Pink Pine Cones

A friend of mine is doing a series of photos of Victorian Christmas' through this whole month. It is "eye candy" for sure. So won't you please go visit her at Aunt May's Cottage.
~*~

Upon running into a friend at Costco the other day, she listened to me lament about pine cones not being available much in our area at the moment. She then told me she picked up a bag of good sized cones at Goodwill for me the previous day! Bless that chick's heart. She blessed me with this bag of them and I spent the afternoon outside in 20° weather painting them pink. This is after a spritzing of one heavy coat. Another coat or two and a "bit more froufrou" on them and they'll be ready for the pink and white Christmas tree.

And here they are after the final 2 coats. I put the paint on heavily since there could be no mistake. I mean, how can you mess up painting a pine cone, huh? Turned out gorgeous I think. Next, the froufrou ribbon and roses.

Ya know, it just might happen this year! ;-)

Fini, mes amis! Que pensez-vous? (Finished, my friends. What think you?)

And here they are all glittered up. I even sprayed the little roses. They really do glitter and sparkle!



The glue I used is a spray glue for glitter.

~*~

Random Thought:

While traveling recently I thought of something I've wanted to mention to you for some time now. I've traveled extensively in my car with a mug to refill at any gas station available. BUT several years ago I realized how we are at the mercy of the taste buds of the man who regulates the Coke machines. Sometimes it is very sweet (That's my favorite!) and sometimes it's very soda-y. So my taste is determined by that guy who probably drinks beer more than Coke??? Hmmmmph. Oooooooh, this applies to the restaurants also, chicks. I can feel a Revolution coming on!!!
~*~

Happy Birthday to ME on Pink Saturday!

Join all the participants on Beverly's Pink Saturday. Happy Pink Saturday to each and everyone one of you.
~*~

Today is my birthday and I've received special things to share with you. Vickie sent me these adorable cards, ephemera and a glittered pink "C" to hang in my other "C" over my bedroom dresser. She is an absolute doll who travels continuously! I swear Texas weeps when that woman leaves the state.

She even knew what kind of Wallies roses I have used in my office. Squeeeeeeeal...


I am so thankful I know this woman.


Isn't this adorable with the glitter "C"?


Then my sweet friend, Katie, sent me one of her spectacular paintings on a box on which she attached a handle because she knows I love to hang things around the house.



Then my friend, Bertie, sent me this little ceramic pot with vintage seam binding. Squeeeeealing with delight! You will want to go see her blog because she is featuring her 180+ years old farmhouse this week. It is truly spectacular to see what Bertie has done with that place. Just exquisite.
It is truly my pleasure to have known these women in my ebay group for 4 years now and some even longer. They lift me up and delight me each day with their caring and humor and stories of grandchildren and life. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart and I truly adore each and every one of you!
*

I've been sort of lazy the last several weeks and haven't done all I'd like to have gotten done but here is one thing I did do. I simply stuck a little print into a dollar frame I had painted and put a matte that I had painted from a hideous brown to a glorious blue and then Fun-Tac-ed it to the wall. Easy and fast. Just the way I like it!

Noooo, I have still not finished putting stuff back where it belongs because I just can't find places for it. You would NOT believe how many trips we've made to thrift stores giving things away. And there is still MORE! Anyway, some gals have emailed me asking how it was coming along so I photographed a few pictures to show you. Still haven't gotten the desired wall photo of the mantel and faux fireplace board but I'm getting there.

And lastly, this old stencilled towel I've had for about 20 years. I've used it for a painting rag but it hasn't even gotten thinner through all the years I've "cleaned" with it. Just goes to show you how long stenciling will last on a fabric. Plus the strength of that old fabric!

~*~

Random Thought:

You never want to stand between a woman who has just eaten a quarter of a watermelon and the toilet. Personal experience with Love Bunny..........

