I have an aversion to fine, “mint condition” antiques.  If something looks that good after 100 years, it couldn’t have been used that much.  I don’t need something in my house that needs to be roped off.  I find beauty in a brush with missing bristles and book pages that are frayed and worn. I find beauty in a crooked-faced clock that no longer works.  I find beauty in a piece of ironstone that is stained, cracked and crazed.  I find beauty in a smoked mirror with a chipped plaster frame.   I find beauty in the broken. How about you? For those waiting for the next installment of the slipcover series, it is uploading right now and will be available to view tomorrow.  Sit tight!

I was the lucky recipient of Valentine’s Day flowers that were given to someone else, but left with me.  My mom was visiting and my dad, being the sweet guy he is, sent her flowers to my house.  A bouquet of flowers doesn’t travel well on an airplane, so she left them with me.  My husband and I agreed a long time ago (after he, very sweetly, paid about $40 for a bouquet of carnations), that we were not going to do the dinner/flowers/chocolate thing on February 14.  We’ll save those things for another day when the restaurants aren’t packed and the price of flowers isn’t jacked up two fold.  Nevertheless, the girl and the photographer in me really enjoyed the fresh flowers.  We had a nice little photo shoot together as I arranged them in an ironstone pitcher I bought last week.  And they looked great in my guest room. 

I’m assuming most of you have heard of Craigslist and for those who haven’t, you’re about to thank me. Craigslist is a free online classified site where you can find all kinds of goodies.  Don’t be scared away by things like “The Craigslist Killer” and some of the weird spam that’s in the listings.  The majority of transactions are between two very normal people who just want to buy something, get rid of something, find someone, hire someone, etc.  It is an awesome resource, especially for those of us who are thrifty girls.  Here are my secrets to finding the best stuff without breaking the bank.  Check often:It’s like hitting a flea market when it first opens or digging through “the cart” at Goodwill that holds the contents that were just priced and haven’t hit the sales floor, yet.  You have to catch the best things right when they’re posted, because they

**Warning** This post is ALL OVER THE PLACE, so just go with it.  Man, I am still recovering from Blissdom!  That trip was awesome, but it really kicked my butt.  I’ve been struggling to get back into my routine and this is not a good week to struggle.  The Old Lucketts Store is having their famous Ground Hogs Day sale this coming weekend and I need to have several pieces in the wings to fill the holes left by furniture that (hopefully) sells.  My Union Jack Dresser was going to be the centerpiece of our space for the sale, but it sold already!  I’m really glad about it, but now I am scrambling.  I let my husband know that trips around the area to pick up Craigs List furniture is going to be a part of this week.  This evening I spotted a Tweet mentioning how cute I looked on a

(Not to be confused with Three French Hens.)  In my funk-ti-tude yesterday, a few good things did happen.  As I shared, I was great on my diet, I worked out, and I found some wonderful French chairs.  Five of them, in fact.  I think the downfall was going out clothes shopping on (statically) the most depressing day of the year.  A few of you shared that with me yesterday and I was unaware.  Had I known, I may not have ventured out to try on skinny jeans.  Talk about depressing.  The other really good thing that happened yesterday was all of the sweetness in your comments.  A few made me tear up.  A few made me smile.  All of them made me feel better.  I knew you understood and could relate.  So, thanks.  Back to the French chairs.   I was driving home from Wild Rose and spotted these chairs.  The owners of the

I learned one thing yesterday.  People are very opinionated about painting wood or not painting it.  People on both sides of the argument claimed to be angels.  People from both the “paint them” and “don’t touch them” camps claimed their solution ties or would tie the room together.  I must say, I really enjoyed reading all of the comments and the opinions given are valued.  Despite the conflicting advice, it was helpful and made me realize what I really want to do.  I should clarify a few things, though.  These cabinets are not family heirlooms..well, they are, but they were my uncle’s mother’s and she was not related to me at all.  They were hand-me-down freebies through my generous aunt.  Really, really nice hand-me-down freebies, but she didn’t even blink when I asked if I could paint them.  Second, they are not old.  I would not be painting over the

I gave you a sneak peek yesterday of the shutters I found.  These weren’t the cheapest shutters I’ve bought, but they are the very best (which is saying a lot.)  They are chippy, chalky and this lovely gray color. The hardware is to die for!  I snapped the pictures while they were still in my van, but I’ll haul one up tomorrow to give you a proper picture of them.  You will die.  Well, if you’re like me.  These are the benches I bought for the wedding.  I thought they were a pretty good bargain at $35/piece.  Sorry for the picture of them on my cracked sidewalk and brown grass.  They shed paint if you look at them, so there was no way I was going to bring them into my house.  I’m going to hose them down, sand them a bit and then apply a clear coat of poly

My post yesterday not only inspired those who left comments and told me so, but it inspired me as well.  I’ve been working on the pair of chandeliers in my living room for months, now, and it was finally time to finish them.  This is how they started out.  They weren’t bad at all, but when I hung the curtains, they seemed too busy and the finish wasn’t working with the newly installed rods.  I removed all of the beading and crystals, which were splattered with a burgundy paint.  (Why, oh why?)  With the chandelier stripped of its bling, I painted it a warm antique gold with an asphaltum glaze over top.  Now, they matched the gold curtain rods.  I then went through the laborious task of soaking each crystal in nail polish remover, scrubbing it with steel wool and then stringing it on jewelry wire and back on the