Flea Market Finds

On Sunday, I had some time to spend with my mother. We decided to check out a small flea-market and a couple thrift stores. It's fun to thrift and spend time with family at the same time. We both enjoy treasure hunting. I didn't find much this weekend, but I found a few fun items.

I found MANY sets of earrings for only 25 cents each! I kept over half of them for myself and the rest are for the store. :) I love costume jewelry, the funky shapes and colors!

I've been on a "jewelry-making kick" these days, making jewelry out of buttons. These button cards were marked down to only 10 cents each so I gathered up all the pretty ones they had to offer.

I thought these two metal trays were pretty and in great condition so I purchased them for a quarter each!

I found two old BINGO games on the bottom shelf of a thrift store for only 50 cents a piece! LOVE LOVE LOVE old BINGO cards and pieces. The one in the red box is from 1959 and I believe the blue game is older than that!

Amazing Author

                                                           Books by Tracy Chevalier

I love to read books that take you to a different time and place. I fell in love with the author, Tracy Chevalier, after I read her book: "Girl With a Pearl Earring." From there on I had to own every book of hers that I could get my hands on! 

In many of her stories she takes a popular piece of artwork and she comes up with a story of how that piece came to be. Many of them take place in 16th-18th Centuries, great historical backgrounds and you fall in love with the characters. Her books are twisty, eerie and full of interesting detail. They are definitely page turners, you won't want to put them down but you also won't want the story to be over by the time you reach the end. I highly recommend these books! 



The Virgin Blue is my favorite!

Dining Room Re-do

My husband and I live in a 1920's farmhouse and for the past couple years I have really enjoyed furnishing our home with the majority of the furniture coming from Garage Sales, Thrift Stores and Antique Stores. Some of it...actually A LOT of it was even free! Perks of working for your father at a Thrift Store, I get first dibs! :)

When we first moved in to our home, I found our dining room table on Craigslist for only $10.00! It was a nice large table with black iron detail and 'Queen Anne' style legs. Not in perfect condition, but still a fantastic find! It just happened, at the same time, a gentleman donated 4 black iron chairs, they needed recovered and had gum stuck to the bottoms but I saw potential. My cousin who is amazing at reupholstering furniture, recovered the chairs for me and Wah-lah! We had a nice looking, CHEAP dining table and chairs!

BEFORE PICTURE

Around Christmas my father came across a nice, antique dining table that came with two leaves and 6 matching chairs. The set also came with a matching buffet. He planned on giving it to my mother for Christmas but she didn't like the color. I, on the other hand, thought it was perfect! I decided to take it and replace my $10 Table and Chairs. I was lucky and found the same fabric that I had used on my black chairs to recover the seat cushions on the new chairs. I really love how it looks in our dining room and it will be nice to have more seating for holidays in the future. That buffet will come in handy also for all of our nice dishes! 

AFTER PICTURE

Which one do you like better?

Interesting Items

One of my favorite things about my job is getting boxes of new items in at the thrift store. I love popping the boxes open one by one and sorting through them to see what fun vintage items are in there. I enjoy finding unique, interesting items that not everyone may be looking for but will definitely get comments. Sometimes I get carried away and decide to take the really cool stuff home with me... but I have gotten better about my picking and choosing. :) These are some of the things I'm loving in our store right now...


Animal figures with jeweled eyes are so cute. They are always an unexpected color like this pink Siamese.

 I love Vintage boxes with neat colors and graphics.

Vintage patterns are fun and the pictures are always a little goofy. These remind me of my Barbie and Ken paperdolls that I had as a little girl.

These small, jointed Napco Dolls were wrapped up in a tiny box. Clearly they had been treasured for a long time.

I have a love for old boxes and compartments so I absolutely adore this small painted sewing box with drawers for needles, buttons and pins. Hard telling what I will get in next! :)

Week of Snapshots

Since I began blogging, I have tried to have my camera with me wherever I go. I like to take random photos of things that catch my eye, like these pretty smelling flowers that were my Valentine's gift. He did good. :)

My Aloe Vera plant, has a pod on it that looks like it is about to bloom...Do Aloe Vera plants bloom?!

If so, I had no idea!

A yummy treat from Coldstone Creamery, Oatmeal Cookie Batter ice cream with Heath bar. Delicious.



My basket full of dog doctor supplies. My kitchen looks like a vet clinic with bandages and syringes and medicine taking up the entire counter, but we are dealing with it. :)

Hope you all had a great week! Happy Friday!

Fruity Collection

I have many items that I love to collect. Usually when I see something that would fit into one of my MANY collections, I just HAVE to have it! If I spot something, I smile, look at my husband and watch his eyes roll back in his head followed by a "Where are you going to put it?!" This doesn't bother me, I take it to the cash register and move on.

One of my favorite items to collect are fruit shaped jars with lids. Also known as, "Apple Jelly Jars" or "Sugar Bowls." This collection began when I spotted an Apple shaped jar just like one my grandma had sitting on the kitchen table when we were growing up. I remember she used to keep sunflower seeds in it for her salads. My sister and I would eat the seeds by the spoonfuls out of that thing. :) I purchased that one and ever since, if I see a fruit shaped jar...or even a vegetable...I snatch it up!

