~ Winter Willow Primitives ~ Under The Willow ~

~ Looking For Winter ~

2012-01-28T16:03:00.013-05:00

Good Saturday afternoon all!...can you see the bottom edge of this towel I have hanging on a cupboard door?...it says, "Looking for Winter", and that about sums up this season so far for these here parts! Winter is my favorite season, I love winter with a passion!...love snow too!...and so far we have had neither! With Winter being my favorite season and all, I save most of my snowmen to decorate with after Christmas. I went around the house today and snapped a few pics to share. The adorable snowman you see hanging was made by Tammy of Rock River Stitches:Pinkeep made by me from a pattern by The Stitcherhood:
An olde crock with a sprig of pine sits with a big olde wooden bowl filled with yummy pinkeeps...some made by me and some by others:
Another wintry display...the snowman head made by Barbara of Turkey Hollow Folk Art is a favorite!
With Valentine's Day coming up, I've started to mix in a few hearts here and there...this is a lovely Mercantile Pantry Heart that I sell in my shoppe along with a Hog Scraper Candlestick placed on an olde checkerboard atop the Seven Snowballs table square also sold in my shoppe:
This is what my foyer table looks like at the moment:
Atop the folk art cabinet that hubs made:
Sweet Eliza K. Wilson made by Norma Schneeman and the kitty on her lap was made by Betty of Squarenails:
Antique lighting along with a reproduction candlestick:
This might be my favorite hooked mat made by Stephanie of Old Colony Primitives...it is sitting on my coffee table and I place whichever jar candle I'm burning right on its tummy:
Speaking of the coffee table, here is my bowl that I decorate for the seasons...the adorable snowgal was made by Jenn of Rabbit Hill Primitives, the wee snowmen were made by Barbara of Turkey Hollow Folk Art, the largest pinkeep/pillow was stitched by Pam of Primitive Basketcase, and the other two pinkeeps were stitched by yours truly from a Country Rustic Primitives pattern...the Large Rustic Chopping Bowl is an item offered in my shoppe:
Fireplace mantel with my new tin sconces...I offer the candlelight version of them in my shoppe...the wooden bottles were made by Don and Pat of Olde Bittersweet Farm:
Make-do chair, candlestand, and candlestick also made by Don and Pat...the hanging hearts were made by Barbara of Turkey Hollow, the hanging flax comb by Art of Old Colony Primitives, the wee angel doll was made by Jackie of T.F.C. Folk Art, and darned if I can't recall who made my kitty pillow!...I've had it for several years:
This display is on the little dough box table that hubs made last year...the iron pedestal bowl is an item offered in my shoppe as well as the Sweet Surrender placemat:
Last but not least, beautiful wax fruit made by Misi of 1890 Gable House:
Speaking of fruit, I would like to begin a small collection of olde stone fruit but don't know the first thing about it...for those of you who are familiar with it, if you would kindly pass along tips like what to look for and whatnot, I would be greatly appreciative!...I'm planning on searching for it on ebay and etsy for starters.

That's all for now...thank you so much for visiting with me!

~ Happy New Year!! ~ and my kitchen tour ~

2012-01-01T13:10:00.017-05:00

Happy New Year!!...first I would like to say, "THANK YOU", to all of my friends and customers, some of who are the same!...I feel so fortunate to have met so many sweet and friendly folks through my little online store...thank you for your continued support, patronage, and friendship...may 2012 bring us all good health and happiness!!

I hope everyone enjoyed their holidays and are ready to begin anew. Today I have finally finished up taking pictures of my newly redecorated kitchen. Nothing major done like floors, cabinets, or countertops, just the decor. Of course I will have to show you a couple of "before" pics so you can see what I've been up to...before I had plates on the walls with an overall fruit theme going on...here it is BEFORE:
...now here it is AFTER:...nifty fowl rack made by Art of Old Colony Primitives ...willow checkerboard by Kath of Weeping Cedar Hollow Primitives
...I am probably one of the only people in prim decorating land who does not have a stove board but I am much too paranoid to cover the burners with something for fear of starting a fire...plus I'm too lazy to find a place for the thing every time the stove needs to be used! LOL
...here's a closer look at what's up above the cabinetry...a few of my very favorite things:
...I even got hubs to install a new faucet for me!...and here's a closer looks at my new appliance cupboards made by Kelly of Small Town Primitives ...here's another BEFORE:
...and the same view AFTER:
...this is my long counter where I make sammiches, LOL
...a closer look at up top:
...I even changed everything that was inside the glass front cabinet:
...changed all the light switch plates from white plastic to black metal...tried to hide most of them with decor but there are a few that just cannot be covered because we use them too frequently:
...another view of the kitchen:
...many of the signs and gameboards where made by Pam of Goldieloo Woodworks:
...here's a closer look at the cupboard I have above the microwave:
...I got this cute barrel off ebay...it sits next to the pantry door:...and that's it for my kitchen pics, what do you think?...does it look more prim now?

A few days ago I put away everything Christmas and am trying REALLY hard to decorate very simply for winter...it is difficult for me since winter is my very most favorite season!! LOL...so here's my start, it's the primitive pie safe, the snowman make-do is new and was made by Tammy of Rock River Stitches:
...alrighty then, I think that is going to do it for this post...have a great week everyone and most of all have a fantastic new year!!

Happy Christmas Eve Eve! (and a few more pics!)

2011-12-23T07:48:00.005-05:00

Well the big day is almost here!...I'm always sad to see this most festive season end...I think the thing I love most is the music...and Christmas music just isn't the same even the day after, why is that? LOL...Christmas in my house is very different from most...basically, I am the only one in my very small family who celebrates...hubs and I do not exchange gifts, I gave up on getting him to do it several years ago...I have always gotten our boys things for Christmas but I'm afraid they seem to be following in their dad's footsteps...I haven't even been able to get them to watch the movie "A Christmas Carol" with me anymore...we always used to do that every Christmas Eve when they were little...I have always baked pumpkin bread on Christmas Eve so that we can enjoy it on Christmas morning but it is pretty much just another day in our house...when the boys were little it was so much fun watching them open their gifts...but now the things they want don't really fit under the tree like car parts and such, LOL...so even though there are no gifts to be opened and no festivities to speak of, I still enjoy the holiday season very very much!...of course the decorating is so much fun and this year I can't seem to stop! LOL...I have been wanting an Arnett's Santa for quite some time and this year I was fortunate enough to acquire two!...one I put by my Pottery Barn tree with the brown paper packages tied up with string :)
...these Santas are so nice, I can see why everyone loves them so much!...this one I put in my antique dry sink along with some jars I purchased from Kelly at Small Town Primitives, and a decorated crock, cutting board, and tin from Elaine at Cats Paw Primitives on ebay:...and my new tin sconces have arrived!...hubs installed them for me:
...what do you think of them?...I'm offering the candlelight version of them on my website
...I also wanted to show you a little pinkeep/cupboard pillow I just finished up for myself...made from a pattern by Wendy at Pineberry Lane...I stitched it onto a piece of army blanket:
...also, last time I posted pictures, I forgot to show you this that I made earlier this year...I started it before last Christmas but did not have time to finish it until after the first of this year...it's from a Thy Needle and Thread pattern:
...and I'm saving the best for last!...just look at this fabulous painting, I think this might be the most special gift I've ever received!...it's a Colonial gentleman painted by my sweet friend Pat of Olde Bittersweet Farm...she painted it just for me and it was such a surprise to receive this treasure in the mail!...thank you again my friend!...I shall treasure this for the rest of my days!!
...ok that is going to do it this time around...next post will be my kitchen pics for real this time! LOL...Merry Christmas to all!!

~ Christmas Decorating ~ part 2

2011-12-08T23:54:00.010-05:00

Well this has been a fairly rough week...a few days ago our oldest son's apartment was broken into...they smashed through a window to get in and they took his Playstation, all of his controllers, all of his games, even rented ones that I'm sure he's going to be liable for...along with a watch, and other small belongings...they dumped his dirty clothes onto the floor to put everything in the laundry bag he uses to transport his clothes to be laundered in then left through the door which they left open...then a couple of nights ago while driving to get a pizza, youngest son was hit from behind and his car sustained quite a bit of damage...thankfully he was not hurt!...so we have had a good strong dose of reality these last few days and it bites!

Onto more pleasant thoughts...I am calling my Christmas decorating done for this year and wanted to share with you a few more pictures...

this doll was made by Betty of Squarenails, I have had her for a few years now and bring her out this time of year:the ditty bags hanging on the cupboard door were made by Marilyn of Thistlebrooms Primitives:got a new ceiling fan for the living/family room...the finish is called Aged Iron and even though ceiling fans are not prim, at least the finish on this one fits in better LOL:I was really hoping that my new tin sconces would be here by now...this is what they will look like only electrified:they will replace these sconces and this is my mantle dressed for Christmas:
make-do chair area all decorated...the chair was made by Pat of Olde Bittersweet Farm...the little tree and the wool garland are from my shoppe...the stocking is from Carol and Karen of The Bean House Store and there are a couple Jackie Schmidt dolls hanging on the rack:breakfast nook is looking festive with the Seven Snowballs table square reversed to its red side for Christmas:this is on one of the end tables...just about everything is from my shoppe:other end table...in the bowl are the wax jingle bells that I sell:now look at my special Christmas snowman...isn't he lovely?...he was handmade and gifted to me by my dear friend Karen of Olde Cottage Primitives:I also wanted to share with you a purchase I recently made...it's this sweet little holly hooked mat made by Stephanie of Old Colony Primitives:
...I like to have something to set my jar candles on to make sure the heat doesn't damage the table and have begun a collection of little hooked rug mats!...I purchased another one a month or so ago from Stephanie that has a kitty on it which I'm saving for after Christmas decorating...I'll show you that one at another time, it's sooo cute!...when I received my hooked mat from Stephanie, she included this precious Christmas pinkeep with a heart on it as a gift!...I was so tickled!...I've placed it in the bowl with the pinkeep I made:and speaking of Old Colony Primitives, I wanted to show you this totally awesome fowl rack that Art made:...I have wanted an antique one for quite some time and was waiting for the right one to come along but when I saw this one I had to have it!...it looks so old don't you think?...he even used old iron hooks!...I've always loved the way Linda (Behind My Red Door) has a candle rod hung slanted on her's so now I have done the same thing...this fowl rack is in a wall grouping in my newly redecorated kitchen:...the lovely checkerboard was made, a year or so ago, by Kath of The Olde Weeping Cedar...so there now you have a sneek peek of the kitchen! LOL...my next blog post will have the kitchen pics :)

That's going to do it for this time...enjoy the weekend and have fun shopping!

~ Christmas Decorating ~ part 1

2011-12-01T17:34:00.014-05:00

Happy December 1st!...it's really here!...I am not done yet with my Christmas decorating but wanted to share with you what I've accomplished thus far...

...olde ladderback that sits next to the entertainment center...I stitched the wee pinkeep with elements from a Stacy Nash pattern and the Primitive Bell Ornies are sold in my shoppe...I sell them in the ornaments category but they look cute in a bowl with greenery too!
About a month and a half ago or so I got a "new" table for the entryway, it replaces the little chippy white table that I had here for a very long time......here it is dressed for Christmas:
my primitive olde pie safe:
a closer look...the lovely chalkware santa was made by Maureen of Buckbrush Farm:...standing in the foyer you will also be looking into the dining room...I have decorated my foyer table with a few festive bits:
...and here is what I've placed on the dining room table...the Mock Mice Teeth II table runner is sold in my shoppe...I love the festive color!...the candlesticks were made by Don & Pat of Olde Bittersweet Farm:
...another pinkeep that I stitched from a Stacy Nash pattern:
...another olde ladderback...this one sits on the fireplace hearth, it is the chair that I usually have filled with dolls!
...here is the little dough box table that hubs made a few months back...a Sweet Surrender placemat in Brick/Black is just the right textile for this little space...other color choices are available as well...the gingers and candy canes were made by Barbara of Turkey Hollow:
...on the cabinet that hubs made a couple of years ago, I've got a couple things the same as last year and a couple things different:
...the light that hangs above is new, made by a tinsmith here in Virginia:...the candlestick is one made by Don & Pat of Olde Bittersweet Farm:
...the primitive reindeer was made by Maureen of Buckbrush Farm:
...my coffee table bowl looks very much like last year filled with all sorts of goodies made by all sorts of fabulous artists!
...the olde wash stand:...brown paper packages tied up with string are just a few of my favorite things!
...the sign above the blanket crane reads, "Have a Holly Jolly Christmas It's the best time of the year!"...I think that must by my all time favorite Christmas song:...I only change out this area of the black stepback and I've placed a 24 inch Primitive Pine Tree in a favorite olde basket and filled an olde wooden bowl with Williamsburg Christmas early style potpourri that is sold in my shoppe:...a closer look at the shelf above...I got these chalkware santas last year, they were also made by Maureen of Buckbrush Farm and the sweet little Merry Christmas dish is a piece of American made Redware available in my shoppe:Ok that's going to do it for Christmas Decorating part 1...I hope you enjoyed my pics...I thoroughly enjoy looking at all of yours!!

Until next time...

~ a quickie ~

2011-11-26T10:02:00.005-05:00

Just a real quick post today...I'm still not quite ready to call my kitchen redecorating done so those pics are still yet to come...but last year when I posted my Christmas decorating pics, many folks inquired about the tree you see in the header picture of my blog so I wanted those folks to know that I have stocked that tree in my shoppe!...it is the 24 inch Primitive Pine Tree...it's so cute and looks wonderful plopped into an olde bucket or crock or simply left on its own...I also carry some sweet Treenware pieces, all MADE IN THE USA, that this tree fits perfectly in too!
It's Small Business Saturday but we should all patronize the small businesses before the big box stores EVERYDAY!!!...and buy AMERICAN MADE at any given chance!!...have fun shopping!

~ An Autumn Saturday Afternoon ~

2011-11-05T16:17:00.004-04:00

Wow it's been over a month since my last blog post!...time sure does fly!!...how's this fine Autumn Saturday afternoon treating you?...ever since we returned from our weekend in New England, I've been inspired to try and add more primitive touches to our home. I really wanted to paint all the woodwork a dark color but have come to the conclusion that it's just not possible in this house because all of the windows are white vinyl and that would just look weird I'm thinking soooo...I will work on changing the things that I can! First project was the lighting in the family room...I have ordered some sconces that I'm waiting on to arrive and when hubs has them installed I will post pictures! Then I've moved to the kitchen...boy it is really hard to prim that place up with the white appliances, formica countertops, and vinyl floor, but I'm trying! I ordered a bunch of signs and gameboards and appliance cupboards for the coffee maker and toaster...as soon as those arrive I should have quite a few pics to share!! For now though you will have to settle for some foliage pics that I took a couple of weeks ago. I went on a drive up to the Blue Ridge Parkway all by myself and it was actually kinda nice! LOL...hubs was going to go with me but a job popped up that he had to go do. Pictures do not do this place justice I tell ya:

This is at one of the many overlooks:

It's such a nice road to travel:

The colors are really popping all around here at home finally too!...what a lovely time of year Autumn is!

