in my friend Susan’s church event this week.

For many years they have hosted an evening for women filled with things we love ~~~ hundreds of other women to socialize with, a Christian speaker, a fabulous meal we didn’t have to cook, men of the church serving our dinner AND between 80 and 100 tables totally decorated. This is a dish lover’s dream as each table is created uniquely different from the next. Susan has participated by decorating a table the past two years. This year she asked if I would like to provide the tablescape. Well OKAY!

So just three days after my Spring Floral show I was going through my cupboards and pulling out dishes, chargers, cups and all things I had running through my mind to create a charming table for such a large group of women who thrive on just this sort of event. It’s a bit of a challenge since the table is a 6 foot round and seats eight people, in a cozy, crowded sort of way.

Yes, my dishes may look familiar to you. My robin’s egg blue dishes could not be more perfect for a spring table. I added blue chargers to my ever growing dish cupboard last year. The table is too small to place the placemats the normal direction so we decided to place them the long way for pattern on top of the white tablecloth.

Oh lookie! A bird’s nest with a rabbit and eggs! Can you see the little white egg cups? They held little nibbles to tide us over until our dinner was served close to 7:15. Shoot! My sweet little napkin appliques are cut off in the picture.

Since the room is so large, I chose a grandiose centerpiece. My very largest white urn (which I used at my daughter’s wedding reception holding a white pumpkin last year) was a perfect starting point. Next I went to my workroom and pulled cherry and apple blossom stems. These puppies have very, very long stems. I had to sort of wrap them around in the base of the urn and tightened everything up with pieces of foam to keep all the stems snug and standing upright. Cover it all with a heavy dose of sheet moss and everything is hidden! With perfect timing, my three year old pussy willow bush was bursting with new growth and loveliness this year. I snipped and snipped til my heart was content. They added just what I wanted for my centerpiece!

Each table was to have a favorite scripture printed out. The one I chose is a new favorite of mine.

They are hard to spot but I have two faux chocolate bunnies on the table too. Mr. Brown Socks thought he might eat one tonight. He truly thought they were real!

Our speaker for the evening was Tammy Trent. She has quite a story to tell and is a great speaker. She can really sing also AND she’s funny. We had such a nice evening. Now all the dishes are safely back home, washed and tucked back into place. I really don’t want to tear down the centerpiece quite yet. I think I’ll leave it up for awhile. It might fight with my dining room chandelier however, so it’s on my sofa table for the time being!

I’m linking up to Between Naps on the Porch. Also linking up with The Tablescaper and Seasonal Sundays.

Come on over and let’s drool over all those purdy dishes and other interesting things this week!! I really enjoy your visits and comments. Thanks for stopping by!

Donna

Flowers Everywhere!

2011-04-05T09:46:00.001-05:00

Hi! I’m back after an unannounced blogging break. Life got a little crazy while preparing for my Spring show and other things going on. My show has passed and I thought today I would show you some of the arrangements I had for sale. Some of these are still available and looking for homes….still thinking Etsy…who wants to help me figure out how to do that?

Little Miss Maggie was jumping through wreaths to greet people at the front door!

First is Miss Bunny with her finest adornments….

Here she is “less dressed”

Springy green ranunculus and the most real roses you have ever seen. They even feel real. Don’t you just love these containers?

A floor arrangement with a bit more contemporary look

And another contemporary with Japanese Magnolia blossoms…just like the ones in Pottery Barn.

This was one of the first to go…

For some reason, this was one of my personal favorites with the little Beatrix Potter container. It is still available. Notice the little cabbage in with the ranunculus.

In addition to flowers, we had some great snacky food. Later in the week I will try to share a recipe or two.

On another table in the kitchen were many more arrangements to choose from..

A happy customer shown leaving with her purchases.

My sister Barb and her friend Penny came to help me write up the sales.

I love this little Bunny arrangement in a metal pocket for a front door or wall. I still have this one too.

A beautiful tone on tone arrangement in a most gorgeous artichoke vase.

Sweet little topiaries that can work in soooo many places.

Moss Birds flew in for a first time appearance

Lastly a twig and pussy willow piece with robin’s egg blue twill ribbon.

