A Little Shabby Always Chic

I'm sorry everyone

2010-10-25T14:40:00.001-07:00

I sincerely apologize for neglecting my blog and all of you my bloggy friends. I miss you and it very much but I was unable to maintain my blog and finish school and what not. I don't really have the same needs to purchase shabby chic romantic things for my own place anymore as I'm not moving out on my own any time soon but eventually I will and I will return! I also wanted to share with you all that in the past year and a half I have lost 77 pounds. I used to be one of those people who listened to others say "If I can do it you can do it" and not believe them. Well now I believe them because I did it and if I can anyone can-literally. I want to share some pictures a before and after I want everyone who's struggling with their weight to know it's possible! Wish you all the best!

Allison

Before
After

Savannah and Charleston

2009-12-29T00:41:00.001-08:00

Before I start this post thank you to everyone who left me such kind thoughts and heart felt wishes you are all amazing people and the reason I love to blog! Thank you so much for your care and support! I have missed you and I can’t wait to get back in the swing of things!

My mom and I went to Savannah and Charleston right when I started winter break and it was awesome! We spent two days in each city and even though it rained or was cloudy 99% of the time we still loved it, neither of us had been before. Savannah had the most beautiful old homes in the historic district as did Charleston although most not as old because they were destroyed in the Civil War, where as Savannah wasn’t. Thank you Sherman!

In Savannah we ate at Paula Deen’s restaurant The Lady and Son’s, and I don’t want to disappoint anyone but it wasn’t that great. Apparently it has become very touristy and the food reflected that :( bummer. We also took a historic inn tour of bed and breakfasts in restored historic homes that had decorated for the holidays. Which was AWESOME! You all would have loved it I would have taken pictures but we were asked not to. We also visited Hilton Head Island just to say we’ve been there and walked on the beach.

In Charleston we visited Fort Sumter which I enjoyed because I love history. We also visited a plantation, Middleton Place, which all that was left was a guest house but the gardens are beautiful and one of the oldest in America. All in all it was a great trip and I love the south! I wish I could own one of the beautiful old homes there with the amazing gardens and huge mossy oak trees, I almost died of joy. The neatest part about Savannah was the beautiful little squares, 22 in all, situated throughout the city every couple of blocks that had been there since the colony was established in the 1700s. They are beautiful and I got pictures of a few. Ok time to share pictures!

Lady and Sons

A couple of the squares in Savannah

Forsyth Park in Savannah

Pretty inns in Savannah

We just liked this street with the huge oaks and magnolias and moss, sooo pretty.

Hilton Head Island beach

Charleston Harbor

Fort Sumter

Gardens at Middleton Place Plantation

Only building on the plantation that survived the Yankees lol

And just for fun my Dachshund with her reindeer hat haha

Thanks again to everyone who left me such nice comments. Love you all! I hope you all had a Merry Christmas or Happy Hanukkah and a Happy New Year! All the best! Allison

MIA

2009-12-23T23:29:00.000-08:00

Everyone I have been MIA because Taylor cheated on me and dumped me for her. 4 years down the drain, I have never been more blindsided in my life. This was the day after Halloween and as you can imagine I have just been coping... I just wanted everyone to know. And now the jerk is still with her but trying to get back with me! I can't believe men...ugh. I wish you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year and sorry for the bad news but I wanted to share it. I'm sure some of you can relate. I miss you all and I miss blogging and when I feel better I am going to start again. Love Allison.

Happy Halloween is coming!

2009-10-29T13:31:00.001-07:00

Halloween is almost here yay! Taylor and I went to a Halloween party last weekend I was a French maid he was a pirate lol. I also have some new cute Fall decorations I wanted to share! A couple signs and a little enameled box that looks like a haunted house!

Do you like them!? I think they are so cute! So excited for Fall! I just love it. If any of you are Susan Branch lovers have you checked out her website lately? So cute! All the best everyone! Happy Halloween!

A Halloween Delight!

2009-10-25T12:41:00.001-07:00

I won the Halloween tassel giveaway from Tammy at Yarborough House and here is the lovely delight! It is the cutest tassel ever! Love the fringe and squatty pumpkin on top! Thanks Tammy! I have some more cute decorations to show you guys later :) All the best everyone!

Fall feelings

2009-10-08T10:46:00.001-07:00

I have an addiction to Fall, it is my most favorite time of year and I don't even live in a state with all the beauties of it! I mean, I really love the traditional New England Fall with all the leaves changing colors and the chill and decor! So I couldn't help myself and added more to my fall collection lol.

The iron bird candle holder I already owned but I added a pumpkin candle to it and the autumn wreath on the bottom. Which came from Target's dollar section! But was actually $2.50... harrumph...why do they do that? lol So did the pumpkins! They were cute though and I don't think $2.50 is a bad price.

If you all love candles Bath and Body Works was having an amazing sale, practically buy one get one free on the yummy big Slatkin & Co. candles. Plus they have all his neat autumn scents and are launching their Christmas stuff too and giving out great coupons! I hope you are all well! All the best!

Halloween Time!

2009-10-06T14:33:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! How are you enjoying Fall!? It has finally started getting chilly in southern California and there is Halloween, and even Christmas stuff everywhere! Love it! I couldn't help but buy some cute Halloween stuff that I want to show you!

Don't you love the witches hat with the sign! Haha! It's so cute and funny! But wait guys guess where I got this stuff? If you guessed Homegoods you are right! lol :) I loved the little ghostie too his face was too cute and the little candy corn legs! I haven't been blogging lately but I bet you guys all have the cutest stuff right now! I love Halloween and Fall! All the best everyone!

I'm here!

2009-09-10T20:45:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! I am still around! Remember the problems with Taylor I mentioned, well they got worse and worse to the point where I was entirely absorbed by them. We only just resolved things last week. Plus I was in summer school which was a lot of work in a shorter amount of time. I am not sure when I can get back in the swing of things but hopefully soon. I am still running around busy because I'm moving into a new place and working and school starts soon. Thank you guys for being concerned about me! I have missed you all! I can't wait to visit everyone again! On a lighter note has anyone seen the advertisements for the new Alice in Wonderland movie coming out? Johnny Depp is the Mad Hatter :) Tim Burton is directing so it should be interesting lol. All the best everyone!

Tablescape Thursday

2009-08-13T11:24:00.001-07:00

Join me at Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursday!

This isn’t really a tablescape but it’s kind of LOL. It’s the cutest tea set and dishes that I got at Marshalls! I just love it. They called it toile and it kind of is. It’s really nice! I also got a black and white toile basket!

Do you like it!?! I just love it. There is also a matching tiered server that I forgot to take pictures of! But you can imagine what it looks like :) I hope everyone is well! Sorry I’ve been so busy I am in summer school and that takes up a lot of time! All the best everyone!

Frenchyness

2009-08-03T10:13:00.001-07:00

Someone else posted about this who was it!? So Marshalls had these knives which are made in France and have cute little bees at the handle for you to rest your finger on! I got a set with a white handle and a stainless. They were two different brands..and even looked like different quality so I returned the white because they didn’t seem as good of quality. The bees are even different! But check them out they are so cute!

The nicer ones had this neat little history of the knives on the back.

Here’s the white set.

Sooo you can see that the all stainless set just seems a little better, even a better holder! I only got the white because I had done that beachy tablescape and thought it would be cute and matching but then I was like should I really spend $10 bucks for this that I won’t use for anything else? haha. Anyway! Who was it that posted about this!? I tried to remember and find the post; it’s because of you I got these lol! All the best everyone!

Placemats and napkins

2009-07-30T20:32:00.001-07:00

Hey all! I am back from Vegas it was awesome but sooo hot! I had a lot of fun though :) I wanted to share the cutest stuff! At Marshalls they had the coolest placemats and napkins ever! They are toile! Oh my gosh! I went to every Marshalls I know and got as many things as I could. One of the sets of napkins isn’t toile but very pretty! I only took close ups of the red because it’s the same design on all of them.

Love it! They are so nice! I just love looking at everyone’s tablescapes and so now when I go out I always check out that stuff. Plus I am in love with toile! Go check your local Marshalls if you love toile! LOL. All the best!

