free FALL, part one

my question is . . . why do we even have to mess with summer? 
sure, it feels good . . . for about a week—I enjoy the flowers, the green grass and the pool.  after about a week, though, the flowers start to fade, the grass goes brown and the pool is no longer refreshing.
but, ahhhhhhh, autumn!
the temps have dipped—ever so slightly—I am in full-on free FALL! 
I’ve decided to adopt a new rule of social etiquette.  not only will I not wear white shoes after Labor Day (well, actually, ever), but I will wear my cowboy boots beginning the day after Labor Day.  here they are—they make me smile!

but, the reason you’ve tuned in, however, is the home décor, right?

below is a pic focused on our signature mixed-pattern silver plate flatware, a Farmhouse soy wax candle and a celery vase filled with acorns.



 my new favorite cookbook, The Romantic Prairie Cookbook, our iron rooster napkin rings, and a favorite cheese dome on on  a willow tray.


the beautiful new, ironstone pitchers with wheat and ivy patterns are difficult to distinguish from their vintage inspiration.


I have a particular penchant for brown transferware . . .


one of our uncomplicated, but favorite displays—the dried hydrangeas in our beautiful urn along with vintage books in our French wire baskets and our embellished globe.


ooh, that cheese dome!  and the owl pitcher (anything cuter?); in  the background a reproduction sugar mold.


here, the hint of the door I painted in homage to the Café de Flore in Paris.


apothecary jars, a mouse and moss.


we hope these subtle changes throughout the shop will help you make plans for transitioning your home into this wonderful season. (there are more to come . . . thus, the “part one”)
now to get to work transitioning my own home . . .
thanks for your indulgence!

a romantic notion to do some baking . . .

About two weeks ago a few new books arrived at Hodgepodge, the one I was looking forward to the most . . . The Romantic Prairie Cookbook.  I immediately dropped my copy into my basket, fully intending to read through it that night.

Well, the reality is I am still reading through it, but I really like what I see so far.  The premise of this collection of recipes is a reflection of the prairie way of life.  Author, Fifi O’Neill has compiled recipes from the kitchens of those who value environmental harmony, as well as their family heritage. 

I don’t have my own garden, nor am I as dedicated to organic gardening as I should be, but this book—it’s delightful content of recipes, stories and photos—is sure to motivate me to do better. 

Often I wait for a special occasion to try new recipes.  Yesterday, I decided a Labor Day was enough of an occasion and I wanted to make something from The Romantic Prairie Cookbook.  I then commenced to cajoling my eldest daughter into spending time with me on my day off.  She agreed and came over to help me in the kitchen.

The recipe we chose was blueberry Sour Cream Coffee Cake.  It was very easy to make—the instructions were clear, the ingredients uncomplicated and readily available.  We decided to make half-a-dozen of the mini bundt cakes and we poured the remainder into a loaf pan.

When all was said and done, we learned that is is easy to overfill those mini bundt cakes and fresh blueberries make a better presentation than frozen, but the cakes were tasty and I will make them again.

There are more than 100 recipes packed into this beautiful book and I look forward to preparing many of the recipes I’ve already marked to try.  I will try to remember to let you know about my favorites.

One thing is for certain, this book will always have a place in my cookbook collection, just as Romantic Prairie Style has become one of my go-to books for home décor inspiration.

thanks for your indulgence,

you never know what you will find

when you’re out surfing . . . the internet, of course!

something compelled me to check-in with my neglected list of favorite blogs tonight (probably the fact that I don’t have the stomach for anything on tv, nor do I want to do laundry). 

first one I checked was a blog about a lovely tablesetting—probably prepping for tablescape thursday and, while I marvel at her advanced planning and preparations, I can’t help but be a little jealous that people can get stuff done so far in advance!

the next one is a blog written by a young lady who has gone through some changes—in her life, but also in blog name!  each time I check-in with her she has changed the name of her blog.  of course, it remains the same as it ever was on my blog list, but the link now take me to a blog-with-a-new-name. 

then, third time is a charm—I came across kimberly jones’ blog called serendipity vintage studio.  she immediately captured my attention with her blog title:

{Inspiration Board} Aquamarine + Kraft + Red

of course I’d want to read more about that!  and I did, and as I’m looking at the pics, I’m thinking, hey, that looks like kimberly santiago’s stuff!  reading a little further, I came to find out that indeed the photos were of the creative corner at hodgepodge!

(the photos, by the way are excellent!)

I hope her inspiration board helps move her to another one of her beautiful projects, but I think the inspiration board is a work of art itself!

thanks for your indulgence,

A Restful Repose

About three months ago, I purchased this nice, but less than perfect oak bed.  Pieces like this are ideal candidates for my paint brush.  I love painted furniture, but I do not paint pieces I feel have value in their original, untouched state.  You see, I have a fear of one watching the PBS show, Antiques Road Show, when the experts are studying a lovely piece of painted furniture and commenting, “If only it hadn’t been painted, this piece would bring $5,000 at auction, but in it’s current painted state, we have to value it at $200.” 

Consequently, I only want to paint pieces which, otherwise, might be over looked.  This bed, for instance, had made it all the way through the Nashville flea market and was still there on Sunday.  The veneer on the headboard was slightly warped and the footboard had been repaired where it connects to one of the rails, but otherwise it was sturdy and had lots of potential.

 

 

(Will I ever remember to take the “before” pictures in a timely manner?)

When I snagged this piece, I knew right away that I wanted to give it a Country French/French Country makeover, so I would be painting it with Old White and Paris Grey Chalk Paint™ . . . or maybe with French Linen and Louis Blue . . . or maybe . . .

