HOME...be inspired everyday

The Fireplace

I know I mentioned before here about our fireplace and when it was on our wishlist for must haves when we where looking to buy our new home.  Well here she is..

 
in all her "sooty" glory.  I scrubbed her with some soap and water but she is still a bit grimy.  I need to do some research and find out what I can use to get rid of all that soot and grime. 

 

Since it is summer we aren't burning any fires so I got an idea from Layla at the Lettered Cottage {who has quite the knack for mixing up a mantle} and decided to put a mop bucket in there with a fern, a Maidenhair Fern to be exact, it was on 50% off at Lowes. Can't beat that!

 
the funny thing is Mr. Incredible likes the sooty look, he thinks it gives the fireplace a nice patina. Hmmmmm..I don't know about that.  I saw the shutter backdrop look,  here at The Nest,  and the color I painted the shutters is Dunn Edwards Blustery Wind, which was well over a year ago, {i was planning on putting them over my headboard in the master and hang black and white pictures from} but when we moved here they found a place on the fireplace.  I like it!  The painting was a housewarming gift from Mary Lou, our dear friend in the last post.  Before her stroke she was quite the artist and has some very exquisite pieces in her home, she is very talented, I can draw a very good stick figure.  She asked Mr. Incredible what kind of painting "he" wanted and he said, "do you have any naked lady pictures?  She said, "Can't help ya there", so she gave us or "him" this beautiful one of a dingy boat on the dock with a fishing shack.  I absolutely LOVE it! Her last name is painted on the back of the boat. So it has a lot of meaning for us.

 
The clock and the bicycle were Mother's Day gift from my girls along time ago.  The little bronze urn with the li'l fern in it and the Windsor Chair are thrift store finds. The two homespun hearts are from French General, along time ago. I'd like to put a Library light above the painting to highlight it in our home. To the right is a louvered window which below it has a hatch with a empty box to house firewood and also on the other side is the same thing without the window.  Mudge, our male cat has taken a liking to that spot so I think I may make a bench seat for it and turn it into a window seat.  The fireplace is in the Man Cave aka family room and is slowly coming together.  We have sliding glass doors to the right of the louvered window and I'm vacillating on what kind of window treatments to go with.  I saw a beautiful blue velvet drape at Target that I really like or should I go with burlap for some texture...Mr. Incredible says the curtains I planned on putting up there are "butt ugly"......so I'm trying to find a suitable compromise.  What is your vote on the treatments?  Should I go with Smokey Blue Velvet {same color as the shutters} or a dark brown burlap?  Or any other ideas welcome....

 

 

 

"MOVE THAT Antique!!!"

Last weekend some girlfriends and I spent our Sunday browsing the Rose Bowl Flea Market and lo and behold guess who was filming a new show there?  Ty Pennington.  Yep, the host of Extreme Makeover.  I forget what the new show is called...Cristina..can you help me out here?  Plus I need a better picture of Ty....one that doesn't show his sagging butt in his jeans....

 
As you can see he travels with quite an entourage...so I did not get the best picture of the HGTV star.

There are so many shows on many of the different networks, whether it is the Discovery or the History channel, it is not just HGTV that is leading the trend into the recycling/up-cycling, flea market movement, for example  Cash and Cari. I'm surprised Rachel Ashwell, the one who started it all, never got her own shown on one of the networks.  I'd definetely tune in...It is very hip these days to buy used or lovely worn items with a history.   It is not hard to take a gently used or even a beat up item and turn into something beautiful and useful for our home. Mr. Incredible is a big fan of Pawn Stars,  American Pickers and Auction Kings.  Have you seen any of those shows?  Years ago I only had to have new stuff.  My parents though always bought used furniture, I think the only thing my Mother bought new was a French Provincial Bedroom set from North Carolina.  She was very proud of it and I can remember her showing it off to the neighbors when she got it.  But the house I grew up in had hand me downs from family or my parents bought it at the local Antique store or Goodwill. My Dad only bought his clothes at the Goodwill {Choc, is the one he shopped at} not sure if they had any in other parts of the country.  So I guess you can say it's in my blood....

Last Sunday was a nice day and perfect for shopping at the Rose Bowl Flea Market to uncover treasures.  This flea market is open on the second Sunday of each month. It's been awhile since I've been and this time I brought along my sidekick...

 

Oh my and she did not leave empty handed.  I think she spent every penny she had.  Here are some images of things I found interesting..while browsing....

 
I really liked this zinc demilure table and old crusty lamp.....

