Salmagundi

BED SKIRT SECURITY

2012-01-27T11:59:00.000-07:00

I've always called them dust ruffles, but I guess the manufacturers call them bed skirts - sounds better, I guess! At any rate, they have always been a fixture in our household. Always short on storage space, all that real estate under the bed could not go wasted -- thus, a dust ruffle to hide the clutter.

Since I've made scads of dust ruffles over the years I've developed my favorite way of making them. I love a secure dust ruffle -- I don't want it to move around and need daily fussing!

So, I use a fitted sheet that covers the box springs as a deck for the skirt. Then, I just attach the skirt with hook and loop tape to the fitted sheet. This allows the ruffle to be removed for laundry or to be changed out without disruption of the bed.

And, the fitted sheet holds everything securely. I have a mechanical bed which does have a lot more movement involved. So, I go one step further and use safety pins to secure the fitted sheet to the box springs. These pins are the best. They are curved for ease in pinning, and are quilt basting safety pins.

My dust ruffles always stay in place with the exact clearance I like.

I'm joining the following parties:

2805 for Potpourri Friday

Funky Junk Interiors for Saturday Nite Special

Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesdays

Thanks to the hosts of these blogs!

Copy Cat Pillow

2012-01-19T12:49:00.000-07:00

Back in the 1950s as a teenager, I inherited a bunch of stuff from my step-great-grandmother including furniture and paintings. They were my first antiques, and started me on a life-long collecting journey. Among those belongings from her was this small embroidery with painted accents. She was a talented painter, and I assume she made this. I've always wanted to do something with it, and recently found this image below in an old November 2007 Romantic Homes magazine.

I decided to incorporate the embroidery into a pillow.

I'm always looking for ways to make things out of what I have on hand. So, I used muslin scraps plus plaid fabric from an old 100% wool Pendleton skirt.

My grandmother's button box did not yield any suitable buttons, so I asked Bob to make me some out of his supply of twigs. I think the buttons turned out perfect for this pillow.

I love the completed project and it is so suitable for our Colorado home!

I'm partying with the following blogs. Please stop by these blogs for a plethora of inspiration.

2805 for Potpourri Friday

Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday

Debbiedoos for Copy Cat Challenge Monday

Between Naps on the Porch for Met Monday

Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tuesday

Very Merry Vintage Style for Share the Love Wednesday

VALENTINE CANDY

2012-01-14T12:37:00.000-07:00

I realize it is a little early but this is a recipe to hold onto for Valentine's Day.

Yummy chocolate covered peanuts.

It makes enough to share with all of your loved ones, plus the neighbors. I need to share -- otherwise I'd eat them all!

Chocolate Covered Peanuts

32 oz. salted dry-roasted peanuts

4 oz. baking semi-sweet chocolate (4 squares)

12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips (2 cups)

1 1/2 lbs. white almond bark

Put peanuts in bottom of 4-quart crock pot. Layer baking chocolate, chocolate chips, and bark. Cook on low for 3 hours (you are just melting all of the chocolate). Stir with wooden spoon until smooth. Drop candy into mini-cupcake papers. Cool. Makes about 100 pieces of candy. I keep these in the freezer, and they seem to do just fine.

This week I'm linking up with the following parties. Be sure to check out these blogs, and thank them for hosting.

A Stroll Thru Life for Table Top Tuesday

Northern Cottage for Partytime Tuesday

Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesday

2805 for Potpourri Friday

Designs by Gollum for Foodie Friday

NEW YEAR RESOLUTION #1 - ALREADY FORGOTTEN

2012-01-08T15:36:00.000-07:00

Well, I haven't really made any New Year resolutions for years, but I do try to think about some things I need to accomplish in the new year. I've been thinking that I REALLY do need to curb this 60-year old collecting habit I have, especially when it comes to dishes. I'm just plain running out of room, and I've already purged leaving only the best and the ones I love the most.

BUT, yesterday we went to Colorado Springs. After running errands and having lunch, we had some time to kill before the 'Home and Remodeling' show opened. What to do? Of course, we stopped at one of our favorite antique malls.

I walked down one aisle, and there they were -- two 19th century aesthetic movement soup bowls in brown transferware. I was prepared to walk away after admiring them, but then the price caught my eye -- "pair of bowls - $9.95". That's way under the going price for one bowl, let alone two!!

I couldn't leave them there. After I got home with them, I noticed they had the same rim pattern as this wonderful pedestal dish that a friend gave me.

They aren't the same inner pattern.

But, so typical of the aesthetic movement!

I just love them!!! Guess my collecting days aren't over, yet.

I'm partying this week with the following. Check them out for lots of inspiration.

Northern Cottage for Partytime Tuesday

A Stroll Thru Life for Table Top Tuesday

Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tuesday

Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesday

Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

A COLLECTION - 3 OR MORE OF ANYTHING

2011-12-31T11:23:00.000-07:00

I've done numerous posts about my major collections -- mostly dishes! And when I first started blogging in 2008, I even did a series on my collection of favorite chairs and their stories. The chair posts can be viewed here, here, here, here, here, and here.

Today, I thought I would share four of my smaller collections. They may be smaller in number, but big in effort as I've diligently looked for these items in my price range for 20-30 years.

The first is my 'Clark's ONT' thread boxes. They are small at just 3 1/2"x4 1/2", and probably were given out as advertisement. The top one has an insert that contains a pin cushion and is signed by the same cabinet maker as signed our large Clark's spool cabinet that dates to the 1880s.

Below are three wicker picnic baskets. The one in the middle is quite large, and the other two were given out as premiums at Bob's family's grocery store in the 1950s. They are great for storage of other collections - one holds my collection of old hymnals.

I began looking for flash cards with the word 'home' on them, and never found any; but I've picked up these three that say 'house'. Not quite a collection are the flower frogs as I only have two that belonged to my mother.

As a child, Dick and Jane books were a favorite of mine as they contained my namesake - little sister Sally. The framed page on the left shows Sally with Mother at the sewing machine. My favorite is in the middle - "Work, work, work. Sally can work. See Sally work". The one on the right is a huge page from a teacher's display book.

These are just four of the things I look for when out and around.
I'm joining the following parties to start the New Year. Please check out these blogs and thank them for hosting.
The Polo House for the collection party on Jan. l
Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tuesday
Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesday
No Minimalist Here for Open House Party on Thursday
Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

FAVORITE PROJECTS - 2011

2011-12-26T18:55:00.000-07:00

In reviewing my blog posts for 2011, I realized that we didn't do as many projects as we usually do. Then, I realized you have to stay home to get a lot done. But, I was fortunate to do some traveling this year to Germany--

And to France--

Plus, I had a great girlfriend's trip to Santa Fe for 5 days, and Bob and I went to the Round Top, Texas antique extravaganza by way of New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Kansas. At our age, I'll take traveling any day to staying home and working on stuff!! Here are a few small projects that we did accomplish.

We had been looking for a way to display Bob's collection of plumb bobs for awhile. When we were in Round Top we saw some displayed on a big spool, so this was our copy of that idea.

This was a cheap yard sale rocker (without it's rockers). Bob made new rockers and restored the finish to its Mission-style roots.

I upholstered a new seat and made a cushion for a more comfortable back. This project went home with our son for his study.

Below was a little rearranging project with a Restoration Hardware vibe.

Another rejuvenation on an old chair -- Bob did his magic in the workshop taking this walnut Victorian chair apart, regluing and refinishing.

We then upholstered it in blue velvet. We just took it to the consignment shop, and hopefully it will find a new home.

A two-year entry way project was finally completed when I found this table; and we refinished a yard sale frame and inserted the mirror. The alabaster lamp was a gift, and I covered a lamp shade with a herringbone wool fabric.

Another project from the long ago-entryway project was this gallery wall. I debated a long time about what to put on this wall, and finally decided on this arrangement.

All in all, nothing big or too exciting, but fun projects just the same. I have a few things in mind for 2012; we'll see how many get done (if I stay home)!

I'm joining the following parties this week. Check these blogs out for a plethora of inspiration.

Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tuesday

Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesday

Southern Hospitality for Top 2011 Projects on Wednesday

From My Front Porch to Yours for Auld Lang Syne Party on Saturday

JOY TO THE WORLD

2011-12-22T18:57:00.000-07:00

AND SHE SHALL BRING FORTH A SON, AND THOU SHALT CALL HIS NAME JESUS; FOR HE SHALL SAVE HIS PEOPLE FROM THEIR SINS. Matthew 1:21

FINISHING UP PLUS THIS AND THAT!

2011-12-20T17:13:00.000-07:00

It was wonderful in Colorado today even though a lot of major highways in the southern part of the state were closed due to a huge snowstorm. We were on the northern tip of the storm and only received 4 inches of the white stuff. We took a little time out of the Christmas preparations to go down to the river to check it out. The sun was shining and it was beautiful!!

I changed up the decor in our Hoosier cabinet. The snowmen and Santas were moved into the guest room, and I got out my German Grandmother's set of Putz houses and churches.

She always had the houses and churches on her mantel along with this little mirror, deer, and bottle brush trees.

I, also, spent some time loading up the bags that I assemble to give out to friends.

This year the bags include blogland's famous 'White Trash'.

These cookies are called palmiers in some European countries, which means palm tree. However, in Germany they are called schweineohren, which means pig's ears. Gotta love the Germans - we tell it like it is!!!

Earlier I had made these decoupaged wooden tags/ornaments to attach to the bags.

And, everyone will get a couple of the Honig Lebkuchen.

I'm not the greatest photographer, but occasionally I get some lucky shots. I assembled some series of note cards from pictures I took this past summer while in Germany and France. I have series of churches, flowers, and other sights that I'm including in the bags. Just my thing to encourage the writing of notes!

The big thing I did today was the horrendous trip to the grocery store for the week. Does anyone else think groceries have really gone up in price? Tomorrow, we're making the two-hour trip to visit Bob's 97-year-old mother.

I do believe I'm about ready for the celebration of the birth of our Savior. How about you?

GERMAN COOKIES

2011-12-16T20:10:00.000-07:00

As a child, my German grandmother and I would make these honey-ginger (Honig Lebkuchen) cookies together; except that we would just roll and then cut in circles. We would pop them in the oven, and that is where everything would go wrong. My grandmother was a lousy cook and would burn everything! Recently, my cousin and I were talking about Grandma's cooking - he remembers the rubbery eggs and I remember the burnt cookies. I didn't know German cookies could be good until I was grown and making them myself!

I ordered the cookie cutter (shown in the top photo) from a German company about 35 years ago. I also bought the paper Santas that match the shape of the cutter at the same time.

The cookies are glazed, then a couple dots of frosting hold the non-edible papers on. When my kids were in grade school, I use to visit their classes where I would have all the kids glaze the cookies and put the papers on to take home while we would talk about the German Christmas customs. It was always great fun. I don't make the Honig Lebkuchen like this very often anymore. I only have enough paper Santas left to do about one more batch. I can't find any place to order them anymore, so guess I'll have to resort to photocopying and cut each paper out individually.

And here they are -- all ready to hand out to friends and family.

I'll be joining Centsational Girl for her cookie party on Tuesday, Dec. 20. Check it out for more goodies!

INFORMAL CHRISTMAS COFFEE

2011-12-14T14:00:00.004-07:00

I had a couple of friends over for a morning coffee/tea -- very informal! It was fun to get out these Debbie Mumm plates and mugs that I use just at Christmas. I bought them several years ago at Target.