Needless to say, the bed waited and waited for me to decide how to paint it.

It moved from the work area to the storage area.Then, during one of my Chalk Paint™ workshops, I had an epiphany!

Back story:  Travis (my workshop assistant extraordinaire) and I are constantly amazed by the way all of the colors of Chalk Paint™ work together. During our workshops we pull-out all 30 colors and use them in various combinations.  In this process, we have yet to place one color next to another and say, “Ooh, yuck!” Usually, it’s more like, “That is amazing—look at how nice that looks together!” (Then we set about looking for a piece to paint in that newly discovered paint combination!)

Okay, so you’ve peaked already and know that I didn’t use Paris Grey or Louis Blue.  No—my epiphany involved Old Violet, so that is what I chose for my base coat.  I then intended to add Paris Grey and Old White.  I knew I would distress it and, more than likely, I’d finish it with dark wax.

 

So there it is, ready for the next step . . .

Here’s where I changed my mind again!

I decided I wanted the overall look to be muted and thought the Paris Grey would be a little crisp looking.  I finally settled on painting the inset panels with French Linen, then topped with Country Grey.  I used a wet cloth to spread and blend the two colors.

I then added a stenciled motif in the center of the headboard using the French Linen again.  I applied it very lightly—wanting it to be very subtle.

 

I then applied the clear wax to the entire piece and commenced to sanding!

 

After reapplying the clear wax, I applied a light coating of dark wax and called it done.

Here’s what it looks like now:

If you take a close look at the footboard, you can see I did a lot of sanding on the inside—where I figured it would naturally have a lot of wear.

The same is true of the headboard—years of propping-up in bed to read, would cause the finish to wear-away. 

And one more photo of this beauty. 

I am very pleased with the results and once again amazed by the way all of these colors work so well together.  In fact, if you’ve used Chalk Paint™ decorative paints, I’d love to hear about your favorite color combinations.

I will be linking to  Vintage Inspired Fridays, I hope you visit and take some time to check-out some of the other links there.

Thanks for your indulgence,

A Pinterest Inspired Project

While I have been  decorating, embellishing these emergency candles for several years, I was looking for a new idea for a fall display I am working on.  I knew I wanted to wrap them in burlap, but for further embellishment, I was floundering.  I thought of tying-on a stem of wheat.  I thought of shipping tags with stamped images, but neither of these ideas moved me to action. 

That’s when I remembered the burlap flowers I saw on Pinterest.


I remember noticing this pin because I had been planning to try to make burlap flowers for a pair of flip-flops I purchased earlier this summer.
I pulled-up the instructions (the best feature of Pinterest is the fact that you can trace almost every pin to its origin) and set about making my own.  Here  is how:
1)  First I set a straight line for cutting by pulling a single strand through the length of the burlap.


2)  This is what it looks like (cut along the wide gap):


3)  Cut the strips into 13 – 15” lengths.  Fold over one end, approximately 1/4”.  Apply hot glue and seal the fold.

4)  On the other end of the burlap strip, lift two threads of the fabric:

5)  grab those two threads and start pulling them away from the fabric, this will gather the fabric:


6)  Pull the gathers as tight as possible without breaking:

7) Once pulled tight, bring end-to-end and glue:

8)  Once the glue is set, pinch one side of the gathered fabric.  The flat side will be the part you attach to the surface of the candle:

9)  I tied a thin velvet ribbon around the candle—forming a square knot:



10)  I then ran both ends of the ribbon through the center of the rosette:

11)  I then added a vintage key (hard to see, I know, but take my word for it—you will see it in the next picture), slipping it onto one strand of the ribbon and tying a square knot to secure it:

12)  and viola!  the finished project/product:

I love all of the extra strings hanging and pulling away from the flower, it adds the rustic, nonchalance I was looking for with this project.

Have you actually followed-through on a project you saw on Pinterest?  I'd love to hear about it.

I'm hoping to link to Tuesdays Cowgirl Up! Creative Link Party, but if the link doesn't work, please go visit the following blogs:

The Farmhouse Porch

Cedar Hill Ranch

The Ivy Cottage

Crafty Texas Girls

thanks for your indulgence,

Teach the World to Sing

The other day, a friend/customer (same thing, right?) told me she was looking for a globe. The next day, I happened into Miss Lucille’s Marketplace and found one. I wasn’t completely sure what type of globe she wanted, but this was a great deal I found in one of the booths of a wonderful Chalk Paint™ fan, so I thought, if she doesn’t want it, I am sure I can do something with it! So , it came back to the shop with me (along with a large silver plate pitcher, which actually went to my house . . .).
As it turns out, my friends was looking for something that had an “old world” look to it—which I naturally understand. So I had a globe to use for a project!
My first thought was to “age” it with some stain, then I thought about the ideas Patty had recently shared with me. My little hamster started spinning on his wheel and, a few minutes later, I had an actual creative thought!
That’s when I grabbed the Mod Podge®, a vintage book of music and a paint brush.

(The lighting on my work bench makes my photos look like I am working on a science fair project . . . “the rotation of the earth in relation to the sun”)



By far, one of the easiest project EVER! I still may add the words, “Teach the World to Sing” and paint the base, but I’ve already taken too long to follow-up on the project teaser I posted on Facebook the other day.
Funny thing is, though, I just saw a Pinterest post about adding glitter to Mod Podge®, which would have been a great “layer” for this project, eh? Going to have to find something else to Glitter Podge soon!
Do you have a favorite Mod Podge^® project?
I’m going to link to Vintage Inspiration Friday, because I love it!

Be sure to visit—you will love it, too!
Thanks for your indulgence,