pendants are finally done!

Woohoo!

I've been working like a nut this week, so thank goodness I can finally check one project off the list!

Yes, its true...pendants are finally done! I know, I have been promising forever but they are done and ready to ship!

(My apologies to all of you that have been waiting...and waiting...and waiting!

If you are on my waiting list, drop me an email me to remind me what letter and where to send it. Its been a long week, so I am running low on brain-power!

If you would like one, and you are not on my list, just drop me a note! $15..and that includes shipping within the US. (I will be happy to ship Internationally, too...but would need to charge a little extra.)

Ok now off to the painting and disressing of furniture. Only two more working days until I load up for the show. I have some FABULOUS pieces of furniture for this weekend, so don't forget...Kane County Fairgrounds, Arena Building which is on the main drag right across from the main office.
(I have 6 booths this time - I think I went a little crazy with painting this month!)

Come say Hi!

I will try to get a few preview photos for those of you that have asked, but it just depends on time! I never seem to have enough!

someone please pick me up off the floor...

I've been painting all day...

I'm hot. I'm sweaty. And as I type this I have little speckles of white paint all over my hands and arms.

A day in the life, as they say.

I have to make dinner...then go back to paint a few more brushstrokes...but that, my friends,  is going to have to wait.

Because I just stumbled on this...

I am glued to my monitor and about fell out of my chair.

Seriously.

It is that good.

This amazing woman took a 9ft x 14 ft shack that started like this...

And with hard work, salvaged materials, thrift store finds and only $3,000...yes I said only three-thousand-dollars, she created a magnificent retreat in the mountains of New York.

And the best part??

She did it all.by.herself. 

Ok, no more words. The photos will speak for themselves.

(Photos by Trevor Tondro for The New York Times)

Wasn't that fantastic???

If you want to read the story behind Ms. Foster and her little cottage, click here.

And what I am loving the most...she has a blog! Check it out...My Shabby Streamside Studio

Happy Weekend, my friends.

I'm going from "before"...to "after"...

Ummm...anybody still out there?? I figure you have all forgotten about little ol' me since I haven't done a post in a week!

And what a week it has been...

Mother Nature had a serious attitude problem this past weekend. We had storms. And more storms. And wind. And that was some wicked wind she whipped up, let me tell you! I would like to bill Miss Mother Nature for the 6 not-so-cheap and no-longer-beautiful hanging baskets that did not survive her mood swings over the weekend.

Oh, and how can I forget my recent near-death experience with food poisoning over the weekend, too?? Oh yeah, now that was a good time. 33 hours of porcelain-hugging torture. You know what I mean. Everyone out there has either had it...or know someone that has. Its not pretty. I think it will be a loooong time before chicken enters my body again.

While I was recovering I had quite a it of time to think about the endless list of projects I need to get done around our "new" house. Can I call it "new" if this is my third summer in this house and I have yet to really finish decorating a room?

Anyhoo...as I drifted in and out of consciousness, I decided my sunroom was going to be my project of the moment. It is almost there...I just have a couple projects to tackle before I can start the fun part and fill the room. I have a pinky promise with the hubs that I will finsih it - soon. As in check-it-off-the-list-this-goose-is-cooked and we can move on to the next room kind of finished. 

It is my favorite room in the house...but it is just sitting there.

Empty. Lonely looking. Needing some love.

So...I have started to take it from "before"...to "after"...and hope to be finished in just a few weeks. Oh, and how I can't wait to show you the before. Its a whopper, let me tell you.

Here are the photos that have inspired me so far...you may recognize these photos from a post I did about a month ago...but I fell so in love with the feel of this house I have to bring it into my own.



This photo inspired me to paint my wood walls and exposed brick my favorite shade...'cloud white'...the floors are going to be painted next week - I can't wait! I'll be sure to show you photos. So many of you seem to be interested in painted wood floors, so I will be sure to photograph the play-by-play of how we did it.

This photo has me obsessed with that coffee table. We are going to try to build that one...isn't it just beach heaven??

I only have room for one sofa...so it has to be perfect. Cozy...comfy...this is a room all about relaxation. When I am out here...I want to feel like this...

Sorry...I know that photo makes no sense...but I love it so it had to make the cut.