There are four different snowmen scenes.

My fixation with plaid this Christmas called for a new tablecloth. I have had my eye on this flannel at JoAnn's for awhile. It is not the usual inexpensive flannel on the racks, but a nice quality. There are some wonderful plaid and houndstooth patterns/colors and sells for $10 a yard; but it has been on sale a couple of times this Fall. I paid $5 a yard for this red plaid.

The flannel washes and dries well, plus it fringes beautifully.

They also had this glen plaid that I used to make a pad for my Jim Shore Santa and sheep.

BTW, that's a great apple and pecan cake we enjoyed with our coffee/tea and conversation. And if that wasn't enough, we then went to our local French restaurant for lunch. It's nice getting older - we get to eat dessert first!

I'm celebrating the season at the following parties. Check them out for a plethora of inspiration.

Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesday

Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursday

No Minimalist Here for Thursday's Open House

French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday

A Stroll Thru Life for Table Top Tuesday

MORE IS NOT ENOUGH!

2011-12-08T11:22:00.007-07:00

I've really enjoyed blogland's simplified spaces for Christmas this season, but I don't think it is in my DNA to simplify when it comes to Christmas decor!

Our kitchen and dining room is basically one space; and, of course, it is where we spend a good deal of time. Over the years, we have collected a good amount of Christmas stuff -- so much of it with memories attached. I find it hard to not put it out to enjoy for just a couple of weeks.

This vintage kitchen cabinet holds a lot of the decor.

There are snowmen I have made over the years, along with part of my collection of vintage bottle brush trees which belonged to my grandmother.

Santas made by friends from vintage quilts.

Several years ago, I made a bunch of these snowmen in vintage blue canning jars to give as gifts to friends. Our grandkids love to shake it and see the snow fly.

Then, there is our collection of blown-glass tree toppers and ornaments from the 1940s-1950s. I'm especially fond of the ornaments with the cardboard hangers made during WWII when metal was scarce.

I bet you thought I was in love with only brown transferware, but I have a nice collection of red, also, which I always get out at Christmastime.

Friends have made and given me so many clever Santas over the years.

My daughter gave me this wreath about 10 years ago, but it received a new adornment and ribbon this year.

I guess 'simplify' is just not in my vocabulary during the Christmas season. There will be MORE in future posts - stay tuned.

I am joining the following Christmas parties. Be sure to check these blogs out for lots of inspiration.

Common Ground for a vintage Christmas on Friday, Dec. 9

French Country Cottage for Christmas Vignettes on Friday, Dec. 9

At the Picket Fence for Christmas in the Kitchen on Friday, Dec. 9

Keeping the Christmas Spirit Alive 365 for I'll Be Home for Christmas on Monday, Dec. 12

Michaela Noelle Designs of Holiday Decor on Thursday, Dec. 15

THE LITTLE TREE THAT GREW

2011-12-07T15:01:00.009-07:00

This is our 54th Christmas together, and our Christmas tree has changed very little over the years.

It just grew and grew like our marriage and our family!

Below, is that very first Christmas tree in 1958. We were newlywed students and hardly could afford to buy the tree. We had to forget about buying any ornaments except the one red glass ball. We strung some popcorn and cranberries, and I made those little red puffs out of some red net I already had.

To celebrate, we painted the year on the ball; and thus, began our family tradition. Every year since, we have painted the year on a ball; so this year there are 54 red balls on the tree.

And, of course, we have added lots of ornaments -- some from travels and some are gifts from friends and family.

We have several Hallmark series that we have purchased over the years. (Note to Hallmark: PLEASE can you stop the 'Nostalgic Houses and Shops' series - it's been 29 years now on that series - we're running out of room!)

Below, you can see the 1979 ball. We've never claimed to be artists, and there are some interesting paint jobs.

I found the candle clips about 30 years ago, but we've never lit the candles. They just seemed to complement the style of the tree with the strings of popcorn.

About 20 years ago, when we inherited vintage glass ornaments from both sides of our family; we started a second tree to accommodate those. Then, we bought blown glass ornaments on our trips; plus received meaningful ones from friends. I love this tree at night with the sparkle of my mother's mercury glass roping from the 1950s.

It takes about two days to put up these two trees. No help from the kids anymore, but Bob does help me. I intend to keep putting up the trees for as long as we're able - it's tradition!! I'm sure our kids, and now the grandkids would complain if we didn't.

I'm joining in on the following Christmas Tree parties. Please check these blogs out, and thank them for hosting the get-togethers!

Honey We're Home on Thursday, Dec. 8

2805 on Friday, Dec. 9

Thrifty Decor Chick on Wednesday, Dec. 14

OUR CHRISTMAS MANTEL

2011-12-03T15:59:00.013-07:00

It's not technically a mantel, because we don't have a fireplace. But, this is our substitute -- the cupboard with sliding doors that holds the living room TV.

Using the red plaid ribbon that I bought at Nell Hill's in Kansas City for inspiration, I went to nature for this year's Christmas decoration.

The candle holders are disc spacers from the farm salvage yard, contrasting with the elegance of 19th century brown transferware.

I'm joining all of the Christmas mantel parties going on this week in blogland - check them out for inspiration!

From My Front Porch to Yours on Monday, 12/5

Ten June Blog on Tuesday, 12/6

My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia on Tuesday, 12/6

Home Stories A to Z on Thursday, 12/8

COPY CAT CHALLENGE

2011-11-27T13:02:00.009-07:00

I've always enjoyed my magazines! Beginning back as a newlywed in the 1950s, the best part of the week was a Friday night when we would occasionally go out for dinner; then stop at the newsstand to buy the new magazines. Over the years I've found them to be a great source of inspiration. Up until now, I've never tried to be a total copy cat. But, since Debbie at Debbiedoos has thrown out the challenge to copy a magazine picture; I knew I had to give it a try. Especially when I saw this vignette in the Country Living, November 2011 issue.

I told myself that I couldn't go out and buy anything new - just shop the house, the yard, and the refrigerator. Also, I wanted to change up the original vignette from Fall to Christmas.

Here is my copy cat vignette exchanging pine cones for the pumpkin and adding some pine sprigs into the leaf arrangement.

My entry hall table is smaller and the mirror above it is rectangular rather than round; and the vignette reinforces what I already knew -- I'm not the best at floral arranging. But, the experience was fun - thanks Debbie for the challenge.

Please check out the following parties this week for lots of Christmas inspiration:

A Stroll Thru Life for Table Top Tuesday

Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesday

Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

Debbie Doos for Holiday Copycats on Mon., Dec. 5th

GIVING THANKS

2011-11-21T15:38:00.006-07:00

Yesterday was our Thanksgiving dinner at church. The Women's Committee fix the turkeys, dressing, potatoes, and gravy. Everyone else brings a side dish and a dessert to share. You can only imagine the wonderful food that was served! Various women also bring their dishes and centerpieces to each host a table of eight. I was busy and only managed to take these two pictures of my table. I regret I didn't get around to take pictures of the other tables.

Nothing too fancy on my part - I used my Johnson Brother's Friendly Village dishes and a centerpiece of blue Ball jars filled with beans, etc. to be used later in a Harvest Soup with leftover turkey next week. I loved the look with the candles lit making that wonderful blue of the jars sparkle.

May all of you have a wonderful week with your family and/or friends giving praise of Thanksgiving!!

I'll be joining Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for Table Top Tuesday. Please stop by her wonderful blog for a bunch of inspiration.

MY WEDNESDAY MORNING GROUP

2011-11-14T13:20:00.014-07:00

I believe I have mentioned my Wednesday A.M. Coffee Group on this blog before. We started out as a quilting group in the early 1980s getting together while our kids were in school to spend a couple of hours together sewing, eating, and chatting. Over the years our numbers have changed with some members moving away or going back to work; but we have always maintained a core group and still meet every Wednesday morning. We stopped quilting years ago, and now just eat and chat. At one point, we had kids in each of the four grade schools, the middle school, and the high school of our small town. Our husbands were in a variety of professions around town -- we've always had lots to talk about!! The youngest of those kids are in their 20s now, and some of us have grand kids in those same schools.

Over the years, we have really become good friends. One of the things we have always done is celebrate our birthdays together exchanging great gifts. As a recipient this month, I can tell you the good stuff keeps coming. These girls know me really well, and keep feeding my obsession for brown transferware. Below are some of my birthday presents from the Wednesday A.M. group.

First is this great soup bowl from the aesthethic period. It has the "Kite" mark on the back that indicates it was manufactured in England in 1880.

Next, is this cute little bowl that is now holding my pine cones that I brought home from Germany this summer.

Then, I got two of these bone dishes in the Tonquin pattern. They match two plates that I already had in that pattern.

Not brown transferware, but something that catches my eye these days is white ironstone. I received this great, large bowl with an old mark on the back. Isn't it a beauty?

See what I mean? They really know me well! I hope you are as fortunate as I am to have a close group of friends to celebrate birthdays with you.

I'm joining the following parties this week. Be sure to go by these wonderful blogs and thank them for hosting these events.

Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesdays

Very Merry Vintage Style for Share the Love Wednesday

No Minimalist Here for Thursday's Open House Party

French Country Cottage for Feathered Next Friday

Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

White Ironstone Cottage for Treasure Chest Friday

2805 for Potpourri Friday

PLUMB BOBS

2011-11-08T13:54:00.005-07:00

I'm convinced that there is something unusual out there for anyone to collect. My husband collects plumb-bobs. It was a natural - after all his name is Bob and in his career as a Civil Engineer, he was a licensed land surveyor.

According to wikipedia, a plumb-bob is a weight usually with a pointed tip on the bottom, that is suspended from a string and used as a vertical reference line.

It has been used since ancient Eqypt to ensure that constructions are plumb or vertical. It is also used in surveying to establish the nadir with respect to gravity of a point in space.

Bob has been wondering how to display them in his office. When we were at Round Top, Texas this fall; one of the dealers had theirs displayed on an old spool. So the search was on for a spool big enough to hold his plumb-bobs. We finally found one last week.

A GIANT CLOCHE

2011-10-31T10:08:00.010-06:00

For 35 years in our antique travels, we have been looking for an early 1900s ballot box. The rare times we have spotted one, it was way out of our price range. In a recent discussion with a class mate that worked at our hometown court house, we found out that she had acquired several ballot boxes years ago when they became obsolete. At our recent class reunion, she brought one to give us. We were thrilled beyond belief. It was in "stored in a barn for years" condition and needed three pieces of glass replaced. Bob, of course, loves a challenge like that. This is what it looks like now.

He took it all apart, restored the original finish, and replaced the glass. It was like a giant puzzle putting it back together. It took our four hands and arms, two bungee cords, a belt, and a few well-chosen words to get the eight pieces of glass to fit back in their slots and grooves.

The top locks with three separate keys -- we assume for three different people to prevent tampering with the election process. If only our current election process was still this simple. The original printing is on the top door indicating that it came from a ballot box company in Denver.

All of the time we were working on it, I kept thinking this could be one GIANT cloche. It stands 25" high and is 17" square. The eight pieces of glass form an octogon within the square framework.

I'm sure I'll have fun thinking of things to put into my new "cloche" for the various seasons.

I always love when a decorative item also has meaning to our family. My grandfather was a popular elected official for years in the early 1900s. I like to imagine that many votes in his favor were cast in this very ballot box.

