There are a lot of perks that come with my job.  They don’t include a cushy office with a view or a corporate jet, but those things don’t interest me.  I get to, no have to shop.  Tough job, huh?  Not only do I get to shop, but I get to thrift, yard sale, hunt, dig and junk.  My kind of shopping.  I get to buy what I want…what I like…what I think will sell at a profit or what I think I can make fabulous and desirable to others.  As my business has grown, so has my buying power, so now I can make a substantial “buy pile” at most stores I walk into.  When I was out shopping earlier this week, I bought some linens and an ironstone platter at one of my favorite places.  “Oh, you’re not filling your van today?”, the girl behind the counter asked.  This is the kind

First of all, thanks so much for all of your encouraging words yesterday.  It’s not that it was a bad day, but I was in a bit of a funk.  I’m in my third day of a new healthy routine and I know I’m going through some sugar withdrawals.  I also get a little depressed in a messy, dirty house.  I got some good cleaning done today, some diet encouragement on Twitter and my husband talked me through the things I was feeling overwhelmed about, so I’m doing much better.  This evening I was also finally able to fully bend my left arm (which has been cramped for two days.)  I have a baby sitter and a helper coming tomorrow, so I should get myself sorted out even more.  For today, I thought I would share a couple of recent finds.  If you look at this picture you’ll understand the post title. 

I shared a few weeks ago my desire for a cow painting.  Well, that desire has been thoroughly satisfied, first by the wonderfully whimsical cow painting I received from my artist friend Laura and most recently by a stunning and classic painting by one of my readers, Cindy Austin.  I can’t even express how much I love this painting and how blessed I feel to have the original.  I would definitely grab it if my house was on fire and my family was safely out.  It’s one of my favorite things in my house right now.  I decided to prop it above my family room fireplace. It works beautifully with the wall color and pops of apple green in the room.  It’s just…perfect.  Sigh.  I felt such a fondness for the cow that I decided to name her…Eulalie (yoo-lay-lee).  Fitting for a classic cow, I think.  Don’t worry about Laura’s cow…I

When I get home from a two week vacation, I don’t waste any time.  (Are you surprised?)  I did all of my laundry at my parent’s house, so I came home with a suitcase full of clean clothes.  I unpacked last night, so I wouldn’t have to face it today.  I had some youth kids prepping and painting furniture for me, so it would be ready for my finishing touch.  I had a babysitter lined up for today, so I could restock the cupboards and work on some furniture to restock my space at Lucketts.  I have an HGTV.com article due on Friday, a Cottages and Bungalows article due …soon… and nine more freelance tutorial projects due in a few weeks.  Tomorrow I’m shopping for supplies, finishing up some pieces and pricing.  Thursday it’s shopping for anitques and settling into my new room on the third floor of Lucketts.  Whew.  I’m going to

I can’t travel without doing a little bit of antique shopping, right?  Not only is it my hobby, but it’s my business.  It’s my cross to bear and I must do it.  So, I did my duty on Friday afternoon and checked out a couple of suggestions from my readers.  First up was The French Nest in Orlando.  I was really dumb and didn’t bring my nice camera, so I snapped some pictures with my phone, but they were all blurry and poorly lit and definitely didn’t do this amazing shop any justice.  I stepped through the doors and could hardly even shop, because I was flooded with inspiration and creative sustenance.  The vignettes are breath-taking.  Contrasts, textures, natural elements, sparkles, chippy paint, warm woods, sleek metals…decor heaven.  Not only did the shop look beautiful, but the prices were reasonable and there was a 25% off sale running on everything in the store.  Marsha,

I’ve had a lot of fun new things come my way in the past couple of weeks.  I found some great furniture, three large doors that will make amazing signs, some goodies from new sponsors and a very special package all the way from Germany containing these… One of my gracious readers, who lives in Germany, has become a “grain sack picker” for me.  This was the first package I received from her and it was so exciting.  I can’t wait to put these bad boys to work.  (Yes, it’s OK to refer to antique European grain sacks as bad boys.  I checked it out.) My magnetism for cool things continued into my yard sale venture this morning.  My husband prodded me out of bed and rounded up the family for a morning of driving around to “look for treasures.”  I was really considering not going.  I was sleepy and still a