Some Goodwill

2009-07-25T13:02:00.001-07:00

Sorry about being MIA a lot. I have been a crazy 21 year old on her summer break and Taylor and I have been having some problems so I have been occupied. Aaand tomorrow I leave for Las Vegas for 3 days! Viva Las Vegas LOL. So I wanted to share something with you before I was gone even longer! Some things I got at Goodwill a while ago.

These candle sticks are like glass, not quite mercury glass. They are neat! There is a seam around the bottom where the two pieces were glued together and glue is icky so I am going to glue ribbon or something around the bottoms. Maybe add some shells. What do you guys think?

See the ugly seams? Next is a little fondue pot I got to share for a romantic dinner with Taylor and I…and a little plate that kind of matched.

And some candle sticks to make my own servers with. You know, glue the plates to the candle sticks. :)

So what ideas do you have for covering the seam!? LOL. Love to hear them. All the best everyone! Wish my luck in Vegas wooo!

Fancy Hat

2009-07-21T11:48:00.001-07:00

My grandma went to some fancy hat event on the Queen Mary and had this hat made. She didn’t want it anymore and was just storing it and thought I might want it and of course I’d take it…I’m sentimental like that LOL. It’s quite darling! Inside there was also a Mardi Gras mask and a top hat that my grandpa wore to this party LOL.

It’s covered in quite a lot of stuff. LOL. Look a hatpin! hehe

There’s even a little flower on the underside so you can turn the brim up and see it.

It all came in this pretty hat box!

Mardi Gras mask! It’s so cool!

The lid of the box. So pretty!

A sweet surprise was opening it up and finding a hankie that my great grandmother had crocheted (or whatever it’s called) the rim in the colors of the Italian flag!

After my grandma saw my post about the Disneyland hats she remembered hers and thought I might want it LOL. I don’t know what to do with it yet. I am keeping it in the hatbox for now. I hope you’re all having a nice week! All the best!

A deserving winner!

2009-07-19T12:51:00.001-07:00

Well everyone thanks to the random number generator we have a winner! Out of 56 entries number 56 won! Andrea from I'm Livin' On Scraps! Congratulations! E-mail me your info!

I also want to share with you guys the sad pathetic heat exhausted Mister B. LOL

HAHA is that not funny, look at how he was eyeing me. I have some 4th of July photos of me and Taylor too. We were under a blue tarp in this one!

It was hot, and still is! LOL. We both wore plaid…that was not planned haha. Also I got this cute lantern from Marshalls that I want to share!

When a candle is inside it looks sooo cool because the glass in shaped funny and it makes pretty designs on the table. The only problem is the little metal roof gets REALLY hot from the candle! I don’t know why I liked it so much. I even waited a long time before getting it LOL. Anyway! Congrats to our winner again and I wish everyone all the best!

Silver tea set and last day for giveaway!

2009-07-18T09:37:00.001-07:00

At a garage sale a while back I got this brand new silver plated tea set for $45 dollars. I think that’s a good price… Anyone know? Either way I love it! I have always wanted one! This one came with a teapot, coffeepot, sugar, creamer, and tray. From the same lady I also got two shabby chic decorating books. Victoria’s At Home With White, and Rachel Ashwell’s Shabby Chic. They have been a lot of fun to read! I highly recommend!

I love how everything has little feet in the set! It’s all so pretty :) I just couldn’t pass it up I had to go to the grocery store down the street buy gum and get cash back to buy it LOL. The books were only $1 dollar each! Yay! Also everyone don’t forget that today is the last day to enter my giveaway HERE! I’ll announce the winner tomorrow! Hope your garage sales have been fruitful! All the best!

My first tablescape Thursday!

2009-07-15T21:13:00.001-07:00

So everyone’s beautiful tablescapes have inspired me so much. And even though I don’t really have a home of my own I couldn’t help myself and bought stuff for tablescapes LOL. This is my first one! It’s not like complete or anything LOL. But I wanted to share it with you! Please join me in visiting Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursday!

Before you’re like “Allison why did you buy that ugly fish?” Just look at how it matched my tablescape! LOL

Ta Daaaaaa!

Dinner plate

Salad plate

Bowl

Mug

Funny thing is I found the napkins first at Marshalls and thought they were cool and bought them. I didn’t know what they were until I was at Marshalls like a month later and saw the placemats!!! Then I realized those were little nautical ropes on the napkins LOL! Do you like my tablescape? I am quite thrilled LOL. Almost everything was from Marshalls except the servers, napkin rings, and lantern. The dinnerware was in a busted box and were on clearance for 10 bucks for the set of 16 yay! All the best everyone!

Shabby servers

2009-07-11T11:36:00.001-07:00

I found some cute servers at T.J. Maxx! So cute! I also found some new hankies! And finally a hankie with an A on it! Yay! I bought a small and big server so that they could be stacked! It looks pretty good too. They have pretty little crystals that hang down. I didn’t unwrap them yet so that’s why they are covered in plastic.

Yay I love hankies! I hope everyone is having a nice weekend. Don’t forget about my giveaway here! You have until the 18th to enter! All the best everyone!

Giveaway!

2009-07-08T10:34:00.001-07:00

Today is my 21st birthday/100th post giveaway! I have been waiting for a long time to have this giveaway! I think they are so fun. Well one of you lucky ladies will get to win one of my cupcakes! Aaand a tea cup! And a hankie and a little metalware chair that is a tea light holder and a picture/postcard or place holder. Between now and the end of the drawing I will also be on the lookout for anything else I can add to the basket ;)

I will even add some vintage photos ;)

If this giveaway is your cup of tea then sign up! Leave a comment here! If you would like a second chance, leave a second comment and tell me that you are a follower or have become a follower. This giveaway is open to U.S. only because I am a poor starving college student and can’t afford international shipping :( sorry! If you don’t have a blog you can sign up too just leave your e-mail. Everyone please leave me their e-mail address (in both comments if you do it twice) even if you have a blog just in case! And if you would please tell me a little something you remember about your 21st birthday I would love to hear your stories :) All the best everyone! This giveaway will be open until July 18th!

21st Birthday Extravaganza

2009-07-07T11:56:00.001-07:00

Well everyone today is my 21st birthday! In honor of that and my 100th post which will be soon I am going to have a giveaway tomorrow! :) For now let us celebrate! For my birthday I want 21 cakes! LOL. Like these ones…

Some balloons!

Some presents!

I give everyone these little favors!

I wish you could all come to my birthday party! Come back next post for my giveaway! All the best everyone!

Goodwill has fun stuff :)

2009-07-06T09:29:00.001-07:00

I went to Goodwill a little while back and found some nice things :) Like these little tea light holders shaped as snowflakes! It’s from Crate and Barrel too! A bunch of napkin ring holders. I am getting ready to create tablescapes!

As you can see I also got a cute little jar and these wall brackets with birds! Those silverplate napkin ring holders were a deal! Only $1.99! It was a good day for Goodwill lol. All the best everyone!

God Bless America

2009-07-04T00:25:00.001-07:00

Land of the free, home of the brave.

This is an e-mail that was forwarded to me. Something I have never thought about before. God bless the founding fathers.

Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence?

-Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died.
-Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.
-Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had two sons captured.
-Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the
Revolutionary War.
-They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their
sacred honor.

What kind of men were they?
-Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists. Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of means, well educated, but they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured.
-Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.
-Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.
-Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer,
Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.
At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr., noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.
-Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.
-John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished.

So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and
silently thank these patriots. It's not much to ask for the price they
paid.
Remember: freedom is never free!
It's time we get the word out that patriotism is NOT a
sin, and the Fourth of July has more to it than beer, picnics, and
baseball games.

--
You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
You cannot lift the wage earner up by pulling the wage payer down.
You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.
You cannot build character and courage by taking away people's initiative and independence.
You cannot help people permanently by doing for them, what they could and should do for themselves.
William J. H. Boetcker (1873 – 1962)

Very interesting huh? We never hear about all the other men who signed the Declaration of Independence and yet they were the ones who suffered the most! Happy Fourth of July everyone. God bless America!

Garage sale finds

2009-07-02T11:28:00.001-07:00

A while back at a garage sale I found a couple cute things like these numbers on a pick. They are stainless and come in a set of two numbers. I thought they were kind of retro looking and neat and they were from Crate and Barrel :) $1 dollar so hey I got them LOL.

