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Favorite Finds

Antiques

getting inspired, shopping & hanging plates

I go through stages in decorating and working on projects.  Sometimes I’m a worker bee and it’s all about getting as much done as I possibly can.  Sometimes I’m burnt out and need to step away from the the projects for a while.  Sometimes I get restless and just want to make changes.  Sometimes I’m a sponge, ready to soak in any inspiration that comes my way.  The past few days, I’ve been feeling spongy.  And when I feel that way, I start to hit the magazine rack at the grocery store and pull out decorating books in my library.  As much as I love Pinterest, nothing quite beats flipping through glossy pages. One of my favorite books is Great Country French Style that I got for Christmas a few years ago. I haven’t looked at it for a long time, but as I was flipping through it, I can

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Antiques

“name that cow” contest

For those of you who aren’t aware, I recently aquired a new cow painting and I just put her in a frame and hung her on the wall today… She is by the same artist as Eulalie, Cindy Austin.  I love Eulalie so much and we had talked off and on about her doing another painting for me and I kept coming back to cows.  I really don’t have a cow fetish, but maybe I have a cow painting/cow head fetish?  So, I asked for a black and white Holstein cow for my family room.  I wanted a cow that was younger than Eulalie, standing at a profile and looking at the artist.  Cindy blew me away.  I didn’t really expect anything less, but Eulalie is so beautiful that we were both a little bit nervous about how this new cow would compare.  Well, she has captured my heart and

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Antiques

The Dental Cabinet

I shared in my recap of the Chapel Market that I bought this dental cabinet from Urban Farmgirl within minutes of it being unloaded.  Can you tell how happy I am and how much I love it? Well, now it’s home and in the place it was always meant to be… …this small and somewhat awkward wall has left me searching for the perfect piece for years.  Most pieces are too wide or look too short or not important enough to be the very first thing you see when you walk in the door.  So, I’ve been playing musical furniture in that spot more than usual….even for me.  I’ve always pictured a tall cabinet with a glass door that I could fill with my favorite thing to collect – white ironstone.  Now, it’s the first thing I see when I walk into the house and I love that. It has

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Antiques

Some of my finds | Light in the Basement

I went out yesterday to do some shopping for my online shop and the Chapel Market coming up soon in Pike Road, Alabama.  October 19, to be exact.  Anyway, here are some things I found… …some 1950’s horse ribbons… …a glass water bottle in a wooden crate (I’ve seen these made into killer lamps)… …a pretty piece of wood trim… …lots and lots of ironstone… …some flow blue plates and a “cow bowl”, which is exactly what it said on the tag… …a beautiful French chair (of course, I’m going to reupholster it)… (That’s just a tapestry-like fabric, by the way, not needle point, so don’t freak out.) The frame is very sturdy, though, and the wood is gorgeous… …this cane French chair… …oh, she’s a beauty.  Her seat is a little saggy, but we won’t hold that against her, will we?  (After all, we’ll all have saggy seats one

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Antiques

Recent Antique Finds & Online Shop

Lately I’ve been spending most of my days at home…cleaning, purging, getting myself organized and ready to create new and exciting things.  I’ve been trying to get a handle on my e-mail, tidy up some things on my blog, the milk paint website and getting in the habit of looking at my calendar every day, so I’m not such a spazz all the time.  Basically, I’ve been a homebody. So, Thursday, I took a trip to one of my favorite antique stores to do some shopping and stopped by another used furniture store I frequent to pick up some pieces I bought from them through Craig’s List.  I don’t have a retail space any more, but I do have The Chapel Market coming up in October and I’m finally opening my online shop (now that my basement is ready for it!) Here are some pieces I picked up… I thought

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Antiques

Stop the World & Ironstone Mugs

It’s one of those times in my life when I wish I could just stop the world for about a week, so I can catch up on things that have been put on the back burner for days, weeks, months and even years.   I am on a tear to get things done. I have been organizing my way through the house and am making some real progress, so that’s been encouraging.  I’ve also been getting caught up on e-mail, insurance stuff, paperwork, cleaning my kitchen floor and other not-at-all fun things like that.  It’s slow, but steady, but I’m really ready to have my computer back (the drive died and is being replaced) and get to working on furniture painting and upholstery and creating things. Before that can happen, we do need to be able to…you know…find stuff…and walk in the workshop without having to high-step around and watch out for

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Antiques

Pottery Barn Fall Collection

I’m sure I’m not alone in my love for the Pottery Barn catalog and everything in it.  There have been seasons when we’ve had to pinch every penny to get by and, even then, I loved picking up the Pottery Barn catalog.  I knew I couldn’t buy anything, but I was always inspired and got tons of ideas for all things home…like color combinations, designs and textures. So, when I was asked to partner with Pottery Barn and show off some of the pieces in their fall collection, I was happy to participate!  These are the things I picked out… You know I love blue, so, of course, I gravitated immediately to the Indigo Knit Throw. It’s as comfy as it looks – just like a thick cable knit sweater.  I like to snuggle up on the sofa when I’m pecking away on my computer late at night, so this

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Antiques

Chapel Market Inventory Preview

It’s not until October 19, but I’ve already started shopping, gathering and collecting for The Chapel Market in Pikes Road, Alabama. Here are some of the things I will be bringing… …an old scale… …a mini alarm clock… …a brown transferware ironstone sugar jar…   …a bunch of antique European grain sacks, fabric and tea towels….   …a pig butcher block board… …and TWO of these antique shoe racks… They’re so cool and offer some really neat storage possibilities.  AND I found them at a yard sale.  A YARD SALE, people!  You don’t even want to know what I paid for them.  Well, maybe you do and I would tell, but I’m reselling them for a lot more, so that would probably be tacky. I also have a cool industrial stool, some hand painted camp banners, a pretty antique globe, old shoe brushes, a typewriter and a lot more. Of

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I’m Marian, a painter, writer, and lover of all things creative. From art and antiques to home projects and everyday life, I share my journey in hopes of inspiring you to embrace your own creativity and make beauty in the spaces you live.

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