So now you can see what I’ve been up to the last couple of weeks. It was a fun sale and I could tell people were excited for a Spring look to liven up their homes.

Thank you for stopping by today. I am linking up to the following parties:

Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for Tabletop Tuesday
Linda at Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tuesday
Kim at Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesdays
Kara at Elements Interiors for Whassup Wednesday
Gina at The Shabby Chic Cottage for Transformation Thursdays
Leigh at Tales from Bloggeritaville for Thrifty Thursday
Jill at French Cupboard for French Inspiration on Thursdays
Sherry at No Minimalist Here for her Open House Party on Thursdays
Cindy at My Romantic Home for Show and Tell Friday
Courtney at French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday
Linda at A la Carte for Junkin' Finds on Fridays
Debra at Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Fridays
Sherry at The Charm of Home for Home Sweet Home Friday
Laurie at Bargain Hunting and Chatting with Laurie for A Few of My Favorite Things Saturday
Donna at Funky Junk Interiors for Saturday Nite Special

Vintage Baby Shower

2011-03-19T16:43:00.011-05:00

Today I am joining Chari at Happy to Design for Sunday Favorites. There are so many of us who love dishes and I thought it would be fun to repeat a Vintage Baby Shower post my daughter and I hosted for a family member a while back. When the shower was held we didn't know if the parents were having a girl or boy. Little Sabrina just turned two this past week so it seemed a perfect time to replay this post. Thank you Chari for hosting. It's nice to be able to repeat a post when I am busy preparing for my Spring Floral Show.

I'm excited to finally be participating in Susan's now famous Tablescape Thursday. I look forward to this each week and I wanted to share the baby shower table setting my daughter and I created on Sunday. Greeting our guests as they entered the home was a freshly strung line of sweet baby clothes. We felt this was a fun way to set the mood as we all said hello at the door.

I'm quite sure many of you remember actually hanging tiny clothes on a real outdoor line. I know I have done this from time to time. The silk plant lady decided to go for REAL flowers for this shower. Can you believe it??

~ These white pitchers are thrift store finds ~

My daughter and I knew we had found our centerpiece when we spotted these petite pink tulips in the cooler.

The new parents to be are not finding out the sex of the baby, so we chose a blue and pink color theme.

The dishes are also a thrift store find. I only have dinner plates but I'm okay with that because they are easy to match up with white or white and gold cups and other serving pieces when necessary.

The accessories we used on the tables actually came together over a couple of weeks time of thinking. I just kept remembering baby pieces I had and they just all worked so well together to form an innocent tablescape. This little plate below was my baby plate. The silveware belonged to one of my daughters.

The little Beatrix Potter figurines added so much interest to the antique mirror in the center of the dining room table. The mirror was a garage sale find.

We had 21 guests at three tables. This was a card table using vintage linens and my daughter's baby blocks from the mid 70's. We spelled out the new baby's last name under the glass dome.

Placed on the server in the dining room we had the cake, napkins and plates ready for dessert.

I love the simplicity of the cake.

Below is the kitchen table set with the vintage damask tablecloth which belonged to my mil. The white napkins are the ones I was ironing last week. :) Notice the pink rose dishes? These were my very first set of dishes purchased at a grocery store after I became engaged. Many are broken but I still have enough to enjoy.

We used silver baby mugs belonging to my three daughters, my three grandsons and one belonged to Mr. Brown Socks. We filled them with water and added white baby carnations.

SWEET??? I ask??? Last but probably my favorite are my very own baby shoes perfectly positioned under a tall glass dome.

We asked the grandmothers to bring pictures of the new mom and dad to be.

***On the menu***

~ Grape and pecan filled Chicken Salad Sandwiches ~

~Marinated Vegetable Pasta Salad~

~Assorted Fruit~

~Iced Tea~

~Caramel Drizzle Coffee~ Now let's go and explore more blogs to see what others have been up to this week. This is such fun, isn't it?? ;)

Thanks for stopping by to enjoy a vintage baby shower.

