chalkboard project—a quickie!

well, if I’m getting a project done these days, it’s going to have to be “a quickie!”  and, if truth be told, this project took me entirely too long, but life keeps getting in the way of my need to create.  oh well, a busy life is a good life (it means we are all healthy and active).

back to the project at hand . . .

I know I’ve mentioned my love for silverware—especially trays.  Sometimes, however, the finish too far gone to salvage.  I had this tray hanging in the dining room, but decided it was the ideal candidate for some chalkboard paint!  (I know, I’m getting a little carried away with this paint—note my only other project in recent memory—but it’s so cool!)

I’m not going to bore you with the step-by-step of this project, as that would be insulting to your intelligence!  Suffice to say, a caveman could do it!

Here’s a tight shot of the tray in question, pre-paint:

And here’s a shot of the tray as it looks now—back in it’s position on the wall of our dining room:

I asked my son for a quote to put on the tray, he gave me this:

To myself, I said, “How apropos to my life right now!”

When I asked him who said it, he slapped his head and said, “Oh, what’s his name?!?  It’s  . . . it’s that guy, the ‘father of transcendentalism’ . . . you know . . . what’s his name?”

All I could think was, “I wish I had paid better attention in school!”  My kids challenge me like this all of the time!  How come they’re so dang smart?!?

Thanks for your indulgence!

bright new additions

New additions to Hodgepodge . . .

We’re pretty committed to cheese around the King household.  You can count on finding a cheese platter at almost any family gathering.  One of our favorites—BRIE!!!  When I found this brie baker and the new brie toppings offered by our vendor Gourmet du Village I was all over it!

A few new serving pieces in  great colors!

 

These green pillar holders are great for a table setting or mantle.  The color will be great to carry your home décor into spring, but will see you through the other seasons, as well.

This wonderful garden green pitcher would be made even better filled with sangria!

A perfect bowl for a fresh salad.

A versatile wine cooler which would serve equally as well as a vase, don’t you think?

 

Thanks for taking a gander—I’ll post a few of the items to the boutique tomorrow.

Until then, thanks for your indulgence!

In Defense of Pollyanna

Last week, via a facebook post, I read a blog entitled Defending Pollyanna by Paige Hill.  Paige (aside from being blessed with a fabulous moniker) is the very talented internet marketing manager for Where Women Create and The Creative Connection.  (She is obviously very good at her job, because she’s got me  and about a billion other women following her every utterance on facebook, as well as her blog.)

Anyhoo, she put out a call-to-arms in defense of Pollyanna, so I grabbed my rose colored glasses and jumped right in!  (okay—so my jumping took a week, but I’m here!)

(Image Source Page: http://www.doctormacro.com/Movie%20Star%20Pages/Mills,%20Hayley-Annex.htm)

I don’t recall if I’ve been called “Pollyanna” any more recently than my arrival here in Clarksville, but the nom de guerre has been thrown at me on numerous occasions and I don’t think it was always intended as flattery!

(Image Source Page: http://filmfanatic.org/reviews/?p=5146)

But here’s the deal—I’d rather my epitaph read “she believed and she tried” rather than “she thought about it, but figured it probably wouldn’t work.”

(from ancestry24.com)

I admit I have my days when everything appears dreary and insurmountable, but guess what—a new day dawns and things look better.  Believing in the power of your dreams isn’t just good advice—it should be your way of life.

There will always be people telling you you can’t do something or that things will never change.

(Image Source Page: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=25809184)

If I had listened to the naysayers, I wouldn’t be living in my dream house, I wouldn’t be the owner of the best home decorating store in Clarksville, TN, (I wouldn’t be so humble), I wouldn’t be married to my wonderful husband and I wouldn’t have three amazingly bright and talented children, because everywhere along the way I’ve been told it couldn’t be done  . . . the odds are not in my favor . . . or there’s no happily ever after anymore.

Guess what? 

She believed and she tried!

Thanks for your indulgence~

Vintage Inspiration and a disclaimer

Alrighty, I love using the Windows Live Writer software to construct my blogs.  It’s much easier to manipulate than blogger and has more features, but—for the second time—after a full day of working on my blog, as time and customers allowed, I went to upload to blogger and

***POOF***

it’s gone!