Shopping in San Francisco

My favorite place in the whole world to shop: San Francisco Union Square! It just doesn't get much better than this for regular normal people. Hah. I borrowed these from Mo with her permission because when we moved here from the Bay Area digital cameras were not on the market then and I was one of the worst photographers ever. My skills have improved greatly since then! So thank you to Mo and a gift is making its way to her door as we speak!

This is standing on one corner looking at the Westin St. Francis Hotel. I love to dine here. They have a few dining rooms at which to eat and we've eaten at each one I think. But the one I love most is right inside the entrance. They have sofas at some of the tables in the middle of the room, not those banquettes along the walls. Very elegant. And the staff is exceptional.

We took a friend's teenager back with us one year for the holidays because she was struggling in the small Idaho town we were in at that time. She was mesmerized! She couldn't believe such a place existed. She then looked at me as we were reading the menu in the front of the restaurant and said, "Connie, you're going to have to translate the menu for me because I don't understand a word of it." I did because it was all in french.

Neiman-Marcus. Wheat else can I say. The last time I was in here several years ago I was in the linen department and looking at some pure linen sheets. One sheet - not a set, but just one sheet - was $400.00. I've never slept on pure Irish linen sheets and at that price I'm probably not going to if Love Bunny has his say about it. I'm sure the sheets must last a lifetime though as linen is a very sturdy fabric. (He isn't buying that one, chicks! Hah) One of the most elegant stores I've been in outside of Hollywood's Rodeo Drive.

My favorite store in the whole world - Macy*s! I've been in many of them but this one on Union Square has 4 floors I believe and a basement. Dining is a real treat as the food is superb. But if you can't find it here then it probably doesn't exist in the world. And when they have a sale, it's a sale! I once bought an $80 blouse (this was 25 years ago) for $10.00. This place wants to move their merchandise, ladies! Wonderful place to shop, just fantastic!!!!

The Westin St. Francis up close. I cannot tell you how gracious the staff is in this hote. They see to your every need with the utmost care.

Nordstroms. I love their shoes. They originally started out as a shoe store in Seattle and then expanded. The S.F. store was put in about mid 1980s I believe and when we went in there you gasped it was so lovely. Glass escalators - which actually was a bit frightening to me because of the heights. I cannot begin to describe the beauty of this store. It kind of feels like you're in a gold mine with all the gold and glitter. And the employees are very attentive to your every whim. You do NOT need to ask for help; they're right there helping you. Their staff is also as exceptional as the St. Francis.

Vignettes Can Be a Lot of Different Things

People think vignettes have to be a book and a vase of roses or something similar. Not necessarily true, chicks, although that can be quite stunning and original if taken the time to think it out "creatively." It can be anything you want it to be as long as you assemble items in one particular space - a little space with items that evoke emotion is what works best for me. Something pleasing to the eye. I've gone around my home and just photographed some little descriptive vignettes to show as examples.

A pedestal rose plate with bars of fragrant soaps - some hand painted - and some little fizzie bath hearts given to me. They are absolutely sweet smelling and fragrance my guest bathroom.

A stack of white towels in a little pink wire basket. They are in there for guest's immediate pleasure and convenience so as not to have to go rummaging around underneath the cabinets. Just a thought to the comfort of my guests and family. ;-) I have a friend with a teenage boy who is meticulous in his personal grooming and will not use a towel after someone else. So I decided to do this with him in mind. Always a fresh and scented one for that young man. He steals my heart with being so well groomed.

Some little birdhouses on my mantel - one I made and three my friend, Rhea, made. Hers are stunning and I have a lot of items from her - so many, in fact, that I may have to dedicate a room to her! ;-)

Some old vintage rusty finials on my mantel also. I love the patina and rust of these old iron objects. These don't have much verdigris on them but I especially love the verdigris on old copper objects. And, of course, the proverbial "rose" to add to their beauty. If you knew how many roses I have in this house you'd faint. I have several hundred ribbon roses, many silk roses, dozens of paper roses, millinery roses and porcelain roses. I should call this the Rose House. Well, actually some of my friends do call it that.