I'll be joining the following parties this week. Check these blogs out for a plethora of inspiration.

A Stroll Thru Life for the Fall Cloche Party on Tuesday

Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesday

Restore Interiors for Restored It Wednesday

The Shabby Creek Cottage for Transformation Thursday

No Minimalist Here for Open House Party on Thursday

Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday

Funky Junk Interiors for Saturday Nite Special

FROST ON THE PUMPKINS

2011-10-27T10:03:00.005-06:00

We had a nice, wet snow yesterday!

So, consequently there was frost on the pumpkins this morning.

As you can see, our small garden produced a bumper crop of gourds and pumpkins this year.

Just in time for a Happy Halloween weekend!

Enjoy all those little ghosts and goblins!

IKEA EXPERIENCE

2011-10-23T07:02:00.009-06:00

We went to the new IKEA store in Denver this weekend ------ didn't buy a thing ------ don't need to go back. You have to be a better, more dedicated shopper than I am to enjoy THAT experience.

No need to tour a corn maize this Halloween season - I've been to IKEA.

Doesn't that just look like the floor map of IKEA?

If you are a REAL corn maize fanatic, I hear this is a great one. Check out Pope Farms, Wiggins, Colorado just up Hwy. 76 from Denver.

CHAIR METAMORPHOSIS

2011-10-20T16:08:00.008-06:00

My husband, Bob, loves to find old, neglected furniture to restore. This is his latest metamorphosis -- a chair that had lost its rockers, then left outside to deteriorate. It was in his price range of $5.00.

He took it all apart to re glue everything, then made new rockers; and finally gave it a new finish similar to its Arts & Crafts roots.

Then, it was my job to make a new upholstered seat. Since our son is taking the chair for his study as a reading chair, I also made a pad for the back for additional comfort.

Check out the following blogs for super inspiration; and be sure to thank these ladies for hosting these fun parties:

Between Naps on the Porch for Met Monday

Restore Interiors for Restored It Wednesday

The Shabby Chic Cottage for Transformation Thursday

Miss Mustard Seed for Furniture Feature Friday

ON TO KANSAS CITY

2011-10-14T15:47:00.011-06:00

From the Austin, Texas area, we headed north on our 10-day, 3000 mile road trip. Trust me - it is a long way across eastern Texas, eastern Oklahoma, then eastern Kansas through small towns on 2-lane roads. Have you ever heard of Greasy, Oklahoma or Arma, Kansas? Plus, I had no idea that Eastern Oklahoma had mountains. They call them mountains; but I'm from Colorado, we call them foothills. Nevertheless, they were very pretty! We finally arrived in Kansas City to visit friends.

While there, we went to Blackwell's Thrift Store, 1316 E. 63rd St., Kansas City, Mo. This was the cleanest, best organized thrift store I've ever seen.

This is the place to go if you are into vintage Pyrex, enamelware, or any type of kitchen stuff.

See that carpet - I actually had that in our family room back in the 1970s.

We then headed north to Nell Hill's Briarcliff store. I've always enjoyed visiting the Nell Hill's stores in north-eastern Kansas. They contain inspirational vignettes, lots of decorating ideas, nice furniture and accessories - all at fairly reasonable prices. My favorite part are all of the details on the fabric items that they fabricate.

It looks like lanterns will be big this Christmas season.

And, one of my favorite things -- plaid!

Square wreaths and plaid book covers.

The only thing I bought at Nell Hill's was a roll of wide red, plaid ribbon that is acrylic, but looks like wool - my Christmas inspiration!!

From there, we headed back south to one of our favorite antique malls, The Mission Road Antique Mall, 4101 W. 83rd St., Prairie Village, Ks.

There, I found another piece of brown transferware. I've been trying to accumulate enough large soup bowls in brown transferware to mix & match. I now have 7 - almost there.

We had wonderful food, and enjoyed the hospitality of our friends. But, it was time to head for home - a long ride across Kansas.

Next week, I'm joining in the following parties. Please check them out; and thank all of these ladies for hosting such fun, inspirational parties.

A Stroll Thru Life for Table Top Tuesday

Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesday

Very Merry Vintage Style for Share the Love Wednesday

Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

2805 for Potpourri Friday

ROUND TOP, CARMINE, WARRENTON ANTIQUE EXTRAVAGANZA

2011-10-08T13:51:00.010-06:00

Continuing on our 3000-mile, 10-day road trip, we headed to our main destination of the semi-annual Antique Week in Round Top, Texas. We arrived on Monday afternoon and started to scout out our plans for Tuesday. We discovered several tents along the highway that were set up and ready with great merchandise for customers.

Our plans for Tuesday were to spend the whole day at Marburger Farm, which has 9 tents, 12 buildings with 350+ antique dealers on 43 acres.

Unfortunately, this is the only picture I have of Marburger and I took it on Wednesday. Let's just say: one car locked-box malfunction PLUS big bucks to retrieve camera from said malfunction EQUALS one unhappy shopper/blogger/Honda owner!! All that didn't dampen our resolve to see as much as we could in the 104 degree heat. We had been to Marburger in 2006, but it has really grown into everything imaginable that could be considered vintage/antique. Thank goodness they had golf-cart shuttles, friendly people, lots of fans blowing, and huge glasses of ice available. We are at the point in our lives after collecting antiques for over 50 years that we don't need a thing, so we didn't intend to purchase much - just enjoy looking and checking out trends. But, what did we buy at Marburger? You know I can't resist brown transferware, so my treat from Marburger was this terrine. I bought it from some friendly gals from Pennsylvania who were suffering from the heat and willing to bargain.

Bob is a sucker for hand-made tool boxes with interesting details and purchased this one.

It has lots of fun cubby-holes and original paint.

On Wednesday, we were meeting an old antiquing/quilting friend (Hi Tam!) from Beaumont, Texas at the Big Red Barn venue. It covers 30,000 sq. ft. in the barn, plus 2 tents and an off-site venue at the Carmine Dance Hall.

I loved this place, not only because it was air-conditioned, but it is loaded with Americana/primitive/really nice stuff.

I was happy to see that natural, wood patina is alive and well. Not everything is being painted.

We were in Texas, after all, so there were great western things.

My purchase on Wednesday was at the Carmine Dance Hall - a brown transferware chamber pot. I know it is A CHAMBER POT, but just look at all of that transferware lusciousness!

We finished the afternoon checking out other venues along the highway.

There are thousands and thousands (I'm sure?) of vendors.

Everything you could ever want, plus inspiration and bargains galore!!

On my next post, we'll leave Texas and head to Kansas City and a visit to the famous Nell Hill's store.

This week I'm joining the following parties. Please check them out - you won't be disappointed.

Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tuesday

Very Merry Vintage Style for Share the Love Wednesday

A Southern Daydreamer for Outdoor Wednesday

Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesday

Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

HOME AGAIN AND A FUN BIRTHDAY

2011-10-05T13:06:00.009-06:00

We are back from our 3000-mile, 10-day road trip just in time to celebrate our granddaughter's 15th birthday. She was so excited when she was 4 (picture on the left) as I made her a Dorothy dress, that she sat on my lap practically the whole time that I was sewing it. The picture on the left was taken this Fall as she started high school. She still loves to dress up, and will be going to her first homecoming dance this next weekend. She has a new dress, but this time with HIGH-heeled sparkly shoes.

Happy Birthday, sweet Caitlin!

We had a great trip heading south out of Colorado into New Mexico, then east into Texas. Our first stop was a visit with Bob's cousin and wife in Bandera, Texas. Now, I know what they mean when they say west Texas is dry this year. The cotton plants are struggling, and everything is brown. My heart goes out to all of those farmers and ranchers.

We made a quick stop in Fredericksburg at the German bakery for a sweet German pretzel. Yum - it was every bit as good as the ones I had in Germany this summer.

The next destination was Bastrop, Texas, the home of the horrible wild fires this summer. It is so sad to see homes with just the rock fireplaces left standing. I believe 1700 homes were burned. I talked with one mother whose family of five had been displaced and was living at the same motel we were in. She was upbeat, thankful they had jobs, and excited about the new home they are designing.

Bastrop would be our home for three nights, as we traveled back and forth each day to Round Top and Warrenton for the huge antique extravaganza.

Five years ago, we had been to the antique week, but it has grown even more. Next post will be about what we saw and the things we bought. Stay tuned!

CLASS REUNION, ANNIVERSARY, ETC.

2011-09-14T16:02:00.021-06:00

I'm taking a three-week blogging break. First up on our agenda is our 55th high school class reunion in our hometown. The picture below of us was on the front page of the local newspaper the day we graduated - June 1, 1956. I guess we were chosen to be photographed because Bob was the Senior Class President.
Doesn't Bob just look like he is poised and ready to tackle whatever the future might hold? At the time, I wasn't sure I would be part of that future; but things clicked and I've been a part of it all along the way through his three college degrees, his career, our children and our grandchildren.

Then, we have a road trip scheduled to celebrate our 53rd wedding anniversary this month. We're headed to Marburger/Round Top, Texas for the antique extravaganza. We hope to come home the very long way through Kansas City to visit friends.
September 7, 1958

I've been working on a couple of large projects for the class reunion, so my house has suffered terribly. I need to find time during this next three weeks to do some deep cleaning and prepare for the autumnal holidays and our family's birthday season. Also, I keep thinking we need to make a day trip to Denver to visit the new IKEA store. That's a lot going on for us old folks!

We thank God for all of the blessings that have been bestowed on us over the years. And, we celebrate with Him each new day that we receive.

As we used to say in the 1950s, "See you later, alligator. After awhile, crocodile!"

UNDER THE INFLUENCE

2011-09-13T13:41:00.010-06:00

We've had fun this week checking out the new Restoration Hardware 615-page source book/magalog/catalog (their words!) and being under their influence. Of course, we could never lead the complete Restoration Hardware lifestyle. In the first place, the price point is way ABOVE our budget; and second, where is the color? I admit I'm smitten with a neutral background, but need my touches of red, blue, etc. And, finally our 1980s small ranch-style house just doesn't accommodate the grand architectural style of RH. But, that being said, we have enjoyed checking out the vignettes and accessories showcased in the catalog.

We've had several discussions about all of the accessories they show that appeal to us. Evidently, the appeal has always been there since we were able to shop our house, garage, shed and back porch to come up with similar items to stage some new vignettes around the house. Starting with the tractor wheel that we found recently at the farm salvage yard. Paired with some old books and a sewing machine part chest that belonged to my grandfather; it is now on our entry table.

Sitting on my Dad's tool chest, which we use as a coffee table, is an old milk crate containing bundles of books and a disc spacer from the farm salvage yard.

In the background on the couch is my mother's old beaver cape. The throws in the RH catalog are faux, of course; but mine is the real stuff. Don't hate me - the cape has been in my family for over 70 years, and conjures up nice memories of snuggling up to my mother on cold days when she was wearing the cape!

I've had a love affair with brown apothecary bottles for a while now -- all purchased for pennies or were free.

This vignette sparked a conversation between Bob and I about a lot of the trappings of our lives. We saw the iron barbells in the catalog; and I asked if we didn't have one of those around. Bob then told me about finding his barbell in a garage when he was 8 or 9 years old, and thinking it was so neat. I then had to ask about where it has been all of these years? Did he bring it with him when we got married 53 years ago? You mean to tell me we have moved it to 14 different houses over the years? Etc., etc., etc.

