In 1886, Grover Cleveland, the 22nd President of the United States, was in office.  R. L. Stevenson wrote “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”.   The Statue of Liberty was dedicated in New York Harbor on October 28th.  John S. Pemberton first introduced Coca-Cola in Atlanta, Georgia.  And this table cloth was made.  Aunt Nancy is my husband’s great, great aunt and this table cloth was discovered in her attic.  His family knows I love and appreciate antiques, especially family pieces, so they gave it to me. Can you imagine how long this lace work took to make?  I’m impatient when I’m waiting for my pictures to load, so I can write a post.  I would’ve had a tough time finishing a project like this.  “Things of quality have no fear of time” This table cloth is evidence of that. Don’t miss your chance to win a crochet camera bag.  Click here

First of all, make sure you check out my guest post over at Shabby Chic Cottage.  I contributed a project for the 12 Days of Handmade Christmas in July.  Hobby Lobby already had some Christmas decor out, so why can’t we on the blogs?   I do not let having guests stop me from hitting yard sales.  So, Saturday morning, I dragged my in-laws and two toddlers out with me “hunting for treasures.”  It was a hot day, so there weren’t many sales, but I did find some good things.  I bought an antique riding toy… …a pair of baby wooden shoe forms… …and silver plated creamer… …and two antique garden tools.  All for $17.00. Not a bad haul for a hot day.  It’s been a little quiet on my blog, because I had time to work on my living room sofa slipcover.  My MIL and I made one last push

My husband has had a lot going on lately and that means I was in desperate need of a break.  Yesterday, my husband stayed home with the kids and gave me the afternoon out.  Woo-hoo! While I was looking through the piles of junk at my favorite antique haunt, I had a thought that I needed to buy something for you!  My readers.  Well, for one lucky reader.  I’m creeping close to 2000 followers and that calls for a celebration and giveaway.  I decided I would put together “Miss Mustard Seed in a Box” for the winner.  Don’t get worried.  I’m not going to pop out of a large crate that’s delivered to your door step.  I’m going to put together a box of goodies that is very “me.”  Here’s a sneak peek of one of the items…  If you want a hint of what else might be included, you can

Yesterday, I shared some of my newly acquired yard sale and flea market finds and this vintage milk delivery box was among the deals.  It didn’t look like this when I bought it, though. The box was in excellent condition with a clean interior (it wan’t all rusted and nasty), but the paint advertising the dairy had worn off.  This box fit several categories that I look for in what I buy.  It has a story, it is multi-functional, and it’s great storage.  I can image one of these sitting on my front porch when my house was young (it was built in the 1940’s.)  I am not old enough to remember those days, but we did have bread, beer, and sodas delivered to our door when we lived in Germany.  I decided to use the blank front to my advantage and marry the vintage piece with a modern product.  Chalkboard paint

Well, it seems like an entire stash of antique doors is just not enough for me.  I had to buy one more today while I was out at yard sales today.  I picked up this split barn door (hardware and cobwebs included) for $5.00.  It is going to make a perfect closet door for my guest room.  Oh, my poor, poor hubby.  I also picked up an oar for a song.  It’s a little rough, but I am planning to sand down the blonde finish and put a rich coat of dark walnut on it.  I sold a vintage metal tool box almost exactly like this at Lucketts, so I jumped at the chance to buy another.  I love the color and chippy paint. I also found a couple more aqua beverage crates like one I sold at Lucketts.  And one of my favorite finds of the day was this

When I go shopping, I never know what I’m going to look for or what I’m going to find.  There are certain things I always gravitate towards, but I go with an open mind and I am often surprised at what I come home with.  These are some of the qualities that catch my eye… Pieces that were utilized in daily life.  I love elevating something that was functional to something that’s all about looks. I love things like fans, scales, clocks, linens, kitchen utensils…things that are humble. Things that are multi-functional.  Baskets, boxes, totes and platters can be used in so many practical ways and they look great, too. Things that were special.  I love christening gowns, not only for their detail and delicate beauty, but because they were worn on a very important day in a baby’s life.   I also look for trophies, letters, and other sentimental items and

…maybe not in the traditional sense, but I felt a little like one.  I just bought nine antique doors (several with hardware), an antique table with turned legs and casters, a stack of molding, and a few cabinet doors for $24.50.  Does that count as robbery? (I call it robbery when the movie theatre charges me $15.00 for a coke and popcorn.)  Here’s the thing.  These doors were trash to this guy, so we were both happy with the deal.  This tall, skinny pair of doors have a perfectly chippy light gray paint and they look great flanking my piano in the living room.  They set me back $1.00 for the pair.  I still need to clean them up and put a coat of poly on, but I couldn’t resist sitting them in their new home. We weren’t even sure if we could fit it all into one truck load.  See

I couldn’t resist checking out a Goodwill while I was in Florida.  The lure of never knowing what I am going to find was just too great.  What if a sweet old lady dropped off a stash of ironstone?  Or someone dropped off some cool farm junk?  Or I found something I’ve wanted for a while?  Well, yesterday, that happened.  Before I share that with you, I’ll show off a couple of my other buys.  I saw this petit cardboard globe on the shelf and thought it was cool but I set it back in it’s place.  Then, I noticed something.  This globe was not marked in English.  It was German (I grew up in Germany, so I recognized it immediately.)  Upon closer inspection I noticed Russia was the USSR…this globe was not only German, it was vintage.  At $1.99, it went in the cart. My second find was this pretty glass lamp.  One