So, now I’m wondering if I type out the whole thing again or just post some pictures and link to Vintage Inspiration Friday, as is my final intent.

Oh, what the heck—I’ll paraphrase.

I started yesterday’s now-lost-post with a disclaimer:

Warning:  this blog is written by a shop owner

I just want to make it clear that I own a shop (two, actually) and, as a consequence, I sell stuff.  Yet, I feel compelled to explain:   just because I often include items which are part of my inventory here at the shop in my blogs, does not mean I’m trying to hawk my wares with every post.  It just means I have a thought or an idea or just something pretty to share.  Also, there are many blog parties out there and I want to play, too. 

I am here at my shop more of my waking hours than at my home.  I have filled it with items I love and, frankly, I spend more time decorating and cleaning my shop than I do my home.  (I’m afraid to know how quickly my family would agree to that last sentence!)  I put  a lot of myself  into Hodgepodge, I want to share.

I feel compelled to mention this because I just started my Hodgepodge Blog Boutique.  Occasionally, I’ll provide a link to items for sale, but you won’t find any “buy now” buttons on this blog.  I sometimes feel guilty for sharing items I have for sale.  Therefore, please don’t read this like a sales pitch.  Just enjoy the stories and the pictures and, if you like what you see, leave a comment. 

Now that I have that out-of-the-way, let me share a few things I love and feel are Vintage Inspired, then hop on over to Common Ground to see other awesome bloggers and their vintage inspirations!

Some vintage inspired furniture for your consideration:

This cabinet is a wonderful mix of vintage and new materials.  They’re made by a friend who lives here in TN.  He uses salvaged windows for the doors, so they’re great for displaying everything from china to bath towels!  I’d love to have one for my cookbook collection, but alas, I would have to add an addition to my kitchen!  The black interior of this cabinet makes it ideal for display white ware, but that green really pops, too!

This is a cabinet top from a vintage kitchen cupboard.  It’s one of those things that Patty and I thought wouldn’t be in the shop very long—mainly because WE love it.  Yet, here it sits, which makes me happy, because I love using it for display.  It' has the original hardware and glass in the doors.  The black trim and cream paint are worn in all of the appropriate places!

Look at the wear on this door . . . I wonder how many times someone’s mother reached for the door to retrieve the flour or sugar?

Now we’ve all seen those end tables constructed from the old sewing machine base—usually topped with a piece of plywood or marble.  (I have a marble topped one as my nightstand.)  This one is special because it’s married with an enamel table top!  It’s a nice large surface—great for a small dining table or even better as a desk or craft table!

And then there’s my favorite of favorites . . . our screen door cupboard.  The sides are made from a paneled wood door—cut in half.  The back and shelves are constructed from salvaged boards.  Then there is a screen door.  I think it would make an ideal pantry for a kitchen lacking storage, but for now it can stay right here at Hodgepodge, because I love it.

Well, there you have it.  A few vintage things that inspire me every time I walk through the door of Hodgepodge—my home away from home!

Don’t forget to pop over to Common Ground for more inspiration!

Thanks for your indulgence!

 

Jane’s House

The following is an excerpt from my article for our local paper, The Leaf Chronicle.   In the article promised I’d post pictures of Jane’s house on my blog, but I wanted to get this posted before I leave for church (several of my fellow parishioners are kind enough to read my article).  I’ll be visiting Jane’s house this afternoon and will add the pictures then.

I have a friend whom I think has an enormous amount of talent in many arenas.  Many of you know her as the owner and chief in the kitchen of Lovin’ Spoonful Café on University.  As near as I can tell, she knows most of the population here in Clarksville—natives, anyway!  What I wanted to share here, however, is her incredible talent as a decorator.  I wandered through her house the other night (yes, she was there) and marveled at her unique style and her ability to pull together a collection of livable items she and her husband enjoy and find completely comfortable.