I've always enjoyed these deed or document boxes. They belonged to various family members who really kept their documents in them.

Of course, I have fond memories of the Eiffel Tower in Paris from our 50th wedding anniversary trip. I don't have RH's study model, but this iron one from Hobby Lobby serves the purpose of bringing up memories.

It's been fun recreating these vignettes from Restoration Hardware. I do have a question, however -- how can they fiscally continue to mail me (a non-consumer of their goods) their 615-page sourcebook/magalog/catalog? But, I enjoy it so much; please don't tell Mr. Friedman, CEO, that I never buy anything. I thought the least that I could do would be to include the catalog in a vignette.

Here's a breakdown of the price points of some of the items included:

Eiffel Tour Study Model: RH-$1745.00 Ours-$4.00

Tractor Wheel: RH-$189.00 Ours-$5.00

Cast iron Dumbbell: RH-$40.00 Ours-Free

Deed Boxes: RH-$45-$85 Ours-Inherited for free

Pharmacy Bottles: RH-3/$48 Ours-Inherited or less than $1.00 each

Fur Throw: RH-$99 Ours-Free, but priceless!

I'm joining the following parties -- please check these inspirational blogs out!!

Southern Hospitality for Thrifty Treasure Monday

A Stroll Thru Life for Tabletop Tuesday

Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesdays

Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

YARD SALE FIND

2011-09-09T09:44:00.011-06:00

I haven't been going to yard sales very much lately. Frankly, I'm just too lazy and hate to get around in the early morning. But, Bob still reads the ads, gets around and goes always searching for furniture in bad condition that he can restore and sell. The other morning he came home without furniture but with these two seltzer bottles.
The guy at the yard sale said they were from Czechoslovakia. Both the metal and glass parts have markings on them, but we can't make anything out.
The spouts are interesting - they look like birds of prey!

The glass is very heavy and thick; one is amber in color, the other green.

For now, I just enjoy having them around.

Do you suppose this is a start of a another new collection?
Be sure to check out the following parties this week for a plethora of inspiration!

A Stroll Thru Life for Table Top Tuesday

Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesdays

No Minimalist Here for Open House Party on Thursday

Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

A FAVORITE SHOPPING MECCA

2011-08-31T11:12:00.017-06:00

On the way to visit my 97-year old Mother-in-law the other day, we stopped at one of my favorite places in our hometown -- the local farm salvage yard.

Since my heart starts pounding the minute we drive in, I guess you can never take the farm out of the farm girl. I don't know why as I was never the outdoors type of kid -- preferring to dress up and go to town! It must be all of the John Deere green, International Harvester/Farmall red, and the Case yellow that has rusted to that wonderful metal patina after years out in the sun and elements.

The first thing I spied was this tractor gear. Salvage Guy said he wanted $5 for it. I thought that was a little high, but it is huge (15" in diameter) and weighs a ton; so I said O.K!

Then, when we got home I was looking through the new Restoration Hardware catalog; and look what I found----

AND, THEY WANT $189 FOR IT; AND IT ISN'T EVEN THE REAL THING!!!!!

Guess Salvage Guy wasn't too high, after all.

I also found these cute smaller gears in my favorite International Harvester/Farmall Red. Bob and the Salvage Guy were very patient with me as I pointed from my air-conditioned car which three I wanted in which sizes. They were only $1.00 a piece.

I wasn't about to get outside in all of that dirt and sun (it was 102 degrees). So, it was the best possible shopping experience from inside my cool car. AND, just look at all of that wonderful patina.

Now, I just need to figure out what to do with my treasures. Any suggestions?

I'm joining the following parties:

French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday

Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

Southern Hospitality for Thrifty Treasures Monday

Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tuesday

Very Merry Vintage Style for Share the Love Wednesday

READY FOR FALL!

2011-08-26T17:48:00.015-06:00

Our pumpkin patch has gone crazy this year. Even though it isn't even the first of September they are almost ready. Does this mean we will have an early Fall and Winter?
The little decorative pumpkins seem to be ready, also.

The beginning of the school year also signals Fall to me. My grandkids are ready - they start on Monday.

Wyatt will be in the 4th grade, and Caitlin starts high school (oh, my!).

I've been rather negligent in taking pictures of them this summer so Caitlin and I decided it was time for a 'photo shoot' down at the river to celebrate the beginning of her high school years.

Where have the years gone?

I'm joining Susan at A Southern Daydreamer for Outdoor Wednesday.

SHAMELESS PLUG

2011-08-21T12:46:00.024-06:00

Some of you know that in my life before my husband's retirement I was a quiltmaker, which involved design work for publications, teaching, traveling, and writing books. Once I retired from doing all of that, it just became too expensive to make quilts without an income to support it. So I began to experiment with some ideas to use my quilt designing ability in smaller, manageable ways. Recently, I have been making a form of an artist trading card in a 2 1/2" x 3 1/2" format transforming quilt designs into paper patchwork. I've been so engrossed that I have now made a number of the cards, and need a separate blog to chronicle the activity. Therefore, I have a fledgling blog called Q-Bits (or bits of quilts), where I will explain the muse behind the individual cards. Plus, I will show some of the quilts I have made over the past 50 years.
The card above was made in honor of my Mother, whose birth date is approaching; and is based on the quilt below that I made entitled, "Mother's Kitchen".

So, if you are interested in my quilts and the inspiration behind them, head over to my other blog, Q-Bits by clicking here. I've just started the blog and have scads of cards and quilts to show in the future.

While I'm shamelessly promoting my other blog, I would also like to mention my son's blog, called "Michael M. Saulmon". Yes, he is always straight forward in that manner - just his name as a blog title - no pretense with him, which to me is one of his endearing qualities. His blog is always interesting and thought-provoking on a variety of subjects including education and life in general. He is a high school teacher and enjoys traveling in his time out of the classroom. His posts from his laptop while overseas are always informative and fun. In his defense, he doesn't know that I'm promoting his blog. He is still searching for his 'blog niche' out there in cyberspace, so if you are interested or know someone who might be send them his way by clicking here.

Enough self-promotion for now!

FARM INSPIRATION

2011-08-19T20:16:00.011-06:00

For those of you interested in the farmhouse look and have a creative spirit, I offer up the following pictures for inspiration.

Have you seen the new show on Lifetime called "Picker Sisters"? These two cute, young things travel around finding stuff similar to the above. Then, they take them back to Los Angeles where their shop guy makes furniture, light fixtures, etc. out of their finds. And, of course, they then sell them to their rich clients.

I took these pictures at a farm sale a year ago. Things were going cheap that day - I could have made a fortune. Oh well, the story of my life! Or as they say down on the farm - a day late and a dollar short!!

I'm joining in the following parties this week:

Funky Junk Interiors for Sat. Nite Special

Between Naps on the Porch for Met Monday

The Shabby Chic Cottage for Transformation Thursday

Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

A FEW OF MY FAVORITE THINGS

2011-08-14T14:10:00.011-06:00

THINGS I ENJOY

Years ago, I bought this baguette bread board just because I loved the patina. Then on our 50th anniversary trip to Paris, I discovered French baguettes.

I made the table runner from one of my favorite Ralph Lauren fabrics.

Love my great-grandmother's monogrammed butter knives.

A 7-foot harvest table made by my husband surrounded by chairs purchased by my grandparents when they married in 1904.

A brown transferware pitcher bought at Marburger Farm at Round Top, Texas five years ago; now holding roses and valarian from my garden. The valarian was transplanted from my mother's garden many years ago.

A brown transferware butter dish from a neighborhood lady's estate sale.

Crochet edging on napkins inherited from my grandmother.

Just a few of the things that trip my trigger!

I'll be joining the following parties this week -- please check them out for a plethora of inspiration.

A Stroll Thru Life for Table Top Tuesday

Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesday

Very Merry Vintage Style for Share the Love Wednesday

French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday

A ROOSTER WITH A STORY

2011-08-07T18:13:00.007-06:00

It is time for Sheila's (at Note Songs) rooster and chicken party. I don't have a flock of roosters in my house, but I do have one. And, there is a little story that goes with it - you know how Sheila loves a story.

My mother was raised during the hard times of The Depression on her grandparent's farm - you know - lots of hard work and no money. One of her jobs as a child was to kill and dress chickens for dinner. She hated it, and vowed that she would never, NEVER marry a farmer. Well, guess what, she married a farmer; but made my father promise that they would never have chickens. He kept his word.

But, mother must have missed the chickens; because our everyday dishes were decorated with chickens; she had tea towels with chickens on them; and she had a whole flock of these Royal Copley roosters and hens parading around the kitchen. Plus, every Sunday she could fry up the best chicken and gravy dinner imaginable.

See that piece of old wood in front of my rooster. On a recent trip to my great-grandparent's homestead, I picked up that piece from my mother's old childhood workplace - the chicken coop.

I am constantly reminded with warm feelings of my mother, her kitchen, and her chickens.

In addition to Sheila's Tuesday Rooster & Chicken party, I'm joining the following parties this week:

A Stroll Thru Life for Table Top Tuesday

Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesday

Very Merry Vintage Style for Share the Love Wednesday

No Minimalist Here for Thursday's Open House Party

French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday

Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

White Ironstone Cottage for Treasure Chest Friday

Be sure to check out these blogs for a plethora of inspiration.

THIS AND THAT PLUS CATS

2011-07-31T11:47:00.007-06:00

Yesterday, we took a day trip to northern Colorado to see our son, Mike. We hadn't been to his house for a long time; as usually when we go to see him, we meet him part way in Denver (1 hour for him and 2 hours for us). But, this time we needed to go meet our new grand-kitties. At four months, they are energetic, inquisitive, and just plain cute. They are litter-brothers, and great company for each other. They very patiently sat for their 'official' four-month portraits.

First meet Virgil:

And this is Statius:

After playing with the kittens, we headed to Denver. Mike was the "Teacher of the Year" at the high school where he teaches, and was the recipient of generous gift card to The Olive Garden. He wanted to share it with us, so we had a nice lunch. Thanks, Wiggins School Student Council; and congratulations to Mike, always OUR teacher of the year.

We then headed to the Armadillo Antique Mall to peruse the goodies for a couple of hours. I didn't buy a thing; but I did not come home empty handed. About 8 years ago, we had bought a big box of unopened apothecary jars at an estate sale. We kept one, but gave the remainder to Mike. As a scientist teacher, he was interested in the labels showing the compounds contained in the pills.

Recently I've been enthralled with apothecary jars, so I asked him if I could have a couple more jars. Of course, he said yes -- what else would he say to his Mother?

The Luyties Pharmacy Company was founded by Herman C. G. Luyties (1833-1896), a physician and pharmacist; and at one time, was the largest homeopathic pharmacy in the world.

And finally, when we got home, the view of the mountains was so beautiful out of our bedroom window, that I thought I would try my hand at blue-hour photography. I probably would have achieved more blue if I had waited another 15 minutes.

The end of a good day!!

IT'S HOT OUT THERE

2011-07-25T16:24:00.003-06:00

It's so hot out there that I'm dreaming of a nice cold, winter day when the river is beginning to freeze over. Tell me it won't be long!

It's too hot to even blog. See you in a week or so.

