Lighting

I think nothing makes a home more cozy than lighting. Next to candles, floor lamps and hanging lights/chandeliers are my favorite. This wrought iron floor lamp(hiding behind the rocker) was my Great Grandmothers. Originally it was black, then I got a hold of it and painted it white...now I wish I had left it black.

I've been keeping an eye out for a vintage chandelier that needs some TLC, that I can completely re-do. These are amazing! I"m not sure which is my favorite, but I'd love to end up with some kind of pastel eclectic mix of each of these.

1. fine dining, 2. Fabric Painted Chandelier, 3. Hanging On, 4. Pink Chandelier, 5. 3-green-chandelier, 6. Blue Chandelier

I bought this about six years ago at The Land of Nod, I'm surprised to see that they're still selling it! It was originally hung in my daughters room when I was putting together her nursery.

You can't see this hanging lamp very well, but I love the way the glass beads reflect off the wall.

I found a tutorial on how to paint a Chandelier over at Karla's Cottage Blog. I'm sure it'll be helpful once I get my hands on a Chandelier~ Thanks Karla!

♥Pictures & Frames♥

For as long as I've been Flea Marketing/Thrifting a couple of things I tend to collect are vintage pictures and frames. At first it was mainly floral prints, then cottages(or any old style home)landscapes and portraits. I can't tell you how many pictures/paintings I have of people I don't know. Even though I've run out of room on my walls~ old habits are hard to break.

I picked up these little vintage frames at my last flea market trip. I knew they would be even more amazing painted.


Since I've been under the weather and haven't been able to shake whatever it is that I have(going on almost three weeks now)my crafting/projects have been limited. I managed to complete these frames for my Shop.My mind wants to get up and go....but my body doesn't! Nothings worse than not feeling like yourself or having the energy to do the things you need to do. My dishes and laundry aren't going to do themselves~ my kids will use a ladle and a tea cup for their cereal rather than wash a spoon & bowl!!
Ugh...I'm hoping tomorrow is a better day :)

Finally got the lights up, what do you think??

Ya right!
Actually, it's The Small World at Disneyland~ it's like Pastel Heaven. It's so beautiful at night. My daughters and I spent the day there yesterday, my picture taking is terrible....I wish I had some better shots.
I think it's the first time I've been back to Disneyland since they re-did It's a Small World. I love the new and improved Children of the World that come out from the clock~ Oh how I'd love to have a small version of one to hang on my wall.

The love of OLD...

These are all the things I love: tattered, shabby, worn, chipped, layered paint, peeling, weathered, tarnished, rusty, frayed, faded, distressed, pre-loved....the things most people would discard. These are the things that make my heart skip a beat...things that seem to make a home so much more comfy & homey~I think that's a word?? if not- you know what I mean :)

1. Gorgeous Green, 2. seats, 3. Shabby, 4. Plaster Beauty, 5. shabby pink dresser, 6. old blue truck , 7. Antique Frames (and a chair), 8. vintage composition doll, 9. Untitled, 10. Rose Table Frame, 11. IMG_0767, 12. Chevrolet Has Seen Better Days, 13. Motel Sign14. Not available15. Not available16. Not available

The Older the Better...

I've loved Old, chipping paint, tattered, worn, vintage anything from hats to Cabinets(Pull-Outs) for as long as I can remember. I think it has a lot to do with both of my Great-Grandmothers homes~ one was an old Spanish style home, and the other had a comfy Cottage feel to it. I loved everything about visiting their homes....there's nothing better than a Grandmother :)

These are just some spots in my house with some of my favorite Old pieces.
1)The Hutch I found years ago at an Antique Shop that was going out of business(so I got a really good deal)I was told that it had been pulled out of an old home in New Mexico.
2)I bought several pieces like this wooden awning(or some type of decoration pulled off the outside of an old home before being destroyed)I've used some as shelves or as decoration over a doorway.
3)I originally bought this door in hopes to use it in place of a bedroom door, but I've found that older doors(I mean really old) are hardly ever are compatible newer homes~ even homes that are 20-30 years old. So instead I've used it as a room divider, separating my living room and dining room.
4)I found this vintage green wicker hamper on my last trip back from my Grandparents house in Pismo Beach. There's a little Beach front strip of shops off Santa Claus Lane in the town of Carpenteria. I don't know if it's still there, I've wanted to take a trip back ever since~ the shop was over-stuffed with the best vintage finds, it had a very Rachel Ashwell, Shabby Chic feel to it. I guess it's a good thing the shop was too far for me to just run over to.

Work space and working on being organized

First of all let me just say Yes, I've been spending some time on Picnik again... I'm a fan of the boost effect, I love how it makes the colors so bright and vivid.
So, this is where I spend most of my time(above) and this(below) is where I try and camouflage my craft/work supplies. Since I don't have my own studio or office, I do most of my work in my dinning room(these pictures show about a 1/4 of the room). When I'm not in the middle of a project I try and keep everything hidden away so my dinning room can be functional~ thanks to my old pullout and China Cabinet/Hutch- which holds everything but china!



I need to get in there and organize all that fabric!

Fun with pictures~

I'm loving the photo editing sites that I've recently come across. The effects you can put on your photo's are amazing! These are just some random pictures I took of different areas of my house, then tried out different types of effects. They were all done on Picnik a super easy to use(and Free) photo editor.

Learned something new...

I just found this site Big Huge Labs, I created this(using my pictures)with their Mosaic Maker. LOVE it!!!