Bella Rustica 2012

Anyone going to Bella Rustica?  I can't NOT go.  It's only about an hour or so from me and it looks like a whole lot of vintage goodness.

If you don't know about Bella Rustica, check it out here:  www.bellarustica.org   It's being held in Pulaski, Tennessee, this weekend at the Milky Way Farm.  Donna from Funky Junk Interiors is coming to do several workshops during the three day event.  Many other bloggers will be there as well.

I know Polly from Blackberry House (formerly Make Mine Beautiful) will be there with loads of her beautifully painted furniture pieces as well as other items.

I'll be there wandering the rows, probably drooling over so many things I wish I could bring home with me.  If you're attending, leave a comment.  I'd love to meet fellow bloggers.  I'm sure I'll recognize many by face from their blogs.

Hurry if you're wanting to go.  I believe tickets are only available until tomorrow night.  I'm not sure that they will be selling them at the gate.  Proceeds are going to Agape in Nashville, Tennessee.

Thanks for taking time from your busy day to visit!
God bless!

Angie

Antiquing Fun

Monday was spent antiquing in Woodbury, Tennessee.  Quaint little town about an hour outside of Nashville.  I have found that the farther off of the main roads and search out the antique stores on the back roads, you'll usually find better prices : )

There is one store in particular that I love to visit...The Old Feed Store.

Oh the goodies I've found on this porch!

Look at these windows and boxes and bottles!  I love the aqua colored insulators but need to find a great idea to use them for.

I want this!!  I just don't need it...boo.  Doesn't this just scream for chalk paint?

Ok, now, take a look at the price tag.

$65!!  Complete!  

Wow, I really want this bed but my three girls all have nice beds so there's not a good reason to buy it. AND, I really don't need another project right now...at least not one this size.

So, what did I buy?  Take a look.

Adorable vintage sailor's hats from WWII.  These are called Cracker Jacks from the boxed candy character.  They're going my Etsy shop.  I think they would be adorable in a boys room or a coastal theme room or even for a patriotic holiday!

Vintage brass stencils.  These will be great on the mantel during the holidays.  There were others but I chose the letters that would spell JOY.  The stencils are in my Etsy shop too.

Well, I hope you enjoyed the visit.  I appreciate your spending time from your day to stop by.

God bless!
Angie

Happy 4th of July!

I hope you all are enjoying our nation's birthday and celebrating the freedom we have because SO many fought to make it so.

My family will be meeting up with friends this evening to tailgate and watch our city's fireworks display.  Until then, I wanted to share a little project I created last week for the 4th.

Corrugated metal flag

Let me show you how.

I began with a discarded, rusty sheet of corrugated metal.  This was left behind the shed by the previous owners.  I'm sure they didn't expect me to view it as a treasure : )

Discarded metal treasure!

I decided to paint the flag on the other side since it had the nice, rusty spots.

I taped off an area for the field of blue and the red stripes.  For the white stripes, I left it the natural aged silver of the metal.

To add the stars, I had several thoughts.

First, I wished I had taped off stars BEFORE the blue paint so that the stars would have been the aged silver metal.

Too late.

Second, I ransacked my rubber stamp collection looking for a star stamp that I was sure I had.

I didn't.

Third, cut a stencil of a star out of contact paper...and pour myself a glass of wine.

Winner!

The next step went a lot faster than I had expected.  Or, maybe it was the wine : )

I used simple white acrylic craft paint as I hope it fades to match the aged look of the metal.

So, once the stars were painted, the only thing left to do was cut the extra length off.

Hubby graciously offered to cut it for me.

He's great that way.

Only...he didn't do it right away : (

So, here it stood.  In my driveway.  For days.

In passing a few days later, I asked him what he was going to cut it with.  He answered tin snips...then went back into his manland.

Hmmmm.

Tin snips.

Surely, I can at least attempt this.  Lord, please don't let me cut myself too badly...like ER badly.

I found the tin snips and proceeded to make the first cut.

Really?!  Who knew?!  Those things cut through that metal like "budda"!!

It took me like all of 1 minute to cut!

I could have done this DAYS ago!

My hubby really is great.  It's just that his schedule is not the same as my schedule.

My schedule is immediate!  Like yesterday!

I've got projects to conquer!  Thrift stores to rummage through!  And life stuff to do!

So, having taken all of one minute (and a few days) to finish the metal flag, here she is hanging above the door to our shed.

Honestly, I did not add those sunbeams shining down.  I think the angels were singing the Hallelujah chorus because it was finished and hung!

Sadly, the flowers that were planted in the window boxes have all but died because of the heat.  We desperately need rain here in the Middle Tennessee area.

Rusty makes me happy

Oh yeah, don't count the stars and stripes.  I didn't quite make room for 50 stars and 13 stripes.  Or maybe it was the wine.  Good thing it's just for my shed and not the White House.

I hope you all enjoy your holiday with family and friends.  Be safe and thanks for taking time out of your day to visit!

Angie

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Vintage Cabinet for the Kitchen

A few weeks ago I posted about my plate rack that hangs on the wall in my kitchen.  You can read about it here.  The plate rack wasn't doing it for me.  I wanted a bigger, more substantial piece to fill that spot on the wall.  I searched Craigslist for months looking.  Nothing, or at least nothing in my price range.  Until yesterday...well, I didn't find it on Craigslist but I did find something at one of my favorite thrift stores.