THE WHOOPIE PIE RECIPE

2011-07-20T15:37:00.007-06:00

I've had several requests for the Whoopie Pie recipe, so here goes:

CHOCOLATE COOKIES

1 2/3 cups flour

2/3 cup cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons butter, softened
4 tablespoons Crisco
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/4 cups milk
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt in a separate bowl. In the mixer bowl, beat butter, shortening and sugar until combined. Beat on medium for 3 minutes. Add egg and vanilla. Beat for 2 more minutes. Beat in the flour mixture, alternating with the milk. Drop cookies by a tablespoon on a cookie sheet (I use parchment paper on my sheets). Spread cookies apart as they will spread. Bake for 10 minutes. Let cool on cookie sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
FILLING
7 oz. jar marshmallow fluff
1 1/4 cups Crisco
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
Beat marshmallow fluff and shortening for 3 minutes. Reduce to low and add sugar and vanilla. Beat until fluffy.
Sandwich filling between the flat sides of two cookies.

NOTE: I live in a high altitude, so check your oven temperature and length of baking time. I don't know if you would need to adjust for a different altitude. This is a 1950's recipe - I bet it will work anywhere! Back then, we weren't concerned with altitude (or the huge amount of Crisco used!!)

SUMMER CLOCHE PARTY

2011-07-15T18:25:00.007-06:00

My favorite thing to put under a cloche has to be food. Today one of my cloches holds homemade whoopie pies - always good with a glass of cold milk on a summer afternoon.

Yummy, sticky goodness made from a vintage recipe!

I'll be joining the following parties this week. Be sure to stop by these fun blogs to check for inspiration.

Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for her Summer Cloche Party on Tuesday

Very Merry Vintage Style for Share the Love Wednesday

Debra at Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

EAGLE LOVE

2011-07-09T11:36:00.013-06:00

Here is the piece of brown transferware that I found while out and about in the city last weekend. I'm excited to find a piece with an eagle on it, as I've never seen anything similar.

It's always fun to find a piece with a 'Kite Mark' on the back - it makes it easy to date the piece. For years, I have used my 1977 edition of the Kovel's Dictionary of Marks on Pottery and Porcelain to determine the date. They explain that the mark in the top circle indicates the type of ware manufactured - in this case, IV is earthenware. The number in the semi-circle below the IV indicates the day of the month, or 15th. The letter in the lower corner of the diamond-shaped mark indicates the month of the year in which the object was manufactured. Kovel's table indicates that M is June. The letter in the right-hand corner indicates the year of manufacture. Kovel's table indicates that P is 1877. Therefore, this piece was manufactured on June 15, 1877. The number in the left-hand corner tells the manufacturer of the object; but also there is the Ridgways logo shown. The pattern name is Indus.

There are similar tables on various web sites on the internet such as www.aw-antiques-collectibles.co.uk/kite-marks.php.

My new eagle platter has joined some of my other brown transferware collection. Love it!!

I will be joining the following parties this week. Check them out for a plethora of inspiration.

Kim at Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesdays

Sherry at No Minimalist Here for the Open House Party

Debra at Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

Courtney at French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday

WEEKEND FUN

2011-07-05T11:28:00.007-06:00

On a long holiday weekend, most Coloradans head to the mountains and lakes to commune with nature. Not us, we head to the city for some shopping, antiquing, and a nice restaurant meal. Antiquing was good as I found several things. One thing I found was this red and white hand towel with the initials SAL on it. My first thought was that it was an airline towel (yes, they used to have real towels on airlines!). I was thinking Scandinavia Airlines, but they seem to use the initials SAS. Any ideas?

Since Sal is my nickname and for $2.95 it came home with me to join the other red and white/blue and white towels in my collection.

We ate at one of our favorite Mexican food places. New on the appetizer menu were Avocado Fries -- strips of avocado, lightly battered, and fried -- yum, yum!

I found a couple of other things while antiquing that I will share on a future post, including a wonderful addition to my brown transferware collection. Stay tuned.

I'll be partying with the following blogs this week. Be sure to check them out for inspiration PLUS!

Kim at Savvy Southern Style for her Wow on Wednesday party

Courtney at French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday

Donna at Funky Junk Interiors for Saturday Nite Special

Rhoda at Southern Hospitality for Monday's Thrifty Treasures

GOOD TO BE HOME!

2011-07-01T15:43:00.008-06:00

Even though traveling Europe the month of June was a wonderful experience, it sure is great to be home in the U.S.A. to celebrate the 4th of July!

May you have a glorious weekend!

STRASBOURG AND PARIS, FRANCE

2011-06-27T13:05:00.027-06:00

(This is the last post about my recent trip to Europe. If interested, you may scroll down to the previous five posts to read more about the trip.)

We traveled from Cologne, Germany to Strasbourg, France by bus enjoying the countryside. The Gothic cathedral in the Strasbourg square was beautiful.

The pipe organ and stained glass windows were unbelievable.

They say Strasbourg is Germany & France all rolled into one fascinating city.

We took the train from Strasbourg to Paris. I had hoped to view some of the French countryside; but the train was traveling so fast it was impossible to see much.

Here we are in Paris with all of our luggage, but the bus that was to meet us was stuck in Paris' evening traffic. We ended up hiking to our reserved restaurant where the bus finally caught up with us after dinner.

Some Paris street scenes!

Every turn in the street is beautiful and enchanting.

Mr. Eiffel's masterpiece!

The Versailles Palace.

Notre Dame Cathedral

The famous Louvre Museum

Paris has so much more to offer than just the highlights above. It is just a magical city. We were only there three days at the end of a long and tiring trip. Since I had been to Paris before, I elected on the last day to ditch the formal tour with the rest and stay close to our hotel. It was such an enjoyable day spent walking and exploring the neighborhood. I watched the locals go about their everyday activities -- buying groceries, doing their laundry, getting caught in a down-pour of rain, etc. I missed so many great photo opportunities, however; as I had given my camera to my son to take on the regular tour.

A trip to Paris for me would be incomplete without a trip to Laduree to buy their famous macarons to bring home. I managed to get home with 23 of the 24 I had bought - just had to sample one!

Some closing thoughts---

Emotional Moment #1: As we landed at the Berlin airport, I thought about my great-grandparents who emigrated to the U.S. from Germany 130 years ago to help bring the sugar-beet industry to the U.S. They never went back to Germany; and Mike and I were the first in our line of descendants to step on German soil. As we traveled around this beautiful country, I wondered what it would be like to leave your 'motherland' and never return.

Emotional Moment #2: Dachau -- I was 7 years old when this concentration camp was liberated. I remember a lot about WWII - three uncles who went off to war (all returned, but one was never the same); my Dad was a farmer so had a deferment. I remember the rationing of sugar, gasoline, etc. and walking the two miles to town so gas could be used for farming. Also, remember taking my pennies to school to donate to the Red Cross and helping my Grandmother in the Victory garden; then the celebration in town when the war ended. BUT, our sacrifices were nothing, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING, compared to those who experienced a concentration camp.

Emotional Moment #3: Pinching myself to realize that I was back in Paris. As I made my way around Paris, my heart would skip a beat every time I caught a glimpse of the Eiffel Tower - it truly is magnificent.

Emotional Moment #4: This didn't happen until I arrived home and realized that my bible was not in my suitcase. You know the type of bible -- read from cover to cover with hand-written notes and underlined verses. I must have left it on the nightstand in my Paris hotel room. I can't believe I did that as I'm organized and a very good packer. Hopefully, someone found it, will cherish it, read it, and develop a relationship with God because of it. Maybe that was the whole purpose of my trip.

THE WINDOWS OF GERMANY

2011-06-20T13:21:00.038-06:00

As I traveled across Germany, I became intrigued with the windows I saw -- not just the unbelievably beautiful ones in the churches and and the castles, but in those that were where the people lived.
The curtains were a big part of the charm.

I started taking pictures, but missed a lot of opportunities since we were frequently on the bus traveling through the small, quaint villages.

Here are a few that I did manage to capture.

And finally, inside looking out from my hotel room in Heidelberg.

If I was 40 years younger and a better photographer, I would hike all over Germany taking photos of not only the exquisite architectural windows; but the simple, charming ones as well!

(Most pictures may be enlarged by clicking on the image.)

HEIDELBERG, COLOGNE, PLUS CRUISING THE RHINE

2011-06-19T16:21:00.027-06:00

(If interested, scroll down to my previous posts for the start of my trip to Germany.)

We're headed to Heidelberg via the Romantic Road - beautiful countryside with rolling hills, farms and vineyards.

Heidelberg has Germany's oldest university dating back to 1386.

The 700-year-old castle overlooks Heidelberg.

The view of the Neckar Valley was spectacular from the castle.

For my Wiggins' viewers I'm including our group picture at the castle. The backdrop looks fake, but it is the real wall left standing at the ruins.

We left Heidelberg to cruise down (or is it up?) the Rhine River.

It was a short 3-hour cruise, but the scenery was beautiful.

Castles, churches, villages, and vineyards.

And finally, our last stop in Germany - Cologne.

The cathedral took more than 600 years to complete. But Cologne seems to be all about shopping these days. Just off of the cathedral square is over a mile of pedestrian shopping. Since Cologne has a professional football (soccer) team, I figured it was a good place to find a soccer shirt for my grandson. I took off to find the shirt, always keeping my eye on those twin spires of the church so that I didn't get lost.

Found the shirt; had a sweet pretzel; had a diet Coke that actually had ice and a slice of lemon; and managed not to get lost!

Next up is France, but before I continue the travelogue; I think my next post will be about Germany's charming windows and their lace curtains.

(Most pictures may be clicked on to enlarge and view the details.)

MUNICH, DACHAU, ROTHENBURG

2011-06-16T17:59:00.069-06:00

(If you are interested, just scroll down to my previous two posts about the beginning of this trip to Europe.)

On the road to Munich, we saw fields of hops being grown for the making of beer. I had no idea that they were a vine and grown on a pole/string apparatus.
The interesting architecture of the 1972 Munich Olympic Park. The 1972 olympics are unfortunately most known for the massacre of Israeli athletes.

At the center of Munich is the Marienplatz, once the intersection of medieval trade routes and home of the famed Glockenspiel that is in the tower of Neues Rathaus.

We were there at 5:00 pm and saw the Glockenspiel do its thing.

Then it was time to check out another beer garden, so I could have my daily Diet Coke. My Coke always cost more than the beer - usually about 3,50 euros or over $5.00!

We had dinner at the oldest brewery in Munich called Augustiner; then headed to our hotel in Puchheim.

The next day the tour was scheduled to go to Neuschwanstein to see King Ludwig's fairy-tale castle. Instead, three of us elected to take the commuter train back to Munich to take in the art museums. I'm so glad we did, as the others reported that it was quite a hike uphill to Ludwig's castle. We had a wonderful day back in Munich. I spent my time at the Alte Pinakothek immersing myself in the paintings of Cranach, Vermeer, da Vinci, Raphael, Botticelli, van Dyck, Rubens, Rembrandt, etc. etc. etc. Wonderful!!!

I did discover a new favorite - Jan van Kessel, a Flemish painter from the 1600s. He did the most detailed work of animals and botanicals with a large painting in the middle then a series of smaller paintings around the outside edge.

We also toured the Munich Residence Museum, the Palace of the kings of Bavaria.

This grotto courtyard was all done in shell work.

Opulence everywhere.