I am also joining Dittle Dattle for Amaze me Monday
Marty at a Stroll Thru Life for Tabletop Tuesday

Kim at Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesdays

Kara at Elements Interiors for Whassup Wednesday

Sherry at No Minimalist Here for her Open House Party on Thursdays

Cindy at My Romantic Home for Show and Tell Friday

Linda at A la Carte for Junkin' Finds on Fridays

Debra at Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Fridays

Laurie at Bargain Hunting and Chatting with Laurie for A Few of My Favorite Things Saturday

New Furniture for my Living Room

2011-03-14T08:59:00.001-05:00

Hi Blogging Buddies!

Do you remember recently I shared pictures of my open floor plan and a few of the woes that come with decorating with not many walls, etc ?

Here is the room before:

I have been anxious to share with you an addition to my living room. Thinking I wanted to wait until the whole room was done, I haven’t shown pictures of my new piece of furniture, but I just can’t wait any longer.

Most rooms are a work in progress and so is my living room! The whole progression started about a month ago when I was in my hometown celebrating my birthday. I had a phone call from my sister in law Connie who also loves to decorate. She was in a thrift store and found a secretary that she said “had my name all over it!”

She knew I had been looking for one and she knows how I like dark wood. Of course thrift stores will not hold pieces. This was Saturday and I wouldn’t be able to get into the store until Monday. Knowing it would be gone she took a picture on her cell phone and sent it to me. It was somewhat hard to tell but I just knew Connie knows my style. She was willing to purchase it for me and then they would hold it until Mr. Brown Socks and I could get in there on Monday to pick it up. It had a few little problems like dried glittered glue (which popped right off with a little Murphy’s soap and a straight edged razor. It needed washing down and some tung oil to give it luster.

At first we placed it on the same wall as the fireplace. Then after studying it and talking with my decorator friend Susan, we decided it wasn’t quite tall enough to compete with the fireplace mantel. Sooo…we scooted it over to the corner and I LOVE it there! Don’t you think it made a huge difference in the way the room has come together?

This sweet little green chair used to be in my silk floral work room. It came from a local little store that was going out of business. I was so lucky to find it as it was buried under a pile of “stuff”. I almost missed seeing it myself!

As much as I have enjoyed it in my workroom I really like having the bright color in my living room now. It seems perfect nestled up by the secretary and just seems to give the room the extra piazza it was lacking. I also brought in this white dish and placed on the coffee table (Goodwill find)

and added white urns on top of the secretary to give the room some contrast.

The mantle is still a work in progress. I took down the big tree picture (shown below) because it seems so fall/winter to me.

Also still on my list are new pillows for the couch and the little green chair. But for now I am very happy with the direction this room is going.

It’s amazing what this one piece of furniture did to make me love my living room. Another thing that I like about it is having the shelves to add more of my accessories.

Do join me over at all these other great blogs I am joining this week. There are always some many great ideas!

Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for Metamorphosis Monday
Mary at Boogieboard Cottage for Masterpiece Monday
Sarah at Thrifty Decor Chick for Before and After Monday (first Monday of the month)
Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for Tabletop Tuesday
Linda at Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tuesday
Kim at Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesdays
Kara at Elements Interiors for Whassup Wednesday
Gina at The Shabby Chic Cottage for Transformation Thursdays
Leigh at Tales from Bloggeritaville for Thrifty Thursday
Jill at French Cupboard for French Inspiratin on Thursdays
Sherry at No Minimalist Here for her Open House Party on Thursdays
Cindy at My Romantic Home for Show and Tell Friday
Courtney at French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday
Linda at A la Carte for Junkin' Finds on Fridays
Debra at Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Fridays
Sherry at The Charm of Home for Home Sweet Home Friday
Laurie at Bargain Hunting and Chatting with Laurie for A Few of My Favorite Things Saturday
Donna at Funky Junk Interiors for Saturday Nite Special

I am always so happy to have you stop by!

Donna

Mixing up the Dishes ~ In a Hurry!

2011-03-09T17:34:00.001-06:00

Hello again! Let me start by saying I LOVE my dishes and I love my napkins. It’s fun mixing and matching and playing around with things ~~~~~

BUT

If I don’t have guests coming over for dinner it seems unreal to put a lot of time into a tablescape. Today I’ll be showing you how to create a finished table with color and interest FAST!