Have a great weekend!

~ Weekend in New England ~

2011-09-27T12:03:00.011-04:00

After nearly one entire decade of not taking a vacation of any kind, hubs and I finally made a little time for ourselves and took a 3-day trip up to New England this past weekend! We drove out Friday morning and got through DC ok but encountered a horrid traffic jam in New Jersey that delayed us about an hour and a half, yuck!...then one of the things on our agenda was to drive through Times Square in NYC, crazy right? RIGHT...we encountered the biggest, craziest, most insane traffic jam coming out of the toll booth that leads into the Lincoln Tunnel...I have never even imagined such a thing could occur!!...well we lived to tell about it is all I can say!!...we did manage to drive through Times Square on a Friday night, I was driving, and let me tell you THAT was an experience in and of itself!!...we have never been to NYC and it is at the very top of hubs' list of want-to-do things...we need to go back on the train and do one of those sightseeing bus tours...anyway, after another couple of hours sitting in traffic getting out of the area, we continued on our journey...the main problem was that we were supposed to be at my friend Connie's house around 6PM for dinner and it was now WAY WAY past that!...we felt SO BAD!!...we didn't arrive to her place in CT until 10PM!!!...this is when they normally go to bed and she was serving us dinner!...and what a delicious dinner it was!...Connie and her husband Paul live in a 4000 sq. ft. log home that they built many years ago and Connie has it completely and totally decorated in the 1700-1800 period...every single room is full of the most fabulous furnishings...she has candles lit all over the place with minimal lighting and the ambiance is stunning!...there really are no words to describe their home...I could have spent many more hours just gazing at each and every room...she's got big cupboards and gorgeous antiques everywhere and nothing looks cluttered as she has the perfect touch in placing her smalls here and there...I could go on and on!...there are no pictures that would even come close to doing it justice so I didn't even try...we spent the night in one of her upstairs rooms and got a good night's sleep...in the morning we had coffee and bagels and a very nice visit...she's got an adorable little shoppe right on their property and I did a wee bit of shopping!...here's a pic of my goodies:
...the dried gourd was a gift from Connie, and she made those cute little balls in the tin cup herself, they look like miniature cloved oranges!...here's a link to her Picture Trail: Log Cabin Primitives ...Thank you again Connie and Paul for your generous hospitality!!!

Saturday, shortly after noon, we continued on up to MA to attend the antique show going on at Walker Homestead...I was disappointed in general...it may have been because of all the rain the previous day and the muddy conditions, but the mosquitoes were outta hand!, it was just horrible!...we had to hurry our way through and I really didn't enjoy it at all...I now wish we had opted to just visit the nearby Sturbridge area and go in a few shoppes there...although I did run into a couple of fellow bloggers I recognized, Bonnie and Sarah, that was nice!...and I did make a purchase at the show...this sweet little redware jug made by Pied Potter Hamelin:
...it won't be difficult finding a spot for this little gem!

After a whirlwind tour of the antique show, we drove about a half an hour to my friend Linda's house...she was having a gathering of friends who were in the area attending the show too...we have been blog buds for a few years now and I have seen many pictures of her lovely home which is furnished beautifully and if you have seen her pictures, you know her decorating is just perfect!...here's a link to her Picture Trail...it was such fun to finally be there in person and of course the best part was meeting Linda!...she is just the absolutely sweetest person!!...she had prepared a wonderful spread of goodies, oh my everything was SO DELICIOUS!...and she sent us home with so many goodies, we had yummies in our hotel room that night and all the way home!...Thank you Linda!!

We had originally planned to have dinner at a nearby restaurant but were just too exhausted and decided to cancel the dinner reservations. We checked into our hotel room, ordered a pizza, and went to bed early!...I was so paranoid about the possibility of bedbugs that I barely slept a wink...I am not comfortable spending the night away from home anyway...so at about 3:30AM, I finally gave up on sleeping...hubs woke up at about 5AM and we decided to skip the free breakfast and get on the road since we had quite a long drive ahead of us!...since we were getting an early start, hubs wanted to drive back through NYC again...oh joy! LOL...so this time we drove past the World Trade Center site and saw the beautiful new skyscraper they're building...traffic in the city was a little less chaotic since it was Sunday and we managed to get outta there without too much trouble...just a few horn honks and a couple close calls, LOL...we really want to get back there and see the sights the proper way...we knew driving through was not the way to do it, it's just that our route was taking us so close, we just had to do it!

We arrived back home in Central Virginia at about 5PM and it feels good to be home...I immediately had to get to work packing orders before I could even rest but I am now caught up and getting back to normal...I may be getting too old to do this sort of thing again but I'm glad we did it!...have a great week!

~ Have You Ever Heard Of... ~

2011-09-19T11:42:00.007-04:00

Have you ever heard of Pumpkin Yellowware???...Oh my word!...I hadn't until recently while browsing the internet so I proceeded to find a piece at a decent price...actually two pieces, the second bowl is enroute LOL...but isn't it a lovely shade?...especially for this time of year, what a joy!

I also wanted to share with you this fabulous Pumpkin Folk Doll I purchased from my friend Karen...made from a T.F.C. Folk Art pattern, her workmanship is second to none!...he arrived in the mail on Saturday, isn't he fabulous?...I have him sitting atop a stack of small benches next to the lovely pumpkin she made for me as a gift that I posted about last time:

Lastly, I wanted to share a Random Act of Kindness that I had bestowed upon me the other day...I made an ebay purchase from one of my favorite sellers, Natalie of Country Farm Simples, her pictures are the absolute best!...she has a way of putting things together like no other and it is always such an inspiration!...I purchased this sweet ditty bag she made from olde calico in a lovely shade of bittersweet, it is lovely!
...and inside the box was a gift that completely blew me away!...a month or two ago I had sent her a message asking about a pair of dolls she had in one of her gorgeous pictures (you know me and my love for primitive dolls) these little dolls just struck me and I asked if she knew who made them...I hadn't heard back from her but guess what was in with my purchase?...yep!...one of the little dolls!!!!!!!!!!!...can you believe it??...wasn't that just the sweetest thing to do?...I have her sitting here with the gathering on the fireplace hearth:
...aint she cute?...Thank You again Nat!!!!!!!

Well that's gonna do it for this time...have a wonderful week!

~ More Decorating Pics! ~

2011-09-04T15:49:00.031-04:00

I hope everyone is enjoying their last long weekend of summer...we are doing stuff around the house here...had hurricane Irene blow through last weekend and lost power for 24 hours...I feel so fortunate to have only been without electricity for a day when there are folks all around us that have been without it for an entire week!...we also lost a native tree in our backyard that hubs needs to rent a chainsaw for...other than that, we were very very lucky!

I have made more progress with my Autumn decorating and wanted to share some more pics with you...first there is this beautiful basket that was custom made for me by Pam ...I told her what I was looking for and gave her some dimensions and voila!...I love it!...I've filled it with the Artificial Fall Boxwood that I sell in my shoppe...the cute little doll I got a couple of years ago, it was made by Lori ...and the sweet little Small Pumpkin Square is American made Redware and available in my shoppe!
I think it finishes off the display nicely:
Here's a full view of the cabinet, it's a favorite piece of furniture made a couple of years ago by hubs!
Now these next things are also new...arriving just yesterday, by way of the Royal Mail, is the cute folky pumpkin head doll you see on the right, made by my dear friend Karen in the UK...the sweet pumpkin lady doll on the left was made for me by Jenn ...I think they look cute together!...the little pumpkins in the foreground are from the set of 24 Assorted Little Pumpkins I sell in my shoppe:
Here's a full view of the foyer table:
In that same Royal Mail box was the prairie doll you see there on the right, also made by Karen and another of Jenn's pumpkin lady dolls on the left...the iron Tall Ring CandleHolder is available in my shoppe!
Here's a full view of my primitive stepback cupboard...hubs dislikes this piece, he says it belongs outdoors, but I don't care, what does he know! LOL...the folky doll hanging on the left door was made by Jackie!
This pumpkin here is a very special pumpkin...it was also inside the Royal Mail box but it was something I was not expecting!...it was a gift, handmade with love, from my dear friend Karen!...thank you again Karen!
The little chippy white table by the front door looks basically the same as last year with the addition of another one of Jenn's pumpkin lady dolls!
This is my view from the sofa...the black cabinet houses our tv and all that stuff...over in the make-do chair, which was made by Pat of Olde Bittersweet Farm, I've got a pumpkin pillow that I've had for a couple of years, it made by Barbara of Turkey Hollow, and the kitty hanging on the peg rail, I've had for a few years now, and it was made by Dawn ...the hooked pumpkin mat you see there on the coffee table is new and it was made by Pat of Ginger Creek Primitives:
Speaking of the coffee table...I had added one more little pillow to my bowl display...the pillow was made by Barbara of Turkey Hollow...and if you like the bowl, I still have a few left in my shoppe, it's the Large Rustic Chopping Bowl...I also have the Pumpkin Spice Wax Bars currently available!
On the left side of the fireplace hearth sits an olde ladderback chair which is usually where my group of favorite dolls sits but for Autumn I have kept the largest doll, which is from Arnetts, and have a Salem pumpkin along with a pinkeep that I made from a Stacy Nash pattern.
Well that's what I've been up to!...I've also loaded all my pics up on Picture Trail if you prefer viewing them there...I hope you all have a safe and happy holiday tomorrow and a fantastic week!

~ Decorating Progress Pics! ~

2011-08-22T14:01:00.021-04:00

In the past week, great progress has been made in changing my home decor from summer to fall and I thought I'd show you some of the pictures that I've taken thus far!

First I wanted to show you where the tobacco basket, that Pam made, ended up after I moved it from above my pie safe...I think it looks really nice here in my bowl rack...I always thought that the back of the basket was even prettier than the front anyway!...that sign up top was made by Kath...the Lover's Knot Towel and the Iron Hook CandleHolder are wares that are available in my shoppe:Speaking of the pie safe...remember in my last post I showed you a picture from Pottery Barn?...well this is my version...I seem to be having a "thing" for white pumpkins this year so I bought a couple of their wood pumpkins and a mercury glass tealight holder, had a couple of their pumpkins from last year, added some raffia, some resin cornstalks I've had for years, and the hooked pumpkin mat I got last year, it was made by Stephanie!...it nearly matches my new rug on the wall so I couldn't help but add it by leaning it against the jug lamp:My coffee table display is the same as last year cuz I really enjoyed it...the Large Rustic Chopping Bowl is an item that I offer in my shoppe as well as the Pumpkin Spice Wax Bars...the pinkeep pillows were made by Tina, Barbara, and Melissa:
My dining room table looks similar to last year too but this year I'm using a "new" olde wooden bowl that I purchased a few months ago...the Mock Mice Teeth II Table Runner and the Bittersweet Garland are available in my shoppe:
Here is a ladderback chair full of fall dolls...3 were made by my dear friend Karen as well as the wee Harvest pumpkin sitting on the lap of a doll made by Lori...the large doll is from Arnetts, the doll on the right was made by Betty, and there's a little pumpkin pillow made by Barbara of Turkey Hollow and the little pumpkin in the foreground was made by Barb Stein:
On the fireplace mantle is my favorite stack of boxes and my favorite pumpkin lady along with a couple of wonderful pumpkins made by Barbara of Turkey Hollow and the wood turned items were made by Don and Pat of Olde Bittersweet Farm:
Just below the mantle, this display is on the right side of the hearth, which is where the boot bench is now sitting after the new little doughbox table took its place, LOL...the sunflower hooked mat was made by Lori:
Then just to the right of that, in the rocking chair there are 2 pillows made by Barbara of Turkey Hollow and there to the right you'll see my new little doughbox table that I wrote about in my previous post:
Here's a close-up of what I have displayed on it...I think it's pretty...the Bittersweet Baby Flowers are available in my shoppe:
On the breakfast nook table I've got some faux white pumpkins and a leaf garland in an olde basket sitting on my favorite olde checkerboard...the Seven Snowballs Table Square is available in my shoppe, it reverses to the opposite color and I'm going to flip it over for Christmas!
Did I tell you that I am having a "thing" this year for white pumpkins?...I think I already did, LOL:
This is what's on my foyer table, I think it's perdy...the sweet white basket was made by Pam, the candle, the fixins, the mums, and the wee pumpkins are all available wares in my shoppe:
The lovely brown leaf, I've had for a couple of years, it was handmade by one of the Schneeman ladies:
I change that sign above the blanket crane according to the season too:
On my black stepback is another pumpkin lady that I love, the Autumn Splendor Block Quilt is available in my shoppe as well as the beautiful Hearth-n-Home Potpourri you see around the candle...the Mums are also available as is that Framed Felt Pumpkin you see up on the shelf in the left corner:
Well that's what I've got so far and I'm not done so stay tuned!...I'm looking forward to seeing everyone's decorating pics so get busy y'all! LOL...have a great week!

~ Time To Share ~

2011-08-14T14:02:00.011-04:00

Good Sunday afternoon!...well I was fixin to watch the NASCAR race on TV that is up at Watkins Glen, NY but it has started raining there and the race is now on rain delay so I thought I'd use this time to make a blog post because I've got a couple things to share...but first I must say that this day has gotten off to a bit of a rough start...woke to the sound of beeping battery backups that we have on the computers...the power had gone out due to a storm moving through and was out for a couple of hours...we were hearing that sound of arcing electrical transformers and when the power came back on we realized that something blew the circuit board of our stove...GREAT!!...now we have to look for the part to replace...hopefully I won't find another appliance that is blown!