All of the extravagance of Munich was left behind. We next traveled to Dachau, the first concentration camp in Germany. What can I say - this was a sobering experience to think of the lives lost or changed forever. The inhumanity that took place was unbelievable.

I spent most of my time there in the museum reading the stories of the people that were interred. I'll never forget some of the stories and pictures.

We left Dachau, and traveled on the Romance Road to Rothenburg.

Rothenburg is Germany's best-preserved medieval town with half-timbered homes, cobblestone streets, and city walls.

We are headed to Heidelberg next for what must seem like to you an endless travelogue. Hope you check in for my next post.

I apologize for spacing problems - Blogger is giving me fits tonight!

(All pictures may be clicked on to enlarge to see details.)

I LOVED NUREMBERG!

2011-06-14T13:08:00.035-06:00

If you are interested, you may scroll down to read my first post on my recent trip to Germany and France.

On our way to Munich we stopped at Nuremberg, the town that was famous for its association with Nazi Germany's Third Reich and the trials that were held there to determine the perpetrators of war crimes. It certainly has shaken that image, and is now a charming town with the most beautiful fountain in the square.

There was a market in the square with all of the beautiful sights you could imagine, including a flower market.
Vegetables, meats, and cheeses - no one seemed too concerned about the e-coli scare at the market. However, the restaurants that we ate at did not serve any fresh, uncooked vegetables.

I was especially intrigued by all of the white asparagus. One evening, we had white asparagus soup with our dinner - delicious.

Street scenes!

Sushi everywhere including Nuremberg!

I bought a lebkucken cookie (gingerbread, fruit & nuts) at the market for my lunch. Hey, I was on vacation - nutrition out the window! I then went to McDonald's for a Coke with ice and ran into the teenagers -- four days without American food was their limit, I guess. Plus, McDonald's always has clean and free bathrooms!

We all met at the fountain to head to Munich.

On to Munich for my next post!

(All photos may be clicked on to enlarge for details.)

JUST A BEGINNING GLIMPSE OF GERMANY

2011-06-14T09:19:00.014-06:00

A little background about my recent trip ----- my son teaches high school science and math in a small Colorado community where the art teacher arranges overseas trips for the students in this small school to expand their horizons. My son, Mike, accompanies them as another teacher. The tours also include some parents, relatives, and friends. Two years ago, Mike told me they were going to Germany & France in 2011 if I wanted to go. And that is how I became part of the tour group that included ages 14 up to 72 (me!). The wide range of ages and interests only contributed to the fun experience. I traveled with people that I wish I could get to know better, and enjoy their friendship further.

We started our trip in Berlin, Germany. Below is a part of the remaining, infamous Berlin wall.

And more of the wall that has been painted. I enjoyed the graffiti
art on the wall, but was surprised by the amount of graffiti tagging all over the city.
The Brandenburg Gate - once the symbol of the undeclared Cold War, but now the symbol of a reunited Berlin.

We also toured the Checkpoint Charlie museum - shocking to see what was going on in the 60s, 70s, and 80s at the wall.

On a fun note, we stopped by the Lego Museum. Here is my 42-year-old kid under the giraffe all made of Legos.

And the teenagers in our group having Lego building contests in front of the museum.

One of the newer landmarks in Berlin (1969) is the TV Tower.

I left the tour group to go to the Handcraft Museum - no pictures allowed, but it was a wonderful exhibit of art nouveau and art deco dishes, silver, etc.

Lots of walking!

I had a Coke in a beer garden, bought T-shirts for the grandkids, then met the group for dinner (after a long walk) - we had broth, currywurst, potatoes, bread and Berliner filled donuts.

AND ON TO DRESDEN--

So different than Berlin with beautiful houses, buildings. They were having a huge festival with 130,000 Lutherans in town, plus it was a National Holiday.

We toured the Zwinger Palace to see paintings by Raphael, Durer and Titian in the Old Masters' Gallery. Then we saw in a different section their National Jewels, etc. More Coke in a beer garden; then walked to another beer place for dinner of Schweinsnitzel, fries, potato soup, bread and a bread pudding with apple sauce and whipped cream. Then, an hour drive on the autoban to Chemmitz for our hotel.

Next up - Nuremberg -- stay tuned for another post.

(All pictures may be clicked on to enlarge further for details.)

HOME AGAIN!

2011-06-12T12:28:00.005-06:00

I'm home from my trip to Europe, jet-lagged and overwhelmed! The family went to a semi-pro baseball game today, so I'm home alone with my washing machine. I'm sitting here at the computer eating nachos, a diet Coke (WITH ICE!!!!), and a macaron from Paris's Laduree. Pathetic, I know.

No pictures today - it will take me awhile to sort out the over 1000 that I took. Hope the GPS on my camera worked to tell me where each castle and cathedral was located, as they were all starting to look alike.

Stay tuned for more details to come in a day or two. In the meantime, I'm dedicated to my laundry and sitting in my recliner. One day in Germany I walked 8 miles, as shown on the pedometer. That's a lot of walking for an old lady!!

Later------

TREASURES

2011-05-18T19:23:00.010-06:00

I have a few pieces of white ironstone handed down to me from my family. But, until now, I've avoided buying any more. Then, I found this W. H. Grindley platter at a yard sale for $2.00. Now, I'm smitten. Does this mean the start of a new collectible?
It has a charming rope detail around the edge, and is in perfect condition.

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

I'm off on a trip to seek more treasures and experience more of life out in the world. Can you guess where one of my destinations is?

I'll be back to blogland in about three weeks.

Jusque-la -- Au revoir

EVERY BATHROOM SHOULD HAVE A PEW POCKET

2011-05-13T11:03:00.009-06:00

Margo's Junkin Journal recently posted about finding pew pockets while out junking (they are now for sale in her etsy shop!) Our house is quite small and we live in every inch of it. Therefore, pew pockets and narrow shelves are a necessity for us.

The pew pocket below is in our hall bathroom and holds necessary reading material. It even has a slot for a pencil for doing word puzzles.
This pew pocket is in our master bath. We bought it years ago while out junking, and it has been in several different bathrooms over the years.

Not pew pockets, but these narrow shelves are similar. I always look for these - they are usually in an ugly, rough pine, but take a coat of white paint well.

In a small house, you can never have enough plate storage.

I'm partying this week with:

Common Ground for Friday's Vintage Inspiration

French Country Cottage for Friday's Feather Your Nest party

Be sure to check these two blogs out for lots of inspiration.

HOME FROM THE LAND OF ENCHANTMENT

2011-05-03T14:34:00.007-06:00

I'm home from a wonderful five-day trip to New Mexico, the Land of Enchantment. Eight of us from all over the U.S. met up in Santa Fe for our 55th (yes, that is right - 55 years) high school class reunion. As high schoolers we attended a girl's boarding school together here in Colorado. The Senior Trip back in 1956 was to Santa Fe, so we returned to celebrate!
We stayed at the LaFonda Hotel, which is right on the plaza at the end of the Santa Fe trail. The hotel was built in the 1920s, as shown in the first picture of the below mosaic. The second picture shows the hotel as it is today. We had wonderful accommodations with great atmosphere and service.

One of our day trips was to the Georgia O'Keeffe Ghost Ranch, where she spent her summers painting. After seeing the landscape, it was easy to recognize her inspiration for some of her paintings.

We spent time touring small churches, the cathedral, the museums including the Georgia O'Keeffe and the Folk Art museums plus a trolley tour with lots of history all around Santa Fe. Oh yes, there was a fair amount of shopping going on, also!

There were many meals of great New Mexican food in several different restaurants. We laughed constantly, shared memories, and passed around pictures of our grandchildren. We were the talk of the hotel for five days - the young people couldn't believe that old lady classmates could be having that much fun!

I'm linking up with the following parties. Be sure to check them out!

Mary at Little Red House for Mosaic Monday

Sally at Smiling Sally for Blue Monday

Susan at A Southern Daydreamer for Outdoor Wednesday

THE ENTRY WAY IS FINALLY FINISHED!

2011-04-26T13:38:00.010-06:00

Over a year ago, we did some remodeling on our entry way; and I've been looking for the perfect little table every since. I finally found it a couple of a weeks ago. I wanted something kind of rustic, just the right size with patina.

It needed to hold the perfect little alabaster lamp that my friend, Susan, gave me for my birthday last year. I never found the perfect shade for the lamp, so I covered one with a herringbone wool fabric.

I don't have any idea the age of the table, but it is put together with square nails.

The frame for the mirror came cheap from a garage sale several years ago.

At last, the entryway has come together!

I'm joining the following parties:

Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesdays

The Shabby Chic Cottage for Transformation Thursday

I'm headed out for a wonderful very long weekend with a bunch of great women. When I was a Freshman & Sophomore in high school, I went to a girl's boarding school where I met these wonderful girls. We lived together, went to school together, and raised each other during those early, trying teenage years. Even though I didn't graduate with them (I returned to my hometown high school), they have always included me in their reunions. There is just something special about friends you've known for 60 years that you became acquainted with under those circumstances. So, we are headed off to celebrate in the Land of Enchantment at a very posh hotel in Santa Fe for 5 days. Hopefully, I'll return with some great pictures of the wonderful southwest architecture and culture, plus more memories of great friends.

EASTER BLESSINGS

2011-04-18T14:54:00.020-06:00

I've accumulated a few vintage Easter items over the years. These three glass chicken covered containers are from my childhood, and originally held candy.
A few Easter postcards!

A little metal Easter basket and celluloid sheep.

My favorite have to be these Victorian milk glass eggs. Since they were cold painted, they are hard to find with any decoration intact.

Both the white bunny and the egg-shaped container originally held candy.

However, I hope we never lose sight of the real meaning of Easter.

May you be blessed this glorious Easter week.

I'll be joining Debra at Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday this week. Everyone will be showing off their vintage Easter things, so be sure to check it out.

NEEDED A LITTLE CHANGE

2011-04-14T11:29:00.017-06:00

I needed a little change in our bedroom. My comfy chair is in here, so I spend a lot of time here reading and watching TV. Since I also see our bed, I get bored with it fast. This is what it has looked like for the last year with the headboard covered in a multi-colored toile and a matching dust ruffle.

Time for a change of scenery. I recovered the headboard with osnaberg cloth and made a new dust ruffle.

I changed out the pillows and throw to plaid, the spread to beige matelasse, and hung a quilt behind the headboard.

The quilt is one of my all-time favorites that I made in the early 1990s called Park Lane Vista. It was a prize-winner at several exhibitions and was published in a magazine.

I'll be joining the following parties:

Between Naps on the Porch for Met Monday

The Shabby Chic Cottage for Transformation Thursday

No Minimalist Here for Thursday's Open House Party

VICTORIAN CHAIR

2011-04-07T10:00:00.028-06:00

Recently, a neighbor gave us this Victorian-era chair. He was going to throw it in the trash. It was upholstered in needlepoint, which was probably appropriate; but it was poorly done. I tried to salvage and clean the needlepoint, but it couldn't be done. I can probably make a pillow from some of the needlepoint in the future.

The back of the chair was broken apart as shown on the left. Bob did his magic in the workshop, then we upholstered it in this blue velvet.

This was my first try at a double cording. I think that in the future when working with heavy fabric like velvet, I will buy a thinner cord to cover. This welting turned out to be about 1/2 inch wide, and it probably would have looked better a little narrower.

The detail on this walnut chair is wonderful with the carving and burl insert.

