Decorating

Another pink post

January 28, 2010 By Anne 47 Comments

I am the queen of shopping, just ask my husband. He’s given me the title, but he’s a bit biased. I should hesitate to accept, but I can’t help it. I love the title! It should come with a tiara that I can wear when I greet the UPS man.

So there I was last weekend, the “Queen of Shopping” cleaning out the garage. Now that we’ve cancelled the studio addition I’m left with a few things I’ve purchased with the addition in mind. Most of my purchases are really smart buys. Things on sale with a price so low I just couldn’t pass them up. It’s great fun to open up the boxes!

I asked my husband for some help. I innocently said, “Can you help me with that heavy box over in the corner”? Stupid move on my part. I forgot the number one rule; never let your husband open a purchase. Never. Open it in private, no matter how heavy, then hand him the empty box. Truth be told I couldn’t remember what was in the box.

So now the “queen of shopping” is left with the “purchase of the year”. The one thing I’ll never live down. The one thing I have no room for, a bright pink refrigerator. Not the “perfect’ Bunny Hill pink, but bright pink. Up to the studio my husband carried it, with me acting like it was the smartest thing I ever bought. “Put it right over there by my sewing machine” I said.

Hummm, so now what? It’s here, in the studio, until I can sneak it out when the Goodwill truck drives by. I’m almost tripping over it! At least I can use the top for storage, but what do you keep on the top of a pink refrigerator?

Wait! I think I may have found the perfect thing!

Chelsea likes it, and she likes her treats chilled! “It’s a good thing” as Martha would say. Bitsy isn’t impressed. She thinks the pink is too bright.

During the next week you’ll be seeing things change on my blog so please be patient with me. We’re still working on it, moving things around, trying to find a good fit. My blog isn’t moving again, just changing a bit more. We’ll be done soon, I promise.

Back soon,

Hugs,

Anne

Filed Under: Collections, Decorating, My Studio

A Passion for Door Knobs

August 7, 2009 By Anne 42 Comments

A passion for door knobs. Not just any door knob, how silly would that be? My passion is for glass door knobs. Old ones, of the vintage kind.

It started while rummaging through an antique store. There it was, just one. The light, reflecting off the glass, caught my eye. I fell in love with a door knob! Before I left that store I had a collection of two!

I brought them home, my collection of two. And what are you going to do with those, my hubby asks?

Well this week, several years later, I can answer him. I’ve been shopping on eBay! I’m going to have a collection. A real collection! One day I will think of something very creative. They will be used to hang curtains, towels, or something that will make you think I’m very smart…

But for now, they will reside in this glass jar…

With one knob placed just outside the jar …

…and maybe a bit of the old hardware close by…

I’ve created a vignette!

Can you see why I love them?

What’s your passion? What do you collect that I might need want to collect?

Anyone out there collect lambs? I do!

Don’t forget to enter Pat Sloan’s apron contest. I’ll be the judge on Sunday! Post that apron now! You could be the lucky winner!!!

Hugs,

Anne

Filed Under: Collections, Decorating

Most Creative, Helpful, Wonderful, Favorite Blog of 2008

December 31, 2008 By Anne 16 Comments

So here I am voting again, a committee of one. This time it’s for the most creative, HELPFUL, wonderful blog of 2008. Did you notice I put helpful in caps?

I found Angela at Cottage Magpie through blogging almost two years ago. I fell in love with her blog! It was one of those blogs that you check everyday, just waiting for a new post! It was at the time when we were just moving into our new house and I was buying furniture right and left trying to make my house a home. Of course those were the days of the good economy. Remember those?

I was determined not to have all white furniture and so I purchased some darker pieces (online believe it or not) to fill in. Well, when the dark dresser arrived I thought Ross (my DH) would have me committed! It was so dark it was almost black. We tried it in every room I could think of, including the dining room!

Out of desperation and to save my marriage, it finally ended up in the “pink” room and I told him not to worry I could work around it. The dresser weighs a TON and by this time he was so sick of moving it I was afraid it would end up on the front porch! So it found a home in the middle of a wall, and I tried to work around it…

So, now I’m getting to the Angela part…almost…

I brought in darker pictures and added them to the wall, I tired vintage china, bird houses, anything I could think of but I just couldn’t get an arrangement to balance with the dresser. And then I thought of Angela! If you send her a photo of a room you just can’t pull together, this talented, creative, lady will help for FREE! And so my relationship with Angela began…I emailed her with a photo asking for her help.

First she told me to gather anything I could think of both dark and light and arrange them as best I could. She needed to know the types of pieces she had to work with. So off I went to grab a hammer and a nail.

After trying and trying this was the best I could do, not bad but I still wasn’t happy. It looked out of balance. So Angela took over in Photoshop…

She played around with the picture and moved things here and there…Keep in mind this is all done in Photoshop, but it was like she was in the room with me!

She gave me several suggestions, like maybe add a mirror on the wall above the chair…

and finally…

… here is the end result, with one exception. We added crystal knobs to the dresser to “lighten” it up! The room is in perfect balance and I just love it. It’s our guest room so if you come to visit, this is where you’ll stay!

And the two little hearts you see in the first picture? Well those are now hanging from their new crystal knobs on the dresser. I’m too lazy to go down and take a new picture so you’ll have to “make do”.

And now you see why I love Cottage Magpie so much! She can help you too! Just check out her blog and you’ll see some rooms she has helped people with. Thank you Angela!

Happy New Year everyone! I wish you all the best of everything in 2009. I can’t thank you enough for reading my blog. You are all so appreciated! I’m taking the weekend to work on my unfinished projects that need to get done, but I’ll be back on January 5th. Hope you have a fun sewing weekend too!

Hugs,

Anne