On a much more positive note, I recently purchased a hooked rug that I've been searching for for quite some time...I've seen this rug in various places...the Country Living Season's At Seven Gates Farm book, someone's Picture Trail (can't recall who I'm sorry to say), and I believe my good friend Pat has even hooked this particular rug...I fell in love with the pattern because it's got hearts and flowers as well as a dove which stands for peace which I love plus the colors looked to be just about perfect for my home...I've been searching ebay and etsy off and on for about a year now and came across it once but the auction had already ended!...dontcha hate when that happens?...then one day a couple of weeks ago I was browsing through my bookmarked antique links and saw that Faye over at Early Country Antiques had this rug pictured and my heart skipped a beat!...I quickly emailed her to inquire about it and lucky for me it had not already been spoken for so now it is mine!
...this particular rendering was made by Jennifer McKelvie and the colors are indeed perfect for my home:
...ever since I got my primitive pie safe, I have envisioned this very rug hung just above it, and now it is!...I feel so fortunate!
The other thing that I wanted to share was this cute little dough box table that I had my hubs make for me recently...my good friend Linda has an antique one that is to die for that I just love and I got to thinking...why don't I just have hubs make me a small one that will fit the space I have in mind for it!...I searched up some pics of different types of dough box tables on the internet and gathered some dimensions, then came up with the measurements that would fit my space, and went over everything with hubs...last weekend he bought the wood and whipped it up...then yesterday he finished it for me...it's painted black, distressed, then rubbed with Tudor Brown Briwax...that really gives it a nice look...even though it is nowhere near as cool as an olde antique, the price was right and it fits the space perfectly!...it's going to be against the wall above that little footstool you see in the background...I pulled the dough box away from the wall so you could see the cute shape it has:
...the lid comes off and I have a nice little storage area...we can always use more storage can't we?
...I think he did a really great job on figuring out how to make the shape of it exactly as I wanted!
Lastly, I wanted to share with you a picture that I just can't take my eyes off of...it's from the Pottery Barn website and I'm using it as my computer's desktop wallpaper!, I just love it!...I think I'm going to order a couple of these pumpkins:
...I love Pottery Barn...they always have stuff that blends well with antiques and primitives...and I love their stylists, I always find their pictures inspiring!

Last year at this time we were getting ready to have our wooden floors put in...we were moving furniture out of the living room, dining room, and study, then painting, etc. etc....when all was said and done it was the very end of September and I lost an entire month of enjoying my Autumn decor because I didn't even get to start until the first of October!...so this year I'm getting a head start...I've got all my summery decor put away...tables etc. all dusted and polished...I always enjoy having a clean slate when I bring out my seasonal decor...that is my fun!

Alright, I think that about does it for this time...have a great week everyone!

~ August? Really? ~

2011-08-03T10:07:00.005-04:00

Wow I can hardly believe that it's August already! I've been so busy purchasing and receiving New Wares for my shoppe that I haven't had much time for anything else! I'm starting to think about how I'd like to decorate my home for Fall...we do love our Autumn decorating don't we? One thing I know for sure is that I'll be using these Magnificent Mums somewhere, they're a new item and I love them!
I'll also use this Artificial Bittersweet Garland, it's a favorite of mine, it looks lovely in a basket or strewn atop a cupboard.
Then there's this adorable primitive sign! Oh my there's just so many wonderful things to choose from out there isn't there?
Just the other day I received a hooked rug that I've been wanting for ages....haven't taken pics yet but I will and I'll be sure to share...have a great day!

~ Happy Independence Day! ~

2011-07-04T09:15:00.017-04:00

Our flag is just so beautiful isn't it?...I love this country!!...yesterday hubs and I drove out to Luray, VA, which is a 2 ½ hours drive each way, to attend a bluegrass music festival...despite the heat and cruddy bugs, it was quite enjoyable!
We toured the caverns years ago with our boys and this festival was just across from there on the grounds of their museum...I wish I had brought my camera because inside the museum there were all sorts of items from the 1800's!...the drive was thankfully uneventful and we enjoyed the music and the beauty that is Virginia...the festival would have been perfect however if it were held in the Winter...there would have been NO BUGS and all you'd have to do to be comfortable is to wear a coat or put on some layers!...why the heck everyone has to do everything in the summer is beyond me! LOL

I've been busy busy busy purchasing and adding New Wares for my shoppe...summer is just speeding on by and before we know, it will be time for us to get out our Fall decor HOORAY!!...we do love our Autumn decorating don't we?...I am so excited about the goodies I've got coming and I'll be adding them as they come in so I can keep on top of it all.

Now about the 4th of July...I know that fireworks are illegal in many parts of the country but not here in Hanover County, VA...and boy do people take advantage of that!...there are types of fireworks that ARE illegal and what I don't understand is why the heck do they make something illegal and not enforce the law??...in our subdivision, the houses are 20 feet apart yet there are people who bring in illegal fireworks, the kind that shoot up into the air and explode, which drives me absolutely insane!!!...are these people not afraid of burning their house and their neighbors' houses down??!!...I have called the police, the fire dept. and yet it continues year after year...I just don't get it!!!...ok well there's my rant for the day, LOL...I am pretty much a nervous wreck on 4th of July evenings worrying and wondering if one of those bombs is going to explode on our roof or on the houses next door roofs...we had 2 houses burn down on our block last month and it was a frightening thing to see...the fire started in the garage of the first house and was so massive that it quickly spread to the house next door...it was horrible!

Gosh...that's not a very good note to leave this blog post on now is it?...sorry about that!...I just wish that people would be satisfied with going to see the professional fireworks displays that are absolutely everywhere all around us here and not insist on shooting explosives up into the air...it's downright dangerous!

Here's something better to leave you with...a picture of the display that I have on our breakfast nook table...the flag was a gift last year from and made by Pat of Olde Bittersweet Farm ...it's on a turned wood base and very special to me...I've got it sitting on a really olde checkerboard along with some faux herbs and strawberries...the strawberries were made by Carol on ebay, she makes lovely things!...and I love the Seven Snowballs Table Square, it's available in my shoppe...it's reversible to red with the pattern in the linen, which I plan on using for Christmas!...an olde wooden bowl, and antique food chopper, complete the display....be safe and enjoy the day!

~ New Summer Decorating Pics ~

2011-06-23T15:01:00.004-04:00

I know how much we all love looking at each others' decorating pics so I've gone through and uploaded a bunch I've just finished taking around the house. I've posted them over on Picture Trail. I hope you enjoy!

My Picture Trail

~ A Little Summer Stitchin' ~

2011-06-12T09:48:00.013-04:00

It certainly feels like summer anyway! I know it's still technically spring but boy has been hot here in Central Virginia. Last week we had temps in the upper 90's most of the week with a couple days hitting and even exceeding 100. This week we are expected to be in the mid 80's which is still WAY too hot for me! Such is summertime though and I shall just continue to count the days until December when my favorite season returns. I am so thankful for central air conditioning! We have lived in this house for 9 years this month, it is the first house I've ever lived in that has central A/C, and let me tell you, it is a modern comfort that I hope to never have to live without again! I've been staying inside enjoying the A/C and doing some cross-stitching. I'm into making the little pinkeep/sampler pillows mostly...I've made a couple for myself and a couple to offer up for sale if anyone is interested! Both are Stacy Nash designs!

Here is the 1776 Flowers with Flag design...it is stitched on osnaburg that has been aged with walnut crystals:...and backed with a reproduction Civil War fabric:
...it measures 4 3/4" x 4 1/2" and is stuffed with pieces of clean unbleached muslin fabric...I am asking $35.00 for it which will include First Class Mail within the USA...just leave a message here on my blog or you can go to my web site and use the Contact link to reach me...Paypal only please.

Here is the Peace and Plenty design...SOLD...THANK YOU!...also stitched on osnaburg that has been aged with walnut crystals:
...and backed with a reproduction Civil War fabric with a wool heart primitively stitched on:
...it measures 6 1/4" x 4 1/2" and is stuffed with pieces of clean unbleached muslin fabric...IT HAS BEEN SPOKEN FOR...THANK YOU!

Well I think that's going to be it for me today...it's Sunday which for me means watching a NASCAR race! Go 88!! Have a most joyous Sunday all!

~ Humpty Dumpty ~

2011-05-17T11:16:00.002-04:00

Humpty Dumpty, that's sort of what it feels like! Some of you may recall that on October 27, 2010 we had an EF1 tornado come through and damage our house. The repairs have been nothing short of a NIGHTMARE! I won't bore you with more of the gory details but FINALLY it seems we are back to normal!
This is what it looked like before. I had a tree expert come out the next day to see if there was any way our pear tree could be saved and was told that the root damage was too extensive so we sadly had to chop up our poor tree which made me so sad.
A couple weeks later we planted this little oak tree and he shed his leaves in the winter and got all new ones in the spring just like he's supposed to!
We had a new roof put on, siding and trim replaced, removed the damaged plants in the garden, and planted new.
So just like Humpty Dumpty, we are put back together again!
My heart goes out to all those who have gone through the recent tornadoes. I know there are so many who lost EVERYTHING with not even a house to come home to! That makes the issues I've been dealing with minimal in comparison!

Well that's going to be it for this time. Remember to do something each day that makes you happy!

Your Mother Is Always With You...

2011-05-07T11:32:00.003-04:00

Your mother is always with you...
She's the whisper of the leaves
as you walk down the street.
She's the smell of bleach
in your freshly laundered socks.
She's the cool hand on your brow
when you're not well.
Your mother lives inside your laughter.
She's crystallized in every tear drop.
She's the place you came from,
your first home...
She's the map you follow
with every step that you take.
She's your first love
and your first heart break...
and nothing on earth can separate you.
Not time, Not space...
Not even death...
will ever separate you
from your mother...
You carry her inside of you...

Author Unknown

I miss you Mom!

Happy Mother's Day to all.

~ New Goodies to Share ~

2011-04-15T15:30:00.003-04:00

Happy Friday Friends!...well it's April 15th and just yesterday I got our income taxes finished and mailed...come to find out that this year the deadline is Monday the 18th and I had a whole 'nother weekend!...LOL...it's just as well...I am always glad to get that humungous chore outta the way!

After all that number crunching and paper sorting, I have treated myself, fairly well I might add, to some new goodies that I'd like to share. As you know, I love collecting handmades and I have added some wonderful treasures to my collections!...lookie here, I purchased not one but two new Schneeman bunnies made by Norma!...aren't they precious?...I've got one on each end table that are on either side of the sofa.
Also, I was fortunate enough to purchase this adorable bunny made by Lori of Homespun Prims by Lori along with this beautiful fabric covered box that came with the adorable little pinkeep...isn't this just as cute as can be?
And lookie at the cupboard hanger I purchased from Ronda of Simple Thyme Prims!

And this cute bear made by Jenn of Rabbit Hollow Prims...I love the lavender flower she crocheted!
Then there's these adorable bunnies that I purchased from Maureen of Buckbrush Farm...the standing one dressed in the brown coat and the wee chalkware one that I've placed in a pewter dish with an olde wooden egg...I just love 'em!
If all of that wasn't enough...the other day I went out and about to a few places that I don't get to very often...and I purchased this sweet little pot of faux daffodils at Pottery Barn...I love Pottery Barn...so many of their things blend with so many decorating styles!
Last but not least, there's this absolutely gorgeous pot of faux flame tulips...a good customer of mine had requested that I find her some potted tulips so I ordered these for her...I had to order a minimum of three so after shipping her's off and keeping one for myself, there's one left and I've placed it for sale in my shoppe!
There's only one though cuz I'm keeping mine! LOL!...oh and that cute little candleholder is new in my shoppe as well...it's the Teacup Candle Holder with a Blackened Grubby Nubbie which is also new, they are fabulous candles!...the prim herb rabbits you see there in the cheese box were handmade by my dear friend Karen of Olde Cottage Primitives and given to me as a gift!

I've been mighty darn good to myself haven't I?...I almost feel guilty!...notice I said "almost"...LOL!

Have a most joyous weekend all!

~ Spring Decorating and other Stuff ~

2011-03-26T13:26:00.027-04:00

Whew!...it's Saturday afternoon and I can relax for just a bit...my shoppe keeps me so busy most of the time and since the Post Office closes at noon here on Saturday, I feel like I can breathe just a bit because no orders can be mailed again until Monday...so I feel like the pressure is off for awhile once I've been to the Post Office on Saturday morning!

Alot has been going on here under the willow tree...we are still working on resolving the damage on our house that was caused by the roofers...had much of the siding replaced about a week ago and it's looking better...still not sure if there's anything that can be done about all of the tar scrapes they left on the brick portion...and we are going to make a trip to the nursery to replace the plants they trampled and ruined as well as replace the yard nicknacks they broke...whatta nightmare this has all been!

Also, it looks like our little family is going to get a bit smaller...daughter-in-law has decided she doesn't want to be married to our oldest son anymore and she has moved out of their home...isn't it just the worst thing seeing the kids hurting?...it's almost unbearable!

On a MUCH brighter note, I wanted to share with you some new things I've acquired recently. First there's my new make-do chair, isn't it lovely? It was made by Pat of Olde Bittersweet Farm. Yes the bedroom still has the mauve carpeting, we must not forget its awesomeness! LOL I had an olde ladderback chair there filled with these dolls and I like the make-do chair better! I put the ladderback back in the family room where it originally was. While snapping pics, I thought I would add this one of our bed...I updated the bedding last year and never took a pic!I've also added a couple new bears to my prim bear collection. The two newest are the smallest bear, made by Dru of Cinnamon Creek Cabin, seated on the lap of the larger bear she also made...and the bear on the left, his name is William, he was made by my friend Karen...he's quite lovely and she even knitted his scarf!...she's having an update on her selling blog on Sunday...here's the link, Olde Cottage Primitives ...be sure to check it out!
I've also purchased a few new baskets from Pam. First I ordered one of her twelve inch cheese baskets to hang above my antique pie safe. Then I ordered one of her fourteen inch tobacco baskets and I think I like it better here but which do you think looks better? They are both beautiful baskets, I just am not sure which one looks better in this spot, maybe the answer is they both look good, who knows!
I also wanted to mention that cute little wax standing rabbit to the left of the spring pinkeep I made (pattern by Country Rustic Primitives)...the rabbit that is wearing the cloth tie is from Dana of Homespun Treasures ...I purchased it and a tart from her but you should have seen all of the wonderful extras she included in my package!...oh my what a generous gal she is!...Thank You Dana!...everything she sent me is wonderful so I know you will not be disappointed with any purchase you make from her site!

Now back to Pam...when I ordered the cheese basket, she surprised me with a very special gift!...knowing how I love hearts and heart shaped things, she sent me a heart shaped basket that she made some time ago and I found a nice spot for it in the laundry room...doesn't it look cute there? (the camera flash created some strange glare/shadow off the dryer and onto the wall, there's not really a big white smear there, LOL)
I spend a fair share of my time in here and it brings a smile to my face every time I look at it, Thank You Pam!...oh and I also purchased this sweet little buttermilk painted basket, which I just love, from her!
As much as I dislike spring with all of its cootie bugs, stinging, flying, and otherwise, I must say that I find it a fun season to decorate for...I don't know why, but I've always had a "thing" for artificial flowers and greenery...is that weird?...does anyone else have this fetish?...I have uploaded all of my spring decorating pics to my Picture Trail in an album titled "Spring Decorating 2011" so go on over and have a look and let me know what you think!

Thanks for visiting and have a joyous weekend!