They live in a wonderful 1940’s Cape Cod bungalow, yet she has decorated it with her flair and love for all things from the 1960s and kitschy.  She told me the other night, not realizing at the time that I would be making her the subject of this article, “I’ve gotten rid of the things I don’t love and replaced them with things I do.”  And it shows throughout their lovely home.
She has decorated one of her guest bedrooms with a wonderful 1960’s bed with the attached bookcase and nightstands.  She has a pair of swag pendant lights hanging over each nightstand.

She just recently purchased a wonderful green sofa that looks as though she grabbed it from the Dick Van Dyke show!  The facing chairs are newer construction, but have the retro lines which make them work with her sofa. There are elements of bamboo in almost every room, my favorite being the bar she purchased at Traditions a few years ago.

If you’ve been to the Café, you’ve experienced her affinity for paint-by-numbers.  There are hints of the collection throughout the house, but she displays the majority of them at the restaurant.  A collection of items like these misfits of the art world are wonderful expression of appreciation for the time people take to create.    Jane has a definite appreciation for creativity.
She has made nearly every curtain hanging in the house.  Her passion for fabric is off the charts!

Not even her love of wallpaper—and she l-o-v-e-s wallpaper—is stronger than her need to incorporate the right fabrics into her design mix.

She has a delightful array of bark cloth beauties throughout the house—curtains, shower curtains and chair cushions have been fashioned from vintage or reproductions fabrics she is able to sniff-out at flea markets, antique and fabric stores.  The graphic impacts of these fabrics bring her pleasure and complete the story of Jane’s House.
That’s what I’m talking about.  Being true to yourself—defining your own style.  I’ll repost part of this article, along with pictures of Jane’s house, on my blog, so please visit and leave your comments!  I’d love to hear about how you’ve defined your own style. 

Thanks for your indulgence.

a valentine bistro

tablescape thursday.

it’s a little early, but not for retail. i’ve already set the valentine table for the shop. it’s subtly suggestive of valentine’s day—not overtly.

a table for two.

set with the plates from comptoir de famille—a charger from the mary carol collection.

a petite fondue set in the center for dessert.

plates at the ready for the fondue and coffee.

another angle on the table . . .

the tablecloth is actually a throw.

the linen blend napkins are a generous 20x20 in size.

note the cute tomato salt and pepper.

love this la brasserie flatware.

so there you have my bistro table set for two.

i've set-up a new site where you can buy many of the items I feature on my blog. if you're interested click here.

thanks for your indulgence.

home again, home again

jiggidy, jig!

we’re back from the market and what a time we had!   as usual, we stayed with my cousin and had a wonderful time catching-up with her.

the highlight of this market trip, however, was spending some quality alone time with my husband.  since his return from iraq in nov, 2009, we’ve only had one night {alone} together.  we had some great meals, spent long hours together and visited with dear friends and family.  he was so supportive and helpful throughout the regular ordeal of the market, i  wouldn’t trade his company for anything else!  plus, he actually spotted a few items we made add to our inventory in the coming year. 

now, for the purpose of the weekend . . . shopping!

it took a while for me to get in the shopping groove—too much fun thursday night, meant a slow start on friday.  guess what?  the market and all of the vendors were still there and we were able to accomplish all four floors of the temporary vendors in bldg 3.  here are a couple things I found:

baby gifts:

crocheted wire jewelry:

saints:

 

velvet pumpkins:

I found a few potential vendors for handbags, but I’m not sure I should move back into that market.  this is a cute little carry-all (slightly larger than a wallet—hold cards, phone, change and more)your thoughts?

 

 

I only wrote a few orders.  I’ve already ordered Christmas décor for 2011.  You’re not going to believe the beautiful new collection from Midwest—Seasons of Canon Falls!

Unless you’ve been to one of these markets, you can’t imagine how overwhelming this event can be.  The pictures about show just one of the thousands of vignettes which assault the senses while at market.  The folks are the best of the best when it comes to design and display.  It takes days to come down.

So rather than write a bunch of impulse orders--I decided I want to reflect on all I saw.

In addition to the gift and personal items, I found some bed linens, accent furniture, throw pillows and large furnishings (sofas, dining chairs and more).

What are your thoughts?  What are you looking for?  Especially if you are in Clarksville—I’d like to hear from you.  What do you wish you could find at Hodgepodge?

It would be helpful . . .

Thanks for your indulgence!