The same garage sale also had a recipe tin from Martha Stewart that looked pretty new so I got that too!

I thought it was cute enough plus it was only a dollar too.. I think lol. I haven’t used any of these things yet but I am planning on transferring my recipes soon. Right now they are all in a three ringed binder lol. Anyone gotten anything fun at a garage sale lately? All the best!

Homegoods beats Pier1 any day!

2009-06-30T22:42:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! So I was eyeing this bowl at Pier 1 for months! It’s 20 bucks there and I always waited to get it because I knew it would be around a while longer. I don’t know why but I am in love with this bowl! Anyway! I found it at, where else, but Homegoods! For 17 bucks LOL. Not that much of a difference but hey I’m not complaining I was thrilled and obviously I bought it! LOL!

I love its scalloped edges :) I just have an obsession with this bowl haha! I obviously need more lemons but this was my original idea for the bowl :) I love the look of bright yellow lemons in a bowl :) I also got the cutest bowls at Homegoods! They are kind of off white with cherries! You’ll love them! Everyone go to Homegoods LOL.

Look at how much they used to be! The tag was still on it!

Look at how much Homegoods was selling it for!!!

Oh Homegoods is good to us isn’t it LOL.

Cute with lemons in it too huh! I’m telling you lemons look good in anything! Well everyone I hope you have all had some great shopping experiences lately! All the best!

Shabby chic furniture

2009-06-27T21:32:00.001-07:00

Yay for garage sales. The same garage sale that bequeathed me the fan and mirror also produced this splendid little wire cabinet and this other one with a glass panel. The one with the glass panel is kind of cheap like made of cardboard or something. The top is all grungy I’ll show you pictures. So how can I fix that!? Ahhh. Ok but the other little shelfy cabinet was fine and really cute.

2 bucks. Kind of cute how it’s signed on the back huh? lol The dried hydrangeas came with it :) I really like this chippy little thing, I almost left it behind! So glad I went back for it LOL. The next thing doesn’t have great pictures because I left it in my car and took it to my dads house to store it.

Now I’ll show you the top of it that is all messed up. How can I fix this?!

It was 2 bucks too so I couldn’t pass it up and I thought I could somehow fix the top. It’s bubbled up like paper does when it gets wet so I don’t really know what to do! Like I said it’s like made of some composite material and kind of cardboard-esque. I was thinking worse comes to worse I will try to scrape the top off and put shabby wall paper on it or something. Unless you guys have a way better idea and I’m sure you all do! All the best everyone! :)

How to make a faux cupcake

2009-06-25T16:00:00.001-07:00

Here it is ladies! How to make a faux cupcake :) Off we go! First you need some supplies.

Styrofoam balls (small enough to fit in a cupcake liner)

Patching plaster ready mixed in a tub (any hardware store)

Cupcake papers

Glue gun

Bits and bobs that you could use to decorate

ribbon, paper flowers, faux pearls, clay whatsits, glitter, acrylic paint, on and on…

Directions:

First you have to glue your cupcake liner to the styrofoam ball

to look like this

Then you use patching plaster

When you open it mix it around a little then you just smear it on with a plastic knife or something I used a spoon because I didn’t have a knife hah! And it worked fine. It will look like frosting, spread it around as if you were icing a cupcake.

Be careful as you’re getting closer to the paper that you don’t get it on there but get close enough so that you can’t see styrofoam anymore. The completed frosting.

You have to let this dry now. The bucket says for 1-5 hours but I let it dry over night because you’ll find it’s still soft if you only wait 5 hours. So I highly recommend you let it set overnight! Especially if you’re going to paint it! I am not going to paint this one but I still let it dry. If you paint just use a normal paint brush and any acrylic paint and paint away lol. There are a lot of grooves and cracks so you’ll notice where to cover those because the white shows through. After it’s dry get your bits and bobs ready.

I just used ribbon, a glass bee, and a clay rose and petals I made. If you want to know how, I got the directions here from Lorena at Rose Chic Friends! From this point on the decorations are purely your ideas. You’ve got the basic how to with the cupcake.

I glued these together then I glued them to the cupcake.

Then glued the clay rose and petals on top and added the bee.

The plaster cracked on the back and little things like that bother me LOL. So I added faux pearls all over to cover that LOL.

Then all you do is put it on your cupcake dome and display :)

If you paint make sure you let it dry before you add your bits and bobs! On my other cupcakes I added trim around the paper which I’ll shower later :) A glue gun really does work best. When you glue the styrofoam ball to the paper cup make sure you squirt some along the sides of the cup so that sticks to the ball! I hope you all have fun if you make them and that they work out for you! All the best!

Garage sale finds

2009-06-24T12:30:00.001-07:00

So the cupcake how to is coming along but for now I will entertain you with some recent garage sale finds :) So I got this cool lighted mirror! It’s old but the lady didn’t know how old. I like it :) I’ve always wanted an old fashion lighted mirror.

I tried looking up this company and couldn’t find anything except electrical switches lol.

The best part of the whole thing is that it works!

Check out the engraved look on the side.

Here is the back, the part that holds it up is kind of warped and bent from leaning for so long I guess.

I also got this neat old fan for Taylor because he likes retro stuff lol.

Pinky inspecting the fan LOL.

I got some other really neat stuff that I will share next time :) 2 bucks for the mirror and 2 bucks for the fan I think it was a good deal lol. The fan works too! But the button to turn it on and off is broken you have to unplug it to turn it off LOL. Oh well. All the best everyone!

Ye old apothecary

2009-06-22T09:43:00.001-07:00

Look what I found! This cute window display at Disney that is all old apothecary-esque lol. I love it! There is even a dome guys look! LOL. Enjoy the photos :)

Here is some random fake food they had and these pretty copper pots!

Did ya love it? I loved it! I wish I owned a few of those things. Did you see the tussie mussies! Ahh I was so excited when I saw that and the dome! LOL. So cute. I love all this old neat antique doctor stuff. I just bought an apothecary jar too! So cute. Show ya later. All the best everyone!

In the jungle

2009-06-20T22:09:00.001-07:00

In the jungle the mighty jungle the lion sleeps tonight LOL That’s what this window vignette made me think of. Yes it’s Disney again! Can you imagine this there? I was surprised too LOL! It’s kind of manly so I think it’s fitting for Father’s Day lol.

So my favorite part was all the flower pots lines up on the shelves lol. I thought this vignette was totally cool! It reminds me of the Jungle Cruise and Indiana Jones :) Look they somehow incorporated tea cups but I think they are for coffee because that looks like a coffee pot to me LOL. All right well I am working on the cupcake how to I just need someone to remember to take photos when I work on a cupcake LOL I had already started the pink one and didn’t take photos so I wanted to wait until I could start at the very beginning. Take care everyone have a Happy Father’s Day :) All the best

I did it! Faux cupcake!

2009-06-19T23:52:00.001-07:00

So I finally made a faux cupcake :) and I have started a second one! Taylor is making me a birdhouse and he bought me the stuff to make a cupcake so I could do something while he worked on his project lol. I will post the how to later but for now I’ll just show you what I came up with!

I put it in the little blue polka dot cupcake dome! It looks perfect there too! So cute! It’s glittered out :) So they are really easy to make and the next one is pink hehe :) I will share with you the supplies and how to I just forgot to take pictures along the process this time. So what do you guys think? I really like it :) All the best everyone!

Cloche party!

2009-06-18T19:19:00.001-07:00

I don’t think there is anything I love more than a cloche :) Marty at A Stroll Through Life is having a cloche party! So here’s my presentation :)

Some new little cupcake cloches that I got :)

And that’s not all LOL. I don’t have pictures of the rest. Ok well I think I am done here LOL. All the best everyone! I love all your cloches! I hope you enjoyed mine :)

Scarf project

2009-06-18T00:03:00.001-07:00

Hi everyone I mentioned this before but there is a great opportunity to help save some animals simply by decorating a scarf and taking a picture of it on your pooch (or kitty)! All you do is go to Kelee’s blog here at Katillac Shack and request a scarf! Such an easy way to save abandoned pets and I know you are all so crafty that you can make the cutest things! Here’s what I did for Mr. B and Didgit.