Don’t get me wrong, for those of you who pour lots and lots of time into it, I am the first to say I appreciate your efforts. My spring show is just around the corner and I feel guilty not being downstairs working instead of playing! LOL! When I am really entertaining I spend lots of time on my tables, tweaking and playing and redoing til the guests arrive!

Since it’s time for Susan’s Tablescape Thursday over at Between Naps on the Porch I hurriedly started looking through dishes seeing what would be pretty together. I happened to have four of these precious little salad plates out on display

so that was my starting point. Oh yes, they did come from the Thrift Store and have a couple of little chips, but you won’t see those. They are underneath. There are no markings so don’t know anything about them other than I had to have them, chips and all.

Knowing you can’t go wrong with solid white that was next in line. Johnson Brothers Ironstone, England.

Okay, we are all itching for spring, so let’s pull out these Robin’s Egg Blue chargers. These I found last year and I LOVE THEM! Remember, stack stuff up. It always looks more impressive that way.

Next we need napkins. First I thought I would use the white ones with black I found awhile back, clearanced at Pottery Barn. Hummm, they are okay, but a little formal. Plus we are all eager for color and who doesn’t love this bright green? I promise I would have ironed them if you had been actually coming for a meal! These came from World Market.

My running bunnies were just pulled out last weekend and Yes, they will work fine for the centerpiece. Notice the antique tray. It’s one of my favorite Goodwill finds. I did have a new mirror made to fit and it looks wonderful in so many ways.

A splash of a soft flower and some gorgeous deep blackberries and we have plenty of color and variety to make this table work in a matter of minutes. The little silver pedestal dish was an estate sale find.

Some glasses, silverware and tiny little individual bunnies and birds finish this table off nicely. See? You too can put together a table anyone would enjoy sitting down to in nothing flat!

Oh, I almost forgot to show you this SWEET little platter that I added to the table. It will certainly hold something I am serving. It is made in France and I found it in an antique store in North Carolina. It’s one of my favorites.

Okay, before I go over to see everyone’s tables this week I will first “unset” my table. Are we craZy or what??

As always, I thoroughly enjoy your comments and visits. Thanks for stopping by!

I am also pleased to be joining Linda at A la Carte for Junkin’ Finds Friday

Debra at Common Grounds for Vintage Inspiration Finds and

Cindy at My Romantic Home for Show and Tell Friday.

So Many Changes in the Works!

2011-03-07T09:37:00.001-06:00

What a fun weekend! It was filled with family fun AND talks of decorating!

The newlyweds came home and we got to meet Gordita. She is growing but still full of lots of puppy spunk…

And Puppy Kisses!

Maggie watched behind the scenes fearing the worse…. Nervous as the cat she is that we had brought another beloved pet into her domain to stay. She watched with scary eyes, rarely taking her eyes off of the puppy.

My sister in law Connie was over. Connie loves to decorate too. We went through fabric books searching for a nice piece to go on Jamie’s salvaged chair.

I was looking on my computer trying to find a “before” picture of this chair (with no luck). It was one of those great finds that you are SO excited about…a chair abandoned by someone moving from an apartment and having no interest in a piece of furniture with SO much character! What is wrong with these people? It was a dull, scratched white with no seat or back, just sitting by the dumpster. Jamie looked at me in disbelief when I stopped my SUV, opened the back door and quickly threw our great salvaged piece in the back. She is in training, don’t you know?

Here it is painted and sanded with a bottom but still in need of a back and FABRIC!

Below are a couple of her favorites. She has darling vintage turquoise chairs in her living room, so this piece with the blue would be so cute.

But isn’t this a black and white fabric worthy of strong consideration? We got busy doing other things and she still hasn’t given me her final decision.

On to another project. I have a pair of wingbacks that are probably 22 years old. When they left my living room I just couldn’t part with them because I loved the legs. The structure is still solid but the fabric certainly needs changing. I have a new place where they the chairs can reside ~~ in the downstairs family room. It will be fun to have them reupholstered.

Here’s what I’m strongly considering. Doesn’t it tie in with the other patterns and elements in the room?