We haven't decided yet if we are going to keep the chair or sell it.

I'm joining the following parties this week:

Between Naps on the Porch

for Met Monday

Savvy Southern Style

for Wow Us Wednesdays

The Shabby Chic Cottage

for Transformation Thursday

No Minimalist Here

for Open House Party on Thursday

Common Ground

for Vintage Inspiration Friday

French Country Cottage

for Feathered Nest Friday

Be sure to check out these blogs for all of the inspiration provided.

FAVORITE KITCHEN CUPBOARD

2011-04-01T12:20:00.035-06:00

Sheila at Note Songs has invited blogland to a party to celebrate our favorite kitchen cupboard. My favorite has to be our Hoosier cabinet. For years in other houses, this cabinet served as a television cabinet in the family room. When we moved into this house 13 years ago, it finally found a home in an alcove in our kitchen.

The drawers in the bottom hold lots of stuff including place mats, napkins, camera and telephone chargers, candles, phone books, etc. The cupboard on the lower left holds three wooden boxes of sterling silver flatware.

However, its primary purpose is to keep track of my keys and to hold our supply of chocolate.

Occasionally (when I feel like dusting), I throw the doors open to enjoy some of my vintage stoneware collection.

I have quite a few bowls and pitchers in green and robin's egg blue. Sometimes, part of my collection of blue gets the starring role.

Other times, different pieces of blue get the spotlight.

Today, the twelve 5" ribbed bowls in various colors are center stage along with my mother's WWII cookbooks.

These little 5" bowls were all collected one at a time from all over the U.S.

Our cupboard retains all of its original features including the flour sifter and the sugar decanter. We use the little wire spice shelf to hold our appliance manuals. I love the original blue sponge detail on the pull-out work top. When we have parties, I pull out the sliding top to use for serving food and beverages.

I remember my grandmother had a similar cupboard in her kitchen which she used for all of its original purposes. It was practically her only workspace. Wouldn't our ancestors be amazed at the mega-kitchens we enjoy today?

In addition to Sheila's Heart of the Home party on Tuesday, I'm joining in the following links:

Tabletop Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life

Wow Us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style

Vintage Inspiration Friday at Common Ground

Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage

Check each of these blogs out - you'll fall in love with all of the inspiration!

All of the pictures can be clicked on to enlarge and view details.

MEDITERRANEAN PIZZA BREAD

2011-03-29T18:16:00.006-06:00

I haven't posted a recipe in a long time and decided it was time. Those of you who know me know that cooking is not my favorite thing to do; but for some reason, my family likes to eat.

This is an easy, quick recipe that can be used for an appetizer or as a side dish to roasted meat.

MEDITERRANEAN PIZZA BREAD

8 slices of Italian bread (sliced about 1/2-inch thick)

1/4 cup olive oil

1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

3 seeded and chopped Roma tomatoes

1/2 cup chopped and pitted black olives

6 oz. feta cheese, crumbled

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Mix olive oil, oregano, and red pepper flakes together; then brush mixture on both sides of bread slices. Bake on baking sheet for about 4 minutes. Turn slices upside down. Combine cheeses. Sprinkle slices with the cheese mixture, reserving about 1/2 cup to sprinkle on the top. Then sprinkle each slice with tomatoes, olives, and remaining cheese. Return to oven, baking until cheese melts.

Hope you enjoy this easy side dish.

A NEW TREND??

2011-03-25T12:53:00.006-06:00

I heard that there is a new trend when building McMansions to include a snoratorium. This is a small bedroom off of the master bedroom where a snorer (or the one being snored upon) may go sleep when the snore noise becomes unbearable. The extra room may also be used when one partner is ill.

All of this discussion brought to mind my childhood. Below is a mosaic of my childhood farm. My grandparent's house was the big house on the left side in the first picture. My parents and I lived in the little 3-room house in the center; and later in the house across the road.

Grandma and Grandpa built the house in 1914 right after my father was born. It is a wonderful, huge house built in the Arts & Crafts style. It has a huge living room, dining room, office, and a screened-in porch all with big windows; lovely woodwork, and built-in window seats. The bedrooms upstairs are enormous with walk-in closets. My parents lived in the house for several years after Grandma moved to town, but that was after I was married. The farm was then sold in the 1960s.

Nothing is new under the sun, as this house had a snoratorium! The down stair's master bedroom had a small room attached with windows on two sides. I remember it contained a closet, dresser, Grandma's sewing machine, and Grandpa's twin bed for those nights of excess snoring. They called it Grandpa's sleeping porch, but it wasn't a porch at all.

So, what do you think? Should every house have a snoratorium?

AESTHETIC BROWN TRANSFERWARE

2011-03-18T13:59:00.006-06:00

My favorite collectible has to be brown transferware from the 19th century aesthetic period. Finding pieces in my budget over the last 15 years has been a journey, but I have managed to amass a nice little collection. To receive a piece as a gift is a real bonus! My friend, Jan, also collects brown transferware and on her travels found this pedestal plate. She knew how much I fell in love with it, so she gave it to me for my birthday.

It has an incised mark on the bottom, but I can't make it out. I'm guessing that it is about 1880.

I love the Asian influence in the pattern, but the piece was probably made in England.

If anyone out there in blogland has any info on this piece, I would appreciate hearing from you. (All pictures can be clicked on to enlarge for a better look at the pattern.)

Thanks, Jan, for a wonderful addition to my collection.

Next week I'm joining the following parties:

A Stroll Thru Life for Tabletop Tuesday

Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesdays

French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday

Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

These blogs are always so full of fun stuff - be sure to visit them for lots of inspiration.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MIKE

2011-03-15T18:16:00.005-06:00

Just a quick post to wish our son, Mike, a Happy Birthday.

Here he is at age 3 - such a cutie and so full of curiosity.

And now, he is 43. Where did all of those years go? Still so full of curiosity; always seeking adventure and knowledge.
He's always had a desire to learn about this world, and now to pass that information on to his students. Congratulations on all of your accomplishments, Dr. S.

Cloche Party Time

2011-03-10T13:37:00.006-07:00

It is time for Marty's annual Spring Cloche Party. Well, I'm reluctantly being pulled out of Winter mode (my favorite season). I know that I'm the only one in blogland not looking forward to Spring. So, this is about as close as I get to Spring decorating. For all of you Spring aficionados, gaze at these two plates next to my cloche for inspiration.

The plates were hand-painted by the noted Colorado china painter, Anna Peters, in the early 20th century. She was especially recognized for her rose renderings, so it is unusual to find a plate with columbines on it. However, the columbine is the Colorado state flower, which would probably explain it.
The cloche is covering a Murano glass egg that my son brought to me from Italy a couple of years ago. The wooden base is a piece that my Dad turned 30 years ago from a walnut tree that had been planted in the 1800s in the small town I grew up in. I've had that base all of these years just waiting for something special to display on it. It connects my Dad and my son, who is named after his grandfather. The pink marble lamp in the background was a wedding present to my parents in 1937. All are treasures I cherish.

Please check out Marty's blog, A Stroll Thru Life,

for some real Spring cloche inspiration.

GALLERY WALL

2011-03-05T13:55:00.008-07:00

The dining room in our 1980's small ranch-style home is basically a hallway that connects the kitchen to the rest of the house. We have a 7-foot narrow harvest table that sits in the center of the room, which we really enjoy. But, it doesn't leave any room on the side walls for furniture. I've really struggled with what to do with this long wall, but I'm finally satisfied with a gallery of pictures, plates, and small shelves.

My latest addition to this wall are the two Bavarian bird plates, one that I bought from ebay for $7 and the other from an estate sale for $3. Then, I found the two frames that are marked Germany at a junk store for $1 each.

They say (whoever THEY are?) that if you buy what you love then everything will go together. I love both the plates and the frames, so I just put them together.

The remainder of the pictures are watercolors, oils, and prints that I have picked up at estate and yard sales over the years.

This week I will be partying with the following:

Between Naps on the Porch for Met Monday

Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesdays

Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday

French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday

Please check out these wonderful blogs for great inspiration.

MAD FOR PLAID

2011-02-26T16:31:00.013-07:00

It seems that the last couple of years plaid has been everywhere! I've always loved plaid, and the resurgence has really refueled my interest.

I thought I would take a look into my personal archives, and see if my love of plaid has remained steady.

Let's start with the 1940s. Every girl in grade school had a plaid dress. I was no exception.

Then in the 1950s, we all had our plaid shirts with the rolled-up sleeves to wear with our jeans with the rolled-up cuffs. Check out the plaid picnic blanket in the first picture; then the plaid curtains in my dorm room. By the way, do you think I was infatuated with this boy? Well, the plaid shirts must have worked, because he married me in 1958.
In the 1960s our nest sported plaid curtains.

Every little boy's room in the 1970s needed plaid wallpaper. We remember hanging this wallpaper one Sunday afternoon while listening to the Super Bowl, but you shouldn't get distracted when hanging plaid paper - if it isn't perfectly level, you have a mess. Ours looks pretty straight. Check out the macrame owl on the wall; please forgive me as it was the 70s after all.

Evidently, the mauve/blue years of the 1980s weren't conducive to plaid as I couldn't find any plaid fabrics in my house pictures for those years. But, I did make a quilt with red and & white plaid in 1988, and named it 'Tartan'.
This is our guest room in the 1990s with a plaid comforter and red plaid pillows under the floral pillow cases.

In the 2000s our dining room sported plaid valances that matched the wallpaper border that I hand-cut around all of those paisleys. Our dining room decor has changed a couple of times since then with the wallpaper, border and valances out of there.

The last couple of years I have been making pillows out of recycled Ralph Lauren plaid skirts. You can read one of those posts here.

Below is my newest pillow that I made last week. In 1967, we were in a Saskatoon, Canada department store where this fabric was displayed as the official Tartan of Canada's centennial. So I bought a half of a yard. This piece of fabric has moved with us from house to house over the years, and I decided it was time I did something with it.

I guess that means that my infatuation with plaid has come full circle.

I will be joining the following parties this week. Please check out these blogs for a plethora of inspiration.

Savvy Southern Style for Wow us Wednesdays

Little Red House for Mosaic Monday

Between Naps on the Porch for Met Monday

Funky Junk Interiors for Saturday Nite Special

I GUESS YOU'RE NEVER TOO OLD!

2011-02-21T11:02:00.007-07:00

I mentioned in my last post how much we enjoy winter, and that the Colorado mountains are just glorious. This past weekend our church had a sledding party at the San Isabel National Forest. Our granddaughter was going with her youth group, but our grandson was too young unless accompanied by his family; so what are grandparents to do, but go!

We probably had no business going with my artificial hips on snow, ice and uneven ground; and Bob with his muscular dystrophy, braces, and cane. But, we went and had a blast!

What a thrill to watch kids have so much fun doing something old-fashioned and free!

Wyatt had never been on a sled before; but before Bob & I had hiked into the sledding area, he had gone down the hill (backwards!) and was trudging back up to go again. He went up and down the small hill, then the big hill so many times; he was one tired boy.

This is the frozen lake at the bottom of the small hill.

The big hill - it's a long way up there, but what a thrill coming down.

The older kids would line up on their individual sleds, hook their legs around the one in front of them; and go down in tandem.

