Bedroom grows up!

Did you ever get free furniture and think to yourself, "what on earth was I thinking"?

Well, welcome to my world-

I mentioned we sold my mom's house last week and there was a lot of furniture-

I didn't take too much, well basically because I have too much- my garage is pretty full of curbside finds and some Goodwill gems so I knew I couldn't fit much more into the space without being labeled the town hoarder-

I also mentioned I have been redecorating my oldest daughter's room- now that she and her new hubby will be visiting- it was time to upgrade from her twin bed and teen decor to something a bit more "grown up"-

I was lucky enough to get a queen size bed and 2 lingerie chests from my mom's- the 7 drawer chests were for extra storage and I thought they might work in Kerry's room since they only come to visit-

I must admit the picture leaves much to be desired, but I took so many pictures and this is how they turned out- a wise woman recently told me these circles are "angel orbs" and I truly believe it- too many pics in different lighting but the orbs remained- a sweet reminder that the room is filled with my Mom and Nan's loving spirit!

Onto the furniture-The problem was the color and the material- they were very old, dark brown laminate- ugly and uglier-

The hardware was a bronze tone, it looks more brassy in the pic-

Should I rethink my plan?

But, free is free and with a little paint, they turned out well- with some Zinser primer and some leftover Behr cream paint, I brought them into to the modern times-

These 2 tables will be nightstands after some paint!

 Can't wait to show you the finished room- and the best part- no money spent!!

Take care, gotta fly-

Bedroom revamp

Now that my daughter is married,

I decided it would be a good time to revamp her teenage bedroom-

Better late than never is my motto!

The lavender walls were painted a couple years ago in a soft gray green-
Now, the purple rug and all the white laminate furniture will have another life
somewhere other than in this house!

 

The twin bed is gone as is the wall decor -

 the tall wooden cd holder with the painted sunflowers will also fade into pre-teen land-

Most of the "new" things in the room will be softly used pieces from my mom's home-

These laminate lingerie chests will
be given a new life-

A hooked area rug, a queen size bed and a couple painted chests will
complete this small room-

I may even attempt to paint some lamps!

It's fun to redecorate a room without making a purchase-
I will shop my house for added decor to warm up the space-

A welcoming room for overnight guests and
I'm sure a space filled with Nana's love-

Take care, gotta fly-

The Blue Room

No matter what I see in decor magazines, blogs and Pinterest - my eye is always drawn to the blue family-

I love blue and white in my home but at times, it can look chilly- no one wants a cold looking room- 

Adding accent colors is one way to go-

In my case, I've never added a pop of another color- my white is more creamy which tends to add warmth- even when my drape fabric and china is pure white and blue- somehow, it works, for me!

As I browse the web, I found lots of inspiration, so maybe a change is in the air-
(click on the pic to go to source)

 

Crisp, clean and fresh-

 

Just my cup of tea!

 

Take care, gotta fly-

 

Memory chest

I mentioned awhile ago, I would be receiving some furniture pieces of my mom's-

My daughters all chose china pieces that once belonged to my two grandmother's 💕

But, I needed a place to store them other than my garage- 

(this year I'm determined to park at least one car inside!!)

So, this chest came to my house- 

A funny little story goes along with it-

My grandmother moved into my parents home after my grandfather died- she was only 62 years old, but little kids have a skewed view of adults and their ages- we thought she was "old" - lol

When she arrived, she came with her houseful of favorites-

 of course her china and crystal arrived as well-

My mom didn't have any room for her pieces 

so she purchased this buffet chest to store Nannie's treasures-

And now it's my turn to store them until my daughters can love them too.

I had to rearrange the dining room to fit it in but it was worth it-

 just having those dishes for their future homes is sweet as can be!

I may paint it at some point, but for now, I'm just enjoying a chest full of memories-

As you can see, the chest is jam packed with lovely pieces of memories-

Someday, the chest will be empty of my grandmother's dishes but maybe 

one of my daughter's will want it to store all of my treasures 

for their future children-

life is funny that way-

Full circle

Memories 

Love

Take care, gotta fly-

Claire

Warm and cozy wreath

My love for Goodwill is no secret-

The outlet is filled to the brim with other people's "junk", but I always find a small treasure in my hunt!

