Mardi Gras Pics

Casey and Angela and the twins went with us to the Spanish Town Mardi Gras parade last weekend. Angela downloaded a new photoshop type program and played around with the pictures. Aren't they beautiful? I can't wait to do a scrapbook layout with them. Today was a great day. My new sofa was delivered and I had a fun scrapbook class. It's nice to enjoy a Saturday without housework or laundry once in a while. Stay tuned for more news about the sofa and my "new" family room.

Flaunt Your Red Friday

Well, hello there, and welcome to my Flaunt Your Red Friday post. Thanks, Nancy, for hosting this special event. Red is one of my favorite colors and I have touches of it all around my house. Just click on the pictures to enlarge them. Let's take a look around .....

Above, check out the window treatments I sewed for my master bedroom. They're among the easiest I've ever made and I like them the best. Please excuse the dust on the curtain pole. It's definitely NOT FUNNY how the camera picks up every little flaw. I know, the entertainment center needs to be moved from in front of the window, just haven't had a chance since my dear houseguests moved out.

Here's a shot of my breakfast nook. I used a can of black paint to give new life to that old shelf left over from my country kitchen days. On top is an old wooden cigar box I bought for $1.00 at a garage sale, an old shoe form from an antique shop, and a neat little pitcher that my mother gave to me. I'm the only daughter who inherited her love of antiques. Do you see my forlorn patio table out back? Even though we folded the umbrella and stored it under our back patio, it took a beating when Hurricane Gustav rolled through. With the recent sunny and mild days, I'm missing my umbrella!

And here is a neat little red box in front of the antique watering cans that I salvaged from my great aunt's house after she passed away. I like to decorate above my kitchen cabinets even though everything up there seems to attract dust like a magnet. I had a lot of fun poked at me for lugging those babies home. Not long after that, I saw a watering can exactly like the one in the back in an antique shop with an $85.00 price tag on it.

And here are the red toile curtains that I ordered on Ebay. When I got tired of my old window treatments, I listed them on Ebay and used the proceeds toward these, so they cost me very little out of pocket. The pattern is Waverly Country Life. Notice the reproduction scale that my mother-in-law gave me one Christmas. She saw it in a gift shop just after Christmas and put it away for me until the next Christmas because she knew I'd love it. All year she reminded me that my gift was the first one she'd bought. Talk about make a girl feel special!

On Saturday, my new sofa is being delivered and guess what color is in it? RED! I'm so excited, I just can't wait!

HAPPY FLAUNT IT RED FRIDAY!

Three or More Tuesday

Years ago when I married into the Colclough family, my dear mother-in-law told me about an old line of English china with that name. I scoured antique shops and looked for it at auctions and found a piece or two. Then Ebay made its grand entrance and I began to collect with a vengeance as did my sisters in law. But you know what? Somehow it was lots more fun to have to search and search for my treasures. If you're familiar with Royal Doulton, you'll notice that the shape of the cups is similar. Here is some of my collection showcased for Three or More Tuesday. I've purchased pieces from all over the country, Australia, and England. I wish I'd kept track of which pieces came from where. Which pattern do you prefer? The crinoline lady is my personal favorite.

Glimmer Mist

Glimmer Mist is an awesome product. I used a mask and the Coffee Bean color of the Tattered Angels product line on this layout. Glimmer Mist has a subtle glimmer (be sure to click on the pictures to see the details) that the camera doesn't do justice. The subject of this layout is my best friend Kim. She means the world to me and is always there when I need her. Her husband was in a terrible accident almost 6 years ago and has endured a ton of surgeries. They have been through so much together and could sit around and mope about how unfair life is, but they choose to live it fully instead. I love ya, Kim!

Happy Valentine's Day

Here's hoping that all your dreams come true today....

Vintage Favorite

Okay, I admit it. I have no tricks to pull out of my valentine bag. Just can't come up with anything to post for the centerpiece challenge or the tablescape.

What's your favorite vintage piece? The one that you would re-enter a burning house to rescue? Here is my favorite. From the looks of the hair and clothing style, I would guess the original photo was taken in the 1860's. I only WISH this canvas was painted then. You see, my great aunt Daisy had it reproduced on canvas many years after the fact so that she could display it in her home in Houston, Texas. The couple are the grandparents of Daisy's husband, Guy. Aunt Daisy was a world traveler and a lover of exquisite things. Her favorite place to shop was Neiman Marcus. She was a business woman before it was fashionable, married late in life, and never had any children. Another neat thing about Daisy was that she abhorred garbage cans and wouldn't have one in her kitchen. She kept it in her garage in the alley out back and made numerous trips back and forth. Imagine that! People who visit my house always comment on my vintage painting. My husband hates it. Oh well, he'll get over it.

Mardi Gras Mambo

You know.... I love decorating for the holidays but haven't ever done much for Valentine's Day. I guess it's because down here in the deep south we decorate for Mardi Gras and the two holidays fall close to one another. So in lieu of a Valentine's post, here's my tribute to Mardi Gras. Put this little tree together a couple of years ago from materials from one of my favorite stores - Michael's.

For the Love of Glimmer Mist

What a busy day it was. The twins are here spending the weekend here while mom does her monthly national guard weekend. I also had a neat scrapbook class where we used Glimmer Mist. I can't wait to play around with some of the techniques. I haven't mounted pictures to my layout yet but wanted to give you a peek of what we created. If you click on the pictures, you'll be able to see the glimmer.

+++++ Oops, the pages loaded in reverse order. They should read TOGETHER and then FOREVER.

Wall Sayings

Has anybody out there tried out the new vinyl letters for walls? I bought several sayings (one at Linens-n-Things before they closed, one at Hobby Lobby, and one at Kohl's) and really really like the way they look on the wall. They appear to be hand painted, are inexpensive, and go up easily and quickly. When you tire of them, you heat the letters with a blow dryer and they're supposed to peel right off without marring the paint. I used the top saying in my kitchen and the bottom one in my foyer on the wall opposite my front door. Kinda neat, don't you think?

Metamorphosis Monday

Hi, ladies. I'm new to blogland and jumping on board in search of some blog friends. This old gate leg table was rescued from the ditch of our country road by my dear hubby several years ago. Someone had taken an electric sander to the top and ruined the finish. After a little TLC in the form of several coats of glossy white paint and some handpainted dragonflies, it served long and well in my daughter's bedroom. When she redecorated, my dear friend got the boot and has been patiently waiting to be of service again. I've been dreaming of a scrapbook room for ages and I made that happen over the Christmas break. So now my dear old gateleg table is basking in the spotlight again, this time with a fresh coat of flat black paint. I'm still deciding whether I like the contrast of the blue toile fabric I had on hand against the cool green walls. Black toile would really bring out the green, don't you think? There's still much work to be done in the room but wanted to let you take a peek. I'm planning to mount some black shelving to the wall to house glass jars containing my ribbons sorted by color and want to replace the wooden cart (compliments of the thrift store) with something prettier and more substantial. Thanks, Susan, from Between Naps on the Porch for giving me the opportunity to join in the fun.
Terri

I Hope She Didn't Tip!

Those two lil sweeties got into some mischief. Haylee cut all of Brooke's bangs off and some of the hair along the nape. Oh, my word, what a mess!