I DID SOME MORE TWEAKING TONIGHT

I’ve had some requests to show the trunk that I use for a coffee table.  We got it at an antique flea market a few years ago.  I have old linens stored in it.



My simple dining table display.



I have never been happy with the display on top of the wash stand in our hall bathroom.  I wanted a prim look, but the wash stand is not prim. Tonight I went to my storage shelves in the garage and grabbed a few prim pieces.  I added a couple of old mirrors, some grubby bars of soap and a couple of old linen hand towels.  I think I am happy with this display for now.



Close up of display.  The mirror on the old medicine cabinet is not dirty – it is cloudy from age.

 

I found this burlap potato sack at an antique shop recently.  I put a pillow inside it and added it to the bed in my blue/brown guest room.



Close up of pillow.



I moved the chairs around in our sitting room.  The toile chairs have been on each side of the quilt cupboard for a couple of years and the rocker was to the right of the red cupboard.


The coverlet on the grove ladder hides the thermostat.



The photographs on each side of the window are not prim, but they are very special to us.  They were a gift from a friend that we visited in Jamaica a few years ago.  They are landscape photographs named and signed by the photographer.  One is named “His Presence” and the other one is “A Quiet Place” – when I saw them I was so touched that she took them off her wall and insisted I take them home with me.  Every time I look at them I think of our special visit and my dear friend.

Thank you for visiting with me today and checking out my most recent tweaking.

Have a blessed week,
Sue

PUTTING CHRISTMAS A WAY AND A FEW CHANGES

We had a wonderful Christmas with our family.  Everyone came to our home on Christmas Eve for lots of good food and our family gift exchange. There are 17 of us in our family, plus this year we also had 4 new guests  – our teenage granddaughters brought boyfriends.  They were all adorable and fit right in.  Two of the girls and their boyfriends came early and helped get everything ready – it was great to have extra help.  On Christmas Day we all went to my parents’ home for dinner.  Not all of my siblings and their families were able to be there, but we did have a nice time with the 29 that came.

All of my Christmas decorations have been put away and I am working on changing some of my every day displays.  I still have a lot to do, but wanted to share what I have done so far.

Since I didn’t get around to posting any of my Christmas decorating, I thought I would show a few Christmas photos, as the before pictures, and then show you some changes I have made.

I didn’t get a picture of the entire TV cabinet so I will show the three areas I photographed – before.


 

After - I removed the pewter and rearranged my crocks – this is what I came up with.


 

Santa Display on old book case – before.

  

I like to use these shelves to display my Santas,  but I have not been able to come up with an everyday display that I liked for these shelves until this one.  I asked my hubby to cut some plate grooves in the shelving and it turned out just as I wanted. 

After - I moved my pewter collection from the TV cabinet to these shelves and I love it.

  


The top of my green dry sink – before.

After. 


 Pegboard and bench in entry – before.

After.

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and are enjoying these last few days of 2011.

Blessings,
Sue

VACATION GOODIES DISPLAYED

I had planned to post pictures of my vacation goodies a little sooner – but I had a medical procedure a couple of weeks ago and it was a little more extensive than originally expected.  So I have been a little under the weather and it took me longer to get things in place.  I am feeling better now and wanted to show y’all some of our goodies.

As I mentioned in my last post, we were blessed to meet Betty, Through my Backdoor, for lunch and afterwards she took us to The Speckled Hen.  When we arrived at The Hen, Betty had a gift for me – an adorable prim candle.  I had been wanting one of these for a while and already had a place for it.  I found this old iron ladle a few months ago and thought it would look good hanging on my cupboard door, with one of these candles.  It couldn’t have been more perfect.

 

Close-up of candle.  Isn’t the detail beautiful?




I had two things on my wish list, that I hoped to find while on vacation – Tobacco Cloth curtains and lamp shades for our Blue & Brown Guest Room.  I was so excited to find the curtains at The Speckled Hen.  I got the long ones and even after washing and drying them they are still longer than I was thinking I wanted for these windows.  What do y’all think?  Should I cut them off so that they only come to the bottom of the window?



I didn’t find the lamp shades while on vacation, but when I got home I found some online and ordered them.  They turned out to be just what I had in mind.  The tag said they are navy and kacki check, but the navy is actually a dark country blue.  The color doesn’t show very well in the picture, but I think it is perfect.



I now have all of the bones in place for this room – quilt, bed skirt, curtains, and new lamp shades.  I am thinking about painting the walls in a shade of kacki – they are now a soft gold.  Of course there will always be accessories to add and tweek – but that is the fun of decorating, isn’t it?

While we were shopping in Clinton for their “Christmas in July” sale day, my DH mentioned that he had two things on his wish list – a corn sheller and a pitcher pump.  We were so surprised to find a corn sheller, in a most unlikely shop, and the price was great.  The sheller was attached to a wooden bin – DH said he only wanted the sheller, but I wanted the bin, so we brought them both home.  We did see a couple of pumps, but they were not in our price range.
  
Adolph wanted to show me how the sheller works.



 You put an ear of dried corn in the top, turn the handle, and the corn kernels fall into the bottom of the bin.



See the kernels in the bottom of the bin?



Then when all of the kernels are off, the cob comes out of the back.