Who's that old guy with the cane trudging up the hill? Bob went up the big hill about a third of the way, met Wyatt with his sled, then slid down with his cane on his lap. I wasn't as adventurous - it was enough just walking around. I only fell once flat out on my tummy; but one of those nice teenagers quickly came over to help me up!

Some hot chocolate to warm the body before hiking back to the car.

The road out of the forest was muddy/snowy and tricky to navigate; but we all made it home safely.

A small lesson relearned: sometimes joy outweighs a little risk.

I'm joining Susan of A Southern Daydreamer

for Outdoor Wednesday

P.S.: I know these are lousy pictures. Hopefully I'll have a new camera soon.

MY HEART TUGGERS!

2011-02-10T13:46:00.005-07:00

Hello everyone! I'm not back to regular blogging yet, as I still don't have a new camera. Progress is being made in that direction, however. The weather here in Colorado has been cold and snowy, and I LOVE it. Warm and toasty inside, and beautiful outside - our mountains are glorious right now.

I'm stopping by as I just didn't want to miss the opportunity to wish my Valentine boy a happy 9th birthday. With those freckles and imagination, Wyatt, you tug at my heart every day!

And, a Happy Valentine's Day to my other heart tugger - Miss Caitlin!

Grandchildren are the BEST Valentines in the world!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY TO ALL OF YOU, TOO!

BYE FOR AWHILE

2011-01-16T13:23:00.002-07:00

I'm going to take an extended break from posting on my blog. I need a new camera, and with my limited budget for things like that, it may be awhile.

In the meantime, I'll still be lurking around in blogland, visiting my favorite blogs, and making comments. The blog world is such a source of inspiration for me that I could never give that up. PLUS, all of the wonderful friends I have made through blogging the last 2 1/2 years has been an unexpected bonus.

I hope you don't forget me - hopefully I'll be back sooner rather than later!

Best wishes to all of you!

Sally

CABIN COZY

2011-01-05T14:44:00.006-07:00

The Christmas glitz is packed away, and the cold weather has settled in here in Colorado. I was ready for some 'cozy cabin' feel to my house. I figured a quick quilting project was the answer.

In a few hours I made a new patchwork table runner for the dining room. It consists of seven identical blocks with a paisley border and is machine quilted.

To top it off, I have a good, old-fashioned cold; my sinuses feel like they may explode. So I think I'll go get cozy in my chair and read a decorating book I borrowed from a friend this morning.

I will be linking up with the following linky parties. Be sure to check them out for lots of winter inspiration.

Kim at Savvy Southern Style
for the Boring to Better party

Marty at A Stroll Thru Life
for Table Top Tuesday

Donna at Funky Junk Interiors
for Saturday Nite Special

OLD MEMORIES, NEW BEGINNING

2011-01-03T09:55:00.006-07:00

Kate at Centsational Girl has a post today about day planners asking what our favorite tool for organizing our days would be.

I'm obviously sold on using a day planner where I can write things down. Below is the drawer in my desk where I keep all of my old day planners - many, many years of them. They are handy and I refer to them often.

I picked just one to show you. This is my 1967 planner, and it shows that on July 11th at 3:00 pm I had an appointment with Dr. Danner and above I had written, "Hooray!! Hooray!!" I found out I was pregnant with my first-born after 9 years of marriage. And there is scrap of paper attached, where I counted out the days to figure when this bundle of joy was to be born. Do you think I was excited? That was almost 44 years ago. Also, on that same day at 5:00 we had an appointment to look at a house we ended up purchasing - the nesting instinct kicked in fast!
Everyone of these old day planners has tidbits of info in them. I always recorded heights and weights of our kids when they had doctor's appointments, etc. etc.

And here we are -- time to file away 2010 and begin a brand new year with new scribbles in my 2011 calendar.

For quite a few years now, my publisher, American Quilter's Society, has sent me a quilt art calendar which I enjoy using.

MY FAVORITE HOLIDAY

2010-12-31T13:48:00.005-07:00

Yes, New Year's Day is my favorite holiday. Let me explain!

I'm not a very celebratory person. All of the other major holidays actually fill me with dread. I know I'm weird; a psychologist could probably get to the bottom of it for me, but I don't need to know why. It probably has something to do with the fact that I was an only child with very little extended family. Yea, blame it on my parents!

Back to the lack of a celebration personality--- My entire adult life, I have been a wife, then a mother and grandmother; and have always felt the need to do my part to fulfill the expectations of others on holidays. There is all of the cooking (my least favorite thing to do) and the getting together with in-laws, out-laws, kids, etc. etc. I'm not the most social person and thoroughly enjoy being alone, so everything is a chore for me.

That brings us to New Year's Day. In our family, there are no expectations. We have no food traditions and no history of get-togethers. Just a day of whatever happens - NO EXPECTATIONS! My favorite kind of holiday!

I have compensated for my 72 years of not being a big occasion celebration person by trying to find joy in the little things of every single day. So my wish for you is that 2011 brings you some bit of joy and happiness every day of the year.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

FAVORITE PROJECTS - 2010

2010-12-28T18:21:00.000-07:00

It is the end of 2010 already, and time to review our favorite projects for the year! Here are mine in no particular order.

We found this old commercial-type cupboard with sliding doors at an auction, and knew that with its dimensions it would be perfect to house our TV in the living room. This is not our primary TV watching area, so the sliding doors were a bonus. Unfortunately, this cupboard was a mess and had been in a barn for many years. It cleaned up well, and has become a favorite!

I love to find thrifted Ralph Lauren wool skirts, and transform them into pillows.

I've waited several years to be able to have this green vinyl chair recovered professionally.
I love the new red upholstery!

I also waited several years to trade out my old china cupboard for something I liked better. We found this one that needed refinishing. After Bob refinished it, I lined the inside with fabric.

I love the details!

The project that was probably the most fun was the building of the tree house in our backyard. I had nothing to do with it, but Wyatt and his Papa sure had fun.

He was one happy boy when it was done!

I finally found an alabaster lamp in my price range after looking for a long time. It needed a new shade, so I purchased a self-adhesive one and covered it with my favorite toile fabric that I had bought 10 years ago from a French vendor.

We refinished and recovered a $2 chair purchased at an auction.

I love a pretty paisley fabric.

And finally, I made some red wool pillows from bargain fabric and estate-sale velvet ribbon for the living room.

I'll be joining the following parties to wrap up 2010. Please check out these hostesses for a plethora of inspiration.

Rhoda of Southern Hospitality

for Top Ten Projects of 2010

Kim of Savvy Southern Style

for the Boring to Better party

TREE TIME

2010-12-22T13:11:00.005-07:00

I realized that I haven't posted about our Christmas trees this year. Probably that is because our trees are so traditional that they have changed very little over the years.

This little tree below sits in our bedroom now. It began as a tree for my Dad's nursing home room 18 years ago. The ornaments are about 1" in size, mostly from Hallmark's miniature series. My Dad always enjoyed Christmas; but after a debilitating stroke, he was unable to speak. Every year when I would decorate his room, he would spend hours looking and enjoying this little touch of Christmas.

A wonky tree on our back porch to keep company with this wooden Santa that Bob made many years ago.

This tree holds hundreds of blown glass ornaments from our childhood trees, plus gifts from friends and those purchased on trips.

And finally, the family tree that is full of handmade ornaments; Hallmark series that include Santas, trains, and houses & buildings; plus 53 red balls. Every year that we have been married, we have added a red ball with the year painted on it. Our very first Christmas tree in 1958 contained one red ball and garlands made of popcorn. We still string popcorn and cherish all of the red balls. It's fun to remember those years when babies were born, when those babies graduated from high school and college, and the anniversaries we have celebrated. There are too many memories attached to change our way of decorating each year.

I'll be taking a little break from blogging until after Christmas sometime. I sincerely hope Christmas is full of joy and peace for everyone!

JOY TO THE WORLD, THE LORD HAS COME!

BLURBING!

2010-12-19T16:32:00.000-07:00

I have become a 'blurbarian' as I have now 'blurbed'. I learned how to 'slurp' my blog, and have had contact with the 'blurberati'! Yes, I am now addicted to Blurb.com, which has a very easy, free software to download called Booksmart that allows you to create books. I was surprised at how inexpensive it was to have your book printed for gifts and for your own use. This is what I have been up to on Blurb. I found it hard to photograph the books for this post; the pictures in the books really are sharp and clear.

Last Christmas, I scrapbooked (the old-fashioned way with papers & adornments) pictures of my Mother-in-law's ancestors. This year, we wanted to gather together some of the pictures since her marriage in 1931. She is now 96 years old, and we thought she might enjoy a look back. Here is a sample of the Blurb book we created. Below are family pictures from her 90th birthday and 95th birthday. There are about 60 pictures total in this little book - the cost was under $20, as Blurb gave me a promotional code for free shipping.

Since my granddaughter was about 8 years old, we have scrapbooked (again the old fashioned way) a photo book for her to give her parents of the pictures that I have taken of the kids during the previous year. Since Caitlin is definitely of the computer generation, she was excited to give Blurb a try. She had so much fun choosing different backgrounds, colors, fonts, etc. for each page. Once again, the cost was under $20. I know I have spent way more than that in previous years for a binder, papers, and stickers.

The following book was the reason I checked out Blurb in the first place. This blog was started as a journal to record and photograph a variety of things for my descendants (if they are interested). So, I thought it would be a good idea to have a hard copy of my posts. This book ended up being 372 pages long with a little over two years of posts. I had it bound as a hardcover book, so it was more expensive at about $60.

Some examples of the pages:

It was very easy to 'slurp' my blog posts and all the pictures into Booksmart. It took some editing to transform it from a blog format to more of a book format, but I enjoyed the process. In the middle of the editing, we had to buy a new computer which caused a few problems during transfer of data. But, the blurbarati (the technical staff) were quick to respond to my email with lots of suggestions and ideas.

I can think of all kinds of books I now want to do. For instance, I'm thinking of a book of all the Christmas pictures from the last 52 years; or maybe a book with pictures of the houses we have lived in during our married life. Yes, I do have a lot of pictures.

By the way, Blurb.com did not compensate me for this post. I just enjoyed my experiences and wanted to share!

TUCK-IN GIFTS

2010-12-14T14:35:00.010-07:00

Even though glue, glitter, and I have never learned to play together very well; I usually attempt some sort of Christmas craft every year. It usually involves decoupage, as I do love papers and stickers. This year I decided to try some decoupaged ornaments to use as tags on packages. I purchased some thin wooden shapes at JoAnn's; decoupaged with some paper and stickers; then hot-glued some trim around the edges.

My favorite 'tuck in' gift usually is a paper-piecing project. I learned about paper-piecing several years ago when I worked as a quiltmaker. There are lots of patterns out there, but my favorites have always been from Irene Berry, a former editor and now contributor to Quilter's Newsletter magazine. Her patterns are usually 3" square, a perfect size to embellish kitchen towels or potholders. There can be as many as 20 or so pieces in each 3" square, so sometimes the patches are as small as a fingernail. They are easily sewn, however, by using the paper-piecing technique.

I made these two bird towels to 'tuck in' with home-made candy for a friend's Christmas.

Things are progressing well here at the Salmagundi household. The shopping is done and wrapped, the decorating is as done as it is going to get, and the house is clean. I've been making cookies to put in the freezer, and am starting to plan menus for next week. It is such a pleasure to prepare for the celebration of the birth of our Savior.

May your preparations be as joyful!!