I found a yard sale this past weekend that was right up my alley.  It’s the kind of sale where I walk around picking up things as fast as I see them and I make a huge pile at the “counter.”  This yard sale was held behind an antique shop, so vendors put rock bottom price tags on things they just wanted to unload.  I was happy to take stuff off their hands. I bought this old metal scoop for $1.00.  This falls under my love for things that are humble and utilitarian.  I’ve wanted a grain scoop for a long time, but they are ridiculously priced.  Although I’ve always wanted one, I think I’m going to sell this at Lucketts.  It’s such a cool piece. The second thing I found was this petite trophy from the 1950’s.  It was $2.00 and so tarnished you couldn’t even read the inscription.  I don’t mind

This is the last day to vote for your favorites on So You Think You Can Decorate’s white week, so make sure you pop over before the polls close at midnight EST.  I have really loved being a seller on Etsy and joining an amazing artistic community.  I wanted to introduce my readers to two new friends I’ve made through this site.  The first talented lady I’d like to introduce you to is Erin Flett.  She makes these graphic and retro inspired pillows that are fun and sophisticated.  I love the bright colors she uses to give these designs some punch.  This gray pillow is my very favorite one.  Eventhough the design is modern, it would fit in with my French Country style nicely and add something a little unexpected and unconventional. I also recently fell in love with the sketches by Michelle Palmer.  Most of her subjects are birds, feathers, and

I can’t help but hunt everywhere I go and this trip is no different.  My mom and I have ventured out when my boys are asleep and hit Ikea, Home Fabrics, TJ Maxx, and Ross.  I came up empty at Ross, but I found some great things everywhere else.  Well, I did find a really pretty glass cloche with a bird on top, but it was chipped.  Bummer.  Anyway, here’s what I did buy… Some artificial blue speckled eggs at TJ Maxx for $6.99 Some ceramic, lettered spheres from TJ Maxx for $10.  The set was opened and incomplete, so it was reduced. A pair of plate shelves for $4.00/piece.  They are a little chipped, but nothing that paint can’t fix!  I thought they were a great find. I purchased two monogrammed pillows from Ikea for $10.49/piece.  I love how they look like old tea towels and I also love

I purchased a commercial baker’s four loaf pan at a yard sale for $2.50 last summer.  It sat in my basement stash for a long time…forgotten.  I was digging through the pile a few weeks ago and found this piece again.  It was like Christmas!  So, what do you do with a rusty loaf pan?  I’m not going to bake with it.  It also would take two people to get it out of the oven!  This sucker is heavy.  Knowing it would never hold hot loaves again, I thought of a few new uses for it.  New Use # 1: A unique buffet server.  This is the perfect shape and size to hold napkins, flatware, and condiments.  I can never resist an opportunity to showcase my Bakelite set and linen napkins.  I love the soft, crisp look of the linen against the rust and metal.  I did spray the loaf

It was time to pack away the pinecones and berries, so I moved some things around in my dining room and came up with this new buffet arrangement.  I went a little cloche happy, here, but I think it works.  I purchased these little cloches on silver pedestals at Salvation Army for $2.50 (for all three) or something crazy like that.  I found the cloches first and wasn’t too impressed, but at another location in the store I saw the pedestals.  “I think these go together…”  Sure enough.  Perfect fit.  I put a piece of my grandmother’s stone fruit on each pedestal. I matched up a large glass cloche from an antique store with a glass cake pedestal.  They were purchased years apart and look like they were made for each other.  I filled it with my mom’s china, a silver spoon rest, and one of my little silver bowl

There are over 60 Furniture Feature Friday entries so far…wow!  This is normally a pretty intimate party of about 40-50, so that is a big number.  The link party is open through Saturday at midnight, so it’s not too late to link up.   Anyway, I wanted to share my latest finds with you.  I can rarely resists a “pop-in” at my local thrift store and this visit did not disappoint.  I found this sweet aqua urn that’s the perfect color for my bedroom.  In addition, I found this 4 tiered metal and glass Étagère that looks great as-is.  It’s pretty rare that I buy something that doesn’t need a major makeover, so this is kind of a treat.  My 3 year old wanted to climb it within 24 hours of having it in the house, so despite the fact that I’ve always wanted one, I think this will end up

I shared about my love of stone fruit in a post a few months ago.  It’s marble that’s been carved and hand painted to look like real fruit and it’s pretty convincing.  It’s also usually very expensive.  One rare piece on E-bay can sell for $60 or more.  I was over-the-moon one day when I found stone fruit at Goodwill for $.68 a piece.  I snapped them right up and I was happy with my little collection.  What I really longed for, though, was my grandmother’s stone fruit collection. She had it sitting on her dining room table for as long as I can remember.  I never noticed it as a kid, but after I got married and learned more about decorating and antiques, I fell in love with her stone fruit.  When my grandfather passed away last fall, I really wanted to get the stone fruit.  It wasn’t about

I stopped by my local thrift store yesterday and found a beauty of a birdcage.  I have been looking for one for a while and I saw this one tucked up on a shelf.  Lately this thrift store has gotten a little pricey with certain items and this was $12.00, which is not dirt cheap, but I thought it was worth it.  It had a few nicks and dings and was filthy, but it was otherwise in great condition. I gave it a good scrub and rubbed some Dark Walnut stain on the dings.  So, now it looked good…what do I do with it?  Candles seemed like an easy and obvious choice. I set off my smoke alarm as I took this picture, but I love how it looks.  Great ambience…candles and a smoke alarm.  Very calming. Well, the snow is falling right now and it looks like we’re going to