 
Since we are moving {I don't know what I'll need and want to keep the packing to a minimum if necessary} I showed great restraint in purchasing beautiful things I found for the home...

 

I love this idea with this big urn as a table base....for a patio or courtyard.

 
 
I thought this German Glass Glitter box with a vintage picture on top was very pretty...

 
Old Seltzer bottles are highly collectible..right now.

 
You can't really see very well in this picture, but the golden oval frame has a very delicate piece of lace in it, which I wanted to take a picture so I can put it into my idea file.

 
Kate Spade.....bling, bling sandals...I was very tempted to pick these babies up.....I love sandles and who doesn't like a lil bling even if is on your feet!
This booth was a very popular one, it had a lot of Audrey Hepburn art and French Chic pieces. I did buy a linen ruffly pillow to {sort of} match the other one I have on my bed in the master bedroom. 

 
I also liked this bench but thought the tufted cushion looked a li'l odd on top of it.  I don't think it fit right.  But I like the idea of a khaki colored cushion for the dining room table instead of chairs.  Which by the way I was on the hunt for and the reason I wanted to scoure the Flea Market...

 
{these chairs are from Home and Harmony, she scored big time} "That's what I'm talkin' about Willis".  We did stop at a Yard Sale before hitting "the Bowl" and they had some very similiar and they were selling them for 2,4o0 for a set of 8, Yikes...way more than I was looking to spend...

 

 
Love this painted piece....turqouise is really popular right now....

 
My girlfriend and I thought this lamp was neat and Industrial chic is all the rage now too...especially with the younger crowd.

 
Now isn't this a riot?   Is it a Troll, is it a clown?  I don't know but it sure is ugly!!   Poor guy....but at least he's got friends...

 
His girlfriend is real cute, she has got some missing teeth and check out her pedicure.......I need to find out which salon she goes to.  All kidding aside we had a great day and we all brought home some treasures, which I'll share in my next post. 

It is raining like cats and dogs right now, what a beginning to the first day of spring.  Stay tuned to the next few posts..I've got some exciting news!!!!!

 

The Brick Basement/Downtown Fullerton

My wonderful friend Secondhand Becca  invited me for Coffee the other morning....in her town of Fullerton, CA.  Well you don't have to twist my arm.  My friend is the original dumpster diver of Fullerton or alley driver.  She finds all kinds of deals in her old town and at her local Goodwill. So after having a PUMPKIN SPICE Latte...I asked if she wanted to head to her local Goodwill, well I didn't have to twist her arm either..I didn't take any photos while we were there but after we parted ways I hit the downtown area and they have the cutest, funnest, best antique Shop called The Brick Basement .  I can spend hours there and I always manage to buy something.  So lets take a look what caught my eye. 

Going in the back door.....there is long hallway with lots of goodies...

turning around and looking back out the door, this corner cabinet caught my eye.  They have lots of these in older homes and I always love them.  So quaint I think.  Would love to have space in my home to get one and stuff it with junk antiques.

In one of the cabinets I saw a cute pink  metal "toy" refrigerator, all rusty and sweet.  Sorry for the glare off the glass. Speaking of children....

Look at this Child's Kitchen, complete with pull out cutting board just like Mama's.   Real Glass doors too!  Would love this if I had lil ones for their playhouse, you know the one from this post. 

A cheery red plate rack with a cowboy boot planter for some red geraniums.

 
  A very, very old dresser vanity by looking at the aged mirror.  I liked the bead-board inserts and the latches on the doors.  

They have lots of white painted furniture at this place, this area was all gussied up for the up coming fall season.  I thought the amber colored knobs were a nice touch.  They call this place The Brick Basement because it has two levels and the walls are all exposed brick....LOVE IT! 

Here is the front of the store.....

Here is my junk, I mean "antiques" found for the day.  My daughter {the  reader}  has been asking me for a book shelf for her room for awhile.  She has a lot of furniture in her room, so it needed to be on the small side.  This wasn't priced and it was in the "book-room" at the Goodwill so I asked the manager, "how much?"  he said, "6.99."..so with a good cleaning and swipes of white paint....guess who is getting a bookshelf?
  

Ya know I like enamel....and this pitcher had the sweetest shape...so she got a new home...ready for some fall sunflowers...{this was from the Brick Basement}
 

Here I go again with enamelware..there was only three of these so I'll have to be looking for a fourth.  I can see it now...serving some Hot piping Broccoli Cheddar Soup in this or some French Onion..Yum! {these from GW}
  

I know I probably spent too much on this milk glass vase, it was $28.00 but I fell in love with the details of it..the beading, the embossed shell print.  But as Mr. Incredible says, "if it is worth it to you, then that's what it is worth".  Hey I like that kind of thinking!   I think I'll use it in the bathroom for Q-tips or toothbrushes.
 