~ TEN YEARS ~

2011-02-18T00:16:00.016-05:00

Ten years ago today was one of the worst days in my life. On February 18, 2001 my hero, Dale Earnhardt died. Your hero? a race car driver? you may wonder. Yes but he was so much more.
He was a kind man, a strong man, a tall man, a handsome man, he was a good man. He gave generously to charity, not only monetarily, but of himself as well, and most of the time we never heard about it because that's how he wanted it, that's just the kind of person he was. He never forgot from where he came and his heart was made of gold. He lended a helping hand to so many.
The Intimidator was his persona and yes, he was just that on the race track. Oh what fun he was to watch on the race track! He was The Man! But off the track he was a respected and beloved father, husband, son, and brother.
The sport will never be the same for me but I do still enjoy NASCAR and watch all of the races. I haven't attended a Cup race though since before he died. I've attended a few Nationwide (the secondary series) races but no Cup because that is where he raced and I guess I just haven't wanted to attend the race and not see that black number 3.
I'll never forget the first time he caught my attention when I was really getting into NASCAR back in the 80's. He was holding his little daughter in his arms before a race and she kissed him on the cheek and hugged his neck...the television announcer commented on the sweet picture saying, to that little girl he's no Intimidator, he's just Daddy. That just melted my heart right then and there and at that moment is when I became a fan...I will always be a Dale Earnhardt fan.

~ Valentines ~

2011-02-12T12:49:00.010-05:00

I have always adored hearts and heart shaped things...I have them in various places throughout my home all year long...but for Valentine's Day they're everywhere!...here are some pics I took of my Valentines...

Happy Valentine's Day!

~ A Real Treat! ~

2011-01-28T14:51:00.005-05:00

Yesterday I received an order of candles and I am SO impressed with the scent throw on this big one that I just have to share! I love love LOVE candles and consider myself a candle expert so to speak. I have burned many a candle in my time and can honestly say that these Primitive Jar Candles are among THE BEST ever!! All of their scents that I have tried have been SCRUMPTIOUS and the scent throw is FABULOUS! This new 64oz. candle is HUGE...it has 3 wicks...and the scent just fills the whole family room!...I LOVE IT!!...I also received these awesome Crow Tarts in the matching scent and they too smell absolutely WONDERFUL!So if you are looking to treat yourself or if you are looking for a new candle to burn, I highly recommend these!...and not just because I sell them in my shoppe but because they are truly wonderful candles!

Have a joyous weekend!

~ A Bit of Winter Decorating ~

2011-01-10T11:45:00.010-05:00

Good Monday friends!...I have just finished uploading to my Picture Trail pictures that I snapped around my house over the weekend. After Christmas decor is put away I like to decorate for my favorite season with snowmen and all things wintry! Here's a few of the pics:
Hop on over to my Picture Trail if you'd like to see the rest!

Looks like more wintry weather is headed our way...I surely hope we don't get the ice that they are predicting for my area...LET IT SNOW!!!

Stay safe and warm!

~ Happy 2011! ~

2011-01-01T14:46:00.015-05:00

I certainly hope this year we will see things start looking up!...I hope those without jobs will find work...I hope those that ail will recover and be well...I hope those who find it difficult to make ends meat will gain some wealth...and I hope those who are sad will find much joy!

I wanted to share with you a little lamp project I've just completed. I've always wanted a crock or jug lamp with a hexagon lamp shade and finally found just the right shade done in a lovely brown homespun and handmade too! I purchased it from Heart and Hand Antiques, and let me tell you that it is beautifully made! So once I received the shade, I began to hunt for a jug in just the right size, shape, and color and found the perfect one on ebay...won it for $17.99 plus shipping and since it was coming all the way from Arizona during the Christmas rush, it took a couple of weeks to get here but it arrived safe and sound! Then all I had to do was purchase this: It's the Westinghouse make-a-lamp kit that is sold at Home Depot and voila! I've got the jug lamp of my dreams! Here is it atop my pie safe...I've been playing a bit today and decided that this is the arrangement I'm going to leave up for winter:

That basket you see there is a little something I treated myself to recently, it's an antique basket that I purchased from my favorite local antique shoppe. I love baskets both olde and new! I also treated myself to this little antique pewter 5" bowl:

I just loved the patina on it and the shoppe owner says it's from the 1800's! I'm going to do some more playing and find just the right spot for it.

Well that's about it for this first day of 2011...I've got Celtic music playing, I'm burning one of my primitive jar candles, Christmas Crow, it smells divine, it's such a warm spicy scent, love it!...and I'm doing a little stitching, a little decorating, and of course a wee bit of blogging.

Happy New Year!

~ First White Christmas EVER! ~

2010-12-26T12:55:00.012-05:00

I hope everyone enjoyed their Christmas Day one way or another. The highlight of the big day for me was that I had my very first white Christmas! Having been born and raised in Southern California and spent most of my life there, I'd never experienced falling snow until our move east! I never knew how much I would love winter and snow! We got just shy of 3 inches as our Christmas Day total and it's still snowing today! Here's a pic I just snapped out the back:
I also wanted to share with you the wonderful gifts I received from my friends. Look at what Karen made for me...a gorgeous bonnet in my favorite sage check fabric, a beautiful doll dressed in mustard calico, and a set of perfectly prim herb animals...what fun these will be to decorate with for spring and summer! She really spoiled me didn't she? Thank you Karen!
Pat made for me this fabulous stocking and she also sent me one of her husband Don's stunning ink well reproductions! Thank you Pat!
Kris sent me this amazing Santa head ornament that she made! Thank you Kris!
Linda made me some address labels with what else? yep a willow tree!...she knew I'd like that! Thank you Linda!
Kath sent me a lovely CD of Celtic music which I love, Thank you Kath!
Just look at this adorable gingerbread man that Loretta made for me! Isn't he just the cutest thing? Thank you Loretta!
These gifts mean so much to me because I don't receive gifts from my family...there's just the 5 of us...me, my husband, our 2 grown boys, and 1 daughter-in-law...none of them celebrate Christmas per se so it is just lonely ol' me trying to make things as festive as possible. I get them all gifts but I tell the kids not to get me anything because they struggle financially and I gave up years ago trying to get my husband to buy me something so I have come to enjoy the season leading up to Christmas more than the day itself, but I do enjoy receiving gifts! Thank you all so very much!!

I know alot of you are going to be experiencing blizzard conditions out there so please stay safe and warm!

~ It's Been A While! ~

2010-12-14T14:01:00.006-05:00

Since my last post was about the tornado, I'll start with an update. We have since replaced the downed pear tree with a small oak tree and we've had the trim replaced as well as a whole new roof put on but oh whatta nightmare! The roofing crew made an absolute mess of our house! They walked all over my azaleas, broke a couple garden knick-knacks, and worst of all, while tearing off the old roof, they allowed the asphalt shingles to scratch and scrape the vinyl siding!! They've tried to clean the tar scrapes off but have only made it worse and we are now left with brown blotches and scrapes on every surface! The contractor's insurance company has been out and has made us a couple of unacceptable offers...one of which is to replace only the damaged pieces of siding...yeah right!...can you imagine what THAT would look like?...our siding is eight years old and would not match the brand new siding!...this weekend they are having someone else come out to try and clean the blotches with something else...I am not hopeful.

Now on to something MUCH more fun...Christmas decorating! I have FINALLY finished it and have just posted a bunch of pics to my Picture Trail so have a look when you've got a few minutes! I tried to keep it simpler this year...didn't even put up a big tree with all the ornaments...but with the boys grown and hubs couldn't care less, I'm the only one who gives a hoot if there's any kind of decor or not so I just did what I wanted to!
I have recently added my family's silhouettes to the wall in our family room...my mother always had these hanging in her home and I asked that her former husband send them to me so now I am able to enjoy them. I remember that she and I actually sat for ours to be done but my father had already passed away and his was done from a photograph.
If you visit my Picture Trail, there's a pic in the Christmas Decorating album that you'll see where I've placed them.

I have been changing what's in this bowl on the coffee table with each season and having fun with it! The bowl is one that I offer in my shoppe, it's the Large Rustic Chopping Bowl.

Well there's really no sense in my posting the pics here when they are all posted to Picture Trail, so head on over there if you wanna see the rest, there's like forty of 'em! LOL

That's all for now...Christmas is coming!...Merry Merry!

~ Very Bad Wednesday Afternoon and Evening ~

2010-10-28T17:33:00.004-04:00

We had a tornado come through here @ 5:17 pm yesterday. The exterior of our house sustained damage to the roof and trim, it took down our front yard tree, and everything is a complete mess :(
me, my youngest son, and of course Katie the kitty were home when it happened and it happened very quickly...we are all ok, just shook up:
lots of trim needs to be replaced:
there's debris everywhere:
my main concern is for the roof...there are some missing shingles but a large portion of the shingles lifted up and then layed back down so they're no longer attached...you probably can't tell from the picture but in person it looks sorta ruffled:
we had a landscape contractor come out today to tell us if our tree could be saved and he said that there's just too much root damage :(

the next few pics are of the tornado damage just across the street...notice the large camper trailer overturned and of course the downed fence...on the house next to them the garage door is wadded up and the shutters askew...then on the house next to that a large section of the siding is missing:
closer look at the camper trailer mess:
closer look at the other 2 houses:
I know it could have been alot worse and I am thankful that no one was injured.

~ Braided Rug & Searching for Fall Foliage ~

2010-10-18T12:03:00.018-04:00

Yesterday hubs and I went on a search for the colors of autumn. We do get the colors right here in central Virginia but not until the first part of November and I'm always anxious to see them so every year at this time we take a drive. I read online that the peak colors were occurring in the higher elevations here in Virginia so we decided to follow one of the fall foliage routes layed out by the Department of Forestry. It began way up in the north west area of the state which took us about 3 hours to get to, then we followed the route and while it was an area of our state that we hadn't yet traveled, and the route was indeed picturesque, there wasn't much color at all, pooey!
At least I got to see a bit of the Shenandoah River, I've always wanted to lay eyes on it for some reason, maybe because of the John Denver song, I don't know! but the route took us across the north fork and I had to get a picture so we stopped the car as soon as possible after crossing so I could walk back to snap a couple of pics. This is from one side of the road:
...and this is from the other side of the road:
...it's not like me at all to do anything risky or dangerous so for me to walk along a highway and even cross it on foot, you know I wanted pics of the river pretty bad! LOL There you see my little white SUV in the distance, I took that pic while walking back from the river crossing.
...this picture was taken right by where we stopped the car too, it's someone's driveway, must be nice!...just look at those manicured weeping willow trees that line their property!
So back on the road, we entered the town of Strasburg and shared a Subway sammich (we always say sammich! LOL) While eating our sammich, a really super LOUD siren started going off and it was an air raid siren like you hear in the war movies!! We were like, WHAT THE HECK IS THAT!!!! No one around us was panicking but we couldn't believe what we were hearing and had to ask! Turns out that is the town's fire alarm! GOOD GRIEF! So after that bit of excitement, we started on our journey back in the direction of home. Once we got back to familiar territory, we just couldn't pass the entrance to the Blue Ridge Parkway without taking a quick jaunt on it and I'm so glad we did because we saw more color there than on our adventure! Every year at this time we usually just drive up and down the Blue Ridge for our fall foliage but wanted to do something different this year...figures!...the Blue Ridge is only an hour and a half away from our house and that's where the color was! It's still not peak just yet so I'm still feeling color deprived, LOL, but I did get a few pretty pictures.

Originally, we were planning a drive to New England to see their fall foliage but several folks who live up there were saying that the color may not be at its best this year due to the long, hot, dry summer we had here on the east coast and I did not want to waste my only opportunity to get up there if the colors were not at their best! It's like pulling teeth to get hubs to go on drives with me because he does so much driving in his contracting work and has trouble sitting for long periods of time. So we are shelving our New England drive until next year and he knows that, even though he's off the hook this year, it's going to happen at some point in time! LOL

One other thing I wanted to share with you today is some pics of my new braided rug that came on Friday! It's made from wool braided yarn and I got it at Capel Rugs here in Richmond, their rugs are made in North Carolina. The colors in this are sage, brown, black, beige, rusty barn red, and creme.
Katie sure misses the carpet and is glad to have the new rug!
I think it adds a much needed softness to the room.

Well that about does it for this time...have a great week!

~ Floor is Done! ~ Lots-O-Pics! ~

2010-10-10T17:02:00.016-04:00

The wooden floor has been down a little over a week now and first let me say that I was totally unprepared for the amount of dust caused by removing 700plus square feet of carpet, good grief!!...hubs and I gave everything a good cleaning as we moved it all to make way for the floor and had to turn right around and clean everything again while putting it back!
I have updated my Picture Trail with all of the pics I've recently taken, but here are a few of them:

dining room:
family room:I purchased a 4x6 oval braided rug for under the coffee table but I'm still waiting for it
you see in this picture where my recently purchased primitive pie safe ended up standing
and the other new addition is this olde oak candlestand made by Don, Pat's husband (Olde Bittersweet Farm)...she is who made the make-do chair and they are having an update this week, be sure to check it out!

foyer:
the jury is still out on the slate...I saw a similar slate entry once in a house we looked at and have always wanted to do it but now that it's here, we are having second thoughts!...also, I want to add that the reason why it doesn't go all the way across is because there's a doorway on both sides of the entry but they are not directly straight across from one another so you can't draw a straight line from side to side if that makes sense

The green stepback got a makeover too!...hubs added doors to the top part, painted the whole thing black for me, painted the inside tan, then grubbied it up nicely with stain and I am thrilled with the results!...here are the before and afters:

BEFORE, green on the outside, yellow on the inside:AFTER, black and tan with added doors:
I've also posted all of my autumn decorating pictures to my Picture Trail so hop on over to have a look...have a great week!

~ It Won't Be Long Now! ~

2010-09-24T09:56:00.006-04:00

Yesterday the wood was delivered that is to be our floors in the living/family room, dining room, study, and foyer...and this is just one of the stacks!
...here's a closer pic of the wood...it's solid red oak, lightly hand scraped, 5" planks...I think it's going to be pretty!...they are supposed to get started bright and early Monday morning so I guess I will be a morning person for a few days next week, ha!

Earlier this week, I took an hour and half drive to go and pick up a piece of furniture I bought online...I have been looking for an antique pie safe for ages but every time I'd see one that I liked, either it was too expensive, or the tins had a design I didn't particularly care for, or it would be painted, or something!...but when I saw this primitive gem, it was love at first sight!
It needs a good cleaning before I bring it into the house plus I want to put some lemon oil on it to perty it up but I just think it's charming!...there is some tin loss on the sides and it has a few apologies, but it's believed to be from 1850!