Mr. B’s has little bees all over it! LOL. Didgit’s has rhinestones and ribbon :) It was a lot of fun to make and so easy! I really hope you all do it! It’s so helpful and easy! The first 150 scarves she’s giving out for free and I think there are plenty left! Here is the website again! Go go go! All the best everyone!

Costume Party

2009-06-17T00:32:00.001-07:00

Sares of Loveleigh Treasures is having a costume party to celebrate her birthday today! Everyone you have to check out her post oh my goodness! It’s my most favorite thing ever! Ok so onto my costumes because I couldn’t pick just one :) Gosh I think if I had to pick, my most favorite costumes in the world were worn by Miss Scarlett O’Hara of Tara :)

Oh yes…

Sorry the pictures are blurry because it’s an old movie you know lol. Don’t you just love her outfits. I love this movie! Happy Birthday Sares what a great idea for a party! I am also going to address a tag from Betty of Betty's Corner of the World. I am going to tell you 6 things about myself so you get to know me better. And then tag 6 people.

1) I am the youngest child of 5, but all half brothers and sisters.

2) I have 10 nieces and nephews with two more on the way, and I became an aunt at 2 years old, my oldest niece just graduated high school and is going to college in the fall..

3) My nickname is Dink. My aunt bestowed it upon me when I was born and she saw me for the first time she declared “She’s a dink!” And it has stuck.

4) I have road rage…LOL

5) I don’t drink :) and I’m turning 21 in less than a month. What a bust huh LOL. I am going to go gamble at some of the Indian casinos down here instead LOL.

6) The number 7 really is lucky for me LOL it follows me everywhere and it’s my birthday. It’s kind of a funny combination it’s 7/7/88. Which I’ve always liked the whole 7788 thing LOL. But it was no fun-o when everyone and their brother got married on 7/7/07 including one of my own cousins! Lame! I knew like 8 couples getting married that day!

So I tag :)

Donna of An Enchanted Cottage

Em at Bunch of Scrap

Katherine at Country Romantic

Patti at Crystal Rose Cottage

Cori at Gingerbread Crumbs and Company

Tracey at I am Me

All the best everyone! Happy Birthday Sares! Happy costume party everyone!

Rearranging

2009-06-16T10:56:00.001-07:00

Remember these photos? They were scattered around my room. Well I decided to group them above my bed and clear up the space they were taking. I like it :)

Check it out I also found this fake plant for free! Because it was sitting above the garbage chute at my condo yay! I thought it was worth saving. One side has yellow flowers and the other purple!

Sorry I didn’t have time to make a nicer post I am running a bunch of errands today :) I hope you’re all well! All the best!

Tempting little painting

2009-06-14T23:58:00.001-07:00

For months this pretty little vintage painting was tempting me to buy it! I thought it was too much money but after I got a hefty paycheck I gave into temptation lol. I just love it! Sorry about the one being a different color, the flash was off with the others lol.

Don’t you just love her outfit and hair! I know! She has so much attitude in her cute pink dress! Do you see why she was so tempting! Isn’t her hair amazing! LOL. I love it :) Do you see that smudge by her face? It’s like the left over stickyness from a price sticker! There wasn’t a sticker on it when I bought it, it already had that smudge, I bought it anyway. Do you think I could take it somewhere that could professionally clean it? I still love her despite her flaw LOL. All the best!

Nesting

2009-06-13T11:16:00.001-07:00

Sweet Barbara Jean of Treasures From The Heart had a quick giveaway that I was blessed enough to win. The prize was one of her beautiful handmade nests. It’s bestowing many blessings :) Do you see the pretty words on the petals? Blessings, Love, Peace. Isn’t it sweet! She is so talented! She has so many sweet things over at her gift shop that I really recommend you check out!

Look Barb I put it in my tea cup isn’t it cute in there! It fits perfectly and the colors matched it perfectly! It’s like they were meant for each other LOL. I love it!

Thanks so much Barb it’s so sweet and special! Everyone go check out Barb’s gift shop and blog! Also she is the best thrifter I have ever seen! All the best everyone!

Tassel!

2009-06-12T00:38:00.001-07:00

I found another crazy cute tassel at Marshall’s from the same company as the others. It’s pink! With a bird! So cute. Very eclectic and vibrant not too shabby but I think it’s chic :)

Hello birdie and kitty in the background LOL. Don’t you love it’s tail? I know! It was just so funky and cute I had to get it!

I also want to share with you guys an opportunity to save the lives of animals :) Click there to Decorate a Scarf to help animals who’ve been abandoned.

Also I was tagged by Mona at Wsprsweetly of Cottages for a fun little game. You are supposed to list 6 unimportant things that make you smile. I had a hard time thinking of what could be considered unimportant. LOL. Some of my answers sound superficial but oh well it’s true.

1. Shopping :)

2. Thrifting LOL

3. Garage Sales

4. Food

5. Staying at home and doing nothing LOL

6. Baking

Weird answers right? I know LOL. Then you’re supposed to tag 6 people…but everyone is on bloggy breaks or seems really busy right now…so I’m gonna nix the tag part haha except that of course if you want to share some unimportant things that make you happy in the comments do it! LOL. All the best everyone :)

Zombie teacup!

2009-06-10T21:55:00.001-07:00

Just kidding. My poor little teacup didn’t come back from the beyond but it’s been replaced! Yay! I won a sweet giveaway from Laura at Shorehouse Chic. Her giveaway was a teacup! It’s too cute! And she sent a sweet vintage postcard, a teaspoon wrapped in linen with patriotic ribbon, and some red mango tea! Yum!

Check out the inner rim of the teacup.

And the saucer!

Check out it’s maker lol

Do you like the new hankie too?

Also I was tagged by Lorna at Lace and Ivy Cottage for this fun little game! I’m calling it crazy 8s.

1. Mention the person (or people) who tagged you.
2. Complete the list of 8's.
3. Tag 8 other bloggers and let them know they have been tagged.

Ok, here it goes.
8 things I am looking forward to:
1. No more school!
2. Spending more time with the boyfriend
3. Sleeping
4. Spending more time with my pets!
5. The Rosebowl Flea Market
6. My birthday! July 7! #21 woo hoo!
7. Thrifting in general
8. Seeing my parents

8 things I did yesterday:
1. Worked
2. from
3. 10 am
4. to
5. 7 pm (receptionist for optometrist in Costco)
6. ate dinner
7. tried to study
8. went to bed

8 things I wish I could do:
1. Not go to school anymore LOL
2. Win the lottery
3. Save all the animals in the whole world with money from the lottery
4. Be in a movie
5. Marry Rob Pattinson
6. Be in a musical
7. Not crave junk food LOL
8. Thrift more!

8 Shows I watch:
1. House
2. Paula Dean!
3. What Not to Wear
4. History Channel
5. Discovery Channel
6. True Life

7. QVC

8. Dirty Jobs

8 favorite fruits:
1. Watermelon
2. Strawberries
3. Blueberries
4. Nectarines
5. Peaches
6. Pineapple
7. Kiwi
8. Banana

8 Places I'd Like to Travel
1. Ireland
2. Italy
3. France
4. England
5. Hawaii
6. New Zealand
7. Alaska
8. Antarctica (I want to visit the penguins!)

8. Places I've Lived
1. Anaheim Hills, CA
2. Lake Forest, CA
3. Chino Hills, CA
4. Corona, CA
5. Aliso Viejo, CA

6.Lake Arrowhead, CA

7.Newport Beach, CA
And that’s it! I even included the places my dad lives LOL.

8 People I've Tagged
I tag everyone who wants to participate because it’s fun to do these but I know all of you are busy right now with kidlets, work, and the start of summer! So if you do it let me know so I can check it out! :)

I was also bestowed with the sweetest tag from Cathy at Treasured Heirlooms Elegance and Whimsy

I invite everyone to grab this blog tag because I think you are all fabulous :)

I hope everyone enjoyed more eye candy prizes and reading the little survey lol. All the best everyone!

Prizes!

2009-06-09T16:45:00.001-07:00

Sorry for not posting sooner everyone I went home for the weekend and left my laptop charger at school! I won a couple giveaways from the Cottage Charm Giveaway extravaganza and I wanted to share them with you :) First was from Nanalulu's Musings she has a great store/website here with beautiful linens :) Here’s what I got!