I have Strawberries, Raspberries, Oranges, Apples, Grapes, a Lemon...I even have an Ear of Corn and an Eggplant.

I love the color they add to my kitchen and...come on, they are cute!

The largest fruit jar I own is a Strawberry cookie jar that I purchased at a garage sale for $2. She was a sweet elderly lady and she told me that her mother glazed it at a ceramic shop many years ago. I love hearing stories of where items come from. It makes them more special.

Puppy Love

Happy Valentine's Day!
My Valentine sweetheart is my poor puppy dog, who
finally got to come home Friday. He is definitely in a
lot of pain and discomfort. He has his jaw and his canine teeth wired together so his jaw fractures can hopefully heal. He has to wear a muzzle all-day/every-day for 6-weeks. He has a feeding tube and all he can do is sleep.

It is honestly the hardest thing I have ever had to do. Having a 100lb. dog (Yes, he is huge!) relying on us to keep him alive is a daunting task. I am trying my hardest to get him back to his happy, tail wagging self.

Wish me luck!

Berry Good Salad

I went to visit with my sister over the weekend and she was making a DELICIOUS salad! She used Spring Mix, Red Onion, Mozzarella cheese, a mixture of Blackberries, Raspberries and Blueberries. Topped off with a drizzle of Raspberry Pecan Dressing. Yum.. has me wishing for Summer fresh fruits and veggies!



Valentine Cherry Pie

To keep my mind off my poor doggie this weekend, I decided to make a Cherry pie. I had some refrigerated pie crusts and some canned cherry pie filling in the cupboard so I took the easy route. :) Although the recipe always calls for one can of pie filling, I always use two! The second can I spoon out the cherries and leave the gooey syrup behind.

Valentine's Day is near and there are hearts everywhere so I decided to add some to my pie! I took my mini heart cookie cutter and instead of making slits in my top crust, I cut out hearts. It turned out really cute and I love
how the filling turns the hearts red.

Perfect Valentine dessert!

Weekend Worries

Saturday evening I received a phone call from my husband telling me that our black lab, Pete had just been run into by our neighbor who lives up the hill. I left work early and met them at the Kansas State Veterinary hospital. When I saw my beautiful dog walk through that door with blood pooring from his mouth I almost screamed.

Our neighbor had hit him with his truck and just drove off and left my dog there...luckily our neighbor across the road saw it happen. How can someone, especially a neighbor, run over a dog and just drive away without an "I'm sorry?"

Pete, ended up having a complete fracture to the jaw and two more small fractures toward the back of his mouth. He has to have approx. 4 teeth removed. I am thankful that it was not worse and I am hopeful that the healing process will go smoothly...

But am I wrong to be very VERY upset with the inconsiderate neighbor who is supposedly a retired Veterinarian?! 



Favorite Photos

I love to display special photos around our home so we can have memories of loved ones and happy times around us at all times. One of my favorite photos is an old picture of my grandfather who passed away in October from Alzheimer's. It is a picture of him when he was younger next to his tractor with his dog sitting on top. Crazy thing about this picture is he is in the field that  now belongs to my husband...love the connection.

The photo of my husband and I's hands at our wedding brings back memories of that happy day. We were married October 4, 2009 and of course our flowers were sunflowers and white roses.

The photo of us standing with the beautiful Grand Canyon behind us is our favorite honeymoon picture. We went on a 3000 mile road trip to the Grand Canyon and other national parks and it was so fun being able to stop at any site on the way. I would love to do it again...soon!

There are two of my favorites that sit side by side, The one of Dopey there, with my husband and his brother when they were little at Disneyland. So cute! :)

The second of me in my wedding dress with a big ol' smile on my face. My wedding bouquet is next to it in a vase and our cake stand was the white, iron decorative piece leaning against the wall.

Great to have happy memories surrounding you!





Vintage Child's Play

Working at a thrift store I have gained a love for Vintage. Our guest bedroom is what I call my "Vintage bedroom"... Maybe someday it will be known as the nursery.Everything is bright and colorful. I have it filled with fun furniture, Vintage toys and stuffed animals, Old children's and classic books that I hope to someday read to my children. I find older toys, books and boardgames more appealing then the videogames and plastic toys that children play with these days.

I love going to Antique Stores and seeing that Classic Book title pop out at me, of course it is a "must-have" situation!

Or spotting an interesting toy that has been loved and played with for so many years.

Gameboards make great art pieces, love the old graphics and color!

I have quite a large collection of suitcases! They are excellent for storing books, movies, material, etc! These three, I stacked and use them as an end table.

Some people think my "Vintage bedroom" is a bit "old fashioned" and overly eclectic, but I absolutely love it.

Happy Thoughts

 

My mom recently returned from a trip to Atlanta and she brought me back this recycled shopping bag that has the most perfect message.

I have been practicing thinking happy thoughts lately and most of the time it works. :)

I decided to share some of the things in life that currently make me smile.

Of Course Love brings a smile to my face.

A good book and my morning coffee...I've got to have coffee!



My new go-to breakfast, blueberry bagels with strawberry cream cheese...Yum.

Wishing for Spring and crafting some new rose post earrings for myself!

Hope you have a Happy Day, enjoy the things that make you smile!