Vintage Inspirations

I saw this little beauty online, and it has made me long for a large version of it. Perfect for above a dresser. I adore alot of detail around a mirror or frame.

This dresser is new but made to look old. I can respect that. I love the chippy style to. I could use three or four of these babies! Or at least two for nightstands.

My favorite thing to find in a dresser drawer other than a sachet. Pretty paper liners. Rachel Ashwell always does it good. I have even photo copied my favorite vintage pillow cases and used the paper to line tiny drawers,boxes and mattes for shabby chic frames.

This was one of Rachel Ashwells Target line that I loved too. I actually got the shower curtain in a swap from a friend! I love to swap out goodies with my sisters and friends. Your not out any money and you both get great stuff.

Laundry love

I may be the rare gal who absolutely loves to do laundry. I love sorting, Ironing, and the smells of the softner. Laundry baskets are great but I do love laundry bags alot too. I have one bag that is really large, made from a Ralph Lauren sheet. I actually use it inside my wire pull cart for the flea market. It looks great and it keeps the small items from falling through.

I would really love a soaking sink in my laundry area.

I still like the old fashioned way of drying too. Line drying is wonderful. I have so many happy memories of helping my grandma hanging the laundry. I loved those wooden clothes pins. And her clothes pin bag....I would give anything to have that today. .......Now if I hang things I do keep the undergarments indoors to dry. I am sure my/your neighbors dont want to see anyones bloomers flapping in the breeze! lol. Plus you cant get much greener than that for our planet & it helps on your electric bill too. Plus you get to show off all those fantastic Ralph Lauren sheets to the neighbors! (shame on me I know!)

A lovely walk

Well, by now you know how I love to write and show pictures from our evening/daily walks. Here are a few we wanted to share with you today. The weather was so wonderful and I guess nature agreed! The magnolia tree was starting to bloom, but just had the one blossom..weird. And the bugs were out like crazy too. Caterpillars were all over the reeds by the creek. I am sure the birds were just thrilled though. Annabelle brought home four caterpillars and gave them names. Three were returned to the trees last night but.... One is still roaming the house somewhere.

A mommy duck and her precious babies were happy to see our bag of crackers. They stayed a long time and we were able to get some video too. I hope we see them again today.

(more pictures from the walk below)

I dont know what these trees are but they smell wonderful! Just like honeysuckle!

smallest rose bush in history

I love homemade birdhouses

Something sweet

I havent baked in awhile so I decided to make some strawberry cheesecake muffins....mmmmm. Yes, they were wonderful wonderful ! The only mistake I made was just making six. They were all snatched up as soon as I got my pictures..lol. Oh well I'm glad the kids and Brian like them so much. Alright...I had two...but hey I baked them, right!? I always put a little Coolwhip on the side to dip it in. Ok, alot of Coolwhip! I bought a bottle of French Berry soda yesterday and it was perfect with it! You should really try it. I love it ice cold. Well, I guess I should go make dinner now....

~Belinda

Walk in....or walk out

       Today I have been thinking all about wardrobes. I know everyone seems to be so inlove with the walk in closet...It always seems to be the big desire for a new home. Well.... it has become my enemy. Its like a black hole..lol...everything goes in and is gone forever. Now I love storage as much as the next girl but I am really wanting to keep it simple. With my walk in closet...I keep shoes in boxes and clothes all crammed together and on shelves. Half never worn it seems. My vintage purses have a shelf just for them. Papers and photos stored in pretty paper covered boxes stacked up high...... I forget about the stuff! I think a wardrobe would be just perfect for me. Simple. When I open the door....what I see is what I get.
       I am going to try to go with the spring cleaning motto....If you haven't worn it in six months....TOSS IT! well...recycle! Give it away or have a sale. I do think its fine to store a few favorite off season things...like sweaters. Two for me, but thats it, and in clear bags. The next season always brings something much cuter anyway.
        I would like to hear about some of your storage solutions and what Spring cleaning rituals have. What do you toss and when? Is your closet your friend?
                                                                                  ~Belinda
  
  (photo: Country Living )

Swap meet

My little sweetheart just makes my heart swell with so much love.