I will save the next giveaway wins for next time! As you can see it was some cute stuff :) The hankie smells like roses! And it came with a sweet little paper describing the different ways to hold it and what they mean lol. The cupcake papers are so cute! I think I will use them when I make my own faux cupcakes! The little teaspoons were sweet with the little tea pots on the end! I was so excited for the crown cookie cutter too because I was actually going to be buy one soon! So that worked out great! :) I hope you’re all well. All the best!

Fake Cake Disney Style!

2009-06-05T16:36:00.001-07:00

I just love the tutu under this cake LOL. All the glittery signs and faux treats! I have seen those small treats for sale in shabby boutiques! Did you just love the “Un-Birthday” sign LOL. Neat huh!? I was so surprised to see this window display. It had baby shower cakes too, and wedding cakes like the one above, and birthday cakes. Because Disney is celebrating birthdays this year, by letting anyone in free on their birthday, they’ve turned the park into a party LOL. I hope you enjoyed and took some inspiration :) Also I was tagged by Mona at Wsprsweetly of Cottages for a photo game :) You go to the sixth photo file and find the sixth picture and then share it and explain it. So here is mine :)

You've seen it before! It's one of the chocolates Taylor gave me from San Francisco from this foo foo chocolate place LOL. It was sooo good. 60% dark Belgian chocolate with ganache center mmmm :) Now you're supposed to tag six friends LOL. But I don't know who to pick! So if you want to play along it's pretty fun and you should do it!

Vintage Birdcage and a giveaway!

2009-06-04T08:04:00.001-07:00

Check out this beautiful vintage birdcage at Disneyland :)

It has butterflies all over it! And the beautiful blue ribbon! I wish I had this birdcage! Ok now for the giveaway! :) I found a lovely blog! Sandi at Wayside Treasures is having a giveaway for her 300th post! Check it out it’s lovely bird stuff! Goes great with the birdcage huh!?

All the best everyone!

Beautiful Spring Hats

2009-06-02T22:33:00.001-07:00

There was a new hat display at Disneyland! Look at all these lovely hats! So pretty! I have seen hats similar to these selling for hundreds of dollars. These were beautiful!

I really really like the little straw hat hiding down there see it?!

I took a picture of the old timey architecture and lights of main street.

Look at this pretty mirror with the candle holders in front :) I just loved it. Too bad it didn’t have any candles but I suppose they’d melt from the sun beating on the window. I hope you all enjoyed the hats! All the best everyone!

Summer Vignette 2!

2009-06-01T21:28:00.001-07:00

Here are the rest of the pictures from the yellow/orange vignette :) Here’s what it looks like again.

Isn’t it cute! I just love the little Memorial Day touches they had :) And all the teacups! Yay! I just love their vignettes :) LOL. There’s more to come! All the best everyone!

Summer vignette

2009-05-30T20:43:00.001-07:00

Disney has changed their vignettes :) They go along with Memorial Day and summer :) Remember how pink and frilly this was before? Now it is yellow and orange and there is red white and blue :)

I made the pictures way bigger what do you think? I think it’s easier to see everything lol. I have lots more to share but that’s for another time! All the best everyone!

Tea Party!

2009-05-29T15:25:00.001-07:00

So as you all know I don’t really have much in the way of china and pretty stuff for a tablescape but it didn’t stop me from trying to have a tea party haha! So here are some pictures I took :)

I made these scones! I was so excited! They are pumpkin :) Really yummy! With sugar sprinkled on top!

I used a gingerbread cinnamon herbal tea that Taylor’s mom gave me for Christmas LOL. It went well with the pumpkin scones! :) All in all it was fun! All the best everyone!

Fuzzy Wuzzy

2009-05-28T08:17:00.001-07:00

I have a bunch of cute shabby pictures to share with you but I forgot my USB cable at home and so I am pulling up some pictures of the fuzzies to amuse you :)

Mr. B likes to splay out LOL.

Graycee is wacky and likes to do crazy things.

Once we took Didget to the wiener dog races in the Old World Village in Huntington Beach. She didn’t do very good and lost all her races LOL.

We tried to lure her with a hotdog because her one love is food LOL.

See not even running just trotting LOL.

The poor little losing wiener dog.

Popoki likes to sleep in bed with me

and Taylor haha.

We got all of them at once! Never happened before won’t happen again. My beloved Spotty (the black and white one) was put down November 2007. The black and white cat, Popoki and Graycee, hate each other and are mortal enemies so that’s why this photo was amazing LOL. All the best everyone!

Fake Cake!

2009-05-25T14:03:00.001-07:00

I found a fake cake at a thrift store! It’s chocolate :) with white chocolate curls and red filling ;) It’s on a glass pedestal and has a glass dome. I think it’s pretty cute.

Someday when I have my own adorable kitchen it will adorn my counter :) I plan on making my own faux cakes and cupcakes soon. That will be an interesting project to share lol. All the best everyone!

These are a few of my favorite things

2009-05-21T21:13:00.001-07:00

Raindrops

on roses

and whiskers on kittens

bright copper kettles

and warm woolen mittens

brown paper packages tied up with string

These are a few of my favorite things.

Cream colored ponies

and crisp apple strudel

doorbells

and sleigh bells

and schnitzel with noodles

wild geese that fly with the moon on their wings

these are a few of my favorite things

girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes

snow flakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes

silver white winters that melt into springs

these are a few of my favorite things

when the dog bites

when the bee stings

when I’m feeling sad

I simply remember my favorite things

and then I don’t feel so bad

All the best everyone :)

Recipe Exchange Thursday

2009-05-20T22:37:00.001-07:00

Hello I am participating in Natalie's Recipe Exchange Thursday at Just A Gal blog! :)

This recipe my boyfriends mom gave me which she got from someone at work :) It’s called Tangerine Salad. I thought a salad would be a good thing to share for Spring/Summer :) Here we go!

Tangerine Salad

1 small can Mandarin oranges

1 bag baby spinach

1 bag butter lettuce (also called Boston or Bib lettuce)

1/4-1/2 cup chopped (small not fine) red onion

1/2-3/4 cup chopped toasted walnuts (optional but really good lol)

Dressing

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon minced red onion

1 teaspoon celery seed

1 teaspoon dry mustard

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup vegetable (salad) oil

1/2 cup white vinegar

Mix the salad part together, mix the dressing part and combine the two. It’s that easy :) It’s really sweet and tangy. We just love this salad :) We usually add other things to it like tomatoes lol. You can use other types of lettuce, I have, but it really tastes best with the butter lettuce. I hope you all have the opportunity to try it and that you like it :) All the best everyone!

Get a hold of yourself

2009-05-19T17:26:00.001-07:00

I needed something to hold my new/old postcard and I had always wanted one of those wire stands. Then while shopping over the weekend I happened upon some!

There were two different styles one that went horizontally and one vertically and three different colors: white, black, and red.

Yay now it can be displayed right in all it’s prettiness :)

All the best everyone!

Earthquake broke my teacup and dome :(

2009-05-18T09:09:00.001-07:00

This was my beautiful teacup…

I got it from Craigslist and apparently it was worth a lot of money…I put in on my cupcake dome and stand…

I removed the dome so it would take a better picture …but you’ve probably seen it before…

I never got a chance to look it up it’s worth, she had a woman tell her on Craigslist that if you had the matching saucer it was $75.

So last night Los Angeles had a 5.0 earthquake…and here’s what it did to my stuff…

Noooooooo!

All that survives is the plate and stand… Luckily I had an extra dome lying around that could replace my broken one

Except the stand did not come out unscathed either…

It’s got a nice chip on it now…

This dang lantern survived…even though most of its panels fell out none of them broke…

I would have rather had that thing break than my teacup and dome :(

Poor teacup…I am going to keep it’s pieces and try to make something with them…RIP teacup :(

A new view

2009-05-15T20:54:00.001-07:00

I thought I’d share what my room looks like at my dads house since you all are always seeing my moms :) I haven’t really done anything with it and everything isn’t put away. But I’m hardly ever there so it’s not imperative.