This cream-ware platter looked so familiar...it was $5.99...
 

When I got home I had it's smaller sister, {this was from my Mother's collection}.  Now wouldn't it be fun to find another and make three! 
  Here are the two platters on the end....I was puttering around the house yesterday, dusting my hutch.  I love to play around with all my junk precious possessions, moving them around and seeing the different vignettes I can come up with.  You can see my small pitcher collection up there. I should do a post on them..or have I already?  I have CRS syndrome....

Well...I'm attaching to Southern Hospitality ..she had a Garage Sale over the weekend and boy....did she and Layla Kill it!!   Would of loved to gone to that! 

Back to the Goodwill.....

 
I've been trying to hit my local Goodwill on Monday or Tuesday..figuring that the stuff from all the yard sales that didn't get sold during the weeken end up there and they start putting them out  on the shelves by then, that is my train of thought.  There were lots of great furniture finds this week and I did not have my camera with me so I couldn't take any pictures.  There was a really neat kitchen cupboard with coke glass inserts with a crown molding top, could see that repainted and in someones kitchen, I don't have room for it.  I also spotted a T.V. cabinet, actually a few that would look good repainted with some new hardware on it but it was too short for our HUGE Sully of a T.V.  I saw a BIG wooden Lazy Susan which I find very useful in organizing cabinets.  I wish I would of picked it up when I saw it there the week before and when I went back this time...GONE!  I do see quite a few wooden cheese platters with the glass domes when I go and  this time I found one with a marble base so I picked it up for $4.99, not quite a steal I think, but I liked it.

Here is the marble base. 

I picked up this ruffled square platter to put on my "relocated" dresser and collect and hold all my necklaces.  All THREE OF THEM!  Its from France..Oui, Oui.

It was only $3.99.  Because....

It has a few chips on the back and edge..that's Ok though..I don't mind.  Look at the embossed design on it...I really like that.   I really like that is is from France..Oui, Oui.  Am I turning into a  Francophile?  Oui, Oui.  Maybe.

 Now this is quite a frivolous and fun find!!  Do you know what those are?

Yep, they are fireflies in a jar!  I love fireflies!  We don't have them here in California, only at the Pirates of Caribbean ride at Disneyland.  But that doesn't count.  When we were in Foley, Alabama 5 years ago right before Hurricane Katrina was heading towards Alabama {it changed course and we know where it landed } we got to see real live ones at my in-laws house that was so neat to see their blinking lights amoung the trees calling for a mate.

Here are my Fireflies in a Jar sitting on my cute Cottage bench..look the lid matches my chair pads!  I think I'll tie them up and hang them up from the Umbrella, that would be fun!  I remember seeing these in the Nature Company Store or maybe in the Lillian Vernon Catalog.  I do have some firefly lights that I bought for my "BUG" unit when I was a teaching, maybe I should drag those out and string them up on the Umbrella?  But..those don't run on batteries like my Fireflies in a Jar do!   I do love them and it sure makes me happy to look at them!  I could go into the mechanics of how and why fireflies do what they do....but it's not September yet and I'm NOT in teacher mode!  Ha!  

Well, I'm hookin' up with Rhoda a real Alabama native, {along with Layla}  not like my fake impostors here...for Thrifty Treasures  , Rhoda, Layla and Kim at Twice Remembered Cottage  hit the Nashville Flea Market and man was there some good stuff there, wish I could of tagged along with them. 

Thrifty Treasures Found!

I haven't been very good at going to yard sales this past year but I have been hitting my Goodwill regularly when I go to the bank and then some...the bank is located across the street.   Here are some things I've managed to cart home with me in the last several weeks.

This cute fall-colored, paisley purse.  I thought the colors would be great for the upcoming season and I liked the details on it on the leather and silver.

I don't know who Rosetti is......I have never really been a name-brand kind of gal..I like what I like and if it doesn't look cheap I buy it.  It has a back pocket on the side of the purse perfect for your keys so you don't loose them in the big abyss of the bottom of your purse. 

I don't know who Mrs. Kensington is either, I'm sure she was a very nice lady.  This very heavy, very large platter just spoke to me.  I loved the fonts on it and not sure where I'll put it but for $3.99 it's the right price.  I do have a couple place in mind though.