When it's time to put the furniture back in place, I'm going to omit several pieces and try to simplify, I've never been good at that so we'll see how that goes...but I am so anxious to decorate for Autumn!...I'm enjoying seeing all of your lovely pictures and I want to do it too!...Even though it's supposed to be 98° here today...WHAT??!!...yep you read that right...I certainly hope this is the last of the heat because I am tired of it!!

Well that's all for now, have a joyous weekend everyone!

~ Braided Rug Question / Help ~

2010-09-16T15:40:00.002-04:00

Quick question here!...I am trying to decide on which type of braided rug I want to have underneath my coffee table...having always had carpet, I have no experience whatsoever in buying rugs so I would love to hear what is the preferred material for a braided rug to be made out of?...cloth or yarn?...I'm looking at cotton cloth rugs by the Homespice Decor Co. and nylon yarn rugs from the Colonial Braided Rug Co....any and all help / suggestions would be greatly appreciated!...Thank you in advance!

~ Painting ~

2010-09-05T00:25:00.003-04:00

This weekend's goal is to get the foyer and living/family room ceilings painted...not an easy task because of the vaulting but it hadn't been painted since the house was built 8 years ago and there is no better time to paint since all of the furniture had to be moved out anyway for the new floor that will be installed later this month.
I've worked all week on getting decor items packed away as well as moving furniture into our bedroom, kitchen, and breakfast nook. Here's what the family room usually looks like...
...alot of stuff!
And here's what it looks like today...empty!The only thing that isn't getting moved just yet is the big black entertainment cabinet because it is unbelieveably heavy!...that thing is next to impossible to move, it's insane!...so we covered it with a drop cloth, that and the fireplace mantel and hearth...the plan is to move the entertainment cabinet just around the corner into the kitchen/nook area just before we paint the walls in 2 weeks...need to give the ceiling paint time to cure so we can tape it off safely in order to paint the walls. I was thinking that I may have wanted to change the wall color to a creamy neutral but I'm just not ready to give up my sage green!...the name of it is Weeping Willow for cryin' out loud! LOL...so we will just give it a fresh 2 coats of the same.

Here is hubs painting the highest part...normally when we paint walls, he cuts in and I roll...but he spared me from the neck straining task of the ceiling.The wood floor install has been scheduled to begin on the 27th...they are going to deliver the wood on the 23rd to give it time to acclimate and at that time they will also lay my little bit of natural slate that I want in front of the front door here where the blue tape is on the carpet.
Still have the dining room and study to empty of furniture but at least the bulk of it is out of the way...we'll put the sofa and a few basics back until we paint the walls but having the room so empty is giving me a fresh perspective on where to place things when the time comes to put everything back...I want to simplify!

Well the 1st coat is now on the ceiling and the 2nd coat will go on Sunday...have a fantastic Labor Day weekend!

~ A Big Change ~

2010-08-26T11:56:00.004-04:00

Major chaos is about to occur in our home within the next month or so...we are having hardwood floors installed in the foyer, dining room, study, and living/family room...below is the wood I've chosen...it is solid red oak, hand scraped 5" plank...now where to put all of this furniture, hmmm

~ The Lazy Days of Summer ~

2010-07-27T13:43:00.015-04:00

I hope everyone is enjoying their summer thus far. Here in the East, we are finally getting a break from the triple digit temps and while it's still too warm for me, I am thankful especially for my oldest son who has to work outdoors. I've been staying indoors and am so very thankful for electricity and A/C!!! I've been working on making these little pinkeeps/cupboard pillows and I am pleased with how they've turned out because I think they look like they're actually old! The designs on these two are by Jenny of Country Rustic Primitives and I have them posted on my web site in a new catagory called, "By My Hand".
...and here's one fresh off the hoop that I've just finished stitching:These are elements from Stacy Nash's Goode Tidings pattern booklet. I am enjoying cross stitch...it's like painting a picture even though I can't draw or paint! LOL

Another thing I've been working on is giving my crock bench a makeover. Hubs made it several years ago and it has been hunter green up until recently. Here's the before and afters:

BEFORE:

AFTER:
I had made a mess of it trying to apply the stain over the paint but hubs helped me out and made it better...it's still not perfect but the stuff I have on it covers up alot of the mess, LOL....I just wanted it to have a new look and I'm happy with it for now.
Then lastly, I purchased this adorable little stool from a friend of a friend on ebay in the UK...I just think it's so cute...
...I initially had it in mind for a chair that I want and don't yet have but doesn't it look cute with the make-do chair?

Well I think that's about it for now...I am looking forward to the turning of the Autumn leaves because hubs has agreed to take a short trip up to New England with me, maybe just spending one night away, but it's been since the summer of 2000 that we've done anything resembling a vacation and I am anxious for a little getaway!

Thank you for stopping by and have a great week!

~ Handy Works ~

2010-07-05T14:41:00.011-04:00

I hope everyone is enjoying their extended weekend if you're having one! Hubs is home here today so I have had him help me hang some cutting boards and breadboards I've gathered for a kitchen wall display above the new microwave stand that he recently completed.

we recently had to purchase a new microwave because the old one FINALLY quit working! I had been wishing for the day to come when I could buy a new one....hubs bought the old Panasonic microwave shortly before we met, we're talking early 80's, and this thing was huge with wood grain and everything! LOL....the stand we had it on was no better so needless to say this is a vast improvement!!....I was really having trouble deciding on whether or not to get it in the stainless steel finish but seeing as all of our appliances are white, we went with white....the door to the left there is the pantry, and the doorway on the right is to the mud room

I knew as soon as we were able to get a new microwave that I would have him make a new stand for it!
he designed it to hold the paper grocery bags that we use to hold our recyclables....before we just had the bags sitting on the floor next to the old microwave stand so now they are out of sight which is quite nice! those marks on the floor are from the old stand and won't come off!....he also made that little red cabinet a few years ago

this next piece is what I call the coat rack peg rail thingy cuz I don't know what it's really called, I just know that I've seen them around and wanted to have one so hubs made it for me a couple of months ago....the doll was made by my friend Karen!

a close-up of the finish....we did red, then crackle medium, then black, but for some reason it didn't crackle as much as I've had it do in the past when I've used it

well that's what we've been up to!....also, I added a new folder to my Picture Trail today....since I have recently taken up cross stitch, I will be able to offer my own handmades from time to time!....I have one completed pinkeep in there that I just finished up last evening....the link to my Picture Trail is over there to the right in my sidebar>>>>>

ok so as I'm sitting here typing, the WeatherBug temp on my task bar has turned red and is reading 103°!!....that's ridiculous!!!....stay safe out there!

~ Happy Independence Day ~

2010-07-01T13:21:00.005-04:00

July 1st, wow, time just marches on doesn't it? It seems just yesterday I was whining about Winter being overwith and here we are on the fast track to Fall! With Sunday being the 4th, I wanted to wish everyone a Happy Independence Day! Here in Hanover County, Virginia, certain fireworks are still legal but folks still set off the illegal ones and it drives me crazy!! They shoot those things into the air that explode and I swear I must need a tranquilizer or something because I'm a nervous wreck the entire evening! The houses here are just 20 feet apart and no place to be launching explosives into the air!! There are several police officers that live here in our neighborhood yet the laws are not enforced and it is beyond frustrating!! There are so many public fireworks displays everywhere, I wish that folks would be satisfied enjoying some of those! But above all of the picnics and BBQs and fireworks displays, let us be thankful for the men and women who continue to fight for our freedom.

A couple of weeks ago I received a fabulous surprise in the mail. The flag and holder you see pictured was a gift from my sweet friend Pat! I know I've mentioned before the wonderful things that she and her husband creates and this is one of them! The wooden base was made by her husband and I just think it's stunning! Thank you again Pat!

It seems that many of us are getting a temporary break from the extreme heat, whatta relief! I know many who do not enjoy the Summer heat and are wishing for the seasons to change but a sweet friend reminded me the other day that we should not wish our lives away hoping for time to pass but instead cherish every moment! Growing old is a privilege denied to many and there's a reason today is called the "present", it is a gift from the universe, and we should try to do something that makes us happy every single day! Have a safe and joyous weekend!

~ Birthday Wishes For A Friend ~

2010-06-23T19:20:00.002-04:00

As of right now, it's just past midnight in the UK, which means that it's officially Thursday, which means that IT'S KAREN'S BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!

How about we all hop on over to her blog and wish her a happy one!

here's the link! Primitive Life In An English Cottage

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KAREN!!!!!!!!

~ My Winnings, Pinkeep, Summer Decorating ~

2010-06-17T10:48:00.007-04:00

Good gosh it's been hot as blazes here in Central Virginia! I think I heard on the news the other day that it has been one of the hottest Junes on record if not THE hottest! The heat does not agree with me, as many of you know I'm a lover of winter, put it together with the hot flashes I'm experiencing and it is NOT a good combo let me tell ya!! egads it's miserable!! Well enough complaining, on to better things....

In yesterday's mail I received my giveaway winnings from Kath WOOHOO!! Everything was made by her and is absolutely PERFECT! and the doll was an added bonus! it is the first doll she ever made all on her own and it is cute cute cute! Thank you SOOOO MUCH again Kath!! I love it all!!

Next I wanted to share the latest pinkeep I have made for myself! hey I'm on a roll! it was designed by Jenny of Country Rustic Primitives!
Lastly I wanted to let you know that I've updated my Picture Trail with lots of new pictures taken from around my home. There's a whole new album of Summer Decorating as well as newly taken pics of our Family Room. There's a link to it over there in my sidebar too. I know how much we all love pictures and I hope that you will enjoy mine!

Have a great Thursday, a happy Friday, and a joyous weekend! ♥

~ The Best Birthday ~

2010-06-03T11:15:00.009-04:00

Thursday already? really?....these holiday shortened weeks always confuse me! I just wanted to do a quick post to say THANK YOU to all who wished me a Happy Birthday the other day! Thanks to facebook for letting many know it was my birthday and to a couple of very sweet bloggers, I got more birthday wishes than I've ever had before and it was fun! I heard from friends both old and new and even got a birthday wish from my high school sweetheart on facebook, how fun is that! I have never announced my birthday to anyone so it has always come and gone without any fan fare but I must say that receiving so many Happy Birthdays did indeed bring me joy! Also, I received a very special surprise in the mail! Kris gifted me with a pinkeep made by her hand!! I was really surprised!! Isn't it lovely? There was also a very nice birthday card included, Thank You ever so much Kris!! What a special special surprise!!
And my dear friend Karen from across the pond sent me gifts of lovely English chocolates, yum!!, a magazine with loads of pictures taken around where she lives which is fun to see!, a lovely birthday card with well wishes from her family, so sweet!, a wonderful rag ball she made, and a beautiful pea fowl made by her hand as well!! wow! Stunning aren't they? Thank You so very much Karen!!
I even received a gift from my boys which is quite rare as they are much like their father and don't posses the art of gift giving shall we say, LOL
They gave me the 24 scale die cast car of Dale Jr.'s # 88 NASCAR. It is one that has been missing from my Earnhardt collection. My oldest son Robert also picked out a lovely card for me. He always picks the best cards! A great card picker he is! My husband also gave me a card and the smaller version of this car so now my collection is up to date! Thank you guys!

I also wanted to share with you a picture of my very first handmade! But first I need to thank Jenny for all of her help! She is the one who encouraged me to try my hand and sent me everything I needed to begin out of the kindness of her heart! She also was so kind to answer all of my beginner type questions and basically taught me how to cross stitch through email and even a phone call so Thank You Jenny!! Yep, I did it! I started this cross stitch back in December, and was hoping to have it completed to display for Valentines Day but procrastinated. I bought an inexpensive sewing machine thinking that I might possibly start making things to sell and was so intimidated by the thing that it sat in it's box for months until last week when I finally decided that I was going to figure out the thing come hell or high water so I sat myself down with the instruction book and proceeded to successfully thread the bobbin, thread the machine, and began sewing up my first ever pinkeep! A few days prior, I experimented with some walnut ink crystals I purchased from Wendy and am pleased with how the fabrics took the stain so voila! here is my first attempt at cross stitch and a completed pinkeep!
It is rag stuffed, I bought some muslin to cut into pieces and boy let me tell you that I am amazed at how much fabric it takes to stuff something so small!! I have always loved the feel of rag stuffed handmades and now have a new appreciation for it! I still haven't figured out how the heck do some of you get things to feel so solid? As much fabric as I have stuffed in there it still feels cushy and I would like for it to feel firm like many of the handmades that I have purchased! So any and all tips would be much appreciated and welcomed!

Well so much for the quick post, LOL It turned out to be longer than I thought! Over the long weekend I accomplished putting away my spring decorations and have begun my summer decorating and I'll be sure to post when I'm done! Enjoy the rest of the week and have a great weekend!

~ Congratulations & Curtains ~

2010-05-27T11:29:00.006-04:00

Well that's another American Idol overwith for another year and CONGRATULATIONS LEE!!!!!!!!!!!....he really is what the show is all about and I can't wait to hear his album!!! Crystal is so very talented and I wish they both could have won!!! The show certainly won't be the same without Simon Cowell will it and I wonder who the heck will they get to fill his seat! Hopefully it will be someone in the music industry because having someone who isn't just seems odd to me...like Ellen for example....sure she's funny and all that but what exactly is the point of her being there??....oh well that's just my take! Tonight So You Think You Can Dance begins and I enjoy that show too but American Idol is my favorite.

Also, for those who have been waiting for the Tobacco Cloth Panel Curtains to arrive, they're here!They arrived yesterday afternoon and in all three lengths! Thank you again to Pam for permitting me to use her picture!

I hope everyone has a wonderful Memorial Day weekend and remember to fly your American flag proudly to honor those who have served our country so bravely!

~ American Idol and New Wares! ~

2010-05-20T16:48:00.006-04:00

Well as I had predicted, it will be Crystal and Lee in the American Idol finale! I've been pulling for Crystal all along but after Lee's Tuesday night performance, I don't even care which one of them wins!! Wow was he ever awesome! He had his best night ever! He's the same age as my oldest boy so I am finding myself with a soft spot for him. I think they both should win!!

I know some of my blog buds like to shop with me so I wanted to be sure and let you know that there are New Wares! There's several new pieces of Treenware, new florals and berries, a new primitive candleholder, and a few other fun things! The only thing that isn't actually here yet are the Tobacco Cloth Panel Curtains and they are supposed to arrive by the end of May or first part of June. I decided to stock them after Pam posted pics of her's on her blog because people were asking me if I could get them so they are on the way! I thought they looked so lovely in Pam's home that I asked her if she would allow me to post her picture of them on my web site and she so graciously said yes! So if the picture looks familiar, that's where it came from! Thank you Pam!!