That is my bed, it’s a California King so it overtakes the room. The bed spread is the Waverly collection from Target! Black and crème toile :) I wanted a four poster bed so bad and my stepmom bought me a cherry wood bedroom set for my 15th birthday :)

The four posts have this wheat design on them.

The armoire

Detail on the armoire and most of the furniture.

The vanity/dresser.

One of two end tables.

This is what’s on the other end table, an Eiffel Tower lamp with an old phone.

With roses on it :)

A crystal figurine of Beauty and the Beast from Disneyland :)

A souvenir from the Eiffel Tower :)

A pewter rose from the Renaissance faire and a jewelry box.

An Eiffel Tower picture holder.

So that’s pretty much it for stuff. There’s also a cherry wood oval standing mirror in the corner. I have a lot more French stuff that is still in boxes from when they moved. As you can see the room at my dads is a lot different in style than the one at my moms :) It’s always been that way. It’s nice to have two rooms to decorate in different styles that I like but don’t always mesh well. All the best everyone!

Outdoor goodies

2009-05-14T08:04:00.001-07:00

I forgot a couple things in my post yesterday! I also got an iron bird stand for the garden, and a teacup bird feeder :) These were also half off yay! Sorry they aren’t actually in a garden LOL. I don’t have a garden! These are for someday :)

The lady who I bought this from made the tea cup bird feeder :) Isn’t it cute and pink! The wooden stand is railing from stairs. Then she glued the teacup and saucer to it. Apparently it works well! All the best everyone! I bet all of you have some really cute garden stuff :)

Shopaholics Anonymous

2009-05-12T23:04:00.001-07:00

Ladies, I need to admit myself to shopping rehab. LOL. I need a buddy who I can call to stop me from buying things! In the meantime let’s take a look at what broke my bank today :)

Mini tea cups that I planned on using on a tree but I found other places for them.

A wire clock

A hanging flower tussie mussie.

Glass bottle with winged thingy for a picture.

See the other tea cup and tea spoon hiding in there?

A little Frenchie tray. Look there’s a cloche in the picture!

Birds nest twigs and an urn.

I’m painting the urn white by the way LOL.

Another mini tea cup.

Another tea spoon

A mini white shelf.

Tea spoon.

More mini tea cups.

An iron candle holder with a birdie.

Vintage postcard from 1911.

Pink shabby candle holders.

A big cloche with a stand.

In my defense everything was half off except the glass bottle and the tray. Why oh why can’t I resist a sale LOL. All the best everyone!

Flea market dessert server

2009-05-11T22:40:00.001-07:00

The last thing I found at the Irvine flea market was a two tiered silver dessert server :) Many of you probably recall the Target one, well I returned it and found this little beauty :)

I haven’t had a tea party yet so I haven’t covered it with any treats but I tried putting a little vignette on it to make it look more pretty :)

It’s got little feeties…see?

Here is me experimenting with different thingies on it.

Any other fantabulous ideas from you lovely ladies? All the best everyone!

Flea Market finds 2

2009-05-10T21:00:00.001-07:00

I have always wanted a compote. I’ve seen them on so many blogs and they do the cutest things with them. So I set out to find one and did! At the Irvine Flea Market. Here it is :)

It’s not too tall :) It has a few scratches but I just love it :)

It has some little emblem in the middle.

So I took Taylor to Homegoods (YAY) to help him find something for his mom. When I had been there a week before they had the cutest spherical balls covered in paper roses. But silly me, I didn’t buy one. :( When we went back they were all gone! Except one! And it was on clearance! Yay! I think it looks lovely in the compote :) It’s the perfect size.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother’s Day. Any other ideas for the compote? All the best!

Flea Market Finds

2009-05-08T23:52:00.001-07:00

I went to a Flea Market in Irvine, CA last Sunday. It was pretty big for Orange County. I found some goodies! I don’t know why I’m obsessed with hankies but I am. I found this lady who had a ton of hankies all pressed and completely clean! Only $2.50 a hanky! I was so impressed. Usually people charge $4 dollars plus and they don’t even bother cleaning them. Since I bought so many she charged me $5 less. Yay :)

This was only $1 and came from a different vendor who didn’t know what it said. Thanks goodness for French friends! Apparently it says Love Always or Always Love.

I didn’t know what these were. The lady had to tell me that they were for keeping your rolls warm LOL. I really liked the one on the left with blue trim but I wanted two so I also got the white one.

The lady also recommended using it to keep extra hankies nice and orderly.

I have other goodies that I’ll share next time :) All the best everyone!

Recipe Exchange Thursday

2009-05-07T08:15:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone. I am participating in Just A Gal’s Recipe Exchange Thursday. This is my own very simple version of an Egg McMuffin…LOL. Really simple, but pretty similar to the authentic, in fact I would guess the same? Not my fault it’s so easy to copy at home! LOL

What you’ll need:

1 split English Muffin

1 slice American Cheese

1 Egg

1 piece of Canadian Bacon

Directions:

This is how simple it is, First, put your split english muffin in the toaster to your preferred setting but it’s better when it’s not too crispy. Meanwhile heat up a piece of canadian bacon in a pan or in the microwave, set aside. Then scramble one egg and cook in a pan with a little butter if you want. Try to keep it small and the same diameter as the english muffin. Make sure they aren’t runny and once they are all cooked up, assemble your sandwich. Put the canadian bacon on the bottom piece of english muffin, then the egg, then lay the cheese on top of the egg and put the the other piece of bread on top of that. You can kind of squish it down if it’s too big or wrap it in a paper towel to let the cheese melt a little.

To make it more healthy you could use egg whites, for the english muffin a low fat, low carb, high fiber, or whole wheat alternative. Canadian bacon is pretty healthy, if any of you have never had it it’s just pork tenderloin that has been smoked and sliced. The cheese is the only problem but it’s so good! LOL Ok all the best everyone :)

A giveaway :)

2009-05-06T16:43:00.000-07:00

Laura at 52 Flea. Is having a giveaway in celebration of her 100th post! It is a special kind of giveaway too so everyone check it out! All the best :)

I have an affinity for stained glass

2009-05-05T11:03:00.001-07:00

I don’t really have anything to blog about! I went to a flea market over the weekend but forgot my camera at school! Doh! LOL I will share those pictures next time.

Well a while back at Marshalls I saw the most awesome stained glass panel. There were two of them. I was so close to getting one because it’s a pretty urn with flowers! So chic. But upon closer inspection they were broken! Why? Because the people at Marshalls can’t stock their shelves right! They put all this heavy metal gardening stuff on top of these panels! I was so bummed and mad at Marshalls. Here are the pictures I took of them though.

Pretty huh! I love stained glass. My grandma had a stained glass panel in her house that was a wine bottle pouring into a glass LOL. I think they are so fun and whimsical. Since I have nothing else to blog about and no other pictures I will share some of my animals LOL.

My cat Popoki (Cat in Hawaiian) likes to drink out of the sink LOL. She is the most loving cat I’ve ever had. Just wants to cuddle all the time.

This is Digit and Mr. B. Digit is a miniature long haired Dachshund, Mr. B is a Yorkshire Terrier. Digit looks just like Maggie over at Daisy Cottage. She likes to do this weird thing where she rolls on her back and fans the air with her paws LOL. We call it kitty paws. That is what she is doing in the picture.

This is Graycee, but we call her Pinky because she has a little pink nose and ears. LOL She is our little trouble maker! She is always bringing us “gifts” ew. But she is uber cute.

All the best everyone!

Who doesn’t love a tassel?

2009-05-02T23:29:00.001-07:00

I do I do! So at Marshalls I found some cute tassels! I went to four Marshalls LOL found two different tassels. :) Here they are.

Ducky!

See the pretty crystal that hangs down?

These were $6.99 at Marshalls I am pretty sure the duck one sells for $35 from the manufacturer and the purple one probably $25. You can find others here. This is the website of the company that makes them. They are the cutest things I have ever seen. The artist makes a lot of different styles! Everyone go check your local Marshalls this is such a great deal! All the best!

Happy May Day

2009-05-01T13:37:00.001-07:00

Well hopefully everyone across the country is in Spring right now and moved out of Winter! Here are some pictures of Taylor’s garden/backyard because I don’t really have one LOL.