While I had my strong son in law home along with my strong husband, I had them move some other furniture around. I am now sitting at my new to me desk and am in the midst of flip flopping our downstairs furniture upstairs. Everything is a mess right now but hopefully I will have some finished results to share soon.

Lots of projects going on along with preparing silk plants for my spring show. Life is busy but life is good!

I hope you are feeling the same way.

Until next time……

No Longer Singing the Blues

2011-03-02T17:20:00.001-06:00

Let me just say it right off the bat

I am NOT a blue person. Not sure why because I was raised with blue. Everything my mother ever wants in clothes and home décor is blue! I always asked for everything to be red.

I am NOT a blue person and never have been ~~ Well, until NOW.

Ever since I picked up the blogging fever I have fallen in love with all the blue tablescapes that sprout up all over Blogland. I now LOVE blue dishes and have been on the lookout for some.

We who thrift know that sooner or later we will more than likely find some form of what we are searching for.

The back side picture turned out pretty good. You can see the pattern is called Yorktown by Salem China Co.

funny thing… I was raised in Yorktown, Virginia

I’m pretty sure it was the same day I found the dishes I found six blue glasses.

On Monday of this week I found two more that match!

This is the old wicker vase I pictured this week. Sorry I didn’t take time to do a proper centerpiece, but love these white flowers along with their deep green leaves.

Real looking? Wouldn’t you agree?

Is he not the sweetest little thing?

The price you ask?? (well no, your manners are too good) but I just have to tell you!

He was 89 cents!!

I am also loving this grape edged blue dishes. I found two large bowls and two small bowls. I really, really love these and will be looking for more. The back reads

Double Phoenix

Nikko Ironstone

This pitcher just had to come home with me. The bottom says it’s from Bombay Company. I miss that store.

Well there you have my case of the blues poured out from me to you.

Have any others taken a liking to blue too? Funny how we change our minds. Maybe, just maybe I have had a little too much red through all these years.

Join me, won’t you? I’m linking up with Susan and Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursday and Cindy at My Romantic Home. Also joining Linda at A la Carte.

I’m happy you stopped by. Please take a moment to say hello!

Donna

Ready to Begin Creating for My Spring Show

2011-03-01T15:19:00.001-06:00

Another shipment of mostly spring silk flowers arrived. It is definitely getting me motivated to start creating.

Pretty soon the flowers will begin moving fast and furious through my hands as I prepare for my Spring show at the end of this month.

Look at these sweet Spring berries, all pink and green.

This boxwood works well in so many arrangements. Often times I cut it apart.

Maggie tried very hard to stay interested in what was inside Box Number Three but she couldn’t resist snuggling up in the noisy paper. She was asleep inside here til I walked up with my camera to catch her in the act of Cuteness!

Oh Lookie Here

Pink Japanese Magnolia Branches

I do believe they look like something from the pages of Pottery Barn for sure.

Before I begin creating for my potential Spring customers there was another arrangement that needed my attention.

White footed container found at Goodwill. Love it!

I am on the decorating committee at our church….and of course own the title of the Altar Flowers person. There are some Sundays when no one signs up to donate fresh flowers. We were in need of a new faux arrangement to bring out for those flowerless Sundays.

Step by Step you are watching the act of a faux arrangement coming together.

Let’s get some more color going on.

I LOVE these beautiful deep orangey red roses. They are called a Confederate rose.

Let’s add another…

The song leaders aren’t happy if I get my arrangements too big. They say they can’t see. So I must limit the size. (They always try to ruin my fun!)

We are almost there…just a little filler flower and seed stem for texture…

Don’t mind the background mess. There is almost no place to take a picture without something around me in my crazy, fun workroom.

There you have it

I will live with it a couple of days, walking past it, studying it.

Looking to see if anything needs to be changed.

If any of you have a difficult time finding quality faux stems in your area, stay tuned. I am considering opening an Etsy Shop with stems, a few accessories and smaller arrangements. Input?

Thanks for stopping by 47th Street!

Donna

2011-02-26T22:10:00.001-06:00

Good Sunday Morning!