Can you believe that Memorial Day is almost here? Yep, it's almost summer and time to change our decor around! I've got a fresh batch of really nice red geraniums that look fantastic in an olde crock too!

Well that's all for now....tomorrow is Friday so have a great one and a joyous weekend too!

~ Happy Mother's Day, Make-Do Chair, Happy Birthday, American Idol, & a rant ~

2010-05-05T10:27:00.037-04:00

Yep, all that the title says in this one post (it's a long one) only in reverse order! LOL....first the rant....you know those commercials for those male dysfunction meds?....yeah those....well there is one in particular that is currently airing that drives me especially bonkers!....it's the one where two gray haired folks are supposedly painting interior walls when all of a sudden they both reach for the paint roller at the same time and oooooo aaaahhh the urge hits them!....yeah cuz nothing says romance like working and sweating in raggedy paint clothes, right?!! puhleeeeze!! give me a freakin break will ya!!

Ok now with that out of the way I feel better!....next, American Idol....I just want to say that I LOVE THAT SHOW!!!!!!!!....it really is my very most favorite show on television!!!!!....no violence, no sick people, no people in peril, just PURE ENTERTAINMENT!!....gotta love it!!....and this season is particularly awesome because let me tell you these folks are stars and they didn't even know it!!....what talented young people they are and it's so exciting to watch before your vary eyes a young average life change into something extraordinary!!....personally I am rooting for a Crystal vs Lee finale!

Next subject....today is my baby's birthday....Happy Birthday to Michael!!....I've just finished baking his favorite cake, lemon with lemon frosting....yep my baby boy turns 20 today so I am officially done with teenagers HOORAY!!....and I lived to tell about it!! LOL....I am very proud of the young man that he is!....some of you may recall a post I made last year about him wanting a Corvette....well enough deliberation went on long enough for him to decide all on his own that it was a bit beyond his financial ability at this time so his second choice was a Z28 Camaro....they had stopped making them in 2002 until this year and since he can't afford new, he found online the very car he wanted, color and all, with low mileage, and it was in South Carolina....I think I made a blog post about our adventure driving there and back in one day too....that was in January....anyway....here is a pic that I took of him yesterday afternoon:Oh how he loves that car!!....and at 20, he is already is on his 4th car!....not because anything happens to them, because he just hadn't found one that he loves until now!....when he first started driving, I was still driving the car I bought new while pregnant with him and figured it was time for me to get a new car, which I did, and passed my Honda Accord, good ol' Miss Pickle, as I called her, down to Michael which he drove for about a year....how funny is that?....the car I bought new while pregnant with him was the first car that he drove? LOL....well he really wasn't all that wild about poor Miss Pickle, him being a Chevy guy and all, plus this was during his gangsta period listening to rap and all that crap, LOL....and the car he thought he really wanted was a Cadillac of all things, so he purchased an older one that had been a rental car:

....here's a pic of it taken in the parking area of a nearby Civil War Battlefield, see the cannons right above the roof of the car?....pretty cool huh?....if you can enlarge the picture you'll be able to see them.
anyway....here's a pic of him during what I call his gangsta period:I call it that because of the clothes that he wore and the music that he listened too....but he seems to be past that now, LOL....so he drove the Cadillac for about a year and decided that he wanted something a bit sportier....he was having a very difficult time finding something that would fit his budget and settled on a low trim level Monte Carlo.

I happen to think this is one of the best looking cars ever made, but he was never quite happy with it because what he really wanted was a Corvette! So he drove this car for not quite one year before the quest began for a car he could really love, LOL....I am happy that, for now at least, he is in his glory with his red Z28....I love you Michael!

Now the make-do chair....I have wanted one for a number of years and my wish has finally come true WOOHOO!! Both husband and I are self-employed and I am the bookkeeper for both businesses as well as the tax preparer for both businesses, and after a long and grueling tax season, husband said to me, "you should treat yourself to something for all your hard work"....well let me tell ya, you don't have to tell this gal twice!! LOL!!....so after giving it some thought I narrowed it down to a few possibilities....then I saw that Pat (Olde Bittersweet Farm) was preparing to have an update so I emailed her to ask if by chance was she going to be offering one of her very famous make-do chairs....she said that she wasn't planning on it but that she did have one really nice olde ladder back that she could make into one special for me!!....oh be still my beating heart!!....she asked what type of fabric I was looking for it to be done in and VOILA!!....it was to be!!....now before I show you pics....I must tell you that Pat is one of the sweetest, kindest, and most generous people I have ever met!....I only wish that I could actually meet her in person!....and when you go to her Picture Trail, have a drool bib handy because YOU ARE GONNA NEED IT!!....oh my goodness her home is GORGEOUS!!!!!!....and her husband makes the most fabulous treen items, you'd swear they were antiques!!....between the two of them, they are so talented, and offer the most unique and wonderful items!! Thank you Pat and Don for all that you do!! Now here is my dream-come-true make-do chair:
It is covered in linen and is BEAUTIFULLY MADE!!

I have been playing around with what to display in it
and have decided that this is what I like for now:I placed it next to the entertainment cabinet in the family room and moved the chair full of dolls I had there into the bedroom.Here's the chair in the bedroom next to the sideboard:
I actually really like how it looks with the chippy white sideboard along with all my other dark accents!
Ok so by now I'm thinking that this has got to be the longest post I've ever done and I'm hoping you're still with me! LOL....because with Mother's Day being on Sunday, I wanted to take this time to wish all the mother's out there a most Happy and Joyous Mother's Day!!....being a mom really is a rollercoaster of emotions isn't it?....joy, worry, love, worry, proud, worry, happy, worry, sad, worry, more joy and more worry! LOL....well I will admit to being a worry wort and from what I am told, that will never change, oh joy! LOL Happy Mother's Day!!

~ A New Candle Holder & A Giveaway ~

2010-04-22T15:32:00.002-04:00

The shipment I was waiting for of Adjustable Iron Trammel Candle Holders arrived today and if you love the Primitive Colonial style then you will love this one! It's length adjusts from about 17" to 28", pretty cool huh?

I also wanted to be sure that you noticed the link over there in my side bar to Karen's latest giveaway! She is giving away a charming Pea Fowl that she made and designed herself!

That's all for now!

~ New Wares! ~

2010-04-18T12:23:00.002-04:00

I know that many of my wonderful online friends are also some of my favorite customers so I wanted to make a quick post here to let you know that I've just finished adding lots of new goodes to my shoppe! Here's a look at just a few:

Have a great week!!

~ Salem Treenware ~

2010-04-13T17:11:00.016-04:00

I have collected Treenware from The Salem Collection for many years, way before I ever had a shoppe! I have always loved the fact that it is MADE IN THE USA!....yep just down the road in North Carolina! Their company grew quite a bit and they expanded into selling imports along with their Treenware that has ALWAYS been American made, but as with many companies these past couple of years, their financial state became unstable and they had to shift gears and reorganize. They've recently downsized and have gone back to the basics, and I am told that, at this time, they don't even have plans of making their wonderful pumpkins this year!....they are really back to the basics! In the meantime, the shelves reserved for Treenware at Winter Willow Primitives had become quite bare as there hadn't been a shipment in months! But alas, Treenware production over at The Salem Collection has resumed!.... and today I received a shipment from them, mostly bowls, but those shelves are once again full of wonderful American made Salem Treenware, and I am so glad because I just love this stuff and am proud to offer this quality American made product to my customers!
hip hip hooray! looks like they're back in business!

~ Customer Service ~

2010-04-08T23:34:00.017-04:00

I have enjoyed shopping online ever since I got my first computer in the late 90's so needless to say, I have done quite a bit of online shopping and have had many different experiences from fantastic to good, not so good, to downright awful. Lately I have had a couple in the downright awful category but I have also had a few that I would call fantastic! I would like to share with you a fantastic one in particular. They are a mother and daughter team who sell on ebay. Their store is called thebeanhousestore and they sell all sorts of wonderful items! Their service is top notch, they don't overcharge for shipping, and they are as helpful as can be! I have purchased several of their handmades, have been pleased as punch with everything, and wanted to pass along their link to you. Thank you Karen and Carol for providing such great service!

In my last post I made mention of a box I was expecting from my friend Karen in the UK so I wanted to show you what I got. A set of three books that she covered in lovely burgundy calico fabrics and one of her little girl dolls, that I love so much, dressed in brown. These little girls are so addictive! I have quite a collection now and I have always received the most excellent service from Karen too!

The other thing I wanted to show you is this gorgeous gameboard that Kath made! She made it in a custom size for me which is a bit smaller than what she was offering and it turned out beautifully! Another example of the kind of customer service I enjoy!

I won't mention the folks who have disappointed me because my mother taught me that if you don't have anything nice to say then don't say anything. But what I will say is that every experience, good and bad, teaches me the kind of shoppe owner that I strive to be. The Golden Rule is my motto, "Do Unto Others As You Would Have Others Do Unto You", I have that on a sign that hangs in my home above the front door. Wouldn't it be wonderful if everyone followed that rule? The world would be such a better place!

~ An Act of Kindness ~

2010-04-02T11:53:00.004-04:00

Yesterday in the mail I received a most wonderful surprise! Hubs was home at the time, brought the mail in, and yelled to me, "you've got some Royal Mail here" LOL....so I quickly ran into the kitchen where we sort our mail and there was a package from my dear friend Karen in the UK....there were actually two packages but I was expecting one of them because it was something I purchased from her and I'll post about that another time but I opened up the surprise package first and this is what was inside:a framed stitchery made by her hand with the fabric stained to perfection and the frame painted and distressed perfectly as well....the note that accompanied was so sweet and knowing that she made this just for me touched me to the point of tears....I wanted to find just the right spot for it so I began walking around the house and then it hit me, I've needed something in this spot for so long and it was just the right size!when our house was built back in '02, our builder had this picture of our house painted onto a piece of slate and presented it to us as a gift a few months later, which completely blew me away, and it has been hanging here next to the front door above the light switch ever since....
....and it is the perfect spot for my newest treasure!....THANK YOU KAREN SOOOOO MUCH!!!!!

Happy Friday to all and a most joyous Easter weekend!!

~ Pictures Galore! ~

2010-03-29T16:08:00.004-04:00

I've been working on posting home pics to Picture Trail and I think I've got them all sorted out and ready to view. Have a look when you've got the time! Here's the link: My Picture Trail

There's also a link to it over in my sidebar that looks like this:

Have a great week!

~ New Wares ~

2010-03-26T17:07:00.004-04:00

For those of you who love to shop like I do, I wanted to let you know that I've just finished adding new wares to my shoppe! These Dirty Creme Mache Eggs and this Potted Pearl Grass are among the new.

Have a joyous weekend!

~ word for the day ~

2010-03-25T10:34:00.003-04:00

asinine - inexcusable failure to exercise intelligence or sound judgment

I just love that definition! It tickles my sarcastic sense of humor so! I just wanted to share, LOL!

I have begun going around the house with camera in hand and will have fresh pics to post within the next few days....here's a sneak peek....it's a little table I have next to the front door....the jug, the doily, and the tray are all things I sell in my shoppe, and a candleholder very similar can be found in there as well....the sock kitty was made by Jenn of Rabbit Hill Primitives, isn't he cute?I just wanted to say hey....see you next time with lots of pics!

~ In A Perfect World (a rant) ~

2010-03-19T15:55:00.004-04:00

In a perfect world, a person's character would have something to do with their successes in life. I am just so frustrated with the likes of Tiger Woods, Charlie Sheen, and those who treat the people in their life so badly yet still hold high and esteemed places in the public....not to mention being rewarded by making TONS of money!! People say, "oh he's not a bad person", but what constitutes a "bad person" exactly? if not how you treat others?

Football players who engage in criminal activity in their private life are still allowed to return to, not only participate in, but be highly paid for their parts in the game. Tiger Woods is reportedly going to make his big "come back" to golf after exhibiting the behavior of an immoral pig! Then there's Charlie Sheen, he allegedly (probably actually) held a knife to the mother of his childrens' neck for pity sake! yet will remain the highest paid actor in television!! Does the name O.J. Simpson come to mind? It's all so obscene to me!

There is just soooo much violence being presented to us in the form of entertainment, from tv to movies to video games, it's all so wrong and I just don't get it!

~ Awesome Fred the Bear Giveaway! ~

2010-03-11T11:29:00.005-05:00

Karen over at the Primitive Life In An English Cottage blog is having a giveaway! She handmade the most adorable grubby bear named Fred! Isn't he fabulous? You can read the rules and enter her giveaway at this link here: Primitive Life In An English Cottage - Mother's Day Give Away ....good luck but not TOO much because I want to win!! LOL

~ Melancholy March ~

2010-03-05T10:51:00.010-05:00

March is such a sad month for me....aside from the fact that winter, my very most favorite season, ends this month....both my parents died in the month of March. My father died at the age of 37 from cancer, what a horrible horrible disease that is, that was on March 30th, 47 years ago....I was just 4 years old. My mother died from heart failure on March 20th just 5 years ago....she was out to dinner one evening with friends, walking into a restaurant, fainted, and that was it, her heart just stopped....what a terrible shock that was. She and I were not super duper close but I do miss her dearly. I miss being able to pick up the telephone and give her a call whenever I needed to talk to someone. I am an only child so I'm all that is left. March just leaves me feeling mighty blue to say the least ::::heavy sigh::::

Ok now with my reality aside, I wanted to share with you the new little wall cupboard that hubby made recently for me. It is fashioned after one that Linda has which was fashioned after one that Kathy has! Thank you Linda for measuring your's for me! I also copied the way Linda's is finished which is painted in the color named Powell Buff from Benjamin Moore and then sanded and stained with American Walnut from Minwax. I just finished it last weekend and I think it came out dirtier looking than originally intended but it's growing on me. I had hubs hang it for me in the dining room and I've tried my very best to decorate it with a "less is more" approach....what do you think? There are two things that I bought special to go inside this cupboard....the stack of boxes with the little animal on top is from Jackie of T.F.C. Folk Art, the boxes are just the perfect size for this shelf! Then right below is an adorable little doll that was made by Karen of Primitive Treasures at Gingerbread Cottage....I am such a fan of her handmades....she does beautiful work! On the bottom shelf is a cute little framed willow tree stitchery....I sell them in my shoppe and just had to keep one for myself!

Speaking of Karen's handmades, I have another of her lovely little dolls sitting on the table that sets in the bay window of our study. This arrangement was inspired by an arrangement that Linda has or had in her office. The beautiful feather basket was made by Pam, I got the fabric covered books from Primfolks By Judy, and the bird pin cushion from Tammy over at Rock River Stitches. The tall wedding band hog scraper candlestick is something I've had for quite a long time but I really like how it all looks. Thank you Linda for the inspiration!