So you can see in the pictures of her room why she is so spoiled! lol...But the other purpose of showing her room is to show just how thrifty I can be when needed. And what great deals I have found this past year. Well I will start with the headboard. FREE ! Well I met a gal on craigslist, a few years ago, that has now become a great swapping buddy and friend . Dont worry we met at a Home depot and my hubby came for safety! )She has the skill of making furniture look amazing! Well I have the skill of finding AMAZING deals. So its a nice ballance. She swapped me the headboard for some household items...pillows, frames, vase, and etc. Not alot compared to what this would have cost me new. And Annabelle LOVES her bed. (forgot to attache to rails for pic..oops) We have done several swaps like this. She redid my daughters antique vanity to match the bed, and a nightstand. We swapped her for flowers, a mirror, and linens for her daughter. Not that I could'nt spare any huh..? Such a great way to save I think.

The euro pillowcases were bought at a clearance store, new, for $1.00 each !! NO LIE ! ( alot of ladies going crazy that day ) The pink trimmed one is even a Kate Spade and was originaly $115.00! The Rockstar set is I think the only thing I paid more for..new at Target, (50.00) . The shabby chic quilt..$10.00 new at a big fleamarket.
As for the toys...Her two American girl dolls were gifts at Christmas, yeah! All the stuffed animals were from a local thrift store...most were new with tags....75 cents and under each. One day they had a sale..20 for $2.00....Big score there. So as you can guess...the other 50 or so animals are crammed in the closet!

Now this is her bedding that is stored in my closet. Not all of it either. Mercy. Well I already talked more than once on my linen love so the pictures explains it all..lol.. I have been weeding through it all for days now and are getting ready for a sale. Long overdue I'd say.

I

Happy Earth Day !

Dont forget to step outside today and take a look at our big beautiful planet!

And all the amazing things it has to show us..........

Let's try our best to love the Earth

I Need a new Camera ! Do you?

Ok my blogging buddies...here is a great chance for one of us to win a really nice digtal camera! The Shopping Mama is offering a giveaway for a CASIO EXILIM High-Speed digital camera. This is a cute website also with lots of great information for those mommies on the go!. So boogie on over and enter!

theshoppingmama.com

Elegant Mattes

skiptomylou.org



Hello again! I am showing you and everyone at Skip to My Lou what I have made! It is their MADE IT BY YOU Mondays , and I wanted to share my linen looking matte that I made.

I have a large group of antique prints from the 1800's and I wanted to make some of the mattes for them , look a little more elegant. I have red in my kitchen with a French country look so I wanted something to go with this......I wanted a linen/fabric look...but this isnt linen at all though. It is tulle ! Like the stuff that fluffs out prom dresses....weird yes...but it turned out great! Now my tulle was very thin red pieces ,that I had bought in a large group at a flea market for .50cents. I layered several pieces to make it darker and then traced the matte size. I cut ..then glued .. DONE! I loved the finished look.

Mixed up

I love a nice mixture of patterns in quilts. I think they are for people who want every pattern at once for the bed, but cant decide..lol. They are nice for just that reason...you can add so many more elements to the room because of it. Stripes, florals and solids give you so many choices.

My favorites are obviously the vintage materials grouped together. And the little touches of lace and trim added in are just wonderful! Then little buttons on top of that ! Fabulous!

On top of pillows like this is such a great idea. It pulls it all together without having to use all the materials and be overpowering.

With old tablecloths and dishtowels...you can get a "new life" from them. If they get stains or holes you dont have to throw them out. Make laundry bags, stockings, basket liners, sachets, and pillows. And pillow case trims with embroidery, for extra detail.  It is a great way to recycle too.

I've got the blues.....

and the pinks....

and the whites.............

and the crackled yellows......

all ready to create my perfect little farm house.