This week was no different!

I found some things that I couldn't pass up-

After checking out - all for $11- I knew exactly what I wanted to do-

This image from Pinterest kept popping in my head-

So, I took the bag of yarns and went to work!

In my craft stash, I found a lightweight wreath form made of sturdy cardboard-

I cut strips of burlap and wound them around to cover the form, hot gluing as I wound-

Then I started gluing all these wondrous balls of yarn to the wreath-

All shapes, sizes, colors and textures-

My daughter was sitting with me and I could see by her face she was thinking- this woman has really lost it!

There was no plan, no set color pattern but I kept eyeing it as I went and it began to look exactly like what I had envisioned- a warm and cozy wreath for fall-

Little by little it took shape 

I added a wire hanger on the back and 2 wooden knitting needles as the finishing touch-

No bow necessary!

I love the fall feeling of this- the colors and textures add the perfect touch to the front door-

A warm and cozy welcome to all who enter!

Take care, gotta fly-

Claire

Elephant's Trunk Flea Market

My sister and I have been planning a flea market adventure and today was the lucky day!

The weather was perfect and we were excited!! 

I picked her up at 7am and we were on our way- her fabulous navigational skills carried us through- lol

The Elephant's Trunk Flea Market is located in New Milford, Ct. It was started back in 1976 and its only open on Sundays- it's described as a Mecca for antiques, tools, household wares, crafters, collectible a and many more vendors. Unlike many antique shops, this markets boasts a family friendly atmosphere- old friends sit beside one another welcoming newbies with a friendly hello while others sits by their wares strumming guitars singing their tunes- relaxed and welcoming best describe the surroundings.

Early birds ( between 5:45-7) get in for $20 but after 7am- price is $2, so we figured after 7 gave us more $  to spend there!! www.etflea.com

It was an hour away but definitely worth the ride- I didn't end up making a lot of purchases but the eye candy was scrumptious!!

Here's a birds eye view of just some of the goodies I spied-

A pick up truck would have been handy too!

Herbs, mums, a display of beautiful fruits, veggies, cheese and hard meats
 

Iron grates galore-

I spied that woven bee skep and it came home with me

This cute older man made all the furniture he was selling- the craftsmanship was exquisite and he was a proud artisan who loved to chat with all-

This stand restored older pieces - pricey but magnificent- 

These metal stands were all over- very cute

This hotel key holder caught my eye-

Lots of handmade furniture

Lots of stuffed animals, too!

These coca cola bins were aplenty

Barn wood wall hangings-

Suitcases piled to the sky-

Wooden Santos figures 

This suitcase was covered in license plates and was catching a lot of attention!

Many hand painted pieces with a Pennsylvania Dutch flair-

Shutters and iron gates in all shapes and sizes-

Lots of metal pieces- I knew I should have scooped this up!

Large tin letters

Old fashioned drying racks

Vintage furs and suede-

Tables of mounted rams horns-

Beads in plethora-

Iron obelisks were in demand-

More deer

Even cowboy saddles

Crocheted baby beanies-

Garden statues

Vintage jewelry from yesteryear

Lots of stained glass pieces-

Another deer!!

Old kayaks

Upholstery fabric by bolts-

Hand painted pic of our Brittany spaniel, Phoebee

Hand crafted bird houses

Loved this wood crate with branch handle-

Ewe- even stuffed skunks!

Humorous signs

Iron garden sculptures

African masks-

Oversize keys

Mermaids

Vintage tin boxes

Hand painted sinks

The weather was gorgeous and this is a big time operation, but I can't forget the food trucks-

These mini donuts, made to order, melt in your mouth- don't miss them!

What a splendid day for a sisterly adventure- planning our next one soon!

Take care, gotta fly-

Claire