 Back to the sofa....

I think Crate & Barrel has the sofa I am going to go with. Down cushions, white slipcover...it is like sitting on a cloud. Sounds perfect to me!

Once I can get the "bones" of the room done, and my sofa arrives...I will be on to the fun part. The accessories and the reveal! I can't wait...stay tuned...I can't wait to show you pics!

Today I am off to my warehouse...I have a round dining table, corner hutch, queen size sleigh bed and a desk all waiting for a bath in white paint. Oh, and for all of you that have emailed...I will have 63 empty white frames for the show next weekend...if I can get them all painted today, that is! So be there early on Saturday, they always go first!

Happy Thursday, girls!

my wednesday...

Ahhh....Such a beautiful day today...

79 degrees...not very humid...I love days like this.

Its all about the sunshine!

So I am enjoying that sunshine and pricing things for our annual "is-it-a-garage-sale-or-a-flea-market-on-my-front-lawn" event that will be taking place on Friday.

Our sales are always a little out of control. We have become a little famous in our city for our sales...it is so fun! Women come running up telling me they were waiting all summer for the big pink polka-dot sign to go up on the street! (Yes, we even have 7 wooden sandwich boards that are painted hot pink with polka dots telling there where to find  us! Weird, I know!) 

We go all out, a lemonade stand for the kids, my hubs will be grilling burgers and brats for all the girls that come to sell their stuff. Who knew a grage sale could be so much fun!?

I am talking 10 girls that love to shop the mall, junk and pick every barn we can get our hands on...get together with their junk treasures, and to keep from becoming subject of the show "Horders" have an annual sale that would put Niecy Nash and her crew to shame!

I live next door to my sister, so once again it will probably fill both driveaways and cover both of our front lawns...and even though we open at 7:30, people will be here by 6:00 am peeking under the tarps that cover the tables...boy does that bug me! Let me shower, people! Trust me. We will all be happier.

So this is a shout out to the meany antique dealers out there that I knoooow read my blog (said sarcastically, I don't think those crusty old men know what a blog is!): If you show up at 6:00 am trying to beat everyone else to our fabulous stuff, forget it. I won't sell you a single thing until 7:30. And if you try to hide it under a table in a pile, only to later try to get me to take 25 cents for something that says $5...I will send my cute little niece over to retrieve your pile and put it back. (all of that was said with a smile, by the way...)

(all photos via Real Simple, because I never thought to photograph my own junk...and even if I did, it would never look this cute.)

Oh, and back to the subject of sunshine...have you heard Steve Azar's new song??...I am in LOVE.

Total love.

 It is such a sweet song. I hear it is becoming the wedding song of the summer. Take a listen. And yes, it is country. Sorry, this is the only format I could find it in. I was sad to find out Playlist didn't have it so I could not add it to my blog.

(And I apologize...you will have to go down and mute my Playlist at the bottom of this page before you can hear "Sunshine"...its worth it, I promise.)

  Enjoy!

i heart Jojeana's kitchen...

I love a good before and after...who doesn't, right?

Especially when it is a kitchen reno...those always amaze me! I love how a little creativity, paint and hard work can transform a dark, old space into sometime so light, bright and happy.

Last month, I was lucky enough to stumble on Jojeana's blog, Secret Garden Cottage and fell in LOVE with her kitchen!

Have you seen it?

If not, you are in for a treat! The white paint, the beadboard...the open cabinets. It is simply gorgeous!

Do you see that beautiful antique scale peeking out from around the corner? I have that same scale... and I loooove it...but I am dying to see that yellow table it is on up close. Is that old paint?? Um, Jo...could you show us your table, pretty please?

Shhh...don't tell her...but I am secretly hoping some day to drive to Cali and snag her gorgeous island!

I have some serious love happening for that beauty!

Here is where Jo started...welcome to the 70's ladies...

I cannot believe the transformation! And it was all done on a budget, too....thats my kind of girl!

Her choice of a farm sink under the window makes my little heart go pitter-patter...and I love, love, love the open cabinets and french doors.

So simple and clean.

And that light above the island??? One word.

Fabulous.

I am now on the hunt for chairs like this...aren't they fantastic paired with her farm table?!