The corn sheller is so cool. I don’t know why he wanted one, except he said he used one growing up, to prepare feed for their animals. I knew why I wanted the bin though – I can’t wait to fill it with potted mums for the Fall.


Here is is sitting in our backyard.  Two of the bin’s legs are shorter, so that the bottom slants downward. I just love the way it looks.  We plan to enlarge the mulched area between the trees and add some other plants.



After shopping in Clinton, we went by Betty’s for a visit (see previous post) and when we left, Betty gifted me with a tobacco basket.  I have been wanting one for a long time.

I have it on the porch of Adolph’s workshop for now – I am still looking for that special place where it will call home.


Close-up – isn’t it primtastic?



We did find a few other small goodies, but I haven’t found homes for them yet.  They have been added to my other treasures that are waiting for that special spot or purpose.  I enjoy having a stash of goodies to pull from when I am in the mood to tweek, don’t y’all?


I hope y’all are all enjoying these last days of summer!

Blessings,
Sue

A VERY PRODUCTIVE DAY

I found out Wednesday morning that we would not be Caleb sitting today or tomorrow.  Our son had the days off and would be keeping Caleb at home.  As much as we enjoy having Caleb most every week day, there are things that I just can’t get done when he is here – I guess I spend too much time playing.   Since I had the extra time I got up this morning and did a thorough cleaning of our home.  It sure feels good to have it all done at one time.  I moved a couple of things around and thought I would share a few pictures of my Americana décor.

Dining Table display

Don’t you just love the flag table runner?  I got it from Karen at KM Primitives.

Coffee Table display


Flag on old ladder


Display by front door


Tomorrow I plan to spend the day with my friend, Connie, who recently lost her Mom.  She said she just needed to get away for the day.  We are going shopping and out to lunch and having a girls day.  I am really looking forward to it.  I need to get a few things for vacation.

Speaking of vacation – we decided to rent a cabin near Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.  We are looking forward to a relaxing get away, and also enjoying the mountains and maybe some antiquing.  If you know of any great spots in the area I would love to hear from you.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Blessings,
Sue

TUESDAY DISPLAY CHAIN–EASTER DISPLAYS

The theme for this week’s Display Chain hosted by Misi, 1890 Gable House Musings, is Easter Displays.  I do not decorate specifically for Easter – I just include a few bunnies and eggs in my Spring décor.   

This bowl of rag eggs and tray of bunnies and carrots sits on the trunk we use for a coffee table, in front of our sofa.


A bunny and some eggs tucked in a yellow ware bowl on a shelf in our Living Room.
    

Display on the wash stand in our Guest Bathroom.
 

Some eggs I made from an old quilt, displayed in my favorite wooden bowl, on the table in our Sun Porch.


This display is on our dining table.


Stove board display.


A few lavender flowers in a kitchen display.


Be sure to hop over to Misi’s blog and check out the other participants’ displays.

Thank you for stopping by.

Blessings,
Sue

DOUBLELY BLESSED THIS WEEK!!

Earlier this week - the doorbell rang and when I opened the door I was very surprised to see a FedEx truck driving away.  I was not expecting anything – but there sat a big box, with my name on it, on the front porch.  I couldn’t wait to open it and see what was inside.  Oh my, I was blown away.  My sweet friend Lori, theblackcrow, had sent me a “just because” gift.  

There was a book – Country Decorating – to add to my American Country collection.  And then, Lori had sent something for my Blue/Brown Guest Room – a huge old blue wooden bowl and a few brown rag balls.

Here they are just out of the box.


Here is the bowl on my quilt.  I hope you can see the wonderful patina and how great the colors are for this room.


I placed the bowl on my great-grandmother’s sewing machine, that I use as a bedside table.  I love it!  Lori, thank you for being so thoughtful - it is perfect!
 

Lori has been going through a busy season of life lately and hasn’t been able to post on her blog for awhile, but I encourage you to visit her blog anyway and check out her past posts here - you won’t be disappointed.

Yesterday - when my husband checked the mail our mailbox was empty, so we thought we had just not received any mail for that day.  Later in the afternoon my sister came by and when I opened the door there sat a box, with the mail tucked underneath it.  This box had my name on it too!  

Now that is two packages (for me) in one week – this is definitely out of the ordinary.  Again, I couldn’t wait to open the box and see what was inside.   It was a gift from my dear friend Linda, Parker’s Paradise.  

Linda had posted a picture of a sampler that she stitched (here), with the name of each grandchild, in a heart, around the words “Grandma’s Blessings” - and my grandmother’s heart was touched.  My “grands” are one of the great delights of my life and I just love that Linda feels the same way about hers.  I had posted a comment on Linda’s blog and she emailed me about my grandchildren – and then this wonderful gift arrived in the mail!



This picture does not do it justice.  It is beautiful!  Thank you, Linda,  for being so thoughtful – I love it!  (I  will be rearranging a wall display to make a special place to hang this – need DH’s help for this, so will post a picture later.)

Linda is a dear and her blog is delightful –be sure to visit her here.

GRATITUDE - I have made many dear friends through blogging. I had no idea when I began this journey what to expect, but I have been blessed beyond measure.

Thank you to each of my followers - and a special thank you to those of you who take the time to comment.  You touch my life with your friendship, as you encourage and inspire me.

Blessings,
Sue