There were two birds nests in Taylors tree :) He didn’t even know!

All the best everyone :)

What is your dream home?

2009-04-29T22:08:00.001-07:00

Victorian Grace

You were always a fan of your grandmother's amazing classy furniture. The smell of roses and brandy. The look of fine crystal and china. So it's no wonder that your dream home is a Victorian mansion. This amazing palace is not only amazingly beautiful, but its home. You made sure to spend a lot of money on making it modern yet still keep that romantic charm. Guests claim it was haunted, but nothing has bothered you or your family. You count that as a good sign. Another great attribute is the amazing library and ballroom. sure, your parties may not add up to the ones that used to grace the fine marble floors. Then again, you count quantity not quality. You love entertaining and decorating. Not only do you treasure your house but you also count it as one. Hoping that this wonderful home will be kept in the family for more generations to come.

I took a quiz on Facebook called What is Your Dream Home? This was my result! Can you believe it? Haha. I didn’t even think they would have something like this as an answer and they did! Oh it makes me so happy LOL. How is everyone? I hope you’re all well. This is Taylor waiting for the Fairy House building to start.

Here are some more pictures from the Renaissance Faire. I didn’t take that many :( I was caught up in looking at everything you know?

Here we were posing as a couple of the “Seven Deadly Sins” LOL.

Arrrr matey. It was a pirate themed weekend and there were vendors selling pirate things. This was my arrr face…LOL

This booth had beautiful flower headband things LOL and fans. They had the most awesome hats! Like old and romantic and Victorian! They were all $100 dollars or more :( Couldn’t get one. Didn’t take pictures because usually the vendors don’t want you to because it’s like their art work you know? These I took in secret LOL.

Even the pretty head garland things were expensive! Everything at the Renaissance Faire is expensive. We don’t really buy much LOL. Anyway, if you have a Facebook you should take that quiz! All the best!

How to make fairy houses!

2009-04-28T18:16:00.001-07:00

So at the Renaissance Faire there was a little area where you could make crafts. Taylor and I made fairy houses! They are so cute and so easy to make! I took pictures of Taylor making his :)

Sorry I didn’t get pictures of starting out!

That is real moss he’s putting on the roof, and on the floor. The base is a wood round. The house is cardboard.

This was it all finished :) I didn’t take pictures of mine being assembled so I’ll show the pictures I took of it all finished.

This is mine before glitter :)

After glitter!

Isn’t that cute! Look at the little steps!

This is a fairy chair!

The roof!

Oh I just love it. I put those little roses along the roof to cover up the exposed white part of the roof. I also used a little green glittery branch on the roof for some extra glam ;) There are little pink dried berries and mini pine cones!

Then the lady gave us a little gold fairy for our house! I think it looks so much nicer with glitter. Taylor opted for no glitter LOL.

I put it under my new cloche from Pier 1! Remember how I kept going on and on about the cloches there LOL

This is what we used to make it:So the house was like a paper towel roll only wider that she cut to 5 inches tall and cut a door in it. You could use a small milk carton, you know the ones kids get from school? Like an 8 ouncer. The roof was similar cardboard material just made into a triangle shaped roof. She had a wooden round for the base with little wooden stepping stones like from a cup up stick that she glued on there.

She gave us colored dried seedpod type things to glue around the house. We used real moss for the roof and sod for the ground. Then she had various dried and colored things to glue around the house: berries, pussy willows, pinecones, bark, shells, rocks, flowers, seedpods etc. She gave us the little fairy chair that she had made it looks like an acorn thing lol and some other kind of piece of bark glued together.

We used tacky glue for everything and it all worked out well! It didn’t take me very long to make either. First glue the house to the base, then the roof to the house, then the little steps leading to the door. Then once all of that has dried apply the dried seedpods (I can’t find a picture of them but they were paper like and thin and dyed different colors) or dried petals to the house. Then glue the sod to the base around the house and the moss to the roof. After that just add all of your own bits and bobs. You don’t even have to buy anything, just go find twigs, berries, and flowers outside. Afterward she sprayed everything with glitter which was the icing on the cake! I hope if you all want to you try it! I don’t know how the real moss and sod will hold up. She said to mist it with water. I think if I make it again I will be using fake stuff LOL. All the best everyone!

So sweet

2009-04-27T22:36:00.001-07:00

Everyone here in blogland is so sweet and kind. I received two awards recently! I am very flattered and appreciative :) First I got a Bella Award from Mona at Wsprsweetly of Cottages.

You can pass this award on to as many people whose blogs you think are really lovely and who are new to you. This helps newcomers also. If you do not have blogs new to you, just choose those you think have lovely blogs. This award is yours to take and post on your side bar with the name of the giver beneath it. I want to pass this on to everyone LOL. But here it goes…

-Natalie at Just A gal

-Lorna at Lace and Ivy Cottage

-Rosemary at Roses Petite Maison

-Tracy at I Am Me

-Sheila at The Quintessential Magpie

-Cathy at Mille Fleur

-Katherine at Country Romantic

-Donna at An Enchanted Cottage

-Cori at Gingerbead Crumbs and Company

All of you ladies are fabulous and I love visiting your blogs! I changed this award a bit. It called for 15 other blogs and I say put as many as you want.

I was also fortunate to receive the Attitude of Gratitude Award from Lorna at Lace and Ivy Cottage

This award goes to as many other ladies who express the spirit of gratitude in their blogs, as well as my gratitude to them for all their words of encouragement.

The Rules of Accepting and Sharing this Award
1. Put the logo on your blog or post.
2. Nominate as many blogs as you want that show an attitude of gratitude.
3. Link to your nominees within your post.
4. Comment on their blogs to let them know they've received this award.
5. Share the love and link to this post and the person who nominated you for the award.

I don’t expect you all to have to follow the rules, I didn’t. LOL I changed them. Again it called for 10 blogs and I say do as many as you want! LOL

-Natalie at Just A gal for always putting on Recipe exchange Thursday

-Rosemary at Roses Petite Maison for being so sweet and generous always working on crafts for others

-Tracy at I Am Me a real nice person and she loves animals like me :)

-Mona at Wsprsweetly of Cottages because she is so amazing I <3 her!

-Cathy at Mille Fleur she is a sweetheart who leaves the nicest comments for me :)

-Susie Q at Rabbit Run Cottage she has the sweetest things to say.

You guys are all great! Happy blogging :) Thanks for being such wonderful people :)

Look at what pretties came in the mail!

2009-04-26T21:01:00.001-07:00

So did everyone see that cute silver shoe that Rosemary at Roses Petite Maison had made? It was so purty and I fell in love with it and I had to have it haha.

It came Saturday in the mail as well as the most awesome Marie Antoinette tags I was sooo excited! Everyone, you must check out Rosemary’s Esty called The Vintage Crown. She makes amazing things! Let’s look at this shoe!

I put it under my dome! Right now it is sitting on the pretty paper that it was wrapped in. I just haven’t had a moment to give it the fabulous little setting it deserves hehe.

Oh I love it , it’s so sparkly :) And look at these beautiful tags she made! Thank you Rosemary you are the best!!! I love these!

Everything she makes is wonderful! She also makes the most fabulous crowns! I am going to order one of those soon too! Seriously check out her Etsy you will fall in love with everything :)

Also today I went to the Renaissance Pleasure Faire in Irwindale! I will share all those pictures next post! I made the cutest little fairy house that you have to see! Yep I have lots of pictures for next time. All the best everyone!

Would you like to join me for a tea party?

2009-04-24T21:35:00.001-07:00

Guess what came in the mail!

YAY! It’s the Afternoon Tea Parties book that I won in the giveaway from Sue at Country Pleasures. She is so sweet she wrote me a lovely little note inside :) Let’s take a look at some pictures!

This page is the “Classic English Tea.” The whole book is divided into different types of tea parties! There is Japanese tea, French tea, Mother’s Day tea, a Christmas tea, a baby shower tea, birthday tea! So many! It is so awesome!