It's a vintage cabinet that I assume went to the top of a desk or buffet.  At first glance, I thought it was antique because of the skeleton key lock, flat head screws, nails, beautiful wood, and craftsmanship.  The sticker on the back read Otto Uthman, Cabinetmaker, Nashville, TN.  I researched to find that Mr. Uthman handcrafted reproductions of fine antiques during the 1950s.

Well, I can say, he did a great job.  The piece is beautiful.    Notice the notched shelf brackets on the inside.  It came with three adjustable shelves.  You simply move the wooden bracket into the height that you need...love it!  I don't know my woods or I could tell you what it's made from.  Anyone know?

It included the fringe tassel as well as the original skeleton key.  Bonus!  I may remove the tassel but I left it on for now.

Since I didn't have a buffet to put it on, I added hanging brackets to the back and hung it on the wall above my bamboo table.  I've begun to add ironstone and pewter pieces inside but considering the fact that I was responsible for the securing and hanging of this piece, I won't be adding too much weight!

Oh wait!  I haven't told you the best part...the price!

It had just been donated and wasn't tagged.  I asked the nice man how much they were going to put on the cabinet.  He looked it over and said, "$29.99 plus it's 75% off day on furniture so, whatever that is."  I was quickly dividing $30 in half and in half again...$7.50!?!  "I'll take it...now!"

I told you it was one of my favorite thrift stores! : )

By the way, the bamboo table under the cabinet that holds all the liquor that makes it appear we have a drinking problem...Craigslist find.  Fifteen bucks!  I love CL as well.  And, no, we don't have a drinking problem.  I do like an occasional margarita but the vodka was used for a homemade blackberry liquor and I just had that leftover.  Really!

Oh, and the picnic baskets stacked under the table are, of course, thrift store finds.

I love baskets...lots and lots of baskets.

I'm sure my husband doesn't.

He loves me anyway.

And, as a preview for tomorrow's holiday, a project I just completed.  Be sure to check back on the 4th.

Thanks for taking time from your day to stop by!  God bless!
Angie

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Highlight Reels vs. Behind the Scenes

The other day I was listening to the radio while driving into town.  The DJ on our local Christian radio station made a comment that really stuck with me.  He said, "Don't compare someone else's highlight reel with your behind the scenes footage."

I have to confess with all the wonderful blogs and decorating ideas available on the internet, I sometimes get caught up in the appearance of someone's kitchen or their family room or a great patio area.  It's hard not to look up from the computer screen and be content with what I see before me...less than shiny windows, dust on the ceiling fan, shoes carelessly left in the floor of the living room, personal belongings laying on the couch, forgotten projects once begun with motivation now sitting lackluster half finished.

I know the houses I see online are not always photo perfect.  But, without seeing their behind the scenes footage and ALWAYS seeing mine, it's easy to forget and unfairly compare those photos to my own home.

I love my house.  It's not perfect.  The floorplan is terrible but it works for us...for now.

So, having said all of that, I wanted to post some normal pictures of a few rooms in my house.  A somewhat typical day...not ready for any magazine shoot but certainly not having experienced a tornado of teenagers either.  Just normal.  (Please excuse the terrible lighting.  I'm still using my Iphone camera because it's so quick and easy to post from.  Someday soon, I hope to have my daughter take some great pics with her Canon Rebel.)

The living room (our main hangout).  Backpack ready for this weekend's camping trip.  One of our three lazy (and smelly) dogs taking his afternoon nap.  Wii board in the floor along with a host of Wii remotes and CDs on the mantel.  Not too bad but, of course, you can't see the dust and dog hair that I can : )

The dining room/office/craft room.  This room had a pretty thorough purging a few weeks ago.  There are still projects sitting around, Etsy items for my store, dishes from my Spring decorating waiting to find an off-season home.  I'm hoping to turn this room into a library for my younger two girls that are still homeschooling.  We've always done most of our school at the kitchen table.

The kitchen...unusually free of dishes in the sink.  (Two of my three daughters have been away this week.  I can't believe how few dishes we've used with two less people in the house.)  Lots of things sitting out on the counters.  I'd prefer they were put away but, truth be told, it's just more convenient when they are out.  

Lastly, the kitchen table.  The catch-all, do-all center of our home.  Just a few hours earlier, it was covered with my youngest's items for her trip, a bunch of paint and brushes from the painting I was doing.  Now there's just my purse, Sonic cup, and a 1X12 plank that I hope to someday  use to replace the top of this table.  Another project awaiting its turn.

So, there you have it.  Just an ordinary day, no special props or staging.  It's neither a page from a magazine nor is it pristine or spotless.  

Now, I'm in no way saying that there is anything wrong with a picture perfect house.  I think it's what we all strive for.  I just wanted to remind us all that we have homes that we live in day in and day out...normal looking, lived in homes.  Don't defeat yourself like I have done by comparing your home to those in the glossy pages of a magazine.  

Thanks for taking time from your busy life to visit me.  God bless!