Well this weekend it's supposed to be at or above sixty degrees here in Central Virginia which is much too warm for me so as Mother Nature drags me kicking and screaming into spring, at least I know that there are many who the season makes happy so in that I can take solace.

Enjoy your weekend!
Janet

~ Antiques & Changing Seasons ~

2010-02-25T09:39:00.004-05:00

Well I have been so busy I haven't known which end is up! There was a hectic couple of weeks where I was adding new product to my web shoppe, which has been very busy lately, so I've been packing orders like crazy. Then last Monday, the 15th, my computer started acting strangely and I spent all day diagnosing the problem which ended up being a stinkin' virus!! what??!! In my thirteen years of being online I have never had a virus! I had McAfee anti-virus software installed too which did not alert me to anything so now I have Norton's which I'm hoping will be better. The next day, on Tuesday, I decided that I had no other choice but to reformat my hard drive. For those of you who aren't sure what that means exactly, it means that you delete absolutely everything from your computer's hard drive (that is where all information is stored) and I mean EVERYTHING....even the operating system. You have to start completely from scratch, which I dare say is a challenge even for myself who I fancy as somewhat computer literate! LOL. You have to reinstall drivers for alot of the hardware in the computer and not to mention all of the software and updates. Needless to say, it is extremely time consuming!! So I am just now getting around to making a blog post about a trip I took to my favorite antique store shortly before Valentine's Day. Here is what I purchased:
The crock because I liked its size, it wasn't expensive, and I am always looking for this size of container to plop a plant in or some artificial greenery or flowers in. The hog scraper style candlestick because it's really heavy and because I have a candleholder fetish. Then the most fun is this old checkerboard....I saw it there when I visited a week or so before Christmas and I was already buying a few things and didn't want to spend the money that day so I told myself this time that if that board was still there it was coming home with me so I guess it was meant to be! I just love it....it's a really old piece of thick wood with a faint checkboard painted onto it. I picture in my head this board sitting on top of a whiskey barrel in a log cabin with someone on either side of it playing the game many moons ago. I don't know how old it is but it looks pretty darn old! Here's a closer pic of it:
I will probably use it as a display surface on the coffee table or maybe lean it somewhere, I just think it's cool.

Well I know most of you have had enough of winter and I'm seeing cute little bunnies being sewn and created and all things spring are what everyone is buying. I told myself that I am not going to buy one more bunny because for one thing, I already have plenty, and another thing, they are a symbol of spring which is actually my very least favorite season and I'll tell you why!
Winter is just so calming to me in many ways and then when spring comes it's like all hell breaks loose, LOL. First of all, have you noticed that when it snows everything is so quiet? Aside from that, during the winter season everyone is indoors more and I can tell you that living in a subdivision that makes for so much more peace and quiet. Once the weather starts warming up it's pretty much chaos all around with children playing in the street, balls bouncing into the yard, breaking the plants I spent good money on, bouncing into the cars parked on the driveways and denting them, and sometimes breaking windows. Oh and the absolute worst part of spring is all of the insects that come out of everywhere! I am deathly afraid of wasps and there are tons of them around here....we had them in California too though....I just hate them and they scare me to death! I've tried to come up with ways to manage my fear of them but have not succeeded....I read that they eat spiders so that is one score point in their column, LOL. But in spring every flying stinging biting cootie imagineable is around and I despise that with a passion! So I am NOT looking forward to saying farewell to winter, my very most favorite season!

I'll probably weaken though and buy a damn bunny cuz they're just so friggin' cute, LOL! Have a great weekend!

~ Valentine's Day & A New Blog ~

2010-02-12T20:45:00.009-05:00

I wanted to wish all my blog buds a Happy Valentine's Day!! I have a few pics from around my home to share with you but first I wanted to introduce you to a good friend of mine....her name is Karen, she lives in England, and she's just started a blog! The name of her blog is "Primitive Life In An English Cottage" and just you wait until she posts pictures of her home, it is absolutely charming! Please pop in for a visit, won't you?

Now about Valentine's Day, do you have special plans? Husband and I have gone to this certain restaurant every Valentine's Day now for about four years....it's called "Crab Louies", it's actually one of the few places around here to offer fresh fish which is what we like. It's in an olde historic house, Circa 1745....here's a pic of one of their dining rooms, taken from their web site:They do something really special for Valentine's Day....after dinner your server brings you a sample size box of "de Rochonnet" gourmet chocolates that are locally made, they're super yummy!....and all the ladies that are dining get a gorgeous long stemmed red rose!....all complimentary!....I think that is just so special. Well that is how we will be celebrating again this year. Oh and NASCAR fans everywhere are anxiously anticipating the Daytona500 which is on Sunday, woohoo!!...it's all good.

I have always loved Valentine's Day because I looooove hearts! So here are a few areas of my home that I've decorated for the occassion:
I think that about does it for now! I hope your day will be filled with things you LOVE! Happy Valentine's Day!!

~ SNOW!!!!! ~

2010-01-31T13:55:00.008-05:00

Snow Snow Glorious SNOW!!!!!....did you know that I love snow?? haha!....we had a wonderful snow day yesterday....no mix, no sleet, no freezing rain, ALL SNOW and powdery snow at that!! We got at least a foot and it's just FABULOUS!! Here I am holding some of the magical stuff!The sun is shining so brightly today I'm afraid it's going to melt too fast!....I cleared a path on the walkway to the front door so the mail lady can bring me my packages!The snow is so light and fluffy it's like pushing cotton balls! Husband let son put his "new" car in the garage because he didn't want to risk scratching it when he goes to scraping the snow off, LOL....he was anxious to see if he could get his car out.Have I told you before that I LOVE WINTER?? weeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!

~ Busy Adding New ~

2010-01-26T19:07:00.004-05:00

I have been very busy receiving new wares for my shoppe and wanted to share with you a few of my favorites so far!

The over-the-door hook candle holder is probably my favorite:I think this mason jar candle holder is really cool too:This little potted boxwood is just too cute:
There's still quite a bit more new on the way too so I'll be keeping busy!

Today I went to Target and bought the Michael Jackson DVD "This Is It"....can't wait to watch it! American Idol is on tonight so not sure if there's time this evening though. Also picked up the free 3D glasses Target is giving out for the Grammys....have you heard about the upcoming Grammy show where there will be a special 3D presentation of MJ's Earth Song?....IMO that is one of the best songs and best videos EVER MADE and I am very anxious to see the special presentation of it!

Also looking VERY forward to this weekend because it's supposed to SNOW YIPEEEE!!!!!!!!!!

~ $1 plus postage ~

2010-01-21T11:05:00.004-05:00

I am happy to report that I am feeling much better and am working on getting things back to normal around here! I've been slowly getting a few of my Valentine decorations put out in between processing all the new products I've got coming in for my shoppe! While going through my heart stuff I decided to part with something and wondered if anyone here would like to have it? It's a primitive make-do I purchased a couple of years ago and I'm afraid I don't recall who made it but I'm pretty sure I got it off etsy. The base has some issues that I'm sure one of you crafty gals could fix right up but I just don't have the time so I am offering it to the first person who wants it! All you have to do is pay the postage plus a dollar through Paypal. It weighs 14oz. in a Priority Mail box and it'll be anywhere from $4.80 to $5.44 depending upon where you live. The USPS recently changed their postage structure to packages under a pound having different rates now according to the zip code so I will need your zip code. And be sure to let me know if you want it sent insured because that will add $1.75. The dollar I am charging is really just to cover the fees Paypal will take. So if you'd like it just leave me a comment with your email address, your zip code, and if you want insurance, so I can send you a Paypal invoice....it must be paid right away and I will mail it right away....thanks!

~ American Idol & Doctor Visit ~

2010-01-14T16:58:00.006-05:00

pants on the ground pants on the ground lookin' like a fool with yer pants on the ground!! hat turned sideways gold in yer mouth lookin' like a fool with your pants on the ground pants on the ground....OMG was that hilarious or WHAT??!!!!....I got the biggest kick outta that guy!

today I decided that I was sick of being sick so I went to the doctor and I hate going to the doctor! he says I have bronchitis and gave me a prescription for antibiotic....it's been awhile since I've taken antibiotic....you'd always have to take a pill for ten days but this one you take two the first day then one a day after that for a total of five days which is so much better!....with the longer dosage time, people would often not finish their pills when they started feeling better which led to the misuse of antibiotics so it's good to know they've improved upon that situation.

hopefully the next time I post I will be able to report that I'm feeling well again....have a lovely Friday and a great weekend!

~ Time For A New Post ~

2010-01-13T11:32:00.005-05:00

Since it's been over a week since I last posted, I thought I'd better post something! I have been quite sick since Sunday evening....chills, really bad body aches, and chest congestion....not sure what it is but husband has had a cough now for over a week with no other symptoms and I probably got whatever it is he has only worse!
Last week on Wednesday, I drove our youngest son, Michael, to South Carolina to buy a car....he reasoned himself out of the Corvette and decided that a Camaro would be more age appropriate and since they quit making them in 2002 (until this year) he had been on the hunt for a Z28 in good condition, with low mileage, at a good price, and red....well he found the one he wanted at a Chevy dealer in SC....it's 6½ hours each way and we spent 5 hours at the dealer so needless to say that was an extremely long and exhausting day and probably is what weakened my defenses....anyhoo....I've got new product coming in for my shoppe and there is just no time to be sick!!

Speaking of which....I wanted to share just one new thing with you here on my blog....it's an herb grass candle ring that I just love!....I'm getting some new pillar candles in that I want to use this with but for now I'm showing it with my hog scraper candlestick. There's a limited amount of the rings in stock right now but more are expected next month. At Christmas-time there was a similar item in pine that was so popular that it sold out in minutes and I felt so bad that I didn't have enough to go around....the supplier sent me all that they had but assured me more is coming!

Since being sick, I haven't been able to get around to all my favorite blogs and I know that I'm really missing out....I sure hope I can kick this whatever-it-is soon!!....I enjoyed watching the new season of American Idol begin last evening....I heard that this is going to be Simon's last season....it sure won't be the same!

Until next time....

~ Cool Flax Comb ~

2010-01-03T13:24:00.004-05:00

Happy New Year everybody! I hope this new year and this new decade is off to a good start for all.

I wanted to share with you this very unique and awesome item that I purchased a few weeks ago. It's a flax comb made out of hardwood handmade by Art Haber of Old Colony Primitives. What nice folks they are to deal with too!

You can get it made with or without the heart but I adore hearts! I was saving it to place until after I got all of Christmas put away and as soon as I knew where to hang it I just had to show you!

Yep, on the blanket crane! I was wondering where to put it, then the blanket crane dawned on me, and I thought to myself, DUH! this is the perfect place for it, why wasn't this the first place that came to mind? LOL, oh well....I like the way it looks there. It's such a cool thing this flax comb, dontcha think?

Well it certainly is winter here in Virginia but winter in Virginia is a walk in the park compared to just a few hours north of here. It's definately cold enough to snow but the air is bone dry and it's windy today which is one thing I really hate, the wind! All our snow is gone except for the big piles that are left in the parking lots so I am ready for more!

Enjoy the rest of your Sunday and have a great week!

~ Happy New Year!! ~

2009-12-31T14:46:00.004-05:00

Every year since I can remember, I have watched the ball drop in Times Square on television so that is what I will be doing at midnight....haven't spent a New Year's Eve away from home since I was in my twenties which was a LONG time ago, ha!....I always worry about my kids being out and about with all the drunk people and hope they aren't one of them!....I guess a mom never stops the worrying.

I wanted to wish all my friends here in blogland a VERY Happy New Year! I hope that not only this new year but this new decade brings good things to many!

Happy New Year my friends!
Janet

~ It's Christmas Eve Eve! ~

2009-12-23T09:11:00.002-05:00

The picture is a painting by Thomas Kinkade (yes that's how you spell it) and it's called St. Nicholas Circle. I have it as my computer's desktop wallpaper every year at this time, isn't it festive?

I just wanted to take a moment to wish all of you a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!! I am thoroughly enjoying meeting all my new friends here in blogland and sharing our love of things olde~n~early. I think we are a special group!

Merry Christmas everyone!! {{{{HUGZ}}}}
Janet

~ SNOW! and a few more decorating PICS! ~

2009-12-19T16:18:00.009-05:00

Well this was definately a day for the record books here in Virginia and the most snow this So.Cal. gal has ever seen! We've got about a foot and it's still snowing right now! This is our backyard and that big mound is the BBQ! LOL
Here is the front of our house. Our youngest son had to be to work at 6AM (perfect!)....his car parks on the driveway and was pretty entrenched so we got up to take him which was quite the adventure at that hour! I took a couple of pics in the afternoon when I went back out to pick him up. This is our subdivision street, as you can see it hasn't been plowed but other's had driven on it including me earlier! You have to be very careful!
This is a pic of the street that you drive down to get to our subdivision, it's considered a secondary road and by the time I had to go pick him up it had been plowed but it hadn't been at 5-something in the morning and that too was quite treacherous but doesn't it look pretty!
I'll bet some of you who get snow all the time are rolling your eyes but this is all very exciting for me! LOL

While you're here I thought I would share a few pics of the tree I have in my office that I forgot to show you last time!
Most of the ornies were made by Shannon of Sweet Liberty Homestead, she sells on ebay and I purchased a few ornies from her last year and a few the year before.
There's little log cabins and barns and a couple different lanterns that have a hole in the bottom so you can insert a light from the strand up in there! Cute huh? I added a few candles and paper ornies and think it makes for a mighty cute tree!
Then lastly, I wanted to show you the blanket crane that husband made me using Kris' tutorial (Thank You Kris!) He did make a change to it, he modified the middle piece a bit and added screws to the top and bottom of it so it can move side to side. I have been saving that throw just for this! I also hung a little framed Christmas print on it for now.
I figured that today would be a good day to hang it so we did. I had a couple of pictures in that spot before but took them down to make room for the blanket crane.
Well that's all for now! This is the first time in my entire life that I've had snow around me right before Christmas and it's WONDERFUL!! Merry Christmas!!

~ Lots-O-Pics! ~

2009-12-14T19:29:00.046-05:00

Well I think I'm done with my Christmas decorating....for now anyway, ha! I've got lotsa pics to share so here we go!