High Tea

English Tea

Russian Tea

Southern Tea

Bridal Shower tea

The list goes on…isn’t it fabulous? This book was perfect to plan my birthday which is in…let me count…2 months and 5 days :) It’s a big birthday too! The big 21! Woot! But I don’t drink haha so I am celebrating with tea! So much better huh!? ;) All the best everyone! I’d love to hear about some awesome tea parties you have gone to or thrown in the past!

Sense and Sensibility and a Giveaway!

2009-04-24T00:16:00.001-07:00

I just finished watching the movie LOL. I realized I follow the title pretty well. I don’t have much sense (rationality) when it comes to buying something that appeals to my sensibility (emotional capacity). In other words when I am shopping I am ruled my by emotions haha. I see something I like and my emotions take over and my mind is like money shmoney, who cares if you can’t buy groceries this week LOL. I want to share some of my recent “senseless” purchases ;) Although they all greatly please me!

Since I have no sense and much sensibility and I buy things on whims I bought this little iron bird feeder! It was too cute to pass up. In the shop they had it filled with lavender! I am going to put some kind of potpourri in it eventually, probably a rose one :)

I had a gift card to J.C. Penny, which I hadn’t been to in years, and this wooden shabby thing that was on sale for $3.99. And we all know I can’t pass up a sale LOL. I consider it a freebie since it was a gift card!

I actually wanted a flower arrangement for a long time but I’m sure you all know they are expensive! this one was not bad. And it matched everything in my room perfectly. It really brightened up my room I highly recommend flowers in every room!

This came from Michaels. It’s a little pedestal with a nest and eggs and some roses all underneath a dome. It was cute and guess what else…on sale! haha.

Pier 1 has these little bird domes too. They are pretty cute :) And this wasn’t even on sale! No sense in that purchase except for that I wanted it! LOL So there we go. Did I really need all of these things-no. But did I want them-yes! Do I love them-yes! Ok money well spent even if I live on ramen and popcorn until my next paycheck haha.

So there is an awesome giveaway going on at Everything Esty. It's a tassel from The Nesting Place. You should all really take a look it is so awesome! Love tassels!

All the best everyone! I hope my post appealed to your sensibilities :) hehe.

Do you guys like this?

2009-04-23T01:35:00.001-07:00

I bought this at Target and I just don’t know if I like it. I am having a heck of a time finding one online though. They are all way expensive or way ugly or not what I’m looking for. This is $30 dollars and I like it but I don’t know if I love it. What do you guys think!? If you guys don’t love it I’m returning it LOL.

Check this cute little bottle out. I got it at Goodwill for a buck. It’s a little country and as you guys have seen my stuff isn’t really country but I don’t care I just think it’s the cutest thing. I think whoever owned it before stored crayons or colored pencils in it because there is red waxy kind of stuff inside the top of the rim. I can’t find a way to get it off. Any suggestions?

I am also participating today in Recipe Exchange Thursday hosted by Just a Gal. So randomly at midnight I am craving orange juice!

So I had this idea for a recipe to share! Who likes Orange Julius? ;) This is a homemade Orange Julius!

Morning Orange Drink

1 can (6 ounces) frozen orange juice

1 cup cold water

1 cup milk

1/3 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

10 ice cubes (or more)

Directions

Combine the first five ingredients in a blender; cover and process at high speed. Add ice cubes, a few at a time, blending until smooth. Pour into glasses; serve immediately.

4-6 servings

I’ve been making these for a long time but officially this recipe came from Readers Digest “Taste of Home: Winning Recipes” book. When I make it, it’s a little less uh…organized and more like eye balling ingredients LOL. So I wanted to give you guys an “official” version.

Enjoy everyone! Happy day!

Can you believe it? ... & a giveaway!

2009-04-22T11:17:00.001-07:00

UCSD bookstore is amazing. I can’t believe they have the things they do. You gotta see it.

Can you believe that you could buy all that at a college bookstore? Man I wish I could buy all of these things but they were all kind of expensive, too expensive for a college budget LOL. That white bird plate, the first one, is $15. That cute yellow water bottle with the bird cage, $8 and it’s so small! The bird cage plates $15. I just love the pillows they are linen I think… A lot of the stuff is gone already! I’m going to see what’s left over and on sale after Mother’s Day.

I also want to tell everyone about a giveaway! Going on over at A Girl's Gotta Nest. It looks really awesome! I hope everyone checks it out!

Hello Lovelies

2009-04-21T08:21:00.001-07:00

How is everyone today? I am tired, bored, and in class :( LOL. It’s ok though I have my friend Monica to keep me company. She won’t let me post a picture of her LOL. Hey everyone! Monica is French! Oui, she moved here 3 years ago from Paris and boy is she Frenchie LOL. In honor of Monica and Frenchiness I bring you…Marie!

Yay! I just got it, well Taylor got it for me :) It’s a lot different than I thought it’d be, it has a lot of tutorials for Marie inspired crafts. While we were book shopping I also found…

It’s called “New Cottage Style,” it’s pretty cute it goes through different cottage styles, European, American, Swedish, and..one other I can’t remember…maybe country…but it talks about how the style is changing and what things you can do for a more modern cottage. It was on sale (at Barnes and Noble) and you know I can’t pass up a sale :)

This pretty toile bin holds my Romantic Home magazines and a few others, now it will hold these :)

Holding books and magazines was not what I intended it for. I only bought it because it matched a basket I have from Peterboro Baskets. The liner is the same red and white toile. But until I find a better use for it, this is what it does. It was pretty exciting finding the bin it was at my local Marshall’s at school and there were two. I came back two weeks later they were still there. I went back a week later and there was one left. I went back another week later and the same one was now $2 cheaper… so I bought it LOL.

I looove toile :) Is anyone else enjoying their Marie? If I can I am going to do one or two of the projects inside and of course share. Has anyone else done any? All the best everyone!

A giveaway and new/old purties!

2009-04-20T00:47:00.001-07:00

Amanda at Imperfectly Beautiful is having a giveaway in honor of her store's grand opening! She makes great signs and things and you all should definitely check it out!

I also want to share with you guys today some other neat things I have come across :)

Oh I love clearance LOL. I got these recently from Marshall’s and they are shabby and wonderful. I really like the square one because it’s different and I don’t have any frames like it!

I’ve had this glass dome and stand from Marshall’s and I don’t know what to put in it. I am really at a loss LOL. Help!

These neat metal basket things came from Michaels. They are pretty cute they are meant to look like old postcards. The pictures are of the front and back, respectively. I am in the same dilemma though I don’t really know what to put in them.

They are thin openings only like an inch and a half wide and about 5 inches deep and maybe 7 inches long. I was thinking about using pretty “shred” in there and sticking out old ephemera, pictures, tags, or something like that. I would appreciate your ideas! All the best everyone :)

Pretty Little Thingies

2009-04-19T10:39:00.001-07:00

Well I have so much stuff now that I was running out of room for it all so I had to buy some kind of shelving thing to hold some of it. So for the first time I went to a Homegoods store. I have been to a T.J. Maxx/Homegoods, but never just the Homegoods one and it was awesome! I was like this is my second home! LOL So I found a great little metal ladder style shelving unit that is awesome! I also got a little metal stand for my birdcage and a teapot! My first one! So here it is, it’s painted grey and it’s about as tall as I am 5’4 LOL. Sorry I didn’t take a picture before I covered it with stuff LOL.

Here is the top of it.

This is the stand for the birdcage :) I should have taken a picture of the top which looks like a lattice weave. It is the perfect size for the birdcage. I was in a dilemma because I couldn’t hang the cage and I didn’t like it on my end table but I got an epiphany while shopping at Homegoods and came up with this LOL.

I don’t know if I ever showed you guys this before. I may have…This little metal bird dome and stand came from Marshall’s :) Yay. Well anyway here it is again, but new and improved because I got some of these cream and green speckled eggs and I think they look pretty good in there.

Here’s the teapot I didn’t even unwrap it yet LOL. I bought it because I loved the little bird on top. Ever since I have been looking at everyone else’s blog and all the birds I have really gotten into them. This teapot is a pretty cream color.

And I got this cool metal dome and stand thing. It’s the same color as the shelf. I put the nest from Pier 1 in it. I also got a smaller one just like it but I don’t know what to put it in so I haven’t set it out yet. Any ideas?

Well I have lots more to share with you but I’ll do it next time. All the best everyone!