Ahhh...such a simple, bright and beautiful space. You girls never seem to amaze me with what you can accomplish!

But seriously, I NEED that island!!

Be sure to visit Jo's blog...her mudroom and living room transformations were just as wonderful as her kitchen!

I am off for a date with my paintbrush...today's project are a HUGE armoire dresser with a matching long dresser...and....I am so excited about this...I am actually finishing up a dresser for myself!

That one is going to have me dancing around the room...me because I never take time to work on something for my home! Who knows...maybe I will even show you a photo or two when  I get my bedroom project done!

Happy Tuesday, girls!

we have a winner!

Whew! You girls sure know how to ROCK a giveaway! Thank you, thank you to all of you who entered- I loved reading each and every comment!

The lucky winner of the $50 Pottery Barn gift card is...

SUZANNE, from PRIVET & HOLLY!

Send me an email with your info, Suzanne!

 

yes, its true! a Pottery Barn giveaway!

Well, girls I am feeling the love today...so want to spread it around!

It was a fantastic weekend selling at the flea! The rain didn't dampen our spirits one bit! I was so humbled to have so many fabulous girls turn out just to say "Hi" to lil  'ole me! You guys rocked! In the pouring rain I was loading dressers into vans...big cabinets into very small SUVs...it was a blast!

And the comment from the weekend that made me feel warm and fuzzy all over...a lovely designer for Pottery Barn stopped by and was loving some of my more simple-lined, less girly pieces. She said they were straight out of the pages of their Pottery Barn catalog! Awww...shucks! She made me blush! 

I am always soooo tired when I get home on Sunday night after the shows...but put my head on my pillow last night feeling so lucky. I have such a wonderful job, and get to meet so many wonderful people....

So I want to make someone else out there happy this week, too!

So its GIVEAWAY TIME!!

I zoomed home after the show and fired up the computer to check Pottery Barn's website. I found myself falling in love with waaay too many things...I bought mre than I should, and was inspired to make a few other things, too.



I am crazy in love with this shelf...and the vignette on it.
(Sorry Pottery Barn, the hubs and I are going to make a shelf like this, but I promise to keep buying lots of other stuff...)

Ooohhh...and I am obsessed with these...I bought 12 of them! They are going to be fantastic on the coffee table I am painting for my sunroom! Yes, I am a farmgirl that loves the beach!

Ummm...yeah...I'll take one of everything I see here, too...

Did someone say PILLOWS??? Why yes, and I think I do love the tan and the blue...so I orderd them both!

And just because I want someone else to be as inspired as I am by Pottery Barn...one lucky reader will get to choose something they fall in love with, too!

I am giving away a $50 Pottery Barn gift card!

Woohoo!!

To be entered in the giveaway...

1. Leave a comment on this post. That will give you one entry.

2. Blog about it and I will enter your name again, just leave me  a second comment letting me know you mentioned it on your blog.

3. Follow me for another chance. If you do, I will enter your name again!

Giveaway closes at Midnight on Thursday June 10th. Winner will be chosen at random and announced Friday morning!

Good luck!

COMMENTS FOR THIS GIVEAWAY HAVE NOW CLOSED....THANK YOU TO ALL THAT ENTERED!

come see me this weekend!

I have been a little 'absent' from blogging the last couple of weeks.

I had to make up for lost time when I was on vacation this month, so its been a week of 16 hour work days, waaaay too many dinners where I had a sandwich in one hand and a paint brush in the other.....and I have loved each and every minute of it!

The last cabient has been painted...the trucks are loaded...and once again, I have all my neighbors peeking out their windows, wondering if I am moving. You would think after all these years the would remember! Two huge trucks in the driveway the first weekend of every month could only mean one thing...

That I will be here all weekend...

Meeting a lot of fabulous people and selling lots and lots of things like this...

If you are at the show this weekend, stop by and say Hi!

And keep your fingers crossed for me the weather changes...right now they are calling for thunderstorms. Yikes! 

And I apologize...I know I promised a few of you a photo preview of my items for the show this weekend, but there just was not enough time in my day! If you are looking for a particular piece, drop me a line tonight and I can let you know if I have what you are looking for!

See you at the flea!

Oh, and be sure to check in on Monday...a fabulous giveaway is coming your way!