I've done the mantle the same for a few years in a row now, not tired of it yet!
Here's what the whole fireplace looks like:I love that olde sled leaning there on the right, it hides the electrical cords needed for the garland and wreath! Here's a closer look at the sled:
On the left side of the fireplace is the doll chair where I usually have my favorite dolls but I changed it up a bit for Christmas. That wonderful little basket you see there was made by Pam! I filled it with festive faux greenery and berries along with a few prim candy canes tied up with tinsel garland that I sell in my shoppe.Here's what it looks like when I stand back further:
Some of you may remember that not long ago I got that rocking chair that's in the corner, here's a closer look at that corner:I have a smaller coffee table now which makes it easier to keep it simple:I have an end table on either side of the sofa with two matching lamps and I change the shades to cranberry red and leave them through winter....I love the color combination of sage and cranberry!....the shades are parchment the rest of the year.
Here's a closer look at what I have on this end table currently....the doll was made by Jackie and I got those cute little seedlings from Pat....they are in wooden pots that were handmade by her husband!....I purchased one and one was a gift! That was so sweet! Thank you again Pat!!Here is what I have on the end table that is on the other side of the sofa....the Boyds Bear is very special to me because it was given to me by my youngest son one Christmas. He bought it with his allowance money and I remember it took quite a chunk but he wanted me to have it because he knew I would like it :)
I have a green painted stepback cupboard that my husband made several years ago and I usually have a sign hanging next to it that says, "Primitive Gatherings" but for Christmas I changed it out to this one, it's one of my very favorite Christmas songs! Can you read it? It says, "Have A Holly Jolly Christmas It's the best time of the year!"Since I'm here why don't I show you a closer look at what I have on the shelves of the green stepback. Here are the top two shelves....I sell the Joy and Star Blocks in my shoppe along with those cute little votive candles and the Spruce with Cones Sprays. Oh and that adorable little spool doll you see in the lower right of the picture was made by my friend Karen in the UK!
Then here is what is below....I wish you could smell that jar candle....I sell them in my shoppe and they are wonderful!I still have a couple chippy white tables in the entry way and here is what I have on the bottom of one....you saw the top in a previous post.Then here is the top of another table....I sell those Penny Quilt Flower Trays and Tea Dyed Doilies in my shoppe and that primitive gingerbread boy was made by Dru....I got him a couple of years ago and he's a favorite!And on the bottom of that same table I have more dolls made by Jackie and I sell those cute chambersticks in my shoppe!Let's see what's in the kitchen....here's a simple tree:And here's a display that I have on a little red cabinet that husband made quite some time ago....I have a fruit theme in my kitchen which is why those fruit label signs are hanging there.Back out in the family room....here's a couple of my favorite displays this year:In this picture there's an extremely primitive ginger made by Tina and a wonderful pinkeep made by Jenny. Oh and I sell the cute Spool Light with Star Bulb in my shoppe, love those!
My wall cupboard of course gets a few things added for Christmas:Here's a look at the table below and a closer look at what's hanging from the pegs on the wall cupboard....there's the Cranberry Striped Tapers that I sell in my shoppe and on the right is a special pinkeep that was a gift made by Lisa! Thank you again Lisa!
In the center is a hand painted card made by Maureen and I sell those cute Striped Woolen Mittens in my shoppe!

And here's a closer look at an arrangement I made with some wonderfully charming gingers and candy canes made by Barbara:Well I think that's about it! No, wait! I also tweaked my folkart cabinet a bit from the last time I posted:Ok now that's it!
Merry Christmas!

~ A Few More Christmas Pics & Some Links! ~

2009-12-04T11:24:00.022-05:00

I am slowly making progress with the Christmas decorating....the mantle is actually done but I can't take the picture until husband goes up in the attic and brings down the olde sled that I lean up against the wall on one side. I'm kinda stuck for ideas in a few areas and I'm waiting for a couple of goodies to come in the mail which should help LOL, I think it's fun to have a few new things to play with! So here are a few more pics for now. I'm sure you remember this folk art cabinet that hubs made recently:Here's a closer look at what I have on top....the bench was made by hubs from a tutorial that was on Char's blog a while back and I got the other little wood piece from Winterberry Prims last year. There are two Schneeman candy canes, a Jackie Schmidt doll, and a pillar candle with a poinsettia stitchery made by Shelly Auen. The Belsnickle Santas, the jar candle, the Gingerbread man that is peeking out of the drawer, and the hogscraper candlestick are all items that I sell in my shoppe!
Here's a little table that sets in the entry way. The bird was made by Tammy, the little flicker candle that is wrapped with fabric was made by Betsy, and the homespun mat is from Olde Thyme Homespun, I also got a new tree skirt from them too and it's very nice!This is the top of the crock bench husband made some time ago, I don't have the bottom part done yet. The doll and the kitty were made by Betty and the jar candle is one I sell in my shoppe, it smells soooo good and I love the scent throw on these!Here's how the foyer table is looking. There's a basket with gingers and candy canes made by Barbara and on the mirror's shelf you'll see a tiny doll from Ghost Island Primitives and a pinkeep made by Lisa. On the pegs is a wee Onion Basket made by Pam that I filled with faux cranberries, a Stein bird, and a cute hanging flicker made by Betsy.The breakfast nook table....the painted wood server bench hubs made some time ago, the hogscraper candlestick is one I sell in my shoppe, and I got the cute prim tree in the box from Winterberry Prims a couple of years ago.
Lastly for today, here is the dining room table....the sun was shining in bright yesterday when I took this picture. The Belsnickle Santas and the Colonial reproduction table runners I sell in my shoppe, I got some preserved cedar branches from Early Farm Primitives, and the olde basket I won recently on ebay for a really great price!

The weatherman is saying we might get a wee bit of snow tomorrow, I'll believe it when I see it!
Have a wonderful weekend everyone!
Merry Christmas!

~ Christmas Decorating Underway! ~

2009-12-01T15:49:00.002-05:00

Well I have been having lots of fun decorating and wanted to share some of my progress thus far. I usually try to get the main tree done first because, to be honest, I don't really enjoy doing it! It's not a primitive tree, it's the ornaments we've collected throughout the years. I used to do a 7 foot tree up until last year when our baby moved out....I bought an inexpensive 4 foot and found it soooo much easier to deal with....so even though that baby is back home again, I put up the smaller tree again. Granted, I'm not able to fit all the ornaments that the big one had but this one holds all the favorites. I have it sitting on the olde wash stand that I keep in front of one of the family room windows. Here's an overall view:

Here's a look at some of the ornaments:

My all time favorite ornament are those ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz, here's a closer look:

Now for something prim to show you, I put up a cute little tree on the boot bench hubby made a while back, leaned a picture in back of it, and added a snowman and some candy canes:

Then lastly for today, I took a picture of my primitive stepback that stands in the breakfast nook with it's Christmas decor:

That's all for today!

Merry Christmas!

~ Happy Thanksgiving ~

2009-11-25T18:18:00.000-05:00

I know everyone is probably busy cooking and baking but I wanted to get in my wishes for a Happy Thanksgiving to one and all!

~ Snowball Flicker Candle ~

2009-11-23T15:23:00.001-05:00

Well I have another cute item to share with you today! I just received my order for these cute snowball flicker candles that are handmade in Pennsylvania and I've just posted them for sale in my web shoppe!

Also, if you haven't read my previous post below, please do so and let me know your opinion, I appreciate all of your comments!

Have a lovely evening!

~ Need Opinions / Advice ~

2009-11-22T15:06:00.008-05:00

Ok ladies....I have a situation I'd like to share with you and get your motherly opinions and advice on. Our youngest son is 19, he is the most responsible and trustworthy 19 year old that I have personally ever known, and has never given us any reason to doubt his word. For about a year now he has been obsessed with buying a Corvette. He knows he can't afford a brand new one and wants an '05. He works near full time hours and saves his money. Husband and I have been hoping that he would take at least a couple of years to save enough for the down payment but on Friday he announced to us that he now has enough money and is ready to start looking for one to buy. He will need one of us to co-sign the loan so essentially we are in control ultimately of whether or not he achieves this goal. He has his expenses all planned out so that he can afford both the car payment and full coverage insurance. Both husband and I feel that it seems unusual for a 19 year old to have a Corvette. It's not that we're afraid he's going to drive recklessly because that's not what he's about. We don't feel right telling him "no" just because we don't think a person his age should have such a car. It just doesn't seem right for some reason and I'd love to hear what others think!!

I guess maybe I'm looking for someone to tell me that it's ok? I dunno!

~ Angel Vine Garland ~

2009-11-20T11:32:00.003-05:00

From the same place I got those pine candle rings, I purchased the last 5 of their Angel Vine Garlands, these are really nifty! They're so light and wispy and easy to work with. I've just posted them for sale in my web shoppe. I will check back after the first of the year to see if they get more in so for now there's just 5 of them!

Have a great Friday and a wonderful weekend!!

~ Faux Pine Candle Ring ~

2009-11-19T16:54:00.006-05:00

I don't know about you but I have had the hardest time finding an artificial pine candle ring without cones and berries etc. JUST pine that isn't cheap looking. So when I found this one the other day I ordered several for my shoppe because I was thinking that I might not be the only one having a difficult time finding them! Well they just arrived and I am quite pleased with them! It's a small wreath that's on a grapevine base so it looks nice and full. I think the pine alone looks more colonial and it's exactly what I've been searching for!

I am so anxious to decorate, it won't be long now!!

**UPDATE** These are all gone....I never sold out of anything so fast!....I wish I had bought more!

~ Project Completed! ~

2009-11-15T11:36:00.006-05:00

For the past few months my husband has been working on a big project for me and today it is finally done! Our 25th Wedding Anniversary is on Tuesday and this is the perfect gift, thank you dear! I have named it the Folkart Cabinet. The line you see behind the heart is actually a lamp chain that hangs down against the wall in the corner.
Here's how it began:
Here is my husband:
I designed the cabinet from elements taken from basically three other cabinets I've seen. Here it is before the doors had hinges:
Nice roomy drawer:I saw an olde cabinet with a heart in the middle of the backsplash in a popular book and it was the inspiration for the backsplash on my cabinet.The shape at the bottom was inspired by yet a different cabinet I saw in a picture.It was painted with two coats of flat black then heavily sanded then hand rubbed with Tudor Brown Briwax. I found the Briwax really difficult to work with so I'm sure I wasn't doing something right and I'm sure I put on too much. This picture was taken with the camera flash on:
This picture was taken with the camer flash off:Here is a close-up of the finish:
The roomy drawer houses all of my candle supplies along with tarts and tealights.Lots of storage with room to spare:It sets in the corner of the family room where my chippy white sideboard sat. The hanging window is still suspended above. I've always had a "thing" about empty corners and I've had that window there for many years.
The chain that hangs down the back in the corner is from this chandelier that hangs above the area. Someday I hope to have a primitive tin light fixture here:I've moved some Autumn decor from the sideboard onto the Folkart Cabinet:
But this week I'll be putting that all away then cleaning everything to make it gleam in preparation for the Christmas decorating I'll be doing the day after Thanksgiving. I've been tempted to start now but I'm such a creature of habit so that's the plan.

I'm gonna go and watch the NASCAR race now, there's only one left this season after today. I sure do miss the races during their off season.

Have a great rest of your Sunday and a wonderful week!

~ Veteran's Day ~

2009-11-11T10:32:00.002-05:00

Thank you to all the men and women who serve our country, Happy Veteran's Day!

~ Candles ~

2009-11-01T14:39:00.004-05:00

I love candles with a passion and am always trying new ones. Of course I have my favorites but I love trying different looks and scents. This past week I received an order of a new line of jar candles for my shoppe and of course I have to try them to make sure they are worthy of offering to my customers! Well I am so thrilled with the two that I've tried that I wanted to share! I am very particular when it comes to how jar candles burn....I hate when the wick smoulders and smells bad when you blow it out....I also hate when wicks don't burn well and give me all sorts of problems. Well so far these candles have wonderful wicks and their scent throw is fantastic! So if you are looking for a new candle to try, I highly recommend these! Not just because I am selling them but because I am a candle-a-holic and when I find a new one I love I want to share the discovery!

~ The Blue Ridge Parkway '09 ~

2009-10-25T20:15:00.018-04:00

Today we went on our annual drive up the Blue Ridge Parkway. It's one of my most favorite places on earth. It's a part of the Shenandoah National Forest, I inserted the link to the official web site if you'd like to know more about it. It's an hour and a half from our house so it makes for an enjoyable day trip.
We have gone at other times during the year but Autumn is a favorite time to go for obvious reasons!
There are many look out points to stop in. Today was a busy day up there as there were many people doing the same thing as we were.

Husband and me.

As many look out points as there are, I always seem to see prettier scenes along the highway and am always looking for a safe place to stop and snap pics.
Husband wanted to go to a nearby place called Crabtree Falls so we turned off the Blue Ridge Parkway and continued on. Along the way I spotted this AWESOME cabin! Once I stopped to take the pic I noticed a truck in the driveway and realized that it's someone's home, oops! It was just so cool lookin' I had to take a pic so I quickly snapped and hurried on along!
Crabtree Falls is a beautiful and picturesque place that is mainly for hikers but even I can make it to the first level! Husband goes up further but I am content right here.
You better not have a full bladder though with the sound of the water fall and all, LOL. It's a very pretty place, if I were either younger or in shape or both I'd probably have a go at the hike.
So once we had our fill of nature for the day we decided to head on home with one stop along the way at the Covesville Antique Store. What day trip would be complete without a stop in antique store anyway, huh? I didn't buy anything but I sure could have! ha!

I was able to listen to the NASCAR race on the way home on the radio and caught the last fifty laps or so on tv when we got home....can't miss the race ya know!

Well that was my Sunday, I hope you enjoyed reading about it, have a great week everyone!

~ Our Day in DC ~

2009-10-19T10:06:00.024-04:00

Yesterday the 5 of us (myself, husband, both boys, and daughter-in-law) all went on a day trip up to Washington D.C.....Relatives of mine (cousins) from Southern California were on vacation, touring New York, and decided to make their way down to D.C. to see the Smithsonian Institute. So being just 2 hours away, we decided to drive up to meet them. Erica, my DIL, had never met any of our family because they are all in So.Cal. so it was nice for her to finally meet some. I'm afraid I didn't take but a couple of pictures but I managed a pic of The Hope Diamond in The Museum of Natural History:

It's a very popular exhibit.

The Smithsonian Institute is actually several museums that are on both sides of The National Mall. I took a picture as we were going from The Air and Space Museum to The Museum of Natural History.

Walking across The Mall you have The Washington Monument at one end, the Capital building at the other end, and there were all sorts of activities going on in between.

Here's a tip if you ever want to visit these museums, DON'T EAT THE FOOD!!....OMG it was AWFUL!! It was really really expensive and super nasty!! The larger museums have their own food venues inside and they all looked pretty bad....we took a gamble on what looked to be the best one and it was horrible horrible horrible in every way! So either eat before you arrive or just be hungry! LOL

Today I will be playing catch up, it's amazing how far behind in everything one can get from being gone just 1 day! Have a great week!