 
  This very sturdy wicker chest is for shoes.  I have it outside in the backyard now and the girls are putting all their outdoor toys in it for now.  I would like to paint it, maybe a black or I might go a little crazy and paint it Chocolate brown...Wow that's livin' on the edge!  It was in very good shape and I went back to look at it 3 times, that means I went home and came back 3 times.  It was only 14.99.   What color do you think I should paint it? 

Now this dresser did not come from the GW but from my BFF {since I was 5} garage.  It was her sons and was taking up space so she said I could have it.  I was going to put it in my bedroom.  I planned on painting it a cream on the bottom and staining the top a dark wood color but my Madison said she wanted it and she wanted me to paint it turquoise. 

So off to the paint store we went and picked up her color, she said her room was too white and needed color...okie dokie then.  The other color to the left is a soft greenish blue grey, the same exact one my friend has on her walls .  I had it colored match and was going to paint my legs of my sofa table but now I'm painting these shutters with it...

I got a set of 8 shutters, they were by the curb waiting for the trash man.  I have had them in my garage for over a year.   I have painted them that green grey blue color and will distress them to give them a weathered look.  I'll  join 6 of them together and hang them over my bed as a backdrop for art.  I have no idea what kind of art but I'll find something.  It drives Mr. Incredible cRazY...that I keep all this stuff in the garage for maybe "some day" that I'm going to do something with it.   He thinks that I'm going to end up on that show..."Being Buried Alive"....about Hoarding.....he is completely serious!  I don't see the connection....at all.  Well,  I'm an organized Hoarder!  

This was my across the street neighbors and it was a rusty, dull grey.  {I forgot to get a before picture.}  I decided to go crazy and paint it black {if you know me I usually paint everything Heirloom White, or some version of that} I thought it would make a great potting "shed" or shelf for my gardening like in the past post.  Didn't it turn out cute?  I think maybe Mrs. Kensington's Platter {in the above photo} would look cute up hanging up on the trellis or maybe some twinkling lights.   Or some water pitchers...the possibilities are endless....I also could plant it with moss and have succulents or flowers hanging out of it.  What do you think I should do?   Leave it as is or do you have another idea?

I'm hooking up with Rhoda, over at Southern Hospitality for her Show and Tell of Thrifty Treasures.  If ya'all...like to mosey on over there, {Rhoda is from the South and they talk like that down there so I'm using my best southern drawl to get you in the mood} You'll find lots of treasures all over the good ole' USA......and what great things can be found.  Now go on and git!

Green Beans and Shrimp Tacos served on GW Plates

I know..green beans and shrimp do not sound like they go together.  BUT,...you will love this tasty recipe..I promise. It's light and tasty at the same time. It's also fast and so easy to prepare and perfect on a hot summer night. 

Just add a little Salsa if you like a bit more of a kick..I like mine plain.  Served with Spanish Rice it completes the meal. Serve it on some elegant Ironstone and you'll feel like your dining at a fancy restaurant down in Laguna Beach...

{recipe to follow}....and now for my second part of my post. 

I took a detour to my local Goodwill last week, like I tend to do on occasion.  On the bottom shelf in the housewares section of the GW I saw these plates with the a scalloped edge that caught my eye.  I picked them up and turned them over and this is what I saw.

 

Ironstone from England.  Lucky me. 

 
Then I heard on the overhead intercom..that all the blue tags where 50% off that day.  

Lucky me!   Too bad there was only a set of four of them but we only have four in my family so that will work.   At 99cents a piece,  dang...can't beat that price. Unheard of.  Now for the GREAT light, fast, easy, tasty..........

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Shrimp and Green Bean Tacos~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ingredients:

8   6 inch corn tortillas

80z. fresh green beans, trimmed and halved crosswise

1 tsp Jamaican jerk seasoning

1 lb. of med. to lrg. shrimp

1 TBSP olive oil

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wrap tortillas in heavy foil, { i use regular foil} or you can heat them up on the stove like I do because it is too hot to turn on the oven.  Make Salsa from fresh ingredients from the garden or prepared salsa.  In a bowl toss beans with 1/2 teaspoon of jerk seasoning.  In another bowl toss the other 1/2 teaspoon of jerk seasoning. Heat olive oil up in skillet, over med-high heat.  Add beans; cook and stir 3 minutes.  Add shrimp cook 2-3 minutes until shrimp turn opaque. Serve, fill each warm tortilla with 1/3 each of green beans and shrimp.  Serve with Salsa and Rice.  Serves 4.  