Starfish that I spray painted pink and sprinkled on german glass glitter. I just love the look of them on the mantle. I love "fluff" everywhere I can arrange to have it.

Even my craft paints and paint swatches from a paint store can be a vignette when arranged on a vintage old shelf with snippets of leftover lace tacked on the shelf. I think you'll have to agree it adds "color" to the place!

As simple as some vintage salt and pepper shakers painted pink and set on the shelf with paints.

Even little sachets scented with fragrance oils lined along another shelf can add not only beauty but a wonderful scent to enjoy in any room. Yes, I actually do this in every single room - living room, family room, baths, office, bedroom......every room. And these certainly add beauty to the room.

And then there are the tops of book cases that aren't really conducive to hold actual book on the top so I just put some vintage sewing drawers with CDs or DVDs in them and little boxes I've tried selling but didn't. So buyers loss is my room's gain! LOL

One of my favorite vignettes is artist paint brushes. I just love seeing all the brushes in a pretty vase or container. These are mine and I would NOT call my self an artist. I call myself a BEGINNER!! ;-)

I have a bowl on my coffee table that has some pink sea shells (I painted them pink) and I love the juxtaposition of them with the roses and faux desserts I have on there. This one below is not in my home but I think it's stunning. Just simple everyday things gathered together in one spot for a lovely vignette. Rocks in a vintage yellow bowl, starfish and old ephemera.

The roses, sea shells, starfish, a wicker basket leaning against a wall, attractive statues, a container of nails and a plate of fruit.

I liked this room when I first saw it and was drawn back to it because of the table vignette near the dormer. I also stack pictures on the floor leaning up against a baseboard. I just love the look of "high" and "low" pictures. Most people hang their pictures too high on a wall. That's fine if there are other pictures below it but the room looks out of whack if all pictures are at one level in a room and that level is 6 feet up the wall. Lower your pictures so that the lowest part of the frame is no more than 46 - 48" from the floor. It will make quite a cozy difference in the look.

Crafting Today

Love Bunny made a decorating suggestion. Yesssssss, he did!! Now, he truly could not care any less about how I decorate his castle. That is NOT an exaggeration. He truly doesn't as long as it makes me happy. That's his aim in life - to make me happy because when mom's happy everybody's happy. :-) Anyway, he thought the print over the sofa that I got (see it here), should go over the new mantel. And I agree with him! Sooooooo since I'm kind of in limbo today about doing anything but getting ready for our camping trip for the labor day weekend (yes, I'll take my camera so you all can see the Sawtooth Mountains of Idaho - gorgeous) I thought I'd do something creative for ME!

So I didn't have anything to do except craft. I got this little vintage drawer at a yard sale about 5 or 6 years ago and haven't done anything with it yet. So I've decided that it should go over the sofa.......with a bit of frou frou-ing up, of course. This is the inside (front). I've put little hangers on the back as you can see in a couple of the photos.

I've gotten this far using snippets of vintage laces, trims and roses tacks.

I also thought of doing this little bottle rack. It had 8 bottles when I bought it and sold 4 of them because it was a bit difficult trying to get the lower bottles in and out. So I sold them separately and put a little pizzazz on the bottom shelf and the other 4 bottles on the top. I'll be selling this on my selling blog, la maison rose, so you might want to check it out if interested at all.

My Shabby Birdhouses - Revisited

Someone recently wanted to see my birdhouses and I just didn't feel like doing it but today I do. I'm not sure these are all of them; I might have one or two missing that I gave away but this is pretty much it. I love doing these more than anything in the world, but they didn't sell well for me. Maybe this will spark some interest! Who knows? But I'll continue to make them with the fabulous roses fabrics. I love the ones with icing the most I think. But it is the fabrics that make them so pretty. Only one has my painted roses on it. But they have rhinestones, pearls, ribbons, porcelain roses also, ribbon roses, "frosting or icing on some, silk flowers, lace, mica on the roof of one of them, german glass glitter on one or two and, of course, little birds in their nests.