For months I have been wanting to join Chari over at

Happy to Design

for Sunday Favorites

I was a little intimidated by how to do this but finally decide certainly I could figure it out.
This post seem to be a perfect starting point for a Sunday morning.
Won't you join me over at Chari's to revisit great posts from the past?

A couple of incidents have happened recently that I thought were worthly of blogging about.

They truly are just little things ~~ things I wouldn't give a second thought had happened if it hadn't been for the results.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

No, I didn't receive an award or a call from someone in a high office, but the results of my small actions certainly made me feel good.

Today I am asking you to try something similar and see how much happiness the little things can bring.

During late winter a friend I don't know real well was to have surgery. She is in a book club I recently joined. While we are far from best friends, I really enjoy being around her. She's just a happy, fun person. Somehow I remembered her surgery had taken place about that time and a couple of weeks later I decided to sit down and send her a card. I didn't have an appropriate get well card, but I had some cute little note cards on hand and felt that would be just fine. I told her I was thinking of her and hoped she was recovering nicely and enjoying all the books she had planned to read during her time off work.
I saw this lady a couple of weeks ago and she came right up to me and starting gushing over this note I had sent her. You would think I had done something really spectacular!! She just kept putting her hand over her heart and smiling and saying what a nice person I was! I only wrote a note! She went on to tell me how pleased she was that I was in her life and on and on and on and on!! We had our book club meeting and before we parted ways that fun evening, she came over to me and once again pretty much repeated the opening part of this paragraph! I was simply amazed at her reaction to a little handwritten note.

***********************************************************************

Last night I was in a store at our local mall making a return for my daughter. I was second in line and within a few minutes I placed my bag on the counter and told the young girl I had a return to make. She was quite cheerful and professional. She went about the return procedure very effeciently. As I stood waiting I noticed her eyes. They were stunning, very dark brown eyes.

In recent years I have made a promise to myself to pass on a compliment rather than keeping it to myself. It is such a little thing that can make a person really feel good. Who doesn't love a compliment?

I said to her, "You have beautiful eyes!" Her reply was, "What did you say?" I repeated myself and I actually heard her take several little breaths. She blushed and strongly thanked me, the whole time smiling as big as she could. She said to me that no one had ever told her that before. As we finished up the return, she excitedly told me I had made her day. She was still smiling and truly taking in her breath! As I walked away from the counter, I heard her say to the clerk next to her, "She told me I have pretty eyes!" I almost got teary just thinking how something so little on my part was so big to her!

Try doing something simple for someone and see

how good it makes YOU feel!

Happy thoughts and words and deeds are contageous!

Oh Boy! Spring in a Box

2011-02-25T19:46:00.001-06:00

UPS paid a visit to my door today. Miss Magnolia was the first to investigate the contents. She could be in a very sound sleep but if something new enters the house she is on duty to check it out. Sound familiar cat lovers?

I am so pathetic. New ferns were waiting to be discovered inside the box. Being so excited I sat on the floor and fluffed open a couple of them so I could see how I liked them.

This one….

Or was it this one??

……..reminded me of some I saw in Pottery Barn

Is it just me or does this excite you too? Tomato Red tulips!

When I ordered this little forsythia pick I didn’t remember it had a little nest with an egg attached!! Oh! Extra fun!

Now I’m all excited and ready to go downstairs and work.

Here are some recent thrift store and TJMaxx container finds.

Don’t you love the old wicker vase?

Notice the little chippy footed urn in the middle??

Look closely ~~~

Doesn’t it look interestingly a lot like this little chippy, footed urn pictured below?? Um hum….it does. I do believe it’s the same urn.

The one in the first picture (above) in my workroom is from Goodwill.

The one shown below was a picture I took inside of Anthropology for a few $$$$’s more!

Score Donna!!

I just sold this rather contemporary arrangement through my designer friend yesterday. It’s going in front of a mirror.

Business has been a little slow since Christmas but I definitely see signs of it picking up.

I hope you have enjoyed your visit today. Be sure to leave a comment so I know you were here.

Are you like me and thinking of Spring? Who cares that it’s snowing again today!

I am linking up with

Bargain Hunting with Laurie

And also Linking up to Funky Junk’s Saturday Nite Special.