Something nice and light for a beautiful hot summer night.  Perfect served with a nice Chardonnay.

Edited to add:  I'm going to hook up with Rhoda for her weekly thrifty finds party, have a looksie and see what all the peeps are finding and repurposing or getting great deals on finds... 

Summertime is in full swing and I'm a winner winner chicken dinner...

A few weeks ago Twice Rememered Cottage was having her annual Cottage Linky giveaway party.  I entered a few of the giveaways and low and behold I came out a winner on a couple of them and I'm so glad I did.  First off I won this cute ABC pillow sham from Debra at Loyalist Cottage .  Here is how it came all wrapped up...

Didn't Debra wrap it up so cute?  Love the colorful card and the scalloped tissue paper with the bee stamped ribbon.  Now lets look and see what inside..

 
 yep, that cute ABC pillow in red..doesn't it go great on my cottage bench?  Thank you so much Debra, your a doll!  Thank you so much for always coming to my blog and making comments, you really make my day! 

The next giveaway I won was at Cottage 980, she is a yard-sale, thrifty hunter extraordinaire.  I was the lucky recipient of her lovely generous giveaway..

 
 
 3 more ball jars (around here they go for about 7 dollars a jar) to add to my collection. I got two in aqua,  which will fill out my chicken wire basket perfect and 1 white jar which you see I have already filled it with Salt Water Taffy for Summer Bingo {I'll get to that in a minute}.  Vintage music paper, some scrabble letters which I think I'll make into magnets.  I need some magnets for the Chalkboard or Refrigerator. A darling melamine plate with robins egg border and petite floral roses on it and cute tag with some flowers all wrapped up with ribbon.  Thanks so much Maureen over at Cottage 980.  I loved all my goodies.   I've added both of these bloggers to my blog roll so go check them out.  What sweet ladies they are.  As they say in Hawai'i Mahalo!

Now for the second part of my post.  Summertime is in full swing over here.  We have gone to the beach once and scheduled our beach day for Fridays. Last year you might of remembered this post of Summer Bingo .  I got this idea from Stacy Julian a few summers ago, she has 4 boys and 1 sweet girl adopted from China.  She has the best ideas and I've been following this Summer Bingo program for the third summer.  I change it up a bit every year. And as you can see the li'l one is already on her way to blackout..

 
We have a Paul Frank theme going on instead of Spongebob.

   
Here are the Summer Bingo rules that I adapt to my family, if you click on the link above you'll be lead to Stacy's downloaded copy of the rules and Bingo card but here is Download Summerbingo Card and Download Bingorules-1 {mine}. Have fun changing yours in your word program to fit your own family. 

 
I've changed my schedule up a bit from last summer.  My girls help out in the classrooms at their school from 8am until about 11:30ish Monday until Thursday.  So their mornings are pretty much filled up.  Then they come home and have lunch and then they are off to the WYN club. {Our city does a drop in program from 12:00 until 5p.m. at one of the local parks.}.  They do water games, sport games, crafts everyday and hang out with their friends. They love it and they are "out of my hair"..well if I had any hair!!!   they would be out of it!!   They come home and help with dinner and twice a week, each one picks a night to cook dinner with Mom {that they love too}  Kenzie picked Tasty Burritos..and boy was that yummy on Tuesday.  Tonight Madison is making Tacos.  Yes...we cook a lot of Mexican here!!  This year I've adapted the homework part of it on the Summer Bingo. They don't have to do the Homework sheets and read, but as you can see they do have to read in many of the squares to get a sticker.  I gave them a choice to read or write for 20 minutes before bedtime.   For MacKenzie I also added the choice of going through division flash cards because she needs help with that, according to her report card.  Madison is weak at writing/reading so I'm hoping she'll choose one of those.  We don't do this program during the Holidays or weekends.  I do it to keep them entertained, so they don't fight with each other and so they don't wine with I have "nothing to do"!!  It works for me give it a shot....

Yes, they are tweens and DON'T want to take pictures...

   A new suit for the summer...Last year I was a much better "MOM" and had beach buckets filled with new Beach stuff...slippers, light up balls, goggles, new towels..It was called the "Summer Fun Bucket" ...I forgot to do that this year.  Oh well!! They didn't seem to miss it because they never asked about it.   They always get what they need I suppose.

 
  Here is to a fun filled days of sandy feet, warm sun at the beach and at the neighbors' house enjoying the pool.   To eating lots of popsicles and tanned bodies and enjoying reading lots of books!! Hope you have a wonderful summer and keep those kiddies cool and happy!  AND READING!!